Many commercial, land, and mining concessions in Swaziland have been granted to British and Boer settlers, leading to further loss of Swazi territory to the South African Republic.

The result is that a substantial Swazi population has ended up residing outside Swaziland in South Africa.

The Pretoria Convention for the Settlement of the Transvaal in 1881 recognizes the independence of Swaziland and defines its boundaries.

The Ngwenyama is not a signatory, and the Swazi claim that their territory extends in all directions from the present state.