By Princess Eugene Majuru
Harare, Zimbabwe (News Of The South) – The dark period of 1890 -1897 in present day Zimbabwe was marked by a fierce and complex conflict known as the First Chimurenga. The 1st Chimurenga started off in Matabeleland in 1890 when the British settlers arrived in Zimbabwe on a mission to kill, loot and take over the southern African country. In this uprising the Mbari Clan Harare`s royal family presented a powerful resistance against the encroaching British South Africa Company (BSAC) and its colonial ambitions. The term “Mbari Genocide” may not be the commonly used historical descriptor, the events of this period certainly involved widespread violence and significant loss of life, particularly affecting the Shona people the Mbari spread over a large area of the African Kingdom known as Harare Mbari Kingdom which covers Harare, Mazoe, Concession up to Great Dyke by Pote River, Nyabira, Seke all the way to Waddilove in Marondera, Domboshava and Chinamhora being the boundary that makes up Harare Mbari Kingdom. There is a clear distinction with the term Harare city which only covers and refers to Harare City Centre.
Causes of the Uprising:
The Mbari rose up against the British and their BSAC’s policies, including forced labour, land alienation, and cattle confiscation, destruction of cattle, destruction of homesteads extensive looting and burning of crops and food created deep resentment among the Mbari clan. The need to maintain sovereignty and resist colonial domination fuelled the widespread uprising. During the conflict from March 1896, the Mbari clan in Mazoe, Harare, and Mount Hampden, Nyabira, Concession rose up against the BSAC.
The Siege of Mazoe:
The Mazoe area saw particularly intense fighting, with settlers finding themselves besieged by Shona forces. This “siege of Mazoe” is a key part of the history of this conflict, and highlights the very dangerous conditions that the colonizers presented and faced. This conflict was characterised by brutal warfare on both sides, with significant casualties among the Mbari people who used inferior weapons to the ones being used by the British. The BSAC, with its superior weaponry, eventually suppressed the uprising, but not without significant cost. The suppression of the uprising came about because they called for reinforcement from their forces who had been fighting in other cities, they were called in to help fight the powerful Mbari clan who posed problems for the settlers. The British failed to understand the Mbari war tactics and how they had managed to hold them for that long yet the British themselves had superior weapons. In Colonial documentations about the battle in Mazoe and the Siege of Deery Farm there is mention of the prowess of the Mbari people. The British were besieged for 23 days by a Clan who had inferior weapons.
One British settler Edward Charles Broadbent in his accounts described that the local people had been very friendly and the uprising caught them by surprise. The Mbari planned to strike when they were least expected they displayed their intelligence and how they managed to prepare for a big battle to protect their precious land. One Louis Hermann who had a horse had volunteered to ride to Salisbury to report on their situation. He left early the next day, Sunday 21 June, but was overpowered and murdered at King Makombe’s kraal. King Makombe was the Mbari King at this time since King Mbari himself had died in 1872 due to old age. Makombe`s strength as a physically and mentally for King can be seen in the documentation available by the British themselves. The Mbari were attacked by British who threw out plugs of dynamite with short fuses at them as they approached the British hidden in the long grass. The Settlers biggest problem was lack of water although they were only 900 metres away from Pote river they were afraid to go to the river. They managed to go to the river for water and their first attempt was successful but the 2nd attempt was not as their men failed to return. A settler named January realised returning to the laager alive was not possible and made his way back to Salisbury to report on 10 July 1896 that the survivors at Deary’s Store were in mortal danger.
Other accounts of the battle are that on another trip for water to Pote River the unwounded Europeans, Pickering, Ragusin and Rowland and a young boy successfully managed to bring water from the Pote River, but their footprints were discovered and the Mbari clan had according to January “built a cordon of scherms (bush fences) around us, and pretty effectively cut off any chance of egress on our part.”
Below is another account from the Siege at Deery Farm in Mazoe :
Jono Water’s article In Heritage of Zimbabwe Publication No 39 on their rescue was from an account in The Rhodesian Times and Financial Times which was launched on 31 July 1896 – just a few weeks after the relief patrol had set out for Abercorn, now Shamva, on 11 July. Marshall Hole comments that the military men at Salisbury had shown little inclination to mount a relief effort of the men at Deary’s Store. It was only after Duncan came in from Charter on 10 July and heard the account from January of their plight that a rescue effort was launched. (Jagger Medals.com)
The above documentation is further proof that the Mbari were a force not to be messed with, everything that happened in the Harare Mbari Kingdom as well as other parts of Zimbabwe was reported to then Queen of England Queen Victoria who gave orders from Buckingham Palace. Her orders were carried out.
Aftermath:
The First Chimurenga had a profound impact on the region, leading to further land alienation and increased colonial control. The memory of the uprising became a powerful symbol of resistance for future generations of Zimbabweans. It’s important to understand that the events of 1896-1897 were a complex and tragic period in Harare Mbari Zimbabwean history. The conflict involved widespread violence and suffering, and its legacy continues to be felt today with continued displacement of the Mbari clan.
Key points to remember include the fact that the First Chimurenga was a major uprising against British colonial rule in Zimbabwe. The conflict involved both the Ndebele and Shona peoples.
The siege of Mazoe with the Mbari Clan was a significant event in the conflict. The conflict resulted in significant loss of life.
Additional information Sources
https://www.jagermedals.com/_pdf_files/single_campaign_pdfs/j3777_large.pdf
https://zimfieldguide.com/mashonaland-central/siege-deary%E2%80%99s-store-abercorn-june-21st-%E2%80%93-july-13th-1896
Col. A.S. Hickman. The Siege of the Abercorn Store. Rhodesiana Publication No. 9 December 1963 P18-27
The ’96 Rebellions. The British South Africa reports on the Native disturbances in Rhodesia, 1896-97. Schedule F. Rescue of the Abercorn party. P98-100
E.E. Burke. Mazoe and the Mashona Rebellion, 1896-7. Rhodesiana Publication No. 25 December 1971.
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