AbaQulusi (Zulu) explained

The abaQulusi or Qulusi^[1] are a zulu tribe from South Africa. They are based in the abaqulusi district, Kwazulu-Natal, that bears their name.

History

Origins

The aunt of King Shaka, Mkabayi kaJama, created the tribe. When the king sent Mkabayi to ebaQuluseni, near the present Vryheid and Hlobane, she founded the powerful abaQulusi tribe that played a big role in the coming wars.^{[2] [3] [4]}

Conflicts where the abaQulusi were involved

During the Battle of Hlobane and the Battle of Kambula of the Anglo-Zulu war of 1879, the abaQulusi were commanded by the iNkosi Msebe kaMadaka.^[5] During the Battle of Holkrans against the Boers in 1902, the iNkosi Sikhobobho was in command.^[6]

Further reading

• Donald R. Morris, The washing of the spears : a history of the rise of the Zulu nation under Shaka and its fall in the Zulu War of 1879, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1971, 1965, 655 p.
• William Watson Race, The Epic Anglo Zulu War on Canvas, Talisman Prints, 2007, .
• Adrian Greaves, Xolani Mkhize, The Tribe that Washed its Spears: The Zulu's at War, Pen and sword military, 2013, .
• Nicki von der Heyde, Field Guide to the Battlefields of South Africa, Struik, 2013,

Novels

• David Ebsworth, The Kraals of Ulundi, Silverwood Books, 2014
• Philippe Morvan, Les fils du ciel (The sons of the sky), Calmann-Lévy, 2021

Notes and References

1. Peter Warwick, Black People and the South African War 1899-1902, p. 91
2. Ken Gillings, Discovering the Battlefields of the Anglo-Zulu War, pages 105-6
3. abaQulusi - What's in the name?http://www.vryheidtourism.co.za/abaqulusi-whats-in-a-name
4. AbaQulusi in and around the Anglo-Boer South African War 1899-1902https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/archive_files/Blacks%20in%20and%20around%20the%20Anglo-Boer%20South%20African%20War%201899-1902_.pdf
5. Book: Laband, John. Historical Dictionary of the Zulu Wars . Scarecrow Press . 2009 . Lanham, Maryland . 978-0-8108-6078-0.
6. The Battle of Holkranshttps://www.angloboerwar.com/forum/8-events/177-the-battle-of-holkrans