A BRIEF HISTORY

OF THE ZULU EMPIRE

1870-1945
AS Level
International
History
The Missing
Voice
Khanya Ntobeko
Madlala
INTRODUCTION
Before the birth of Shaka Zulu, the Zulu
DID YOU KNOW?
1
kingdom, as we recognize it today, had not yet
taken shape. Prior to the 1780s, this region was
“Zulu” is a word that means
known as the Ndabezitha nation, comprising
heavens and “AmaZulu” is a
approximately 2000 individuals. At the helm word used to refer to Zulu
of this community was uJama kaNdaba, Shaka people and it means “people
Zulu's grandfather, who is believed to have of the heavens”
foreseen the birth of the illustrious Shaka Zulu.
The Ndabezitha nation, part of the Abantu, one
of the four Nguni societies in Southern Africa,
shared ancestral ties with the hunter-gatherer
San communities inhabiting the rugged
terrains of UKhahlamba, also known as the
Drakensberg mountains. However, in contrast
to their nomadic forebears, they established a
settled life marked by advanced agricultural
practices and subsistence farming methods.
Their settlements, referred to as 'imizi'
(homesteads), showcased architectural
ingenuity, which modern-day archaeologists
assert were thoughtfully designed to meet the
demands of their ethnographic context.
These “imizi" were characterised by the
distinctive beehive-shaped domes,
meticulously crafted from grass by women. In
the early to mid-1800s, under the strategic
leadership of Shaka Zulu and the unification of
Zulu-speaking Nguni peoples, the Zulu nation
ascended in prominence, evolving into one of
the most formidable and recognized groups in
Southeastern Africa

Take a look at the above timeline to familiarise

Activity 1
Consider the following drawing of “umuzi”, a Zulu
homestead and comment on:
(a)Why you think the cattle kraal is at the centre
of the home
(b) Consider the role of cattle in Zulu society
yourself with the Zulu monarchy. Kindly take
note that the Zulu King in power during the age
of imperialism was King Cetshwayo ka
Mpande(his father). Although British
imperialism takes place during 1870-1945,
British settlers were present in early 1800s
during the time of King Shaka Zulu
kaSenzangakhona.

Share your thoughts in groups of three.

 2

1.1 HOW DID THE ECONOMY AND THE POLITICS

POLITICS OF KWAZULU LOOK LIKE
BEFORE IMPERIALISM? The formation of state control in the Kingdom of
KwaZulu was intentionally designed in a manner
THE ECONOMY where the political power was centralised in the
hands of the monarchy and the chiefs of tribes that
formed the greater Kingdom of KwaZulu. The legal
The KwaZulu economy was characterised by
system was also overseen by the kings as they
advanced farming methods deeply rooted in
decided on the punishments of different offences. It
agriculture, with cattle playing an integral role. Within
is noteworthy to mention the political strength of the
the region, land was held under the stewardship of
Zulu kingdom was closely related to their military
the Zulu monarchy, serving as custodians of the Zulu
force because each time a neighbouring “tribe” was
kingdom for the benefit of their people. Cattle
defeated, they would fall under a single government
occupied a central and multifaceted position within
of the Zulu Kingdom.
the Zulu nation, serving as both a cornerstone of
economic transactions and a symbol of wealth. This
significance is notably reflected in the strategic
placement of the cattle kraal at the heart of the KEYWORD:
"umuzi", a traditional Zulu homestead.

Imperialism
Cattle held a profound cultural and spiritual
the policy of extending a nation’s
importance as well, serving as a means of
communication with the "amadlozi," the spirits of Zulu power by gaining political and
ancestors. These connections were especially evident economic control over more
during significant life events, such as the birth of a territory.
child, where cattle were offered to introduce the
newborn to their ancestral lineage. Similarly, during
times of mourning, cattle were offered to connect
with the "amathongo" or "abalele" (those who rest in
the afterlife). Additionally, cattle played a central role
Activity 2
in the traditional practice of "ilobolo," where a bride
appreciation price was paid. Following marriage, the
Reflect on what you have just read
bride would establish her own "umuzi," demonstrating
her economic independence through subsistence
(a) What was a symbol of wealth in the Zulu
farming and the support of the cattle she brought to
Kingdom?
her marital family.
(b) When were cattle used?
(c) Who had political power in KwaZulu?
This underscores not only the economic significance
(d) Define imperialism.
of cattle within the Kingdom of KwaZulu but also their
role as potent symbols of wealth in a society that did
not employ money as a form of wealth exchange.
Moreover, cattle served as a vital medium for
communication with ancestors, illustrating their
profound cultural importance in the fabric of Zulu
society.
1.2 WHY WAS THE ZULU NATION A
STRONG MILITARY FORCE?
SHAKA ZULU
When historians speak of the Zulu
nation, it is almost impossible to
not mention the profound
influence Shaka kaSenzangakhona
had. Not only is he the first Zulu
king to encounter British settlers,
however, Shaka Zulu played a
crucial role in forming the military
strength, discipline and
organisation of the group and its
expansion from 2000 people to
hundreds of thousands within a
mere six decades. His life has left
an indelible mark on history and
inspired the creation of many
written texts and films that
continue to captivate worldwide
audiences.
SHAKA ZULU’S
UPBRINGING
Shaka Zulu is the illegitimate son of
Queen Nandi and King
Senzangakhona. Although his
parents were married later on,
Shaka did not spend his formative
years in his father’s royal
household. This is a result of his
father feeling that he would
become a troublesome leader in
the future. King Senzangakhona
sent for his son to be killed. He
then ran away to live eLangeni with
the Mthethwa people on his
maternal family’s side where he
faced instances of bullying
A visual representation of The
Bull Horn Formation
ADVANCED
3
MILITARY TACTICS
During Shaka’s tenure within the
eLangeni community, he developed a
deep understanding of military tactics
of the Mthethwa people under the
supervision of King Dingiswayo. He
became one of the most courageous
warriors in the clan ultimately leading
to his promotion as regimental
commander. While acting as regimental
officer, he came up with ways to
advance army weapons and an
organised strategy of war. One of his
notable contributions was the proposal
to shorten the javelin(umkhonto) that
was used. He argued that it would be
easier to stab the opponent as a closer
distance than to stand unarmed
awaiting your opponent to attack, the
weapon he came up with is known as
“ikwa". Additionally, the strategy of
enclosing the enemy during war known
as the Bull Horn Formation or
“Impondo Zenkomo '' was a military
tactic he used to develop and build on
the training he had received from King
Dingiswayo. It is important to note that
the military was used as a tool to
achieve unification of smaller Nguni
tribes to create a nation with more
people as the numbers would be of
benefit to the growing military. These
military strategies proved to be
effective and were subsequently
employed during the early stages of
British imperialism in the Anglo-Zulu
war by his nephew, King Cetshwayo, to
defeat the British at the Battle of
Isandlwana.
 DID YOU KNOW?
The Industrial Revolution In Britain was a driving force for new Imperialism as the new
machinery developments enabled the production of gunpowder that was used to by
Europeans armies to take occupation in African territories including KwaZulu.
1.3 HOW DID KING
CETSWAYO WIN
THE BATTLE AT
ISANDLWANA ?
THE ZULU AND BOER
CONFLICT
In 1828, Dingane with the
assistance of his matriarch aunt,
uMkabayi kaJama conspired the
regicide of his brother, Shaka
Zulu. The notable Zulu leader’s
death led to his brother’s
ascension to the throne.
Meanwhile, western settlers had
begun to establish themselves
along the borders of Zululand.
Dingane had backlashes
particularly with the Boer settlers
about cattle that the Boers had
stolen that rightfully belonged to
the Zulus. These ongoing conflicts
resulted in wars and the most
known of these is the Battle of
Blood River of 1838.
On the other hand his brother
Mpande kaSenzangakhona formed
an alliance with the Boer settlers
to defeat Dingane’s army and
ultimately he fled to neighbouring
Swaziland where he spent his last
years. During this time Mpande
had a diplomatic relationship with
the Boers and the British colonial
administration engaging with
figures such as Henry Bartle Frere
and Theophilus Shepstone.
Activity 3
Diary Entry:
Pretend that you are King
Dingane in 1838 and the Boers
had stolen cattle(a symbol of
wealth in your nation). Write a
diary entry on your feelings as
the monarchy of the time. What
is your attitude towards the
Boers?
Upon the death of King Dingane,
Mpande ruled the Kingdom of
KwaZulu under peaceful disposition
like his father King Senzangakhona
but he maintained the military as
designed by Shaka Zulu. After he
received assistance from Boers in
defeating Dingane, the Boers obliged
him to sign a treaty to hand over
Natal, making the border of KwaZulu
the Tugela River. It is important to
note that the Boers lost the port of
Natal when they were defeated by
the British who fired cannons at
them upon arrival with more ships
and ammunition under Captain Smith
at the Battle of Congella. Port Natal
was then renamed to Durban. This
shows that the building of ships and
invention of ammunition during the
Industrial Revolution fueled British
colonial rule as these products were
used to take over more territory.
DID YOU KNOW?
”Isandlwana” means shaped
like a house in IsiZulu. This is
used to describe the mountain
that the well known Battle of
Isandlwana took place as the
mountain was house-like in
shape.
4
This resulted in Anglo-Boer conflict.
As a way of evading further Boer
conflict between the Zulus and the
possibility of more cattle being
taken as a result of the treaty, King
Mpande developed diplomatic
relations with the British.
As a result of the diplomatic
relationship that Britain and the
Kingdom of KwaZulu had developed
Mpande’s son Cetshwayo, was
crowned as King of the Zulus under
the Queen of England(Queen
Victoria).
THE ULTIMATUM
Over time, the Boers started moving
into inland Zululand causing conflict
with King Cetshwayo. This was
reported to Theophilus Shepstone
who assured the King that he would
investigate into the matter. At the
same time, Shepstone was
negotiating that the Boers hand
over the Transvaal to the British.
The reason behind this was based
on the fact that the British would
protect the Boers against the strong
Zulu army and ultimately promote
white domination in Southern
Africa.
In order to secure the Transvaal and
Boer support in their expansion
policy, Shepstone handed
Cetshwayo an ultimatum ordering
for the disbanding of the Zulu
military that posed a threat to their
imperialism policies. The Zulu King
was given a 10-week period to
respond to the ultimatum and
disband the Zulu army, however, he
intentionally did not respond to
London within that time period. His
agreement to the ultimate would
have compromised the survival of
his nation. As a result of his failure
to adhere to the ultimatum, Henry
Bartle Frere designed a propaganda
campaign
 5
that depicted the Zulus as “savages” and
an “uncivilised” nation. After this, the
LEARNING OUTCOMES
British attacked the Zulu army on the 26th
of January 1879 in the Battle of Isandlwana FROM CHAPTER:
led by Lord Chelmsford. King Cetshwayo Identify the missing voice of Zulu
was aware of the plan to attack and set his people
“ibutho”, the Zulu army for preparation.
Understand the economy and politics
of KwaZulu,

BATTLE OF ISANDLWANA pre-imperialism

Understand the role of Shaka Zulu in

The British army was aware of the military improving military tactics
tactics used by Shaka Zulu in the training
of his army. They developed a less How Cetshwayo won the Battle of
successful tactic of the “Bull Horn Isandlwana and the threats to the
survival of the Zulu nation from the
Formation” called the “The Pincer
British and Dutch(Boers)
Movement”.
Although the British had access to
gunpowder ammunition, they lost
due to the fact that King Cetshwayo had a WORKS CITED
superior understanding of the complex
military technique. On this day, 1300 Davis, Nadia. “History’s Lost Voices.” Journal of the
British soldiers lost their lives in Britain’s Anglo Zulu Society 8, December 2000
most widely known defeats. In most cases,
Deflem, Mathieu. “Warfare, Political Leadership, and
British error is said to be the reason that
State Formation: The Case of the Zulu Kingdom,
the British lost the Battle of Isandlwana, 1808-1879.” Ethnology, vol. 38, no. 4, JSTOR, 1999, p.
however, it is evident that the military 371. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.2307/3773913.
techniques of Shaka Zulu’s time were well
studied by his nephew and used to the Gluckman, Max. “The Rise of a Zulu Empire.” Scientific
Zulu nation’s advantage. American, vol. 202, no. 4, Springer Science and
Business Media LLC, Apr. 1960, pp. 157–68. Crossref,
https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0460-157.

Activity 4 Gump, James. “Origins of the Zulu Kingdom.” The

Source based essay Question:
Read the following extract by King Cetshwayo from the statements he
provided to the Cape Colony. Examine the relationship that the Zulu have
with western settlers(British and Boers) who were imposing imperialism on
Zulu people under the leadership of King Cetshwayo
Historian, vol. 50, no. 4, Informa UK Limited, Aug.
1988, pp. 521–34. Crossref,
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6563.1988.tb00757.x.
Hall, Martin. “The Myth of the Zulu Homestead:
Archaeology and Ethnography.” Africa, vol. 54, no. 1,
Cambridge UP (CUP), Jan. 1984, pp. 65–79. Crossref,
https://doi.org/10.2307/1160144.

Laband, John. “The Rise and Fall of the Zulu Nation”.

Sterling Publishing Company Incorporated, 1998.

Parvanova, Deyna (2017) "The industrial revolution

was the force behind the New Imperialism," ESSAI:
Vol. 15 , Article 30. Available at:
https://dc.cod.edu/essai/vol15/iss1/3

Webb. “A Zulu King Speaks. Statements Made by

Cetshwayo kaMpande on the History and Customs of
His People” ,Killie Campbell Africana Library. 1978

AS Level History Assignment

"Missing Voices"
Khanya Ntobeko Madlala
Dean Tinhiko Nkuna
05 October 2023