Zwide and Dingiswayo

A dance in honour of King Dingiswayo. Image credit dailysun.co.za

ZIMSEC O Level History Notes: Crisis in Nguniland: Zwide versus Dingiswayo

Dingiswayo(circa 1780-1817) was born Godongwana
He staged a failed coup against his father who was the king of the Mthethwa
He fled and adopted the name Dingiswayo which means wanderer
He came back to take the throne after the death of his father
The Mthethwa were one of the largest clans in Nguniland
Dingiswayo was a military genius
He was very innovative
He came up with the idea of a standing army which was made up of young men of the chiefdom
His army was organized into age regiments called amabutho
Each regiment wore a distinctive colour
The regiments joint forces in times of battle
He also introduced strict training programs for his army to instill discipline
With his military brilliance, Dingiswayo fought man successful wars around 1810 until his death which expanded his kingdom

Dingiswayo versus Zwide

The Ndwandwe became the Mthethwa’s greatest rival
Zwide was also a military genius as well
Rival ambitions between the two led to great wars being fought between the two groups by 1816
In 1818 Dingiswayo was then captured by Zwide and executed
Shaka who was a regiment commander let Dingiswayo down as he withdrew his forces
Dingiswayo’s death led to succession disputes in the kingdom and paved way for the ascension of Shaka Zulu to power
Shaka executed the legitimate heir to the Mthethwa throne and seized power
Zwide noticed that Shaka was going to be a threat to Ndwandwe dominance and decided to send his army to attack him but Shaka manage to defeat the army
Late 1818 Zwide launched an attack whereby he sent his whole army to attack Shaka
Shaka knew that Zwide’s army was too strong to be fought head on so he launched the scorched-earth military tactic and surprise attacks
This was a military tactic of burning or destroying crops and other resources that could be used by an invading enemy force
When the Ndwandwe army was exhausted and returning home Shaka then attacked them and crushed them
He then followed with an attack on the Ndwandwe capital and destroyed it
Zwide and his subjects fled from the state with two of his regiment leaders Soshangane and Zwangendaba leading the remnants of the army
Shaka finally defeated Zwide the remaining big three leader in 1819
Shaka then remained in control of the land formerly inhabited by the Ndwandwe and this led to his rise and intensification of the Mfecane