IN FOCUS SHAKA ASSASSINATED 22 SEPTEMBER 1928 Shaka kaSenzangakhona (c. 1787 – 22 September 1828), also known as Shaka Zulu (Zulu, was one of the most influential monarchs of the Zulu Kingdom. He is widely credited with uniting many of the Northern Nguni people, specifically the Mthethwa Paramountcy and the Ndwandwe into the Zulu Kingdom, the beginnings of a nation that held sway over the portion of southern Africa between the Phongolo and Mzimkhulu Rivers, and his statesmanship and vigour marked him as one of the most prominent Zulu kings. He has been called a military genius for his reforms and innovations, and condemned for the brutality of his reign. Other historians debate about Shakas role as a uniter, versus a usurper of traditional Zulu ruling prerogatives, and the notion of the Zulu state as a unique construction, divorced from the localised culture and the previous systems built by his predecessor Dingiswayo. History and legacy His military efficiency led to more and more clans being incorporated into Shakas Zulu empire, while other tribes moved away to be out of range of Shakas impis. The ripple effect caused by these mass migrations would become known (though only in the twentieth century) as the Mfecane (annihilation). Some groups that moved off (like the Hlubi and Ngwane to the north of the Zulus) could have been impelled by the Ndwandwe, not the Zulu. Some moved south (like the Chunu and the Thembe), but never suffered much in the way of attack; it was precautionary, and they left many people behind in their traditional homelands. At the time of his death, Shaka ruled over 250,000 people and could muster more than 50,000 warriors. Shaka was murdered by his two half-brothers Dingane and Mhlangana at kwaDukuza on 22 September 1828. Dingane assumes the throne. SHAKA. GREAT KING
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 05:50:49 +0000
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