Kalene Hill
| Kalene Hill | |
|---|---|
 Kalene Hill
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| Coordinates: 11°10′03″S 24°10′59″E / 11.167371°S 24.183054°ECoordinates: 11°10′03″S 24°10′59″E / 11.167371°S 24.183054°E | |
| Country | Zambia |
| Province | North-Western |
| District | Ikelenge District |
| Climate | Cwa |
Kalene Hill is a community in the northwest of Zambia near a hill by the same name about 2 miles (3.2 km) to the southeast. Kalene Hill was the site of an early medical mission. The hospital is still important to the region.
The Kalene hill is a low ridge of Karoo sandstone. It lies in Lunda territory. Local tradition says that a chief created it when he found his way was blocked by a huge swamp. The chief called on his ancestral spirits and dropped magic powder along the route he wanted to take. Dry land broke up from the marsh and formed the long hill of today.
The hill is close to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the north and Angola to the west. At 5,000 feet (1,500 m) the hilltop is often cool. From the summit one can see far into Angola and the DRC. The Zambezi has its source near Kalene Hill at an elevation of about 1,460 metres (4,790 ft). To the west of the hill the land falls away steeply to the headwaters of the Zambezi River, where there is the Zengamina hydroelectric power generation plant.
In the 1880s Kalene Hill was an important slave trading center, where Ovimbundu slavers came to deal with Ndembu headmen. In 1884 the Plymouth Brethren missionary Frederick Stanley Arnot traveled through the region and identified the source of the Zambezi. He considered that Kalene Hill would be a particularly suitable place for a mission, since he thought the cool breezes would keep it relatively free of malaria-carrying mosquitoes. In 1905 the medical missionary Walter Fisher, who had accompanied Arnot on a later visit to Africa in 1889, established a hospital at Kalene Hill. The Fishers had left a well-established mission deep in Angola. Dr. Walter Fisher and his wife Anna founded the Kalene Hill station at the summit of the hill. At that time, all household and medical supplies had to be carried in by porters from the coast, a two-month journey.
The original hospital was built using the traditional Angolan method of making bricks from baked anthill. The ruins are still in existence. The Fishers brought ample supplies of cloth, beads, iron tools and utensils. In exchange for these, they had no difficulty hiring labour and construction proceeded fast. A serious incident occurred during the cold, dry season, when temperatures at night often dipped below the freezing point. One night a spark from the fire in the kitchen the grass roof alight. The fire spread and destroyed all of the Fishers' trade goods, medical supplies and personal possessions. Fortunately, local Europeans quickly made good the damage and more help arrived from overseas. Fisher's prestige was enhanced in the eyes of the local people by the huge tribute that he had received from distant parts.
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Wikipedia