Beatrice, Zimbabwe

Beatrice is a farming community in the province of Mashonaland East, Zimbabwe. It is located about 54 km south-west of Harare on the main Harare–Masvingo road where it crosses the Mupfure River. According to the 1982 Population Census, the village had a population of 1,300.[1]

Beatrice
Beatrice
Coordinates: 18°16′S 30°52′E
CountryZimbabwe
ProvinceMashonaland East
Population
 (1982)
 • Total1,300
 estimated
Time zoneUTC+2 (CAT)

The village was named after the Beatrice gold mine, around which it grew. The mine was in operation from 1895 to 1945 and was named after Beatrice Borrow, the sister of Lieutenant Henry J. Borrow, a member of the Pioneer Column. The original Beatrice Mine was pegged by Frank Johnson & Company, Henry J. Borrow being a partner of the firm.[1] It was extremely lucrative, with a gold vein over a metre wide that yielded over five ounces (150 g) of gold per tonne when operations began in 1895. The European settlers also established Beatrice Farm, a large ranch that may have been populated with cattle which they had looted from the Ndebele.[2] Gold is still mined at the Joyce Mine nearby. Mixed farming and dairy farming take place in the surrounding area.[1]

In March 2009, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's vehicle was involved in an accident which led to the death of his wife, Susan, on the Harare–Masvingo road near Beatrice. She was taken to a hospital in Beatrice where she was pronounced dead.[3]

The area gained further notoriety in August 2011, when a fire broke out at Alamein Farm, a 5000-hectare property which had been requisitioned from the owner in 2003 by retired General Solomon Mujuru and his wife, Vice-President of Zimbabwe, Joice Mujuru.[4] The General and another officially unidentified person died in circumstances that many commentators suggest were suspicious.[5][6]

References
  1. Encyclopedia Zimbabwe (2nd ed.). Worcester: Arlington Business Corporation. 1989. ISBN 0-9514505-0-6.
  2. "The Struggle For Land in Zimbabwe (1890 – 2010).....from battle loot to gold exploitation". The Patriot. Zimbabwe. 28 July 2016.
  3. "Zimbabwe PM's wife dies in crash". BBC. 6 March 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  4. "Evicted farmer sues for return of £2m assets". Daily Telegraph. 24 December 2001.
  5. "Securocrats, Candles and a raging dictatorship". Mail & Guardian. Johannesburg. 21 August 2011.
  6. "Mujuru death no accident". The Times. Johannesburg. 21 August 2011.
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