By Thomas Sibanda – Mzala Tom
Princess Mkabayi was the daughter of the Zulu inkosi uJama. She was a twin by conception. Her twin sister was known as Mmama. Inkosi uJama decreed that the twin girls were not to be killed at their infancy. This decision was not well received by the royalty and Zulu society.
The twin girls were not loved by the community as there was great fear that they would bring curses and attract ancestral wrath on the Zulu community. This fear was confirmed when the queen mother died before she could bear the king a male heir. Mkabayi and her twin sister bore the brunt of the people’s hate and rejection.
Mkabayi became the focus of public attention because of her strong willed character and stubbornness. Her sister on the other hand was calm and mellow. As years progressed, inkosi uJama failed to produce a male heir. This was worrisome to the Zulu royals and the nation.
Sometime in 1776 Inkosi uJama angered the Zulu nation by marrying an already pregnant Thonga woman who gave birth to a son called Sojiyisa. The Zulu doubted and questioned his paternity. There was great feast that this ‘illegitimate’ son would usurp the throne.
In March 1777 Mkabayi rose to the occasion by courting a wife for her father. She convinced her father to marry Mthaniya. From this marriage the long awaited heir, Prince Senzangakhona was born. This move won the hearts of the Zulu nation who praised Mkabayi for fixing their succession problems.
The praise for Mkabayi was however , short lived. After the death of Jama in 1781 , Mkabayi shocked the Zulu nation by declaring herself as the regent leader holding the reigns for Senzangakhona until he had come of age. This move was unprecedented in Zulu traditions and customs.
Due to her strong character and influence in the army, Mkabayi’s position as the regent was firmly established. She silenced and eliminated all opposition and dissent. Her rule as regent was autocratic and firm.
She also ordered the assassination of Sojiyisa whom she viewed as a threat to Senzangakhona’s rise to the throne. Sojiyisa had sympathisers who believed that one day he was going to be a king.
Because of her firm leadership and ruthless response to any form of opposition, Mkabayi gained a reputation far and wide as the powerful leader of the Zulu nation.
When Senzangakhona came of age, Mkabayi stepped down and handed him the reigns. However, King Senzangakhona did not reign for long as he died at a relatively young age. During his short reign, it was known that Mkabayi was the kingmaker and power behind the throne.
Senzangakhona was succeeded by his son Shaka. Despite King Shaka’s success in consolidating the Zulu into a large kingdom by incorporating other clans, Mkabayi did not hesitate to plot his downfall, accusing him of abusing his power and becoming a despot.
She together with her nephews Dingane and Mhlangana conspired to assassinate him on the 24th of September 1828, in order to elevate Dingane to the throne. The plot was successful. King Shaka was eliminated and replaced by Dingane.
Mkabayi remained unmarried, preferring to maintain her political power and influence and powerful position as the kingmaker.
Mkabayi maintained her influence in the Zulu nation as the power broker and king maker. At the time of her death in 1843, the Zulu king was Mpande, who was the successor to King Dingane , who was assassinated. The Zulu people never forgave Mkabayi for the assassination of King Shaka and her sin is condemned to date. However, some celebrate her as a hero who consolidated and saved the Zulu Empire.
