Middelburg was established as Nasareth, (root from dry land), in 1864 by the Voortrekkers on the banks of the Klein Olifants River. The name was changed in 1872 to Middelburg to mark its situation midway between the Transvaal capital Pretoria and the goldmining town of Lydenburg. A Dutch Reformed Church was built in 1890 and became a focal point in the area. The British built a largeconcentration camp in Middelburg during the Second Boer War. The Memorial Museum was built at the site next to the 1,381 graves of women and children died here
