Zulu Kingdom
South Africa, 1816–1897. Draft, not yet reviewed
During the 1810s, Shaka established a standing army that consolidated rival clans and built a large following which ruled a wide expanse of Southern Africa. In 1879, a British force invaded Zululand, beginning the Anglo-Zulu War. After an initial Zulu victory at the Battle of Isandlwana in January, the British regrouped and defeated the Zulus in July during the Battle of Ulundi, ending the war. The area was absorbed into the Colony of Natal and later became part of the Union of South Africa.
Seat of power: Ulundi
Rulers
Shaka Zulu
king, 1816–1828
Shaka expanded the Zulu Kingdom through war and diplomacy. He ordered wide-reaching reforms that reorganized the military into a formidable force. In 1828, he was assassinated by his half-brothers, King Dingane and Prince Mhlangana and Mbopha kaSithayi.
Portrait of Shaka Zulu: James King, Public domain, file
Dinuzulu kaCetshwayo
king, 1884–1913
He was the king of the Zulu nation from 20 May 1884 until his death in 1913. In 1890 he was captured by the British and exiled to the island of Saint Helena for seven years. When Zululand was formally incorporated into Natal in 1897, Dinuzulu was released.
Portrait of Dinuzulu kaCetshwayo: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
Culture
- Conscripted men were segregated from the rest of Zulu society to be trained as an organised standing army called the amabutho. His military reforms included new battle techniques, training, and tough discipline, as well as the replacement of long throwing spears in exchange for the more effective short stabbing spears.
- Shaka's clan at first numbered no more than a few thousands, but eventually grew in size to 45,000 after absorbing neighbouring clans.
- At the Battle of Isandlwana on 22 January 1879, the Zulu army killed more than 1,000 British soldiers in a single day.
Picture
Shaka's following ruled a wide expanse of Southern Africa that extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to the Pongola River in the north.
Image: Seb az86556, CC BY 3.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.