Ulundi, also known as Mahlabathini is a town in the Zululand District Municipality. At one time the capital of Zululand in South Africa and later the capital of the Bantustan of KwaZulu, Ulundi now lies in KwaZulu-Natal Province (of which, from 1994 to 2004, it alternated with Pietermaritzburg as the provincial capital). The town now includes Ulundi Airport, a three-star hotel, and some museums amongst its sights. In the 2001 Census, the population of the town was recorded as 18,420.When Cetshwayo became king of the Zulus on 1 September 1873, he created, as was customary, a new capital for the nation, naming it "uluNdi" ("The high place"). On 4 July 1879, in the Battle of Ulundi (the final battle of the Anglo-Zulu War), the British army captured the royal kraal and razed it to the ground.Nearby is Ondini, where King Mpande, Cetshwayo's father, had his kraal. A large Zulu hut now is on the site.ClimateKöppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as humid subtropical (Cfa). It is rainier in the warmer months.
