Shaka Zulu’s Rise From Unwanted Illegitimate Son, To Great Zulu Warrior King — by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
He is Shaka the unshakeable,
Thunderer-while-sitting, son of Menzi
He is the bird that preys on other birds,
The battle-axe that excels over other battle-axes in sharpness,
He is the long-strided pursuer, son of Ndaba,
Who pursued the sun and the moon.
He is the great hubbub like the rocks of Nkandla
Where elephants take shelter
When the heavens frown…
Traditional Zulu praise song, English translation by Ezekiel Mphahlele
Shaka kaSenzangakhona (1787 – 1828), better known worldwide as Shaka Zulu (also spelled Chaka or Tshaka), was one of the most influential monarchs of the Zulu Kingdom. Shaka Zulu made his mark in history as a great warrior king in what today is the Republic of South Africa. Shaka was born in July 1787 (in the Zulu lunar month of uNtulikazi ) near the present-day small town of Melmoth, KwaZulu-Natal Province.
I first heard of Shaka Zulu when as a kid the Shaka Zulu mini-series aired on TV and my parent’s debated if it was appropriate for someone my age to watch it, as it was both violent and contained scenes of nudity. My parents ultimately decided I could watch it, with adult supervision. Watching the series helped to build my facilitation with African history. After watching Shaka Zulu on TV and then on my own reading more about the history of Southern Africa lead me to greater awareness of the Apartheid regime in South Africa (reggae music also educated me as well). On a personal note my early anti-apartheid activities as a high-schooler was the start of my political activism.
Shaka Zulu was birth name was actually Sgidi kaSenzangakhona. Historical records indicates that he was conceived by a process called ukuhlobonga, a sexual act between an unmarried couple where penetration does not occur. His father, Senzangakhona, was one of a number rulers of a then insignificant small chiefdom, known as the Zulu. The Zulu’s at this time were a relatively small community. Shaka’s mother’s name was Nandi. Nandi was the daughter of a chief of another tribe the Langeni . Young Shaka was stigmatized from birth as an illegitimate son (its postulated that anger from this fueled much of his later rise and cruelty). Shaka’s father Senzangakhona repeatedly tried to deny any responsibility for Nandi’s pregnancy but eventually relented and installed her as his third wife. As Shaka was growing up on his father’s homestead, he preferred the name Sgidi to Shaka. He later said Sgidi was a reference to his illegitimacy, and reminded him that he rose from nothing.
Artist rendition of Shaka beside his mother Nandi
Shaka’s parent’s marriage was tumultuous from the start and eventually his father Senzangakhona drove Shaka’s mother and her only child out of his homestead, and they moved to his mother Nandi’s community of Mthetwa. Here, growing up as a fatherless child, Shaka seems to have been the victim of cruel treatment and humiliation by the Langeni boys. At that time there were two strong rival groups, the Mthethwa led by the paramount chief Dingiswayo, and the Ndwandwe under the ferocious Zwide. Shaka was taken to the Mthethwa people, where he stayed in the home of Nandi's aunt. But Shaka again suffered from the bullying and teasing of the Mthethwa boys, who resented his claims to be of chiefly descent. Young Shaka was ridicule and called “fatherless”. To try and overcome the stigma of his illegitimate birth, Shaka asked and was initiated into an ibutho lempi (fighting unit).
Another reason the Mthetwa people constantly tormented him, was that Shaka allegedly spoke with a stutter. But then the Dingiswayo, the paramount chief of the area, impressed by the burgeoning young warrior aptitude decided to start mentored the boy. Shaka thus grew up in the court of a Dingiswayo, who welcomed developing young warriors.
As he grew to manhood, Shaka began to discover new talents and skills. He grew tall and powerfully built, and his skill and daring gave him a natural mastery over the other youths in his age group. At this point he also seemed to develop the thirst for power that would make him a future King. When Shaka was 23, Dingiswayo called up Shaka’s Dletsheni age group for military service. For the next six years, he served brilliantly as a warrior of the Mthethwa Empire. With Shaka’s thirst for power, his intelligence, and martial prowess he quickly rose up the regiment’s ranks.
Assegai Spear With Long Shaft
When Shaka’s father, Senzangakhona died in 1816, Shaka’s half-brother Sigujana first took over as the chief of the Zulu. By this time Shaka’s military acumen had made him paramount chief Dingiswayo ’s favorite, as he had earned the paramount chief respect. Dingiswayo released Shaka from military service and sent him to take over the Zulu, which at this time probably numbered fewer than 1,500, occupying an area on the White Umfolozi River. They were among the smallest of the more than 800 Eastern Nguni–Bantu clans, but from the day of Shaka’s arrival they commenced their march to greatness. Shaka ruled with an iron hand from the outset, meting out instant death for the slightest opposition.
Upon gaining chiefdom, Shaka’s first act was to reorganize the army. Like all the other clans in Southern Africa, the Zulu were armed with ox-hide shields and spindly throwing spears. Battles in Southern Africa tended to be brief and relatively bloodless clashes in which the outnumbered side prudently gave way before extensive casualties occurred, and village elders then negotiated terms. Shaka’s troops changed this dynamic forever.
Shaka first rearmed his men with long-bladed, short-hafted stabbing assegais, which enabled them to fight at close quarters. Next the Zulu chief instituted a regimented system based on grouping like age-groups quartered in separate kraals (villages). These separate groups were distinguished by both uniform markings on their shields and by similar combinations of headdresses and ornaments. With his new lethally and organized shock troops, and backed by the head chief, Shaka conquered and assimilated the neighboring areas, including the Lengeni, who had infamously teased him in his childhood.
While he was on one such crusade of enacting revenge on his childhood tormentors, Shaka’s great mentor Dingiswayo, was killed by a rival clan leader named Zwide. Shaka upon his return and hearing the news was overcome with grief and anger. Shaka swore to avenge Dingiswayo death.
It took Shaka nearly seven years to meet and destroy Zwide’s army, in a conflict is considered the first Zulu Civil War. Zwide tried at first to evade direct conflict with Shaka’s superior warriors. But utilizing his infamous cruel streak, Shaka forced the issue by capturing and brutally killed Zwide’s mother. Shaka locked her up in a hut with jackals and hyenas which attacked her, and then he burning down the hut. Zwide then tried to directly confront Shaka, and he and his soldiers were cut down to the last man.
Statue of Shaka in Zulu land — created after his death as no paintings were made of him during his life
With the death of Zwide, Shaka became the unrivaled Zulu king. Shaka’s reign saw the expansion of his kingdom, as smaller chiefdoms would surrender to his rule or be forcibly destroyed and conquered. The chiefdoms that surrendered were then overseen by either the reigning chief or a relative specifically selected by Shaka.
As Shaka became more respected by his people, he was able to spread his militant ideas. Shaka the fierce soldier ingrained in the Zulus that the most effective way of becoming powerful was by conquering and controlling other tribes. His teachings greatly influenced the social outlook of the Zulu people. The former pastoral Zulu tribe soon developed a warrior outlook, which Shaka turned to his advantage.
Shaka's Zulu rule was primarily based on military might, as he smashed rivals and then absorbed the scattered surviving remnants into his own army. But the Zulu king also supplemented his militancy with a mixture of both diplomacy and patronage. Shaka incorporated friendly chieftains, including the Zihlandlo and the Mathubane with subtler tactics and bribes. When confronted by the powerful former “alpha” ruling Qwabe tribe, Shaka convinced them to just re-invent their genealogies whole-clothe to give the impression that Qwabe and Zulu were closely related, creating a tribal union
This map illustrates the rise of the Zulu Empire under Shaka (1816–1828) in present-day South Africa. The rise of the Zulu Empire under Shaka forced other chiefdoms and clans to flee across a wide area of southern Africa.
Although the Zulu warrior king’s military campaigns were primarily located in the Southern African coastal areas, Shaks’s actions indirectly led to the Mfecane (“Crushing”) that devastated South Africa’s inland plateau in the early 1820s. Marauding clans, fleeing the Zulu’s wrath and desperately searching for land, started a deadly game of musical chairs that broke the clan structure of the interior and left and estimated two million dead in its wake. The Boer Great Trek (white Afrikaners settlers) of the 1830s passed through this same area.The invasion probably only succeeded because there was virtually no natives left to oppose their settlements.
Shaka did occasional voluntarily grant Europeans permission to enter his Zulu territory. In the mid-1820s Henry Francis Fynn famously provided medical treatment to the king after an assassination attempt by a rival tribe member hidden in a crowd (see the account of Nathaniel Isaacs). In a show of gratitude, Shaka permitted European settlers to enter and operate in the Zulu kingdom. Although at first peaceful, these permits later opened the door for future British incursions into the Zulu kingdom that were violent in nature. During this time Shaka observed several demonstrations of European technology and knowledge. But as innovative as he was with adapting new fighting technology, Shaka still held fast to the belief that the Zulu way was superior to that of the foreigners.
As for his forementioned willingness to adapt new technology, Shaka is often said to have been dissatisfied with the long throwing assegai that was the weapon of choice in Southern Africa. Shaka is credited with introducing a new variant of the weapon: the iklwa, a short stabbing spear with a long, broad, sword-like, spearhead. Shaka probably did not himself invent the iklwa, at least according to Zulu scholar John Laband, but Shaka did insist that his warriors train with the weapon. The iklwa gave the Zulu warriors a "terrifying advantage over opponents who clung to the traditional practice of throwing their spears and avoiding hand-to-hand conflict." The Zulus didn’t completely forgo throwing spears, but instead used them as an initial missile weapon before close contact with the enemy, when the shorter stabbing spear was used in hand-to-hand combat.
Zulu warrior wielding an iklwa spear and Nguni shield.
Shaka also introduced a larger, heavier version of the Nguni shield. Furthermore, it is believed that he taught his warriors how to use the shield's left side to hook the enemy's shield to the right, exposing the enemy's ribs for a fatal spear stab. In Shaka's time, these cowhide shields were supplied by the king, and they remained the king's property. Different colored shields distinguished different amabutho within Shaka's army. Some had black shields, others used white shields with black spots, and some had white shields with brown spots, while others used pure brown or white shields.
Stories from the European explorers claim that sandals were discarded to toughen the feet of Zulu warriors. Some of the famous accounts include The Washing of the Spears, Like Lions They Fought, and Anatomy of the Zulu Army. The stories claim that those who objected to going without sandals were simply murdered by Zulu commanders. Furthermore they state that Shaka drilled his troops frequently, including forced marches in a fast trot over hot, rocky terrain covering more than 50 miles (80 km) a day.
Historian John Laband dismisses these stories as myth. Labrand points out in his writing: "What are we to make, then, of [European trader Henry Francis] Fynn's statement that once the Zulu army reached hard and stony ground in 1826, Shaka ordered sandals of ox-hide to be made for himself?"
Furthermore Laband dismisses the idea of a 50 miles (80 km) march in a single day as ridiculous. As Laband notes that even though these stories have been repeated by "astonished and admiring white commentators," the Zulu army covered "no more than 19 kilometers (12 miles) a day, and usually went only about 14 kilometers (9 miles)." and, Zulus under Shaka’s direct command sometimes advanced more slowly. As noted by his own troops Zulu’s spent two whole days recuperating in one instance, and on another they rested for a day and two nights before pursuing their enemy. But several historians of the Zulu, and the Zulu military system, continue to affirm the mobility rate of up to 50 miles per day.
But regardless of disagreement over the Zulu’s famed mobility, almost all historians credit Shaka with initial development of the "Bull Horn" formation that became synonymous with Zulu warrior conquest. The bull horn was composed of three elements:
- The main Zulu fighting force, know as the "chest," closed into the enemy’s “impi” (warriors) and pinned them in position, by engaging them in melee combat. The warriors who comprised the "chest" were senior veterans.
- While the enemy’s impi were pinned by the "chest," the next section known as the "horns" would flankthe Impi from both sides and encircle it; in conjunction with the "chest" they would then destroy the trapped force. The warriors who comprised the "horns" were young and fast junior warriors.
- The last group known as the "loins," which were a large reserve, was hidden, seated, behind the "chest" with their backs to the battle. These were inexperienced fighters who were often known for losing confidence in wars. The "loins" would be committed only wherever the enemy impi threatened to break out of the encirclement.
Shaka is also remembered by military historians for incorporating Zulu youth, both boys and girls into the army; and involving these now seasoned warrior women in leading the community in the absence of the men. But even as his great prowess on the battle field is celebrated Shaka, is also remembered for some infamous acts off the filed. Shaka the illegitimate child, put to death women who got pregnant by him and brutally killing people who he believed wronged him.
King Shaka never had any long-term personal relationships except for one person. Shaka fanatically loved his mother. This love turned to grief when she died of dysentery in 1827. The mentally deteriorating King then randomly killed 7000 people at her funeral after he publicly declared they were not mourning with enough vigor. Directly after this shocking act Shaka declared a year of mourning. The King declared no crops could be planted and no milk should be used for the full year of mourning. Shaka even ordered the execution of several couples who would got pregnant during the year. Oral sources record that in this period of devastation, a singular Zulu, a man named Gala, eventually stood up to Shaka and objected to these measures, pointing out that Nandi was not the first person to die in Zululand. Taken aback by such candid talk, the Zulu king is supposed to have called off the destructive edicts, rewarding the blunt teller-of-truths with a gift of cattle
But the damage from these irrational orders were done. Shaka’s people wavered in their loyalty to the “mad king”, and came to no surprise that he was then stabbed and killed by his two half-brothers Dingane and Mhlangana with the help of Mbopha his fore to loyal personal servant.
Zulu oral history claims as his life ebbed away, Shaka called out to his brother Dingane.
“Hey brother! You kill me, thinking you will rule, but the swallows [white people] will do that. Are you stabbing me, kings of the earth? You will come to an end through killing one another.”
But this version seems to have been a coventient politicized version pushed by later generation of Souther African White propaganda. The version which is probably the most accurate rendition comes from Mkebeni kaDabulamanzi, King Cetshwayo's nephew and grandson of King Mpande (another half-brother to Shaka)—
"Are you stabbing me, kings of the earth? You will come to an end through killing one another."
Upon Shaka’s death, Dingane became king but his reign saw the decline of the Zulu army in the region. He was deposed by his half-brothers Dingane and Mhlangana, and an advisor called Mbopa. It is said Mbopa created a diversion, which distracted Shaka and provided Dingane and Mhlangana with the opportunity to strike the fatal blows. Shaka’s body was then thrown into a pit whose precise location is unknown. Year later the Zulu tribe erected a monument at one of the alleged locations.
But Shaka’s legend has lived on beyond his unglorious death. He has become a global icon of the Zulu people and has been the subject of several movies and TV shows including a 1986 mini-series on ABC. As for the Zulu people they provided the some of the fiercest opposition to European people and defeated the African and British Empire repeatedly in battle until the British introduced the repeating rifle (machine gun) at the Battle at Blood River on December 16th 1838, and with that Shaka’s dream of a mighty independent Zulu empire was just as dead as he was.
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Sources:
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News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor
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Tucked along the water in the low country of Hilton Head, South Carolina, the land that Black American rebels once walked is still growing green grass.
The sacred ground is called Mitchelville Freedom Park, and it was once home to Black residents who were technically “illegal” in the eyes of a changing America. They were considered contraband– “products” of war.” Merriam Webster defines “contraband” as “goods or merchandise whose importation, exportation, or possession is forbidden.” These human beings, Black, American and formerly enslaved, were not supposed to be walking free. But with the end of the civil war, they were looking for home. As white masters and plantation owners fled for their lives, thousands of formerly enslaved Black people sought out the Union Army’s headquarters in Hilton Head.
They imagined life anew, willing to get their hands dirty to work, build and fight for their freedom. The “refugee barracks,” as they were called, were no paradise or utopia and rife with struggle, and even some abuses, including the assault of Black women by white troops. After reports made their way north to the US Secretary of Treasury, the government sent staff and workers to start schools and “freedmen’s aid societies,” an initiative which would become known as the Port Royal Experiment.
They would start their own church, the First African Baptist Church. And when Union Army Major General Ormsby Mitchel, an abolitionist took over the government’s command of the area, it would eventually be named Mitchelville in 1862 after him, just one year before the Emancipation Proclamation was signed by President Lincoln.
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In October 2023, leaders, scientists and policymakers from three of the world’s great rainforest regions – the Amazon, the Congo, and the Borneo-Mekong basins – assembled in Brazzaville, capital of the Republic of Congo. They were there to discuss one urgent question: how to save the planet’s last great tropical forests from accelerating destruction.
For those present, the question was existential. But to their dismay, almost no one noticed. “There was very little acknowledgment that this was happening, outside of the Congo basin region,” says Prof Simon Lewis, a lecturer at the University of Leeds and University College London, and co-chair of the Congo Basin Science Initiative (CBSI).
“It didn’t really fly as a conference or a set of policy proposals to better invest in that region of the world.”
Despite being the second-largest rainforest on Earth – and one of the most vital carbon sinks – the Congo basin remains the rainforest the world forgot, often overlooked when it comes to global climate policy and funding.
Spanning six countries across central Africaand home to roughly 130 million people, the basin is often called the “lungs of Africa”. Its vast canopy shelters thousands of rare species.
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The president recently claimed that HBCUs are being kept alive by the massive enrollment of Chinese international students and would be out of business without them. Newone: The Great Chinese HBCU Takeover Only Exists In Trump’s Brain
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Let’s unpack Donald Trump’s latest hallucination, shall we?
The president recently claimed that HBCUs are being kept alive by the massive enrollment of Chinese international students and would all be out of business without them. Yes, he said that, and he meant it. He said it with the confidence of a man who once thought Frederick Douglass was still alive and doing great work “right now.”
Let me begin with what I actually know, from a decade of teaching and walking the halls and yards in the HBCU world. I’ve seen more ancestors and ghosts than I have Chinese students.
I jest about the ancestors and ghosts floating across the yard.
But in 10 years, I have taught thousands of students. They include Black students from the South, the Northeast, the Caribbean, Africa, the Midwest, the West Coast, and the DMV. I have taught Black-Asian students. I have taught diaspora kids, first-gen kids, brilliant kids, struggling kids, kids who entered my class knowing exactly who they were, and kids who discovered themselves in the process.
In all that time, I have encountered Chinese and other Asian faculty and administrators, yes. But the Great Wall of Enrollment that Trump is fantasizing about, absolutely not. No mysterious wave of Chinese students filling up my rosters. No hidden demographic takeover.
But Trump looked straight into a camera and declared that without Chinese students, HBCUs would collapse. Meanwhile, the rest of us are squinting and scratching our heads, wondering if he accidentally confused “HBCU” with one of those struggling PWIs that actually depend on full-pay international students to keep from closing their dorms. Because Trump’s understanding of higher ed is basically a Mad Lib: insert race, insert country, insert panic, insert lie.
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