Matsulu is a township in the the City of Mbombela Local Municipality under the Ehlanzeni District Municipality in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa.
Matsulu township lies between Kruger National Park and the N4 National Route 41 km east of Mbombela (previously known as Nelspruit), 3 km before the Kaapmuiden train station. It is also flanked by the Crocodile River on the south and the Nsikazi River on the east.
The township is divided into three sections: Matsulu-A, Matsulu-B and Matsulu-C.
History
The township was established in the 1970s. Its existence came to be when African natives were forcefully removed from the nearby lands to form sugarcane plantations then relocated to the land which now forms Matsulu Township. It is alleged that the area was named after a resident who had informally settled there prior to the forced allocation; the name of the resident was Matsulu.
From the 1970s to 1994 the township was administrated by the now defunct KaNgwane District Bantustan. It played a major role as an official residency for Members of Parliament (KaNgwane District Bantustan).
Like many South African townships, Matsulu was embroiled in Apartheid-era violence during the 1980s and the early ’90s. In 1994 the administration of the township was handed over to the then Greater Nelspruit City Council, ending the Bantustan administration.
