ZULU TRIBE

ZULU TRIBE

Introduction

The Zulu are an African ethnic group of “Bantu” today with about eleven million people and the largest ethnic group in South Africa. They live mainly in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. The Zulu people were unified by King Shaka, who made ??his clan of 1500 people a formidable nation through conquest and assimilation. The Anglo-Zulu war was provoked by an unwarranted act of European aggression. When the Zulu kingdom first emerged early in the nineteenth century, European adventurers became attracted to the land. They wanted the property for trade and profit and to benefit themselves, so they built a colony on the southern border of the Zulu's land. By the 1870's the Europeans began to adopt a “forward policy”, hoping to bring various European colonies to the land. When the Europeans decided to put this plan into action, their commissioner, Sir Henry Bartle Frere stated his opinion that “the robust and economically self- reliant” Zulu nation was a threat. So, in order to get what he wanted, Frere picked a fight with the current Zulu king Cetewayo, in hopes that the Zulu army, who at this time were only armed with shields and spears, would back down because of the strength and power that the Europeans held (Delegorgue, 2000).

The Zulu tribe prevailed against many struggles that came upon them. During the reign of King Shaka from 1816 to 1828, the Zulu became the mightiest military force in Southern Africa and increased their land holdings from 100 square miles to 11,500 square miles (Greaves 65). King Shaka was a respectable leader of the Zulu people and did remarkable things for his people. However, the King following him, King Dingaan, was the first of two kings that almost led the Zulu nation to destruction. King Dingaan's major mistake was his involvement with the English colonizers. For some reason, Dingaan entered into treaties with them, which led to the next major mistake on the part of the Zulu tribe. King Mpande, the next man to power, allowed the British to gain extensive control over his people. When Mpande died in 1872, the Zulu people decided that they had had enough of the English invasion. However, Mpande's replacement, Cetewayo, chose to avoid any further conflicts. For six years, he was able to elude confrontation with the Europeans, but in 1879 war erupted.

The Zulu fought long and hard during the war and experienced some successes, with one battle leaving 806 Europeans dead and only 471 Africans (Sutherland). But after six months, the Europeans prevailed and Cetewayo was exiled to England. There were 350 Africans left dead while the Europeans suffered 17 deaths and 10 wounded (Sutherland 76). The Europeans came in and divided the Zulu kingdom to suit their advantage. This led to another up rise of war, this time led by Chief Bombatha in 1906. This was the last Zulu uprising against European domination.

Discussion

It is a South African ethnic and linguistic group. Traditionally, Zulu clans live in large enclosed ...