The History of Ngoni in Zomba, Chiradzulu, Blantyre and Cholo

The History of Ngoni in Zomba, Chiradzulu, Blantyre and Cholo

Why did the patches of  marauding Ngoni fighters settle in these areas.

When Mputa led his Ngoni across Nyasaland in 1860s to the north-east side of Lake Nyasa he came in contact with another Ngoni group nicknamed Magwangwara at Matengo with their leader Zulu. Mputa was killed in one of the fights there. His younger brother famous by his nickname Chidyaonga because of his love for wars took over leadership 

Chidyaonga descended south... east of Lake Nyasa and met a Nyanja Chief in Mangochi called Kalimakudzuru who asked Chidyaonga to assist the Nyanja fight the Yaos who had conquered Mangochi and surrounding areas from the Nyanja.

Chidyaonga attacked Chiripa's  Yao settlement at Kongwe  and drove them south to Chikala  hills in Machinga. Kalimakudzuru infact told Chidyaonga to settle in the surrounding areas of Ntcheu, Dedza and Domwe to control the Yao.

Chidyaonga ruled the Nyanja country from Linthipe to the lake all the way to  Lisungwi to the south... and made Domwe his headquarters.

Chidyaonga elevated Chikuse, son of the great Mputa his brother as ruler of the southern part of the Kingdom. When he died his son Chifisi inherited the northern part of the Kingdom as the ruler.

In 1891 both Chikuse and Chifisi died and were respectively succeeded by their sons Gomani and Kachindamoto who decided to make  their.... names titles to their lineages.

However the Ngoni did not want to be ruled by two rulers, they wanted to return to the Mputa times with one supreme leader. 

The war that broke out thereafter,,, Gomani drove Kachindamoto out of the Ngoni lands towards the lake in 1893 where he is till today. The Nyasaland govt stopped Gomani from driving Kachindamoto into the lake.

Gomani put his brother Mandala to rule the north side of the Kingdom. The turmoil which ensured  resulted in Gomani staging his revolts of 1896. Gomani was captured by Nyasaland troops and forced to match to Zomba. 

Gomani was shot and the Kingdom was divided into two the Portuguese side remained with his brother Mandala while his grandmother Namlangeni ruled the Nyasaland side. His grave cam still be seen beside the road in Ntcheu where the Ngoni disembark their bicycle to respect Gomani I who died fighting the Nyasaland Govt fighting for his people and what he believed in.

Mandala and Namlangeni continued Gomani's fight against both the British and Poturguese government to divide their Kingdom. They were both captured and died in captivity at Tete in Mozambique in 1900.

During that time the Chewa was a small subtribe of the Nyanja who had left the Nyanja headquarters at Salima And Dedza earlier before the Yao and the Ngoni arrived.

The Chewa sub tribe of the Nyanja conglomerate had only Mkanda and Chulu as their Sub Chiefs on Fort Manning and Kasungu Districts. Kasungu then was called Ngara.

Mwase with his Nyanja subtribe left the lakeshore as well to join the Chewa at Kasungu and later took over the Chewa leadership from Chulu as he was able to repel off the Mmbelwa Ngoni who had subjugated the Chewa proper of Kaluluma annexing north Kasungu into another Ngoni empire.

Another offshoot of the Nyanja people....due to shortage of land on the lakeshore had settled in the long grass savanna plain areas of Central Nyasaland province of Nyasaland to be called a Chipeta. 

The most famous of the subtribes of the Nyanja at that time were the Mang'anja who left Lake Nyasa shores and occupied the Shire Highlands and lower shire adopting the nickname Mang'anja as they became experts in iron smelting in mud ng'anjos.

The Mang'anjas in the lower shire had been subjugated by the South  Africa Suthu Makololo servants of Dr Livingstone who were left in 1860 in Chikwawa by Dr Livingstone.

The Mang'anja called them Amagololo...to despise them. The Makololo Chiefs in Nyasaland were Chibisa, Katunga, Makuwira, Kasisi, Masea, Ramakukan and Chiputula who was killed by George Fenwick the disgraced elephant hunter at Chiromo in 1883.

The Azimba were also another famous subtribe of the Nyanja famous during the establishment of the British Colony of Nyasaland than the Chewa. The Azimba left Lake Nyasa shores leaving the Nyanja main body in quest of their own fame as the elephant hunters. 

Ivory was an important trading item in Nyasaland and the Azimba established themselves as elephant hunters using axes.🔨

Meanwhile in the lowershire... other outsiders came to live with the Mang'anja and change their culture. The Sena came asking for land... very good at goldsmith and silversmith.

The Sena in the lower shire like the Nguru in the Shire highlands... did not come to Nyasaland with their Chiefs...from Mocambique . 

All Chiefs in the lower Shire are either Mang'anja or Makololo now. Achikunda were a sister tribe of the Sena.. Achikunda came to settle in lowershire during  the establishment of the Nyasaland protectorate.

Achikunda was a nickname meant "msilikari" but  they all spoke Sena. Dr Banda banned the name  'Chikunda' as it was derogatory as 'Nguru' on the onset of independence in 1964. 

Achikunda were Sena soldiers who worked for the Portuguese  half caste slave trader in Mocambique...Matekenya....  proudly given that name by the Mang'anja.

Meanwhile the Yao infested Machinga, Zomba, Chiradzulu and Blantyre. Nkata, Manjombe, Malunga at Ndirande slopes and Matenje at the present Queen Elizabeth Hospital.  Geoffrey Corby had to remove the Matenje Village at Queens in 1954 to build the Queen Elizabeth Hospital which was finished in 1957 and was opened by Queen Elizabeth [Queen Mother].

Dick Matenje the famous son of Blantyre assassinated in 1983 was the great descendant of Chief Matenje of Ginnery Corner. 

In the colonial days the Queens bus stop was famously called pa Matenje.

At that time..other Yao Chiefs,,, Kapeni, Malika, Kumpama, Machinjiri, Che Somba and his mother Achiwambara also came and settled in Blantyre in the 1860s.

But the Ngoni were coming for a show down 

To be continued🔥🔥🔥