Thaba Bosiu, the Mountain That Grows at Night
Lesotho's founding king held a flat-topped mountain that no army could take. The Basotho say it grows at night.
What was reported
Thaba Bosiu, 'the mountain at night', is a sandstone plateau near Maseru. In 1824, King Moshoeshoe I made it his stronghold, and over the next decades it held out against attacks by neighbouring peoples, the Boers and the British. It was never taken by force.
Basotho tradition says that at night the mountain grows, rising so high that any enemy climbing it in the dark can never reach the top. Moshoeshoe is buried on its summit.
Explanations offered
The plateau's sheer cliffs could only be climbed by a few narrow passes, which a small force could hold, and the top had springs and grazing to withstand a siege. The legend of the growing mountain may come from its name, given because Moshoeshoe's people first arrived there at night.
- When
- Since the 1820s
- Where
- Thaba Bosiu, Maseru, Lesotho
- Witnesses
- Basotho tradition
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.