Shaka Zulu

Shaka Zulu Shaka Zulu was the most influential leader of the Zulu Kingdom. One of the greatest in world history, Shaka started his accomplishments as a young boy, when he first entered battle. To many, he was considered a god and his people looked up to him. Shaka was a son of former chief, ruler of an insignificant small chiefdom, the Zulu. His mother was Nandi, the daughter of a Langeni chief. His career was a transforming influence in the history of southern and central Africa. Shaka’s early childhood affected his success as a warrior and a leader in many various ways. As a young child, he was exposed to violence. He saw limbs and blood shed so often to the point where he became desensitized, in other words, violence became a normal event to Shaka at such a young age. He wanted to feel acceptance, approval and love from his father by establishing objectives. He defined his manhood through his victories and through his abilities to fight. Violence was one of the few things Shaka grew up with, therefore he used violence to feel accepted by his father. He gained respect by being fearless and leading his troops to battle, knowing he had power and confidence to take on anyone. Shaka showed no mercy. When he was chief, he rewarded the families that lost a family member by giving them free land, cattle, and being put on high status throughout the tribe. People had confidence in Shaka, they worshipped him and considered him as a god to their community. His own warriors weren’t afraid to die for him. They trusted that Shaka would take care of their families if they died. He taught his tribe new military strategies, such as hand to hand combat. Before Shaka, they only had long spears as weapons, in hope they would hit one another. He exposed the U-Shaped formation, where tribes would fight in waves and the purpose was to enclose a tribe for kill. Warriors could never retreat and they would be prepared to die if the Zulu tribe were coming. Shaka’s early childhood