The nature and extent of state formation process under emperor Shaka Zulu and its impact in Southeast Africa
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Date
2021
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University of Zululand
Abstract
This study delves deep into and examinesthe nature and extent of state formation process under
Emperor Shaka Zulu and its impact in Southeast Africa. State formation is the initial act of
physically endowing a given territory with sovereignty and territorial integrity. This is done
via several methods. First, it may be through the annexation of territory. Perhaps a very rare
instance is voluntary cooperation by independent territories to form a new state. The second
stage is that of creating political order, institutions or political leadership among others. This
stage refers to the process of instituting a government and political order that enjoy sufficient
legitimacy and authority. At that stage, the average role of the military may be required. The
third stage is that of nation-building, which refers to the process of infusing the peoples of a
given territory, who otherwise differ as regards custom, religion and sometimes language, with
a sense of common belonging and shared identity or in short, what could be called ‘national
integration’. Using a collection of both primary and secondary sources this argue argue that
Zulu state which emerged in the early 1820s in Southeast Africa was forged out of many
disparate chiefdoms practising different customs, speaking different dialects and claiming
varied historical origins. The Zulu existed amongst other great independent nations – some
were never going to allow themselves to be vassals of another kingdom. In that case, Emperor
Shaka either befriended them or declared war on them. The consequences of the rise of the
Zulu state were far-reaching, as migrations into the interior by attacking splinter groups from
coastal communities resulted in countless refugees and the flight of various groups further
inland. This created dislocated African communities over large areas. Despite previous
theories, which have been used to understand the process such as the great man theory, or self made leader theory, historians now agree that leaders are mainly produced by the
circumstance of the time. The present study opted to use adopt the Power Transition and Role
Theories. These theories were of importance to understand the different role played by certain
individuals in the process of state formation. These theories also help understand how the
transition from agrarian societies to a centralised government.
Description
A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities and Social Science in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy of Arts in the Department of History at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2021
Keywords
State formation, emperor Shaka Zulu, Southeast Africa