The Beat of Africa The South African Novel

This is a story based on the pursuit of man who strove for true greatness, both for himself and his people.

It all began on the dusty mountains of the Drakensburg where the great Chief Mazibuko stayed; he was the leader of one of many Nguni tribes that had settled in KwaZulu Natal, from central Africa. The chief, on the morning of his brother's birthday was given the bad news of his younger sibling's death.

He had unfortunately been killed in a war, after which the great King Shaka had succeded in further capturing another tribe and making it part pf his ever-growing Zulu Kingdom. Mazibuko at first knew nothing about this King Shaka of the Zulu, but as weeks went by and months reached their end, Mazibuko was to learn a lot about the man who had destroyed many tribes like his own for power to lead the great nation of the Zulu.

Months later, after the chief had wed his fifth wife, a messenger from Kwamashu, in Zululand, was to bring him an ultimatum from King Shaka. The ultimatum had clearly stated that Chief Mazibuko had less than two weeks to surrender his tribe or he would have to go to war. This horrifying message had caused great chaos and panic amongst the villagers. Elders held an urgent meeting begging for the chief to surrender for the safety and well being of his people.

However, the chief replied with no hesitation saying he would rather die in war knowing he had fought for his people and the heritage of his ancestors and the chiefs before him. So as the leader of the only standing Nguni tribe, he had announced to his people that war was his only way out, and so it was to be. The next month saw Chief Mazibuko's tribe prepare for what was to be the greatest war in tribal history. Whilst the men trained for days and nights, the women made their husband's armour and helped to make weapons like the spear and the shield.

King Shaka, however, seemed the least worried about this war; after all, he had won so many with minimum effortand tactics. So in the month of May 1823, the war took place at Colenso, which was seen as a neutral battlefield by both sides. As the sun rose and darkness fell away, warriors on each side marched close to each other.

After just four hours of bloodshed and the death of about two thousand, Mazibuko, with the blessing of his ancestors had won the war and defeated one of the great kings. As a result of his bravery Mazibuko had now brought the rise of one of South Africa's many cultures, the Ndebele people.