Eldredge The Creation of the Zulu Kingdom, 1815–1828

War, Shaka, and the Consolidation of Power
Erscheinungsjahr 2014
ISBN: 978-1-316-05735-3
Verlag: Cambridge University Press
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 0 Seiten

This scholarly account traces the emergence of the Zulu Kingdom in South Africa in the early nineteenth century, under the rule of the ambitious and iconic King Shaka. In contrast to recent literary analyses of myths of Shaka, this book uses the richness of Zulu oral traditions and a comprehensive body of written sources to provide a compelling narrative and analysis of the events and people of the era of Shaka's rule. The oral traditions portray Shaka as rewarding courage and loyalty and punishing failure; as ordering the targeted killing of his own subjects, both warriors and civilians, to ensure compliance to his rule; and as arrogant and shrewd, but kind to the poor and the mentally disabled. The rich and diverse oral traditions, transmitted from generation to generation, reveal the important roles and fates of men and women, royal and subject, from the perspectives of those who experienced Shaka's rule and the dramatic emergence of the Zulu Kingdom.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Eldredge, Elizabeth A.

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Militärgeschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Kultur- und Ideengeschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Mentalitäts- und Sozialgeschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Afrikanische Geschichte

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1. Political history in precolonial Africa: the case of the AmaZulu Kingdom; 2. Powerful chiefs before Shaka; 3. Shaka's early life: oral traditions, tales, and history; 4. Shaka as warrior; 5. AmaZulu expansion and repercussions: early conflicts and migrations; 6. Chiefs, chiefdoms, violence, and political reconfiguration; 7. Challenges and consolidation, 1824–7; 8. Royal women: authority and subservience; 9. Zulu voices, Zulu meanings: ancestors, praises, and history; 10. Shaka's rule: social configuration and social control; 11. Shaka's ambitions; 12. The legacy of Shaka's reign; Appendix: James Stuart interviewees.

Über Autor(innen)

Eldredge, Elizabeth A.
Elizabeth A. Eldredge is an independent scholar. She has published A South African Kingdom: The Pursuit of Security in Nineteenth-Century Lesotho (Cambridge University Press, 1993) and Power in Colonial Africa: Conflict and Discourse in Lesotho, 1870–1960 (2007).