Mfecane

The Mfecane and Its Effects

Essay from the year 2016 in the subject History - Africa, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (Department of History and Political Studies), course: Ba. History, language: English, abstract: Mfecane is an Nguni word which means ‘crushing’ and was used by the Nguni to describe the violent wars that tore apart Central and Southern Africa between 1820 and1835. The Sotho refers to the Mfecane as the Defecane or Lifaquane, which means forced migration. This forced migration was caused by a series of wars that engulfed the area between different states over land and resources.This event has been dominant in the history of the Southern and Central Africa because of the areas it affected which stretched from the Tugela River in modern day South Africa to areas in modern day Botswana, Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Zambia. This essay tries to explain the point that the Mfecane is the single event that made the most profound effect on Central and Southern Africa in the nineteenth century. It will first discuss why the Mfecane is seen as single event, then move on to discuss its causes and effects and later conclude on the question based on the findings of the research.

Mfecane Aftermath

The idea that the period of social turbulence in the nineteenth century was a consequence of the emergence of the powerful Zulu kingdom under Shaka has been written about extensively as a central episode of southern African history. Considerable dynamic debate has focused on the idea that this period – the ‘mfecane’- left much of the interior depopulated, thereby justifying white occupation. One view is that ‘the time of troubles’ owed more to the Delagoa Bay Slave trade and the demands of the labour-hungry Cape colonists than to Shaka’s empire building. But is there sufficient evidence to support the argument? The Mfecane Aftermath investigates the very nature of historical debate and examines the uncertain foundations of much of the previous historiography.

The Mfecane