Dingane

Dingane kaSenzangakhona (ca. 1795-1840) was a Zulu chief who became king in 1828.

He came to power after assassinating his half-brother Shaka with the help of another brother, Umthlangana, as well as Shaka's advisor Mbopa, where the modern-day town of Stanger is located, as the brutality of Shaka increased after the death of his mother Nandi.

Even though history today might judge Dingane as the king responsible for the fall of the Zulu military superiority in southern Africa at the time, Dingane was to a great extent a prolific leader who came into power at the wrong time so therefor even the great Shaka himself, had he not been murdered, the fall of the kingdom would have been inevitable. With vast numbers of Europeans making their way northwards from the cape colony, with weaponry that far superior to that of the Zulu spear, and their lust for land, even if it meant exterminating the whole Zulu people at the time, it would have been fighting a war that they would never win as the Xhosa found out in the South.

Many historians disagree that Dingan came into power at a critical moment in history and unfortunately he had to take the fall for mistakes that can be traced back as far as his great predecessor king Shaka, because had Shaka not awarded so much power to Theodore Shepstone, who was later peceived as 'Shaka' by the Zulu society after Shaka's death, things would have turned out different. Shaka by concluding that "white man were superior" was passing the next king a poisoned chalice, therefore the dimise of the kingdom was inevitable, and Dingan was the unfortunate king who was in power at that moment.

Dingane lacked Shaka's military and leadership skills, however, and the cracks in the kingdom began to show as rebel chiefs broke away. These cracks were exacerbated by armed conflict with the newly arrived Voortrekkers.

In November of 1837 he met with Piet Retief and, in return for them recovering some stolen cattle, signed a deed of cession of lands (written in English) to the Voortrekkers. Two days of feasting later, on 6 February 1838, he killed Retief's diplomatic party. At the same time, his forces ambushed and killed Retief's band, about 500 Boers, men, women, and children, at Weenen (Afrikaans, "weeping," in memory of the massacre). Dingane then sent his army with instructions to seek out and kill the other group of Voortrekkers under Andries Pretorius. The Zulu impis found the Voortrekker encampment and attacked, but were dealt a crushing defeat in the ensuing Battle of Blood River with an estimated 3000 Zulus killed for only three Voortrekkers lightly injured. Dingane's commander at the battle was Ndlela kaSompisi.

In January 1840 Andries Pretorius, with a commando of 400 burghers, helped Mpande in his revolt against Dingane, which resulted in his overthrow and death. Dingane was assassinated in Hlatikhulu Forest by Zulu Nyawo, Sambane and Nondawana while on a military expedition.

He was succeeded by Mpande - his (and Shaka's) half-brother.

External links

[Dingane's kraal]

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