31/05/2026
๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ซ. ๐๐จ๐๐๐ฒ, ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ญ๐. ๐
On this day in 1926, the formal proclamation of Kruger National Park transformed earlier game reserves into South Africaโs first national park โ and one of the greatest conservation stories on Earth began.
South African National Parks
SANParks Honorary Rangers
At ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, this centenary has been close to our hearts since our very first issue. Our expert contributor ๐๐จ๐๐ฉ ๐๐ญ๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ฌ has been sharing his deep knowledge of the Lowveld across every edition of the magazine โ and this year, he dedicated a landmark ๐-๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ฌ to the Centenary, spanning our ๐๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐๐ซ, ๐๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐๐ issues. Together, the series traces 100 years of wilderness, wildlife, and the people who have guarded this extraordinary landscape.
Held under the theme โ๐๐ช๐ง ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐๐, ๐๐ช๐ง ๐๐ช๐ฉ๐ช๐ง๐โ, the centenary commemorations reflect on a century of conservation leadership, biodiversity protection, scientific progress, and shared heritage.
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To our readers, members and followers โ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐จ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ซ. Join the celebrations, share your Kruger memories, and help us honour 100 years of wildness worth protecting.
๐จ The founding of the Kruger National Park traces back to the proclamation of the Sabie
Game Reserve in 1898 under President Paul Kruger. Early conservation pioneers including James Stevenson-Hamilton and Harry Wolhuter played a decisive role in protecting wildlife populations during a period of extensive hunting and frontier expansion.
