First Matabele War
Encyclopedia
The First Matabele War was fought in 1893-1894 between the British South Africa Company
military forces and the Ndebele
(Matabele) people. Lobengula
, king of the Ndebele, avoided outright war with the British settlers because he and his advisors were mindful of the destructive power of the European weapons on traditional Matabele impi
s (units of Zulu warriors) attacking in massed ranks. Lobengula had 80,000 spearmen and 20,000 riflemen, armed with nine pound Martini-Henry
s which were modern arms at that time. However, poor training meant that these were not effective weapons. The British South Africa Company had no more than 750 BSA Police troops with an undetermined number of possible colonial volunteers and an additional 700 Tswana (Bechuana) allies. Cecil Rhodes, who was Prime Minister of the Cape Colony and Leander Starr Jameson
, the Administrator of Mashonaland also avoided war to prevent loss of confidence in the future of the territory. Matters came to a head when Lobengula approved a raid to forcibly extract tribute from a Mashona chief in the district of the town of Fort Victoria, which inevitably led to a clash with the BSA Company.
(BSAC) would administer the territory stretching from the Limpopo
to Lake Tanganyika
under charter
as a protectorate
. Queen Victoria signed the charter in 1889. Cecil Rhodes used this document in 1890 to justify sending the Pioneer Column
, a group of settlers protected by well-armed British South Africa Police
(BSAP) and guided by the big game hunter Frederick Selous
, through Matabeleland
and into Shona territory to establish Fort Salisbury (now Harare
).
Throughout 1891 and 1892, Lobengula ensured that his raiding parties were directed away from their main target areas of Mashonaland and so precluded possible clashes between his zealous young commanders and the settlers. However, in 1893, a chief in the Victoria district refused tribute feeling that he was now under the protection of the laws of the settlers. In order to save face, Lobengula was impelled to send a raiding party of several thousand warriors to bring his vassal to heel. The raiding party destroyed several villages and murdered many of the inhabitants. (In this they were more restrained than usual as they generally abducted the suitably aged young men and women and killed everyone else.) However, the local BSA Company administration felt that they had to intervene to avoid losing the confidence of the local people who complained that they were not being given any support against the raid. As a result the Company officials demanded from the raiders that they leave immediately. The Ndebele refused and in the hostilities that developed the Ndebele sustained an unknown number of casualties; this led to their withdrawal.
The first battle in the war occurred on November 1, 1893 when the laager was attacked on open ground a few miles from the Bembesi River. The laager consisted of 670 British soldiers, 400 of whom were mounted along with a small force of native allies fought off the Imbezu and Ingubu regiments, the oldest and most battle-hardened regiments of Lobengula, estimated by Sir John Willoughby to number 1700 warriors in all. The laager had with it a small artillery of five Maxim gun
s, two seven-pounders, one Gardner gun
, and one Hotchkiss
. The Maxim guns took centre stage and decimated the native force. The Ndebele dashed right up to the muzzles of the guns, but were swept down before the modern rifles and machine guns with which the invaders were armed. Other Ndebele regiments were waiting in ambush in woodland further along the route but this force took no part in the fighting and withdrew after the defeat of their comrades.
Jameson determined that the quickest way to end the war would be to march to Bulawayo
, the headquarters of Lobengula and the capital of Matabeleland
, and capture the king. The colonial force consisted of two columns: Victoria Column with about 400 men, under Major Allan Wilson, and the United Salisbury Column with less than 300 men under Major Patrick Forbes. An additional of 700 Bechuanas marching from the south under Khama
, the most influential of the Bamangwato
chiefs and a loyal friend of the British, would meet up with the two colonial columns.
, and won a victory on the Singuesi river on 2 November. Advanced scouts for the colonial forces, including Burnham
and Selous
, reached Bulawayo that same day, only to watch as Lobengula blew up his arsenal of ammunition rather than allow it to be captured by the British. The town, mostly made up of wood-beam huts with mud (dagga) walls, was largely destroyed. On 3 November, Bulawayo was reached by the Victoria column from Mashonaland
, accompanied by Jameson
and Sir John Willoughby. By this time, Lobengula and his warriors were in full flight towards the Zambezi. An attempt was made to induce Lobengula to surrender, but no replies were received to the messages. The United Salisbury Column later arrived in Bulawayo, and on 13 November, Major Patrick Forbes
organized his column and started in pursuit of Lobengula.
Wilson and his followers all fought most gallantly, according Ndebele reports, but the opposing forces were too great. Except for three scouts, who under orders from Wilson, miraculously crossed the swollen Shangani and returned to Forbes to request reinforcements (the Americans Frederick Russell Burnham
and Pearl "Pete" Ingram, and an Australian named Gooding), all 32 men of the Wilson party, known as the Shangani Patrol
perished in what is viewed roughly as British/Rhodesian equivalent to Custer's Last Stand.
Lobengula eventually died under somewhat mysterious circumstances sometime in January 1894. The Ndebele warriors gradually succumbed to the superior British firepower and, after the king’s death, Ndebele izinDuna
submitted to the British South Africa Company. An order in council of the 18th of July defined the administrative power of the company over Matabeleland. Charges were made in the British House of Commons
against the company of having provoked the Ndebele in order to bring on the war and thus secure their territory, but after enquiry the company was exonerated from the charge by Lord Ripon, then Colonial Secretary
. It was also discovered that Lobengula had in fact sent to Jameson gold dust worth about £1000, and communicated his desire for peace, but two troopers to whom the gold and message were entrusted kept the gold and suppressed the message. Their crime was afterwards discovered and the troopers sentenced to fourteen years' penal servitude, although they were released after just a few months due to technicalities.
". During this year there was great activity in exploiting Matabeleland, " Stands " or plots were sold at extraordinary prices in Bulawayo
. Within nine months the rebuilt town of Bulawayo had a population of 1,900 colonials and in the various goldfields
there were over 2,000 colonial prospectors
. The construction of telegraphs proceeded with rapidity and by the end of 1895, 500 m. of new lines had been constructed, making about 1,500 in all. A new company, the African Transcontinental Company, had been founded under the auspices of Col. Frank Rhodes
, brother of Cecil, with the ultimate purpose of connecting the Cape with Cairo
. By the end of 1895, 133 m. of these lines had been laid. At this time too, the railway from Cape Town
, Cape Colony
had passed Mafeking and was approaching the Rhodesian frontier. This railway reached Bulawayo in 1897. Meanwhile on the east coast the line to connect Salisbury (now Harare
) with Beira, Mozambique
(then Portuguese East Africa Colony) was under construction and this was completed in 1899.
seem invincible. In one engagement, for example, 50 British soldiers with just four Maxim guns fought off 5,000 Ndebele warriors.
British South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd., receiving a royal charter in 1889...
military forces and the Ndebele
Ndebele people (Zimbabwe)
The Ndebele are a branch of the Zulus who split from King Shaka in the early 1820s under the leadership of Mzilikazi, a former general in Shaka's army....
(Matabele) people. Lobengula
Lobengula
Lobengula Khumalo was the second and last king of the Ndebele people, usually pronounced Matabele in English. Both names, in the Sindebele language, mean "The men of the long shields", a reference to the Matabele warriors' use of the Zulu shield and spear.- Background :The Matabele were related to...
, king of the Ndebele, avoided outright war with the British settlers because he and his advisors were mindful of the destructive power of the European weapons on traditional Matabele impi
Impi
An Impi is an isiZulu word for any armed body of men. However, in English it is often used to refer to a Zulu regiment, which is called an ibutho in Zulu. Its beginnings lie far back in historic tribal warfare customs, where groups of armed men called impis battled...
s (units of Zulu warriors) attacking in massed ranks. Lobengula had 80,000 spearmen and 20,000 riflemen, armed with nine pound Martini-Henry
Martini-Henry
The Martini-Henry was a breech-loading single-shot lever-actuated rifle adopted by the British, combining an action worked on by Friedrich von Martini , with the rifled barrel designed by Scotsman Alexander Henry...
s which were modern arms at that time. However, poor training meant that these were not effective weapons. The British South Africa Company had no more than 750 BSA Police troops with an undetermined number of possible colonial volunteers and an additional 700 Tswana (Bechuana) allies. Cecil Rhodes, who was Prime Minister of the Cape Colony and Leander Starr Jameson
Leander Starr Jameson
Sir Leander Starr Jameson, 1st Baronet, KCMG, CB, , also known as "Doctor Jim", "The Doctor" or "Lanner", was a British colonial statesman who was best known for his involvement in the Jameson Raid....
, the Administrator of Mashonaland also avoided war to prevent loss of confidence in the future of the territory. Matters came to a head when Lobengula approved a raid to forcibly extract tribute from a Mashona chief in the district of the town of Fort Victoria, which inevitably led to a clash with the BSA Company.
Events leading to war
The British government agreed that the British South Africa CompanyBritish South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd., receiving a royal charter in 1889...
(BSAC) would administer the territory stretching from the Limpopo
Limpopo
Limpopo is the northernmost province of South Africa. The capital is Polokwane, formerly named Pietersburg. The province was formed from the northern region of Transvaal Province in 1994, and initially named Northern Transvaal...
to Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika is an African Great Lake. It is estimated to be the second largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, and the second deepest, after Lake Baikal in Siberia; it is also the world's longest freshwater lake...
under charter
Charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
as a protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
. Queen Victoria signed the charter in 1889. Cecil Rhodes used this document in 1890 to justify sending the Pioneer Column
Pioneer Column
The Pioneer Column was a force raised by Cecil Rhodes and his British South Africa Company in 1890 and used in his efforts to annex the territory of Mashonaland, later part of Southern Rhodesia ....
, a group of settlers protected by well-armed British South Africa Police
British South Africa Police
The British South Africa Police was the police force of the British South Africa Company of Cecil Rhodes which became the national police force of Southern Rhodesia and its successor after 1965, Rhodesia...
(BSAP) and guided by the big game hunter Frederick Selous
Frederick Selous
Frederick Courteney Selous DSO was a British explorer, officer, hunter, and conservationist, famous for his exploits in south and east of Africa. His real-life adventures inspired Sir H. Rider Haggard to create the fictional Allan Quatermain character. Selous was also a good friend of Theodore...
, through Matabeleland
Matabeleland
Modern day Matabeleland is a region in Zimbabwe divided into three provinces: Matabeleland North, Bulawayo and Matabeleland South. These provinces are in the west and south-west of Zimbabwe, between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers. The region is named after its inhabitants, the Ndebele people...
and into Shona territory to establish Fort Salisbury (now Harare
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
).
Throughout 1891 and 1892, Lobengula ensured that his raiding parties were directed away from their main target areas of Mashonaland and so precluded possible clashes between his zealous young commanders and the settlers. However, in 1893, a chief in the Victoria district refused tribute feeling that he was now under the protection of the laws of the settlers. In order to save face, Lobengula was impelled to send a raiding party of several thousand warriors to bring his vassal to heel. The raiding party destroyed several villages and murdered many of the inhabitants. (In this they were more restrained than usual as they generally abducted the suitably aged young men and women and killed everyone else.) However, the local BSA Company administration felt that they had to intervene to avoid losing the confidence of the local people who complained that they were not being given any support against the raid. As a result the Company officials demanded from the raiders that they leave immediately. The Ndebele refused and in the hostilities that developed the Ndebele sustained an unknown number of casualties; this led to their withdrawal.
Start of the war
There was a delay just over two months (August to October) while Jameson corresponded with Rhodes in Cape Town and considered how to amass enough troops to undertake an invasion of Matabeleland.The first battle in the war occurred on November 1, 1893 when the laager was attacked on open ground a few miles from the Bembesi River. The laager consisted of 670 British soldiers, 400 of whom were mounted along with a small force of native allies fought off the Imbezu and Ingubu regiments, the oldest and most battle-hardened regiments of Lobengula, estimated by Sir John Willoughby to number 1700 warriors in all. The laager had with it a small artillery of five Maxim gun
Maxim gun
The Maxim gun was the first self-powered machine gun, invented by the American-born British inventor Sir Hiram Maxim in 1884. It has been called "the weapon most associated with [British] imperial conquest".-Functionality:...
s, two seven-pounders, one Gardner gun
Gardner gun
The Gardner gun was an early type of mechanical machine gun. It had one or two barrels, was fed from a vertical magazine or hopper and was operated by a crank. When the crank was turned, a feed arm positioned a cartridge in the breech, the bolt closed and the weapon fired...
, and one Hotchkiss
Hotchkiss gun
The Hotchkiss gun can refer to different products of the Hotchkiss arms company starting in the late 19th century. It usually refers to the 1.65-inch light mountain gun; there was also a 3-inch Hotchkiss gun...
. The Maxim guns took centre stage and decimated the native force. The Ndebele dashed right up to the muzzles of the guns, but were swept down before the modern rifles and machine guns with which the invaders were armed. Other Ndebele regiments were waiting in ambush in woodland further along the route but this force took no part in the fighting and withdrew after the defeat of their comrades.
Jameson determined that the quickest way to end the war would be to march to Bulawayo
Bulawayo
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...
, the headquarters of Lobengula and the capital of Matabeleland
Matabeleland
Modern day Matabeleland is a region in Zimbabwe divided into three provinces: Matabeleland North, Bulawayo and Matabeleland South. These provinces are in the west and south-west of Zimbabwe, between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers. The region is named after its inhabitants, the Ndebele people...
, and capture the king. The colonial force consisted of two columns: Victoria Column with about 400 men, under Major Allan Wilson, and the United Salisbury Column with less than 300 men under Major Patrick Forbes. An additional of 700 Bechuanas marching from the south under Khama
Khama III
Khama III , also known as Khama the Good, was the kgosi of the Bamangwato people of Bechuanaland , who made his country a protectorate of the United Kingdom to ensure its survival against Boer and Ndebele encroachments.-Ancestry and Youth:During the 18th century, Malope, chief of the Bakwena...
, the most influential of the Bamangwato
Bamangwato
The Bamangwato can be said to be one of the eight 'principal' Tswana tribes of Botswana, and just like any other Tswana tribe in Botswana, constitutes a small percent in the central district even in their capital serowe. They ruled over majority Bakalangaand other tribes such as the san,bitwa and...
chiefs and a loyal friend of the British, would meet up with the two colonial columns.
Destruction of Bulawayo
The column of Khama's men from the south had reached the TatiTati Concessions Land
The Tati Concessions Land was a concession created in the borderlands of the Matabele kingdom and the Bechuanaland Protectorate. The concession was originally made by the Matabele King to Sir John Swinburne...
, and won a victory on the Singuesi river on 2 November. Advanced scouts for the colonial forces, including Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham, DSO was an American scout and world traveling adventurer known for his service to the British Army in colonial Africa and for teaching woodcraft to Robert Baden-Powell, thus becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement.Burnham...
and Selous
Frederick Selous
Frederick Courteney Selous DSO was a British explorer, officer, hunter, and conservationist, famous for his exploits in south and east of Africa. His real-life adventures inspired Sir H. Rider Haggard to create the fictional Allan Quatermain character. Selous was also a good friend of Theodore...
, reached Bulawayo that same day, only to watch as Lobengula blew up his arsenal of ammunition rather than allow it to be captured by the British. The town, mostly made up of wood-beam huts with mud (dagga) walls, was largely destroyed. On 3 November, Bulawayo was reached by the Victoria column from Mashonaland
Mashonaland
Mashonaland is a region in northern Zimbabwe. It is the home of the Shona people.Currently, Mashonaland is divided into three provinces, with a total population of about 3 million:* Mashonaland West* Mashonaland Central* Mashonaland East...
, accompanied by Jameson
Leander Starr Jameson
Sir Leander Starr Jameson, 1st Baronet, KCMG, CB, , also known as "Doctor Jim", "The Doctor" or "Lanner", was a British colonial statesman who was best known for his involvement in the Jameson Raid....
and Sir John Willoughby. By this time, Lobengula and his warriors were in full flight towards the Zambezi. An attempt was made to induce Lobengula to surrender, but no replies were received to the messages. The United Salisbury Column later arrived in Bulawayo, and on 13 November, Major Patrick Forbes
Patrick William Forbes
Patrick William Forbes , was born in 1861 at Whitechurch, England. He was educated at Rugby, Warwickshire and commissioned to the 6th Inniskilling Dragoons. In 1880, he went to Cape Colony and in 1889 he was made second-in-command of the British South Africa Police...
organized his column and started in pursuit of Lobengula.
Shangani Patrol
The pursuing party was delayed by difficult routes and heavy rains, and did not come up with Lobengula until the 3rd of December. Major Allan Wilson, in command of thirty-four troopers, crossed the Shangani river in advance, and bivouacked close to Lobengula's quarters. Efforts by Forbes to reinforce Wilson's patrol were too little and too late to make a difference. In the night the river rose, and the remainder of Forbes' forces were unable to cross. During the early morning the Matabele surrounded the little band.Wilson and his followers all fought most gallantly, according Ndebele reports, but the opposing forces were too great. Except for three scouts, who under orders from Wilson, miraculously crossed the swollen Shangani and returned to Forbes to request reinforcements (the Americans Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham, DSO was an American scout and world traveling adventurer known for his service to the British Army in colonial Africa and for teaching woodcraft to Robert Baden-Powell, thus becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement.Burnham...
and Pearl "Pete" Ingram, and an Australian named Gooding), all 32 men of the Wilson party, known as the Shangani Patrol
Shangani Patrol
The Shangani Patrol was a group of white Rhodesian pioneer police officers killed in battle on the Shangani River in Matabeleland in 1893. The incident achieved a lasting, prominent place in Rhodesian colonial history.-Setting and Battle:...
perished in what is viewed roughly as British/Rhodesian equivalent to Custer's Last Stand.
Defeat of the Matabele
InDuna
InDuna is a Zulu title meaning advisor, great leader, ambassador, headman, or commander of group of warriors. It can also mean spokesperson or mediator as the izinDuna often acted as a bridge between the people and the king...
submitted to the British South Africa Company. An order in council of the 18th of July defined the administrative power of the company over Matabeleland. Charges were made in the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
against the company of having provoked the Ndebele in order to bring on the war and thus secure their territory, but after enquiry the company was exonerated from the charge by Lord Ripon, then Colonial Secretary
Secretary of State for the Colonies
The Secretary of State for the Colonies or Colonial Secretary was the British Cabinet minister in charge of managing the United Kingdom's various colonial dependencies....
. It was also discovered that Lobengula had in fact sent to Jameson gold dust worth about £1000, and communicated his desire for peace, but two troopers to whom the gold and message were entrusted kept the gold and suppressed the message. Their crime was afterwards discovered and the troopers sentenced to fourteen years' penal servitude, although they were released after just a few months due to technicalities.
Aftermath
In every step taken by the company the guiding hand was that of Cecil Rhodes, a fact which received recognition when, by a proclamation of 3 May 1895, the company's territory received officially the name "RhodesiaRhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
". During this year there was great activity in exploiting Matabeleland, " Stands " or plots were sold at extraordinary prices in Bulawayo
Bulawayo
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...
. Within nine months the rebuilt town of Bulawayo had a population of 1,900 colonials and in the various goldfields
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
there were over 2,000 colonial prospectors
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
. The construction of telegraphs proceeded with rapidity and by the end of 1895, 500 m. of new lines had been constructed, making about 1,500 in all. A new company, the African Transcontinental Company, had been founded under the auspices of Col. Frank Rhodes
Francis William Rhodes
Colonel Francis William Rhodes, CB, DSO , better known as "Frank", is perhaps the best known member of the Rhodes family after his brother Cecil. Trained as a soldier from his youth, he participated in a considerable amount of conflict in different parts of the world...
, brother of Cecil, with the ultimate purpose of connecting the Cape with Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
. By the end of 1895, 133 m. of these lines had been laid. At this time too, the railway from Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, Cape Colony
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
had passed Mafeking and was approaching the Rhodesian frontier. This railway reached Bulawayo in 1897. Meanwhile on the east coast the line to connect Salisbury (now Harare
Harare
Harare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
) with Beira, Mozambique
Beira, Mozambique
Beira is the second largest city in Mozambique. It lies in the central region of the country in Sofala Province, where the Pungue River meets the Indian Ocean. Beira had a population of 412,588 in 1997, which grew to an estimated 546,000 in 2006...
(then Portuguese East Africa Colony) was under construction and this was completed in 1899.
Maxim gun
The First Matabele War was the first wartime use of a Maxim gun by Britain and it proved to have a decisive impact. In less than optimal situations, such as hilly or mountainous terrain or dense vegetation with poor lines of sight, the Maxim gun resulted in little direct impact on enemy deaths. But as a psychological weapon, the Maxim gun was truly phenomenal. It generated a sense of fear in the Ndebele and made the British South Africa PoliceBritish South Africa Police
The British South Africa Police was the police force of the British South Africa Company of Cecil Rhodes which became the national police force of Southern Rhodesia and its successor after 1965, Rhodesia...
seem invincible. In one engagement, for example, 50 British soldiers with just four Maxim guns fought off 5,000 Ndebele warriors.