Zulu War, 1879; Zululand (South Africa) -- History -- To 1879
A great meeting was called by the white "inkosi" (Sir Garnet) for
the 1st of September—the same day, six years ago, on which Cetywayo
was crowned. It was fitting that the anniversary of the day of
promises never fulfilled should be also a day of atonement. Two
hundred Zulus were seated a few paces from Sir Garnet's tent, and
although naturally great talkers, the silence of death prevailed.
Ranged in rows four deep, with the principal chiefs in front, they
listened with perfect attention to the words which decided the fate
of their country and of themselves. Two of the king's brothers and
the prime minister of the king were present. At half-past four,
Sir Garnet Wolseley left his tent, and, as he walked towards the
assembly, was greeted with uplifted hands and shouts of "Inkose."
Leaning upon the hilt of his sword, he calmly gazed for a few
moments upon the representatives of a conquered nation assembled
to hear its doom. Mr. Shepstone interpreted into Zulu sentence by
sentence as Sir Garnet Wolseley spoke, as follows:—
[Sidenote: _Sir Garnet Wolseley and the Zulus._]
"It is six years ago on this very day, the 1st of September, that
Cetywayo was crowned King of the Zulus, and only yesterday you
yourselves have seen him carried away a prisoner, never to return
again to Zululand. On the occasion of his coronation Cetywayo made
certain promises regarding laws to be observed in the future, which
promises he never fulfilled, and his country is now about to be
divided into different chieftainships, and I hope his fate will be
a warning to all of the chiefs not to follow in his footsteps, but
to act according to the commands and terms given by the English
Queen, who will most certainly punish any who do not do so. The
interests and welfare of the South African races are very dear to
the Queen, and she is anxious that the natives of this country
should thrive, as those in Natal have done up to the present time.
She will be lenient to faults arising from ignorance; but although
inclined, as I have said, to deal leniently when ignorance causes
them to commit faults, those who persistently go contrary to good
government and peace will assuredly be punished as Cetywayo has
been. As they are aware, she lives far away; but her power is very
great, and she is quite able to, and will, punish those who take
life or make wars contrary to her orders. Cetywayo took the lives
of his people for trivial offences, without giving them a chance
of defending themselves, or allowing them a fair trial. This must
cease. In future, trivial offences will be punishable by fines.
Cetywayo kept on foot a large and powerful army, and did not allow
his men to marry without his permission; in future, the young men
will be allowed to marry when and whom they like, provided always
they have sufficient for the support of a wife, and the consent of
the girl's parents. Disobedience of this law is to be punishable
by a fine inflicted by the headmen of the kraal. As Zululand is
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account