How Did the Zulus Revolutionise South African Warfare?

At the Battle of Isandlwana in 1879, an army of Zulu warriors armed with cowhide shields and short stabbing spears succeeded in defeating and killing an army of 1,800 British regulars and their allies, armed with the latest European fire arms and artillery. The tactics they employed, the "Horns of the Buffalo" or Impondo Zankomo in isiZulu, owe their existence to the military genius of the man who forged the Zulu Empire in the heat of the African sun: Shaka. His military innovations and reforms included the invention of a new, shorter spear called the Assegai, or more commonly known by its isiZulu nickname: the iKlwa, and that of much larger, thicker shields capable of shielding his warriors when closing on an enemy from range. These inventions suited his tactical style of combat, surrounding an enemy and cutting them down at close quarters instead of the much lighter style that had predominated in African combat before. Off the battlefield he used psychological warfare and guerrilla tactics to great effect too.
Article on Shaka's Military Reforms:
apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltex...
Article on the Rise of the Zulu Empire & Warfare's Role:
file:///C:/Users/Admin/Downloads/1999-zulu.pdf
Zulu Rising: The Epic Story of Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift - Ian Knight
Related Videos of Mine:
The Rise of the Zulu:
• How Did the Zulus Go F...
The Great Trek:
• What was The Great Trek?
The First Boer War:
• The Other Boer War - T...
The South African Flag:
• The History Behind and...
Is the Film "Zulu" Racist?
• Is the Film "Zulu" Rac...
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#Zulu #SouthAfrica #History

[@Bluebelle51]

honestly, Shaka sounds more like a "Philip of Macedonia" than a "Napoleon" just because Shaka and Philip both created their army and developed tactics that others in the region hadn't seen before

[@historywithhilbert146]

That's a good distinction actually I do like that comparison.

[@mastrey]

With shaka and philip the same happen they create the army and they descendents create a empire

[@francescoazzoni3445]

I think that he's called Napoleon because they were contemporaries

[@Bluebelle51]

@Klaidi Rubiku mostly I was referring to the method of building an army from farmers and developing tactics that other's in their region hadn't seen. What those tactics actually were, would be irrelevant in that regard.

[@Peristerygr]

@@francescoazzoni3445 Υes Shaka was the "black Napoleon" and Ali Pasha Tepelenli was the "Napoleon of the East" -even if he didn't even have a state to rule he was just a very strong local warlord.

[@Lord.Kiltridge]

He may have been known as the black Napoleon, but his revolutionary change in combat style, a shield and thrusting weapon, closely resembled the Roman method of warfare. I understand that there are even parallels in organization and maneuver.

[@historywithhilbert146]

Yeah that's a good point that a few other people made as well. I think the classic historical comparison is because he was largely contemporary with Napoleon of course.

[@MarioAtheonio]

That was my thought as well, that short spear and large shield seem very similar in function to the Gladius and the Scutum, not to mention the throwing spears being used in a similar way to the Pilum!

[@historywithhilbert146]

@@Hypnopotimus27 Yes I pander to that crowd so much with my videos. I'm addressing a nickname that is sometimes given to him. You can decide for yourself with whether you agree with it or not. I'm not bending any facts or pandering to a certain crowd. Just trying to look at a period of history I find interesting. If you can't handle it, you're not forced to watch these videos.

[@ManofSteel4910]

@@historywithhilbert146 I like you even more than I did a few minutes ago.

[@JoeSmith-sl9bq]

Talk about over glorification

[@ferrjuan]

Waiting for Hilbert’s dad to burst in again and shout, “No one expected the Dutch Dad with Yogurt Inquisition!”

[@historywithhilbert146]

Luckily this time i was spared the yoghurt assault ;)

[@ajithsidhu7183]

@@historywithhilbert146 great vid pls do more on warfare ,etc other cultures like carthage rome ,greece turkic

[@historywithhilbert146]

@@ajithsidhu7183 Thanks Ajith! Really glad you enjoyed it! I'll have a video out about Plains Native Americans and how the horse changed their style of warfare in the coming weeks and another video out this coming Wednesday!

[@ajithsidhu7183]

@@historywithhilbert146 pls also do more on the old world armies and if can the sikh empire

[@ferrjuan]

History With Hilbert if you do a video on the Plains Indians hopefully you talk about the Comanche which many consider as the “Mongols” of the Plains of North America. My grandpa used to tell me stories about them cuz my great great grandfather fought them since he was part of the Mexican Army.

[@DukeEastway]

Never realized it before, but the Shaka reforms sound an awful lot like the Roman battle techniques. Big shield, one thrown weapon and one stabbing weapon.

[@richlisola1]

Yep! Shaka was like Marius and/or Caesar

[@aarondemiri486]

Shaka's brutality seems to be comparable to figures such as Vlad the impaler and Oda Nobunaga I'd be interested in ranking Shaka as a military commander to other greats

[@aharonvarna5992]

Wow this is amazing. Shaka took Tribal warfare and brought it to a modern level in less than a generation. What a great guy.

[@gerardrbain1972]

He was a military genius.

[@historywithhilbert146]

He was certainly an innovator but it did lead to the deaths of up to 2 million people which is the darker side of these things.

[@LB_die_Kaapie]

'Modern' is a stretch tbh

[@lif3andthings763]

@@historywithhilbert146 I thought there was a drought and migrations caused by both Zulu and European expansion?

[@DonVoghano]

Wait so they ditched long spear and small shield for a short stabbing weapon and a large shield, keeping the throwing spear for the start of battle? Sounds familiaris, frater.

[@williamlinley1402]

The Zulus are cool :)

[@NomadRidesHD]

yup only it took them to 1800's to do it and they did it naked and with cowhide and straw. impressive.

[@sodaandcookies1]

@@NomadRidesHD yeah, learn something the romans did better 200 years before haha

[@anon2427]

DonVoghano Linguam Latinam scis tu?

[@tylerdurden3722]

@@NomadRidesHD native terrain plays a big part in how an army developed. E.g. the Romans under Crassus were helpless in wide flat open terrain against the mobile cavalry army of the Parthians. (Most of whom were cavalry archers and then some heavily armored cataphract cavalry.) Or, e.g., the Forrests in Germany wasn't ideal for the Roman style of war. Hence why that style of war didn't develop there. Southern Africa is very similar to Italy, Spain, Carthage, Sicily, etc. So you could expect similar similar warfare developing there. The point is, Bantu people migrated from Central Africa (an equitorial region), toward Southern Africa. Replacing, displacing and mixing as they went along. Only reaching Southern Africa around the 1500's. So, using Roman Style warfare in their indigenous location (the Congo Jungle) is definitely not ideal. Btw, the decendents of those initial Bantus that left Central Africa now cover almost all of Sub-Saharan Africa. It's one of the biggest most rapid migrations in human history. It's kind of like if the Greeks had mostly wiped out or bred out indiginous people's and populated most of Asia. And Asia became a continent almost entire settled by Greeks. To the point where the term Asian and Greek becomes synonymous. That's the increadible scale of the Bantu Migration. The word African has become synonymous with Bantu (which in the past, was just one of thousand of other ethnicities populating the continent...just like the Jews are just one of many ethicities populating Asia). And obviously, you don't expand that fast over such a vast area by sticking to one kind of warfare when the terrain changes.

[@MrAlexkyra]

It wasn't just that Shaka introduced front assault, envelopment and reserve tactics, it was how he organized his army. Different warriors were assigned to the chest (older, stronger men) and the horns (younger and more agile) and the loins. This way, different warriors knew exactly what to do in a battle without the need for signaling or complex commands. This is very important when your technology is so limited, communication isn't an issue.

[@karlhans8304]

He does meantion these very things in the video?

[@ajithsidhu7183]

Pls do more on this on wartatics and reforms for diffrernt cultures

[@theunion92]

There is a really good book on the subject called ‘The Washing of the Spears: The rise and fall of the Zulu nation’ Quite broad, but a good book on the subject.

[@everythingiseconomics9742]

You should talk about more African civilizations, such as Ethiopia and Mali. It appears that some subscribers really need to learn a thing or two.

[@historywithhilbert146]

Actually recently looked into some of the civilisations in Mali and neighbouring Nigeria as part of an archaeology paper I'm sitting so that's definitely on the list!

[@Hypnopotimus27]

Egypt? How could you forget Egypt?

[@miguelmontenegro3520]

@@Hypnopotimus27 Roman Egypt, best Egypt.

[@everythingiseconomics9742]

@@Hypnopotimus27 North Africa doesn't have a black population. I was seeing some comments saying that blacks never did anything good and all civilization progress was done by whites. So I was thinking about Subsharan Africa and not just Africa in general.

[@everythingiseconomics9742]

@Klaidi Rubiku I know about nome of these (except Dahomey as an easy conquest in Victoria 2), so I would love to see videos on them.

[@alpharius8264]

Can anyone denie that Shakas lifestiry would be a great netflix series the illigetimate son of a king , band ftom his from his tribe forced to life in exile mocked for his origin only having his mother until he makes career in the military and becoms agreat reformer and unifier of tribes

[@alpharius8264]

Yeah, but this timeit wouldnt be blackwashing european history, but a genuin story of an african ruler

[@historywithhilbert146]

Lol look up Shaka Zulu on Netflix and you'll find one from the '80's which is pretty solid ;)

[@Jodonho]

Like William the Conqueror

[@historywithhilbert146]

@@Jodonho Triggered ;)

[@historywithhilbert146]

@@alpharius8264 I would actually love to see more like this about actual African history. If they've got these diversity quotas which I actually don't agree with they might as well shed some light on some of the continent's fascinating history like the kingdoms of Benin or Mali or indeed the rise of the Zulu and the Mfecane to name just some.

[@ovs8691]

One thing to take into account is that South Africa appears significantly smaller on a map versus how big it actually is. If you would place Cape Town in Rome, Italy, Minsk, Belorussia would be flooded by the Limpopo river, the river that seperates us from Zimbabwe. The Zulus inhabit modern day KwaZuluNatal and Shaka's Empire stretched all the way from Southern Mozambique, almost into modern day East London. Meaning that Shaka once had an empire of about the same size or greater than former Yugoslavia.

[@johann.9271]

I was about to comment that the Zulus only inhabit part of South Africa and certainly didn't "revolutionise South African warfare". At that time, both the Dutch/Boers and British were also there and they had guns, cannons and dynamite. Or are white South Africans not considered African enough? If so, that's rich coming from an American, because we've been here longer than America has existed.

[@salj.5459]

Johan N. White South Africans are not true South African

[@Bongz90]

LOL lies!! East London is in Xhosa land, modern day Eastern Cape... Shaka's empire did not stretch beyond Mzimvubu river

[@ctastrophe]

Are we going to get a Black Napoleon Dynamite eventually?

[@historywithhilbert146]

Lol we can live in hope ;)

[@markivrimusic5610]

The horns of the bull we're actually strategic times when Chaka would employ using mounted war elephants from the left and from the right to crush his enemies

[@ddmarty]

Great video, goes into more detail than any I've seen of the Zulus. Thanks.

[@danielcuevas5899]

6:10 Shaka Zulu: Histories first minimalist footwear advocate.

[@otaliesin2133]

A history of the OTHER black tribes or groupdings would be great. The Sotho, the Xhosa, Tswanas, Matabele, etc. would be great - even easeir when combined. Great vids. Thanks

[@eduardoleguizamon8844]

Thank you very much for a very formative video on the zulus´war techniques! And yes, please go on with more videos on South Africa, on the Boers/ Afrikaaners, and on the different tribes of SA, also on the homelands durin apartheid like Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda and Ciskei, the independent ones! Than you!!! and keep it up!!

[@francescoazzoni3445]

I wonder whether if they had psychological damages associated with this new style of war, like ptsd on large scale as most people were probably new to mass massacres in war.

[@arturocevallossoto5203]

I remember reading an article in the case of the Greeks. Phalanx warfare had like 5% casualties in combat or something along those lines. Still, some men became unable to fight again after some battles: PTSD. I also found an article about PTSD in Al-Qaeda members. Quite interesting.

[@misaka3468]

It did cause a massive migration and a bloodbath wherever the displaced people went. Aside from that everything was fine

[@EnterAdman]

Undoubtedly

[@vdr333]

Great video and helpful illustrations. I'm new to military strategy but this inspires me to apply these themes against the problems of everyday life and business. Much appreciated, thanks for sharing!

[@markward3981]

Thanks for posting. Great treatment of Shaka.

[@lkmh3223]

thank you for your research

[@aethelwyrnblack4918]

Shaka: Develops rudimentary tactics. History: "The Black Napoleon!"

[@bigevil1001]

There is more to war than convoluted tactics.

[@aethelwyrnblack4918]

@@bigevil1001 You've added nothing here. Be productive if you're going to comment. My point is that perhaps due to some sensationalism at the time, Shaka's achievements get remembered as greater than they actually were.

[@bigevil1001]

​@@aethelwyrnblack4918 "The black napoleon" is an absurd and lazy comparison as Shaka has nothing in common with him. Shaka founded an empire. Shaka turned one of the weakest tribes into the fiercest warriors in Southern Africa. Giving European colonialists trouble long after his death. Napoleon made an already powerful empire more powerful. Napoleon fought with navies and guns. The Zulu didn't even have cavalry. Napoleon conquered far more territory than Shaka did. In terms of style and methods, a more accurate "Black Napoleon" would probably be Toussaint Louverture, or King Menelik II. In terms of style, ruthlessness, and upbringing, Shaka has way more in common with Genghis Khan.

[@TheGlob420]

every time i see or hear shaka all i can hear in my head is the 1985 shaka zulu miniseries intro

[@alanmountain5804]

It is a good soundtrack though. Bayete Nkosi

[@theclonelieutenant5976]

You know your soldiers are different when the enemy has to treat you're soldiers not as infantry but as mounted cavalry.

[@historywithhilbert146]

Absolutely - caught the British very much off guard when they weren't where they expected at Isandlwana.

[@theclonelieutenant5976]

@@historywithhilbert146 Though I guess the belief in the magic paint will protect me and if the others with protective paint died with the magic protection not being done right being a belief during the time of the machine gun is a bit off butting. This came from the first hand account of a POW after the British could not under stand why the natives had not learned to fear the machine gun.

[@lif3andthings763]

@@theclonelieutenant5976 Maybe they knew but had enough honor to keep fighting similar to the last charge into machine gun fire by the Samurai in the Last Samurai.

[@froze525]

Great vid. My only criticism is maybe be more specific when you talk about "African warfare" because North, West, and East Africa already showed all those traits you said that the Zulu reforms introduced.

[@LB_die_Kaapie]

North East and west were interacting with the already advanced arabs for a thousand years before Shakas time. No surprises they used those tactics. Southern Africa was basically untouched by outsiders until 17th century.

[@mattmck1929]

pokezee king-wolf definitely more advanced but no way near on par with medieval Middle East or Europe. No way near.

[@aa-zz6328]

North Africans are not black, they are white and the name Africa referred to a place around that area, but the name has been taken to refer to slave land that they have nothing in common with.

[@aa-zz6328]

@pokezee king-wolf Malian architecture!? Do you mean mud huts.

[@mattmck1929]

@@aa-zz6328 I think you should refine the things you say alexander, my fist reaction to the architecture statement of king-wolf was to question it given I have never seen architecture in west africa from this period that compares to Mosques in the middle east or cathedrals in Europe, however to disregard the whole civilisation as mud huts is inflammatory not to mention ignorant. I think this comments section exhibits the classic extremes of euro-centirsm and a bit of Afro-centism. From my view I think its wrong to say that sub-saharan africa never had pre-colonial civilisation but also i think that some objective standards can be applied and that in an overwhelming number of measures Europe and the middle east were miles ahead. We all share a passion from history, that's one thing we can agree on anyway!

[@johannabonana5306]

that random anecdote about the knopkille/iwisa was very sneakily humourous.

[@WildBillCox13]

Very interesting. Liked and shared.

[@danieltsiprun8080]

Can you do a video about the empire of mail or Ghana?

[@historywithhilbert146]

daniel tsiprun Id like to look into this in future actually

[@loupiscanis9449]

Thank you ,

[@historywithhilbert146]

Thanks for watching!

[@loupiscanis9449]

@@historywithhilbert146 It was my pleasure .

[@goodcomrade2949]

do one about the saxon tactica in the early medival ages i really wanne now what changed with tactics and stuff

[@historywithhilbert146]

I'll take a look at some of the battle strategies employed by the Germanic tribes at some point in the future as well!

[@goodcomrade2949]

@@historywithhilbert146 :D

[@danielcuevas5899]

6:32 not surprising, humans are the greatest endurance running organisms on earth, only sled dogs too us in that regard.

[@ReaperCH90]

Some guy who larps as a Roman Emperor just established a new Empire in South Africa.

[@HoundofOdin]

I thought Toussaint Louverture was called "the Black Napoleon"?

[@xman69100]

Yes he was

[@rikstan15]

*A mid republic Roman general walks in* "Hold on a second, that's copyrighted material!"

[@bootnazz1786]

I guess shaka new about Romans.

[@thomasafrica9724]

If this were a fps game the Horns of the Bull tactic would work like this (I think) : Horns 1 & 2: SMGs with high mobility/fire rate Chest: Assault rifles with higher accuracy but lower mobility than the Horn groups. Loins: Small group of snipers, preferably on high ground so they get a good angle.

[@MetalRocksMe.]

Thanks for this! History school refused to teach me.

[@HermenVonkeman]

As always, good video, interesting and insightful. One thing to add: not a knopkillie but instead a knobkierie. Kieire is a walking stick in Afrikaans. B in knob often pronounce as a P.

[@historywithhilbert146]

Yes you're right my bad! Thought I'd try to spell it phonetically but as you point out it's knopkiere in Afrikaans!

[@HermenVonkeman]

@@historywithhilbert146 Yeah, its another one of those weird words in South Africa that absorbs parts from two languages and pronunciation from a third. Looking forward to your next video.

[@TehFuzzyB3ar]

Could you possibly do a video on Nader Shah in the future?

[@garfieldseviltwin97]

Yass! My grandfather was a big Nader Shah fan!

[@celtofcanaanesurix2245]

Reminds me slightly of the highland charge, might have that way off though, that might be a cool hypothetical battle as well as the previous Gaulish Zulu battle I pondered earlier

[@historywithhilbert146]

It's a similar psychological effect though with the Impondo Zenkomo though it has the tactical element of encirclement as well.

[@thomasafrica9724]

Well done for getting "hl" sound right

[@micahistory]

Shaka was smart to finally conquer enemies instead of letting them live and get revenge

[@micahistory]

@Jonathan Williams he did both

[@Dylan-uv9nu]

It's nice to finally learn about SA history.. I used to think SA history was boring

[@CABOOSEBOB]

Is it accurate to compare the iklwa to the Gladius in that it is a uniquely short weapon for thrusting? Edit: the large shield and spear used for throwing beforehand are also similar to legionaries

[@robvoncken2565]

Hilbert if the Knopkilie was such a prominent part of your upbringing, you might want to seek some counseling :-)

[@navarovproductions4481]

Hopefully someday hillbert does a video on the arauco war, is a very untouched topic and has lots of amazing characters like galvarino,the crazy warchief who after got his arms cut off he later tied 2 blades to it and keept on slashing spaniards... and then got captured and feed to the dogs

[@OkThisllbeMyName]

6:40 this was a really important 'feet''

[@MrMacmail]

@History With Hilbert please make a video of the Adal empire(Somali) vs Ethiopia in the 15th century, it was a kind of african crusade wars. Or Ajuraan kingdon(somali) vs Portuguese Empire, also around the 15-16th century.

[@walangchahangyelingden8252]

Brilliant tactician.

[@olesuhr727]

Are you sure the Afrikaans word is knopkilie? I always heard it as knopkirrie. "knobkerrie: Also found in: Thesaurus, Wikipedia. (redirected from Knobkierie) knob·ker·rie (nŏb′kĕr′ē) n. A short club with one knobbed end, used as a weapon by warriors of certain South African peoples. [Afrikaans knopkierie : knop, knob (from Middle Dutch cnoppe) + kieri, club (from Khoikhoi kirri, stick).]" Apart from that, the video is good and well researched.

[@dominykassimonis2180]

just saying,but your link to the article on the zulu empire is a link to your file in your computer

[@heinrichzerbe]

Liewe Hilbert, ek's bevrees dat ons in Afrikaans praat van 'n knopkierie en nie n knopkillie soos wat jy dit stel by 2:24 in jou video. Jou knop sal jy dalk wil kielie na n hou met n knopkierie maar dis definitief nie die naam nie. Dankie andersins vir jou goeie en interessante video's. Groetnis Krugersdorp inwoner van die ou Transvaal.

[@thitalo1239]

Heinrich Zerbe I’d like it if Dutch African wouldn’t be that gibberish...

[@thatguy464]

I wouldn't call Shaka Zulu black Napoleon but rather compared him more to Philip 2 of Macedonia. There were alot African generals compared to napoleon such samori toure, Mtyela Kasanda aka "mirambo", askia the great, sonni ali ber (both from songhai), oba Ewuare the great of benin, and Idris Alooma of kamen bornu as well as many many more. Even certain north African generals like thutmose iii (although he wasn't black) is also considered a napoleon of Egypt. Shaka is usually more famous but if had to be honest a little bit overrated. Shaka simply reform the military structure in the south African Region that no other tribes weren't use to, as well as transform a simple tribal farmers to battle hardened warriors. Then his decedents would go on to create an empire. Much like Philip of macedon to Alexander. People only compare shaka to napoleon because they are contemporarys. Other generals like Mirambo of Tanzania even borrowed tactics from shaka's bull horn tactics mixed with gunwarfare to form the ruga rugas.

[@thatguy464]

@Klaidi Rubiku i considered myself an amateur historian, but sub-Saharan Africa is usually my favorite topic when it comes to history.

[@fanelemabaso2514]

Shaka's tactics defeated the British decades after he died, Brits at the time were the worlds best military. He wasnt just a simple Warrior King, he permanently changed warfare, he even influenced how the boers would fight against natives.

[@crimsonfucker4167]

I believe that it would be more accurate to call Shaka a black Philip the II of Macedon as they both created an army that their successors would make great use of. Oh and they were both kinds of an outcast in their families with Philip needing to spend time as a hostage in Thebe while Shaka was outcast for his bastard status. Oh and they both learned from guys whose knowledge served them greatly forming there mighty armies.

[@DieHansie]

It's actually knopkierrie. Kierrie means walking staff in afrikaans.

[@nicolaufialho9104]

I like it

[@theromanorder]

"estemated they could travel 30-40km a day" I know there in the heat of Africa, But would like to point out the romans marched with 25kg for 5 hours martching 50-55km IN TRAINING, then at the end of that march one hafe would set up tents, dig trences, ditches and build basic fortification walls and the other hafe would scavange (i think both parts would help with the wall but i feel like not all of them were on it i cant remember) Fun facts Also i feel like there reserves would also be able to protect the flanks like a vangard but may also be the reargard if the army had to retreat, and because of there experience mabey this group would be advisers to shaka, And something he does completely say but i also geuss is shak made a 5th unit of marksmen that would further devide around the arm to provide cover fire

[@brutusmagnuson315]

It’s like if hoplites were actually flexible and chose to be good at more than three things.

[@naeem-hf7xx]

knopkillie, ahhh yes, the “weapon” all our families mention when you’re misbehaving 😂😭

[@naeem-hf7xx]

although my family always pronounced it as knopkirrie, i think it’s more to do with accent and what have you ;)

[@onehairybuddha]

The Zulus could run, RUN, fifty miles, and fight a battle at the end of it!

[@gidi3250]

2:14 wtf is a knopkilie isn't it suppose to be knobkerrie?

[@wouter.de.ruiter]

knop is the Dutch word for knob. killie is probably derived from kill, so killer knob. name makes sense.

[@heinrichzerbe]

In Afrikaans noem ons dit eerder 'n knopkierie (knob walking stick), en nie 'n knopkillie nie.

[@bosnianantediluvian4067]

I think it would be easier to draw parallels between Shaka and Genghis Khan rather than with Napoleon.

[@Connor.SG-1Ring]

The Bull's Horns was pretty much just a type of pincer movement or double envelopment.

[@sheiruto1058]

it has and always will be evident that with harsh situations are born hard men who ceate legends

[@jarydviljoen2288]

Im pretty sure that its knopkirie in Afrikaan . Because kirie means cane or walking cane in afrikaans where kilie means tickle but this is probaly just a case of some last in translation

[@jonaswinters6489]

The year is 1780 Central African weaponry still hasn't evolved beyond chucking spears and wooden clubs.

[@Nikolizky]

This is the South mate, the South remained largely untouched and primitive till the Boers decided to expand from the Cape.

[@tysonl.taylor-gerstner1558]

"Knop" is the Dutch word for "knob" or "button". Considering the ball on the end, you have your answer. However, the ending doesn't seem very current to modern day Dutch, maybe linked to "kill" in English, if it has somehow died out in Dutch or was a borrowing from English, but in any case, Europeans do have a history of avoiding native words in Africa and America. The British/English tended to borrow from whatever European group was there first. Even if the native word were easy to say.

[@nileriversoftware4070]

Back in Cape Town, we called 'em knobkerries. And yeah, it was a household word, b/c you'd be uneducated if you didn't know about the dominant powers before the Europeans.

[@xskramx8078]

I ignored your channel for awhile because i thought you were a weird racialist (I think you did a video with survive the jive) but good video dude. World History really is incredibly fascinating

[@hailgiratinathetruegod7564]

Man, outrunning horses.... Is that a Steel Ball Run refernce ?

[@scvboy1]

Just in the first 2 minutes there are issues with the video. What do you mean by "African battles"? I'm assuming you mean battles around the south of Africa because there were large scale battles in northern, eastern, and even western Africa before the year 1800.

[@malnutritionboy]

man city is a retarded arab oil football club.

[@aa-zz6328]

North Africans are white, dont include them in your pity for blacks.

[@aa-zz6328]

@Admire Kashiri we Middle Easterns, Berbers and Europeans before modern times.

[@larson0014]

Seems a couple hundred years too late for these changes...

[@historywithhilbert146]

I mean he's almost exactly contemporary with Napoleon hence the nickname. But yes these are innovations that had already been around in Europe although I find them impressive and clearly they had a huge impact on the makeup of Southern Africa than and whose repercussions can still be felt.

[@larson0014]

@@historywithhilbert146 I just meant the warriors themselves not respect with Napoleon

[@alanmountain5804]

Yes these tactical innovations were thousands of years old by the time of Shaka. But at the time they were completely unknown in Nguni culture. Shaka devised a new form of warfare without outside influence and came up with the same solutions to the same problems that previous generals had done in history. His genius is not only reinventing these tactics but also implementing them and creating an army that went from a few hundred warriors to 50000 in just a decade forging an empire in the process.

[@siboniso4420]

You pronounce 'a' as 'u' for umbrella

[@maximusd26]

0:42 you thought it was your facebook too

[@historywithhilbert146]

Lol sorry about that ;)

[@maximusd26]

@@historywithhilbert146 great vid ! Thanks for your work

[@historywithhilbert146]

@@maximusd26 Not a problem - thanks for watching!

[@micahistory]

Shaka was successful because he modernised the Zulu army

[@piloul3538]

the Black Napoleon was Toussaint Louverture, libertador of Haiti...

[@richlisola1]

More like the Black Hitler

[@micahistory]

I wouldn't call him the black Napoleon at all. You can't compare the greatest general of all time to him

[@georgegooding57]

Have you ever seen the movie. Can't remember when it came out, but it was supposed to be a full history of Shaka.

[@historywithhilbert146]

The series of Shaka Zulu from the '80's? Yes - and I really like it!

[@georgegooding57]

I got to see two versions of it. One edited, one not. Seemed to be two different movies with all the things edited out.

[@Theunislb]

"Knopkierie"

[@stevengroeneveld8717]

It is very interesting for me to revisit this history. Thank you. I grew up in Kwazulu-Natal and lived with Zulus in our household. I can speak a (very) few words in Zulu but I won't comment on the pronunciation of Zulu names ;). I am guessing that you have already read "Shaka Zulu" by E.A. Ritter and "The Washing of the Spears" by Donald R. Morris which is where I learned most of what I know of Zulu history. The events of 1879 are celebrated in this song by Jaluka (Johnny Clegg and Sipho Mchunu) . kzbin.info/www/bejne/fYWoYWeFds6Sqsk

[@sonpacho]

This is a somewhat sad commentary... Basically, for millennia 'African warfare' had low casualties and is _compared_ to 'sporting events' (using _modern_ standards/norms)...and it's seen as...something inferior. When it's reformed to produce high casualties/massacres...it's praised.

[@nathanaelsallhageriksson1719]

This really reminds me of the romans......

[@stillravenstill]

Interesting video but I suggest revising your use of ‘Africa’ because it was used interchangeably with S. Africa which results in perpetuating the idea everyone knows each other here as well as negating developments that had taken place on other parts of earths 2nd largest land mass.

[@micahistory]

How can you compare a guy who conquered a few tribes to a man who brought Europe to its knees?

[@malnutritionboy]

it's about scale. the daily battles between ants involves millions of soldiers yet to us it seems minuscule. if there were higher life form out there they too would see our combat as primitive and uneventful.

[@micahistory]

@@malnutritionboy maybe but we are comparing two humans, not ants to aliens. It's not like Shaka was incapable of being Napoleon

[@malnutritionboy]

@@micahistory oh so you are saying shaka was capable of bringing "Europe to its knees"?

[@liampetersen7548]

@@malnutritionboy no way the Europeans had superior weapons

[@malnutritionboy]

@@liampetersen7548 exactly

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

Worthy of becoming my Field Marshal

[@adamroodog1718]

Gday How much was his reforms influenced by the west? Ive been doing a bit of boer/Rhodesian history. I read that the south Africans were in south Africa before the zulu's were and thought that cant be right but it was. This boer historian was saying shaka used to watch the British train. You touched on it last week with the British koy/san troops but didnt expand on it this week. Ps i think more people should know about the Ife bronzes from Nigeria, they are far superior to the benin bronzes that everyone knows about.

[@DarthNicky]

The idea that the Dutch arrived in South Africa before the Zulus stems from a bit of a misconception. The Zulu were originally a part of the Nguni, before splitting off from them in the 1700s. The Nguni as a whole have been in the Kwa-Zulu Natal region since about the 1st century and in Transvaal around 1500, while the Dutch didn't establish their colony on the cape until 1652. I can't speak to the accuracy of the idea that Shaka derived his tactics from the British but afaik it's not impossible

[@adamroodog1718]

Ok so the political entity that we call 'zulu' came later but the people were there for ages.

[@DarthNicky]

Adam Roodog yep, pretty much. Here’s the people the Zulu split off from en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nguni_people

[@fpvillegas9084]

Battle of Cannae - Zulu version

[@ABAlphaBeta]

Isn't Black Napoleon Toussaint Lovuerture?

[@lonelittlejerry917]

Makes more sense ngl

[@Nick-tn3ms]

How are people killed during the dance battles

[@hiddenhist]

Hey, I don't have much negative to say about this video (and infact fully enjoyed it) except a comment on the beginning. It is a pretty extreme overgeneralization to talk about "African warfare" in the manner that was done at this video's start. This isn't really your fault, because you pulled this information from a book. That said, Lamphear falls into the very common trap of generalizing an entire continent based on trends from a specific study area, and cherrypicked examples from elsewhere.

[@hiddenhist]

I can list multiple major wars pre 1800s that completely fly in the face of the presented "modes of African warfare" from across the continent, and I'm sure this list can be further extended with the support of some of my friends who know more about this period than I and know more about different empires/kingdoms and their respective histories than I.

[@hiddenhist]

I guess if someone wants a reference for this, imagine if we talked about "Asian methods of war" - and then specifically described the tactics and armament of the Mongols. Or imagine if we talked about "Ancient European warfare" - and then specifically described the tactics and armaments of the Goths.

[@historywithhilbert146]

Yeah you're right this is specific to these Nguni, Sotho and Swazi peoples on the plains in Southeastern Africa - there certainly were other forms of warfare and weapons being used in different parts of Africa. In the source that I was quoting it mentions "African warfare" though as you point out that's a huge term!

[@retvrntotradition4454]

@@historywithhilbert146 It's not really African warfare, just Zulu. For instance, in the 1500's the Adal Somali Sultanate was using musketeers to fight both the Abyssinians and the Portuguese. The Ajuraan Somali Sultanate had cannons on their ships, fighting the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean.

[@rifleman4005]

Sounds a lot like the Romans. Throwing spear then using a large shield and a short stabing sword or spear in close combat.

[@crimsonlightbinder]

really?thats about the only faint resemblance, though the romans where light years ahead but 2000 year before. Do you comprehend this?

[@rifleman4005]

@@crimsonlightbinder I was talking about the tactics not when they were invented. do you understand that?

[@rasmusn.e.m1064]

Shaka and Archimedes meet at an inventions fare: Shaka: "Oh, hello! What's that you got there, sir?" Archimedes: "Well, you see, this is a water screw. It can haul water upwards when I turn this handle." Shaka: "Wow, that's brilliant! That would be very useful where I'm from." Archimedes: "Thank you, good man! May I ask, what you yourself have invented?" Shaka: "War." Archimedes: "Oh, so you are the reason we can't have nice things!" Shaka: *Pulls forth an assegai* Archimedes: "Well, I guess I did sort of do something with fire myself..."

[@Drew_Thompson]

There was a battle axe... Explain.

[@siboniso4420]

I'm Zulu, Iwisa is the shield.

[@whereisfikile]

Iwisa is a short knobkerrie, ihawu is the shield.

[@JoeSmith-sl9bq]

Keeping some forces in reserve and trying to flank your opponent... History really likes to glorify Shaka, because the world has been implementing such strategies for thousands of years by that point.

[@Nikolizky]

This was a primitive tribe who had no contact with the outside world back then, but were employing tactics used by the likes of Napoleon

[@fanelemabaso2514]

Non of those forces defeated a world super power. Thats the difference. Shaka's tactics defeated a world super power that hadnt been defeated at that time. Dont be jealous.

[@JoeSmith-sl9bq]

@@fanelemabaso2514 It is incredible how wrong you are. First, the Zulu lost the war against the British. Second, every major battle featured flanking, from Zama to Waterloo, long before and long after Shaka. Literally nothing extortionary about it

[@JoeSmith-sl9bq]

@@Nikolizky "By the likes of Napoleon" to say these tactics are Napoleonic is like saying typing this on a computer makes me Bill Gatesian, while technically correct it only scratches the bare surface of what Napoleon was capable of. Even stone age hunting parties would flank their prey, and keep some tribesmen in reserve.

[@bigevil1001]

How would you have led them then?

[@petercottam2466]

Shaka did not invent the bull and horns tactic , he was just copying what he had seen from other tribes in southern Africa. Shaka only used the bull and horns on very few occasions. No either did he create the short, broad stabbing spear !! There were tribes in the Natal region that were using the stabbing spear before Shaka. Have a listen to the brilliant Des Latham and his history of south Africa podcast.

[@SafferBuccaneer]

Knopkillie?? Surely you meant knopkierie mate. Knopkillie is what you do alone in the shower my man 😂

[@micahistory]

Shaka was smart, the ritual warfare just created perpetual feuds and just conquering the enemy was much smarter

[@electricVGC]

It's cowhide.