Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted in 1968.

Student and labor unrest during the 1990s pressured King MSWATI III, the world’s last ruling monarch, to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy, although he has backslid on these promises in recent years.

Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana as the country with the world’s highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection.