Lobengula

Lobengula Khumalo (c. 1845 – c. 1894) was the second and last
Lobengula
official king of the Northern Ndebele people (historically called
Matabele in English). Both names in the Ndebele language mean King of Matabeleland
"the men of the long shields", a reference to the Ndebele warriors' (also encompassing Mashonaland)
use of the Nguni shield.

Background
The Matabele were descendants of a faction of the Zulu people
who fled north during the reign of Shaka following the mfecane
("the crushing") or difaqane ("the scattering"). Shaka's general,
Mzilikazi led his followers away from Zulu territory after a falling-
out. In the late 1830s, they settled in what is now called
Matabeleland in western Zimbabwe, but they claimed sovereignty
over a much wider area.

Members of the tribe had a privileged position against outsiders

whose lives were subject to the will of the king. In return for their
privileges, however, the Ndebele people both men and women had
to submit to a strict discipline and status within the hierarchy. That
set out their duties and responsibilities to the rest of society. Reign September 1868 –
Infringements of any social responsibility were punished with January 1894
death, subject to the king's seldom-awarded reprieve. This tight
discipline and loyalty were the secret of the Ndebele's success in Coronation 1869
dominating their neighbours.[2] Predecessor Mzilikazi (father)
Successor Lozikeyi
Birthright Born c. 1845
Matabeleland
After the death of Mzilikazi, the first king of the Ndebele nation, in
Died c. 1894 (aged 48–
1868, the izinduna, or chiefs, offered the crown to Lobengula, one
of Mzilikazi's sons from an inferior wife. Several impis (regiments) 49)
led by Chief Mbiko Masuku disputed Lobengula's ascent, and the c. 70 km south of the
question was ultimately decided by the arbitration of the assegai, Zambezi river in
with Lobengula and his impis crushing the rebels. Lobengula's Matabeleland
courage in the battle led to his unanimous selection as king. Spouse Lozikeyi (1st royal
wife), Lomalongwe
Coronation (2nd royal wife)
House Khumalo[1]
The coronation of Lobengula took place at Mhlahlandlela, one of
Father Mzilikazi Khumalo,
the principal military towns. The Ndebele nation assembled in the
form of a large semicircle, performed a war dance, and declared first king of the
their willingness to fight and die for Lobengula. A great number of Northern Ndebele
people
cattle were slaughtered, and the choicest meats were offered to Mother Queen Fulatha
Mlimo, the Ndebele spiritual leader, and to the dead Mzilikazi. Tshabalala
Great quantities of millet beer were also consumed.

About 10,000 Matabele warriors in full war costume attended the crowning of Lobengula. Their costumes
consisted of a headdress and short cape made of black ostrich feathers, a kilt made of leopard or other skins
and ornamented with the tails of white cattle. Around their arms they wore similar tails and around their
ankles they wore rings of brass and other metals. Their weapons consisted of one or more long spears for
throwing and a short stabbing-spear or assegai (also the principal weapon of the Zulu people). For defence,
they carried large oval shields of ox-hide, either black, white, red, or speckled according to the impi
(regiment) they belonged to.

The Ndebele maintained their position due to the greater size and tight discipline in the army, to which
every able-bodied man in the tribe owed service. "The Ndebele army, consisting of 15,000 men in 40
regiments [was] based around Lobengula's capital of Bulawayo."[3]

Rule
In 1870 Lobengula granted Sir John Swinburne's London and Limpopo
Mining Company the right to search for gold and other minerals on a tract
of land in the extreme southwest of Matabeleland along the Tati River
between the Shashe and Ramaquabane rivers, in what became known as
the Tati Concession.[5][6] However, it was not until about 1890 that any
significant mining in the area commenced.
The chameleon and the fly:
"Did you ever see a
Lobengula had been tolerant of the white hunters who came to
chameleon catch a fly? The
Matabeleland; he would even go so far as to punish those of his tribe who
chameleon gets behind the
threatened the whites. However, when a British team (Francis Thompson,
fly and remains motionless
Charles Rudd and Rochfort Maguire) came in 1888 to try to persuade him
for some time, then he
to grant them the right to dig for minerals in additional parts of his territory,
advances very slowly and
gently, first putting forward
he was wary about entering into negotiations. Lobengula gave his
one leg and then the other. At
agreement only when his friend, Leander Starr Jameson, a qualified
last, when well within reach,
medical doctor who had once treated Lobengula for gout, proposed to
he darts his tongue and the secure money and weaponry for the Matabele in addition to a pledge that
fly disappears. England is any people who came to dig would be considered as living in his kingdom.
the chameleon and I am that As part of this agreement, and at the insistence of the British, neither the
fly." Boers nor the Portuguese would be permitted to settle or gain concessions
— Lobengula[4] in Matabeleland. Although, Lobengula was illiterate and was not aware of
how damaging this contract was to his country, only found out the real
terms of the contract he signed as his subjects found out. After going to
friendly English missionaries to confirm this rumor, Lobengula sent two emissaries to the British
queen,Victoria, but this proved futile. They were delayed by Alfred Beit's associates at the port. As a last
resort, Lobengula formally protested the contract to the queen on 23 April 1889. As a response from the
queen's advisor, Lobengula was told it was "impossible for them to exclude white men". Lobengula
informed Queen Victoria he and his Indunas would recognize the contract as they believe he was tricked.
The 25-year Rudd Concession was signed by Lobengula on 30 October 1888.[7][8]

Matabele War
The First Matabele War began in October 1893, and the British
South Africa Company's overwhelming military force led to
devastating losses for the Ndebele warriors, notably at the Battle of
the Shangani. As early as December 1893, it was reported that
Lobengula had been very sick, but his death sometime in early
1894 was kept a secret for many months, and the cause of his death
remains uncertain.[9][10]

By October 1897, the white colonists had successfully settled in

much of the territory known later as Rhodesia.

Personal life
He had well over 20 wives, possibly many more; among them were
Xwalile, daughter of king Mzila of the Gaza Empire, and
Lozikeyi.[11]
King Lobengula and one of his wives,
See also 1893

Shangani Patrol
Pioneer Column

Life in Bulawayo, c. 1900

Lobengula's youngest
daughter, c. 1880–1910
 Peter Lobengula

References

Citations
1. Cobbing 1976, p. 1.
2. Dodds 1998.
3. Meredith 2008, pp. 207–208.
4. Parsons 1993.
5. Galbraith 1974, pp. 32–33.
6. Quick 2001, pp. 27–39.
7. "The Rudd Concession (ca. 1888)" (https://pamusoroi.com/history/today-in-history/the-rudd-c
oncession-how-to-steal-a-country). pamusoroi.com. 13 October 1888. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
8. Perry, Marvin (2012–2014). Sources of the Western tradition Volume II: from the
Renaissance to the Present (Ninth ed.). Boston. ISBN 9781133935285.
9. "LOBENGULA IN A TRAP.; Not Believed that the Matabele King Can Escape" (https://www.n
ytimes.com/1893/11/03/archives/lobengula-in-a-trap-not-believed-that-the-matabele-king-ca
n-escape.html). The New York Times. 3 November 1893. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
10. "SOUTH AFRICA: The Skull of Lobengula" (http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9
171,850817,00.html). Time. 10 January 1944. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
11. Sheldon 2005.

Sources
Burnham, Frederick Russell (1926). Scouting on Two Continents (https://books.google.com/boo
ks?id=WzpCAAAAIAAJ). Doubleday, Page.
Cobbing, Julian (1976). "Introduction" (https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.45175
3). The Ndebele Under the Khumalos, 1820–1896 (Doctoral). University of Lancaster.
Dodds, Glen Lyndon (1998). The Zulus and Matabele: Warrior Nations (https://books.google.co
m/books?id=a2WJQgAACAAJ). Arms and Armour. ISBN 978-1-85409-381-3.
Galbraith, John S. (1974). Crown and Charter: The Early Years of the British South Africa
Company (https://books.google.com/books?id=NRHPHin5Ro4C&pg=PA32). Berkeley,
California: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-02693-3.
Hensman, Howard (1900). A History of Rhodesia (http://www.rhodesia.nl/hensman.pdf) (PDF).
W. Blackwood and Sons.
Meredith, Martin (2008). Diamonds, Gold, and War: The British, the Boers, and the Making of
South Africa (https://books.google.com/books?id=vRg7rprILrUC). PublicAffairs. ISBN 978-1-
58648-677-8.
Parsons, Neil (1993). A New History of Southern Africa (https://archive.org/details/newhistoryofs
out0000pars) (2nd ed.). London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 978-0-8419-5319-2.
Quick, Geoffrey S. (2001). "Early European involvement in the Tati District". Botswana Notes
and Records. 33: 27–39. JSTOR 40980293 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/40980293).
Sheldon, Kathleen E. (2005). Historical Dictionary of Women in Sub-Saharan Africa (https://book
s.google.com/books?id=36BViNOAu3sC). Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-5331-7.
Wills, W. A.; Collingridge, L. T. (1894). The Downfall of Lobengula: The Cause, History, and
Effect of the Matabeli War (https://archive.org/details/downfalloflobeng00will/page/n5). The
 African Review.

External links
Texts of the Moffat Treaty and Rudd Concession, signed by Lobengula, which gave Britain
and the British South Africa Company rights over his land (https://web.archive.org/web/2006
0324143246/http://www.afribilia.com/history.html)
History of Lobengula: Last King of the Matebele (http://www.bulawayo1872.com/history/lobe
ngula.htm)
Lobengula's Youngest Daughter (http://www.wdl.org/en/item/568/)

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