The First Chimurenga was a near simultaneous uprising by the veteran warriors of the Ndebele tribe and their former serfs of the Shona tribe against the few thousand settlers who had colonized Rhodesia during the first decade of its existence. Tens of thousands of people died – including many women and children – no one knows the exact number. At the time of the uprising there were only 48 regular police in Rhodesia and the initial onslaught nearly succeeded in driving the European population out of the country. The two tribes were united in the cult of the spirit-mediums, an unwritten religion wherein spirits entered into the the cult priests and whose prophecies were fuel for the rebellion. Here, in authoritative detail, is the story of that rebellion: the story of cults and massacres, of legions of horse hooves pounding the brown dust of Zimbabwe’s valleys, enveloping and shattering the traditional Zulu battle lines of the Ndebele; it’s witchcraft and machine guns; it’s bombs and murder – it’s the First Chimurenga. 

This is part two of a ongoing series. You can find part one here: First Matabele War.

Download episode 53 here: download

Maps and Illustrations:

References:

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