Sigananda kaZokufa (c. 1815–1906) was a Zulu aristocrat whose life spanned the reigns of four Zulu kings in southeastern Africa. According to oral history, Sigananda's grandfather was chief Mvakela, who married a sister of

Nandi Nandi may refer to: People * Nandy (surname), Indian surname * Nandi (mother of Shaka) (1760–1827), daughter of Bhebe of the Langeni tribe * Onandi Lowe (born 1974), Jamaican footballer nicknamed Nandi * Nandi Bushell (born 2010), South Afri ...

, King Shaka's mother, and that his father was Inkosi Zokufa. He also said he had a son called Ndabaningi.

Life and career

Perhaps the most venerable member of the old Zulu order, Sigananda kaZokufa's life and career spanned the reigns of

Shaka Shaka kaSenzangakhona ( – 22 September 1828), also known as Shaka Zulu () and Sigidi kaSenzangakhona, was the king of the Zulu Kingdom from 1816 to 1828. One of the most influential monarchs of the Zulu, he ordered wide-reaching reforms that ...

(18161828),

Dingane Dingane ka Senzangakhona Zulu (–29 January 1840), commonly referred to as Dingane or Dingaan, was a Zulu chief who became king of the Zulu Kingdom in 1828, after assassinating his brother Shaka. He set up his royal capital, uMgungundlovu, a ...

(18281840),

Mpande Mpande kaSenzangakhona (1798–18 October 1872) was monarch of the Zulu Kingdom from 1840 to 1872. He was a half-brother of Sigujana, Shaka and Dingane, who preceded him as Zulu kings. He came to power after he had overthrown Dingane in 1840. ...

(18401872) and

Cetshwayo King Cetshwayo kaMpande (; ; 1826 – 8 February 1884) was the king of the Zulu Kingdom from 1873 to 1879 and its Commander in Chief during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. His name has been transliterated as Cetawayo, Cetewayo, Cetywajo and Ketchw ...

(18721884). His father had been one of Shaka's contemporaries. In fact Shaka had never managed to defeat the amaChube people, of which Zokufa was chief, but the small clan shrewdly allied itself with Shaka's Zulu kingdom. As a boy, Sigananda was a mat-bearer for Shaka, and under Dingane he served in a military regiment known as the uMkhulutshane ibutho. He was present at the death of the

Voortrekker The Great Trek ( af, Die Groot Trek; nl, De Grote Trek) was a Northward migration of Dutch-speaking settlers who travelled by wagon trains from the Cape Colony into the interior of modern South Africa from 1836 onwards, seeking to live beyon ...

Piet Retief Pieter Mauritz Retief (12 November 1780 – 6 February 1838) was a ''Voortrekker'' leader. Settling in 1814 in the frontier region of the Cape Colony, he assumed command of punitive expeditions in response to raiding parties from the adjacent ...

, and his followers at Dingane's royal homestead of uMgungundlovu (Zulu for ''Place of the Great-Elephant''). This massacre and its aftermath had a profound effect on early South African

race relations Race relations is a sociological concept that emerged in Chicago in connection with the work of sociologist Robert E. Park and the Chicago race riot of 1919. Race relations designates a paradigm or field in sociology and a legal concept in the ...

as it led to the

Battle of Blood River The Battle of Blood River (16 December 1838) was fought on the bank of the Ncome River, in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa between 464 Voortrekkers ("Pioneers"), led by Andries Pretorius, and an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Zulu. Est ...

on 16 December 1838 when Dingane was overthrown by the Voortrekkers. After Dingane's overthrow, he was succeeded by his half-brother Mpande. Sigananda remained an important ally of the king but they fell out after the

Battle of Ndondakusuka The Battle of Ndondakusuka (2 December 1856) was the culmination of a succession struggle in the Zulu Kingdom between Cetshwayo and Mbuyazi, the two eldest sons of the king Mpande, often known as the Second Zulu Civil War. Mbuyazi was defeated at ...

in 1856, when Sigananda sided with the young prince Cetshwayo against his half-brother (and Mpande's favourite son) Mbuyazi.

Battle of Ndondakusuka

This battle had been about who was the rightful heir to Mpande's throne on his death. Although it had always been assumed Cetshwayo was the rightful heir, Mpande had apparently grown wary of his elder son's ambitions and had encouraged his favourite, Mbuyazi, to stake a claim. The result was a tremendous confrontation between the two sides, which resulted in Mbuyazi's defeat and death.Zulu Battles
/ref> Mpande grudgingly acknowledged his son's claim, but shortly afterwards Sigananda was forced into exile.

Cetshwayo's ascension

He crossed into the coastal region known as

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ...

, which bordered Zululand and took refuge with the Zondi clan. However, on Cetshwayo's ascension to the throne in 1872, he remembered Sigananda's loyalty and recalled him back to Zululand, where he was installed as chief of the amaChube people. Sigananda's base was in the rainy Nkandla Forest, and the amaChube were iron-working people. The traditional stronghold was at Manziphambana, between the

Thukela The Tugela River ( zu, Thukela; af, Tugelarivier) is the largest river in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. With a total length of , it is one of the most important rivers of the country. The river originates in Mont-aux-Sources of the D ...

and Mhlathuze rivers. Sigananda survived the

Anglo-Zulu War The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, coupl ...

of 1879, in which the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

invaded Zululand and overthrew the Zulu kingdom. After the war, Zululand was divided into 13 chieftainships and Cetshwayo was exiled to

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. Sigananda became involved in the civil war which broke out as a result of Britain's divide-and-rule tactics. The Zulu essentially split into two camps: the

Mandlakazi The Mandlakazi are a Zulu clan in kwaZulu/Natal and formerly in Zululand. They started out as allies of Shaka as he founded the Zulu nation. The Mandlakazi derived wealth not only from cattle but from an extensive trade network that extended fr ...

(led by a powerful former ally of the royal house,

Zibhebhu kaMaphitha Zibhebhu kaMaphitha Zulu (1841–1904) (also called Usibepu/Ziphewu) was a Zulu chief. After the defeat of the Zulu Kingdom by the British, he attempted to create his own independent kingdom. From 1883 to 1884, he fought the Zulu king Cetshwayo, i ...

) and the royalist uSuthu (led by Cetshwayo on his return from exile, his half-brothers, and other elders such as Sigananda).

King's rescue and Bambatha Rebellion

When the Mandlakazi beat and scattered the uSuthu, Sigananda came to the rescue of his king by providing refuge for him in the Nkandla forest. Cetshwayo died soon after, and was buried in Sigananda's territory. The old man remained as feisty as ever, though, and in 1906 became embroiled in the

Battle of Mome Gorge A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, after allying himself with the young firebrand Bambatha kaMancinza of the Zondi clan. His support for Bambatha may have had something to do with the fact that Sigananda had been shielded by Bambatha's grandfather during his exile in

all those years ago. But when the rebellion collapsed, Sigananda surrendered to the British. While in captivity he entertained his captors with stories of the great Zulu kings. One soldier was moved to remark that an old man nearing 100, and so obviously adored by his people, had no place in the dank prison to which he had been confined. But, while awaiting his sentence under

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

, Sigananda died of natural causes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sigananda KaZokufa 1815 births 1906 deaths 19th-century Zulu people South African people who died in prison custody