GUNGUNYANE
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Gungunyane (also known as Ngunguwya, Gunguwhawa & Ngunguwyana) (circa 1850-1906), the last Shangana ruler of Gaza in South-West Africa, was caught between rival British and Portuguese empire builders. He ruled from 1884-1895.
PHOTO CAPTION: Gungunyane. SOURCE: afrolegends.com
On the death of his father, Mzila in 1884, Gungunyane seized power in a coup.
To combat Portuguese expansionism, he sought British backing, but did not understand the difference between the British government, and Cecil John Rhodes and his British South African Company.
The Portuguese opposed this by claiming that they already had sovereignty over the area. Under the leadership of the Portuguese governor of Mozambique, Manuel de Sousa (Gouveia), they then began to seek control of the area. Gungunyane, to confirm his control of southern Mozambique, moved the population he ruled from the highlands to the mouth of the Limpopo River. Other tribal groups then asserted their independence and the Chope people rebelled. The rebellion was crushed by de Sousa, who later launched a conquest of the whole area, in which the Portuguese troops used modern weapons, including machine guns.
After an attempt by Cecil John Rhodes to obtain a concession from Gungunyane had failed, the British and Portuguese concluded a treaty defining the frontier between South Africa and Mozambique.
KEITH IRVINE
