Coined the term mfecane in the zulu aftermath in 1966. As he built up a large military empire in southeastern africa, he forced many conquered. However, historians are moving away from the idea of mfecane difaqane, which is linked to outdated, colonialera ideas. European stereotypes, african societies and the mfecane. There were three major ethnic groups that occupied the areas now known as nquthu, babanango. Mfecane was unquestioned fact of southern africa until the 1980s. The impact of the mfecane on the cape colony essay example. Pdf the mfecane is thought to be a massive upheaval and. Causes of mfecane several reasons have been advanced by scholars for the outbreak of the mfecane.
In the 1970s the mfecane has become the most widely used terms in south african history and historical literature. This area to the east of the drakensbergs and the eastern escarpment benefits from prevailing winds off the indian ocean. The mfecane is a characteristic product of south african liberal history used by the apartheid state to legitimate south africas racially unequal land division. This study examines how mfecane history was written from the first published articles in mid1823 until walker coined the concept mfecane in 1928. Based on the historiography covering this event, historians. The causes of the mfecane were emerging by the end of the eighteenth century, when population levels increased rapidly, and ecological resources were sometimes scarce. The earl y inhabitants the history of man in south africa covers such a vast period of time that it is difficult to know exactly where to start. The mfecane, he has maintained, was in origin a colonial myth to conceal white wrongdoing and justify land expropriation. Statebuilding in natal the northern nguni lived in modern day natal and zululand. The historiographical development of the concept mfecane. John atkinson hobsons prophetic book, first published in 1900, describes in clinical detail the lies, deception, underhanded maneuverings, false propagandaand the ubiquitous jewish lobbywhich lay behind the outbreak of the second angloboer war in 1889.
The root causes of commotions in the first few decades of the nineteenth century were labour raiding and slaving expeditions mounted to feed demand generated. However, the map clearly shows that while the area we now know as botswana suffered by the passing through of a couple of warrior groups, these groups continued on to settle elsewhere. Mfecane war south african history consists of a series of events that took place during the early 19 century in south africa. Revived by wellintentioned africanist historians in the 1960s the concept has subsequently been exploited to justify aspects of apartheid.
Accepted idea was that the radical political and social changes among the bantu societies were caused by the expansion of the zulu kingdom under shaka zulu. When tracing the causes of the mfecane the net was cast wider, taking. The zulu kingdom and the mfecane saint marys university. Mfecane a migration of southern african people, especially that of zuluspeaking and sothospeaking peoples, during the nineteenth century, originating in the area between delagoa bay presentday maputo and the thukela river. Mfecane also known by the sesotho name difaqane or lifaqane was a period of widespread.
In the sesotho language, the events were known as the difaqane, which means forced migration. Background mfecane was a ngoni word used to describe times of trouble, forced migration of various people from southeastern parts of present south africa to other parts of south, central and east africa. What factors contributed to the rise of the zulu nation. Early history of south africa universitas airlangga. Mfecane was the period of widespreading warfare plundening disturbances, destruction andmigrations in zulu land and in some other parts of south africa. Mfecane refers to a period of political disruption and population migration in southern africa which occurred during the 1820s and 1830s. Evaluate the results of the mfecane in southern africa. The mfecane reconsidered volume 33 issue 1 elizabeth a. The mfecanedifaqane problem from the documentary record. The mfecane spread from there, leading to the formation and consolidation of other groups such as the matable, the mfengu and the makololoand the creation of states such as the modern lesotho wikipedia, 2008. Before the effects of the mfecane is discussed it is important to look at factors that led to the mfecane. The crushing, sotho difaqane, series of zulu and other nguni wars and forced migrations of the second and third decades of the 19th century that changed the demographic, social, and political configuration of southern and central africa and parts of eastern africa. Observational and model calculations of the impact of a major volcanic. When tracing the causes of the mfecane the net was cast wider, taking into consideration other factors that may well have contributed to the massive destruction in southeast africa.
Causes of the mfecane essay example 867 words cram. Extract of sample the causes and impact of the mfecane in south africa download file to see previous pages it is evidently clear from the discussion that mfecane took place as a result of nationbuilding that was aggressively done by the zulu lead by shaka and the ndebele of mzilikazi. Rapid population growth resulted on competition for land which was needed for agricultural, grazing and residential purposes. Other sources on the mfecane are oral sources which are not as reliable as written and. Noble 4th 325 world war one had many key players, countries and empires being great britain, france, german, austriahungary and russia. The mfecane was set in motion by the rise of the zulu military kingdom under shaka c. The sotho refers to the mfecane as the defecane or lifaquane, which means forced migration. The mfecane was a period of chaos and indigenous tribal warfare in south africa that saw the near depopulation of the region from 1815 to around 1840 timeframe. With new introduction south africa 1899, iraq 2003. The mfecane reconsidered, the journal of african history,vol. This thesis undertakes a journey through a host of published works, books. Topic discuss the causes of the mfecane, taking into consideration the variety of historiography on this event. Mfecane means destruction or crushing in the zulu language.
Julian raymond dennis cobbing born june 1944, london is an english historian, and professor of history at rhodes university grahamstown, south africa, known best for his controversial and groundbreaking research into zulu culture of the early 19th century cobbing gained a ba from the university of london and a phd from lancaster university. Used as a propaganda myth by settlers in the region, claimed africans naturally prone to irrational conflict justification for 19th century colonization and modern apartheid caused by. In the 1820s, moshoeshoe i led his people to a mountain stronghold, butha buthe, where they sustained the first battles of the mfecane also called by the sesotho name, difaqane, which means scattering, forced dispersal or migration. Communities that previously had often spread across the countryside or had repeatedly divided and moved along the frontier became more settled and more concentrated. The nguni migration northwards and the establishment of the ndebele, shangaan, and kololo states had a profound impact on preexisting societies. Show the effects both positive and negative conclude. The mfecane was nowhere near as clean cut as this map makes out. I is considered by any to be the father of the lesotho history. These individuals were the nguni speaking and sotho speaking people of southern africa.
Mfecane was the period of widespreading warfare plundening disturbances 1. A social and economic history of the african people of. The mfecane was a notion that existed virtually unchallenged in the imaginations of large numbers of people, including virtually all academic historians of southern africa, from the late 1960s to the late 1980s. Eldredge skip to main content accessibility help we use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Mfecane and its effects on bantu societies mike schepker. On the causes of the african slave trade and african. To present the causes and the consequences of the mfecane \n \n \n \n \n lo 2. The latest research proves that mfecane was a complicated puzzle of interwoven causes and consequences. Mfecane zoeloe, ook bekend als difaqane of lifaqane sotho, is een afrikaanse uitdrukking en betekent zoveel als het verpletteren of het verspreiden. Mfecane the image of africa and the land question by toby chance august 20 on february th 20, dr pieter mulder of the freedom front plus and deputy minister of agriculture, gave a speech in parliament inflaming a decadesold debate. Some of the key battles of ww1 were the battle of marne 19141918, battle of ypres 1914,1915 and 1917,the battle of somme 1916, battle of cambria and the famous battle of verdun 1916. Shaka was regarded as being the major cause of conflict during this period. Some astonishingly selective use or actual invention of evidence produced the myth of an internallyinduced process of blackonblack destruction centring on shakas zulu.
The causes and impact of the mfecane in south africa essay. Also during that period saw the growth of trade and the establishment of several european colonies. This worksheet answers questions about the mfecane war in south africa such as when did mfecane war started, why mfecane war, what is mfecane war and its causes, why mfecane spread so far, and more. Although no one can pinpoint exactly what caused the mfecane, most believe the causes emerged at the end of the eighteenth and the start of the nineteenth centuries. One of the main causes of the mfecane was the growing power of the zulu leader shaka.
Wars were increasingly fought with the sole objective of obtaining slaves, and they became more common lovejoy 1983, chapter 4. The impact of the mfecane on the cape colony essay sample the impact of the mfecane on the cape colony, dealt with the impact that the movement had on the lives of those included in the movement. Crisis in nguniland mfecane ruzivo digital learning. The mfecane was now perceived as being no different from the wars fought between whites and african chiefdoms and kingdoms in the pre and postmfecane era. Climate and the mfecane article pdf available in south african journal of science 11056. Mfecane was the period of widespreading warfare plundening. Representing the newest, integrative approach is jurg emil richners 2005 paper which collects all the evidence to examine how the mfecane myth came into being and whether the cobbing thesis has any merit.
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