A special documentary about Shaka Zulu will be broadcast on
History this
Saturday (31 January 2009) at 18h30.
More about Shaka's background as an intro to the show:
Shaka Zulu is regarded by many as the most famous and revered figure in Zulu history and one of the most famous South Africans to have lived. He transformed the Zulu tribe from a small clan into the beginnings of a nation that held sway over a huge portion of Southern Africa.
Often described as a military maverick, his brilliant battle tactics were revolutionary and his thirst for revenge frightening. He demanded total loyalty and obedience, drilling his warriors and turning them into a slick warring machine. He devised new, unheard of battle tactics and earned the respect of his men by living as they did without the trappings that he was entitled to as a chief.
Towards the end of the 18th century, all over southern Africa, small tribal groups were amalgamating into larger communities. This was by no means a peaceful process, but the result of protracted wars. The rise of the Zulu Kingdom falls into this period.
Through atrocities and cruelties the infamous Shaka gained control over a number of Zulu clans. He expanded his territory systematically. Shaka's warriors raided Zulu villages and burnt them down. Women and children were gored to death; young men were called up and chiefs tortured and forced into allegiance.
Shaka was the illegitimate son of the Zulu chief Senzangakhona and the young girl Nandi, a member of the Langeni clan. As a young man, Shaka joined the army of Dingiswayo and soon became its highest commander. With the support of Dingiswayo he gained supremacy over the Zulu clan, enforcing his claim against his opponents with brutality.
Under Shaka the Zulu territory expanded phenomenally. All the clans had to subject themselves to the one leader. At the beginning of the 19th century, Shaka had created the most powerful kingdom in the whole of southern Africa.
This documentary explores his-story.