Open AccessZulu Empire Decolonised: The Epic Story of the Zulu from Pre-Colonial Times to the 21st Century by Shalo Mbatha Johannesburg, South Africa: iZigi Publishing, 2021, p. 392. ISBN: 978-0-620-89782-2
Author(s) -
Berrington Ntombela
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
world journal of education and humanities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2687-6779
pISSN - 2687-6760
DOI - 10.22158/wjeh.v3n4p23
Subject(s) - zulu , battle , empire , colonialism , history , decolonization , epic , dignity , publishing , ancient history , literature , classics , art , law , political science , philosophy , archaeology , linguistics , politics
The Zulu Empire is one of the well-known empires in Africa and the world. It is well-known for having resisted and militarily defeated the English army in the battle of Isandlwana. However, history writers who predominantly wrote from the outsider perspective distorted a lot of historical events. This article reviews a book written by Shalo Mbatha entitled “Zulu Empire Decolonised: The Epic Story of the Zulu from Pre-colonial Times to the 21st Century”. The article argues how the title remains true to the project of decolonisation. It further demonstrates how Shalo reverses the popular history created by colonisers by presenting events as known by those who lived through them. Her greatest success is in writing the history in the language of the colonised, thus restoring their dignity and having them rewrite their own history.