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Date	Original Topic
3rd January 2003	Mkhungo kaMpande By Peter Ewart Between Ndondakusuka and 1878, Mkhungo had apparently married and fathered a family (presumably at Ekukanyeni?) as a son appears to have subsituted for him in the ranks of the NNC, Mkhungo being too obese to serve other than "on the staff." May I ask if anyone knows a source for this "appointment" please? Is it Harford? And what was Mkhungo's son's name? Are there any photos of Mkhungo in PMB or Durban? Peter
Date	Replies
6th January 2003	Dave Nolan Peter, There is a very useful book by Themba Nzimande called 'King Mpande's Children', published in 1997. No publisher is given, but it was published 'with the assistance of the KwaZulu Monuments Council'. It lists King Mpande's extensive progeny, and their descendants up to the present time. Under Prince Mthonga, it notes that he had no children of his own, but that he gave two of his isigodlo attendants in marriage to his brother, Prince Sikhota, to raise up an heir on his behalf. One of these, ukaLiba Nxumalo, produced three daughters, but no sons. The other - significantly a daughter of Chief Zikhali of the amaNgwane (of 'Sikhali's Horse' fame; it is no coincidence that two enemies of King Cetshwayo's House were linked in this way) - produced two daughters and a son, Silimana. Although Silimana's biological father was Sikhota, he was regarded as Mkhungo's heir, and is listed as Silimana kaMkhungo. The book includes an early photo of Prince Mkhungo as a young man, quite probably taken when he was in Colenso's care. According to Paul Thompson's 'The Natal Native Contingent in the Anglo-Zulu War 1879' (privately published, 1997) 'Mkhongo was now too old and fat to lead his men to war. That honour fell to Sikhota, although one of Mkhungo's sons represented him in the levy'. This last comment is sourced to Harford and Norris-Newman. If indeed Mkhungo's son did represent him, then it can only have been Silimana. In his diary, Harford merely says 'Accompanying the Contingent, by permission of the Authorities, as on-lookers or Native Staff, we had two of Cetewayo's brothers, Umkungo and Isikota, and a witch-doctor named Ingabangi'. I've often wondered if the latter was in fact uGabangaye, the son of Chief Pakhade of the amaChunu, who represented HIS father in the field. Norris-Newman says ' Umkungu, the eldest, was not there himself, being too corpulent to march far, but his son was present in his place. The other brother, Isikotu, accompanied his men into camp, and was on the Staff of the Commandant'. Norris-Newman would have learnt his information from the officers of the 3rd NNC, among whom Harford was probably one of the most interested and knowledgable. Harford, however, seems to link 'Ingabangi' with the royal brothers, and there is a possibility that, given the close relationship between Mkhungo and Sikhota, and the hazy placing of 'Ingabangi' within the hierachy, that Harford might have misunderstood this very complicated situation, and muddled who was representing who. uGabangaye's position as the heir to a powerful chief like Pakhade would have given him a status not far short of the royal princes, and Harford may just have assumed they were related - and that he was in some way representing Mkhungo. Sikhota, of course, was present at the battle and survived - it is just possible that it was he who was representing Mkhungo, and that Silimana was not present at all. Photographs of Sikhota have appeared in a number of books on the subject. uGabangaye kaPakhade was killed in the battle. Hope that helps, Dave
7th January 2003	Peter Ewart Dave What a tremendous response! Thank you very much indeed for the trouble you've taken to point me in the right direction - I'm very grateful for your detailed and helpful posting. I can see already what I've missed by oversight. I'd tentatively guessed at Harford as a likely source because Morris, among others, appears to give a clue there - but without source notes & I don't have a copy of Harford's account. However, I've checked "Noggs" and seen the piece you quote - and another look at "Rope of Sand" tells me that by 1873 Mkhungo was in Weenen County stirring things up, presumably somewhere between Dundee and Greytown, as Laband says he was by then near the border, but not how near. So he'd long left the Colensos by then. Thanks, too, for the details of both books you mentioned, which I am following up. Your note that published photos of Sikhota are about made me re-check "Rope of Sand" again and there was another one I'd missed or forgotten! The accounts which report Mkhungo as "too old and fat" to serve actively are amusing, given his age (c34/35 yrs) as compared with, say, Tshingwayo!!! His corpulence wasn't the result of slothful living in Natal but apparently a longstanding problem, because it seems he was huge even as a "little"(!) boy. One of Colenso's missionaries wrote a few days after the chiefs, queens, princes and princesses arrived at Ekukhanyeni in early June 1857 that Mkhungo was "...exceedingly stout. I can only compare him to one of those wonderful fat boys, usually carried from town to town in England for exhibition." It seems remarkable that he'd grown to such a size by the age of around 13. He was, however, in schoolboy uniform within days & the missionaries couldn't believe their luck at such a catch. In your posting you mention the information appears in "Cetshwayo's Children" under Prince Mthonga and at first I read it that it was he who had no children, but clearly it was his brother Mkhungo who gave his isigodlo attendants to Sikhota - have I misread you here? Very many thanks again, Dave, for this help - my interest arises from an offshoot of some research I'm doing on some of the missionaries in Natal, British Kaffraria, Zululand & Swaziland at that time. Peter
8th January 2003	Peter Ewart For "Cetshwayo's Children" read "King Mpande's Children"! PE
22nd March 2005	Sibongiseni Mkhungo This is insightful... I am trying to trace the "origins" of the Mkhungo surname... Can anyone of you guys help me with more reference material...
27th March 2005	Peter Ewart Sibongiseni I didn't noticed your posting until today, nor that you had picked up on a thread which was more than two years old. I have only ever across the name with regard to Mkhungo/Mkhungu kaMpande. I don't know the meaning of the name Mkhungo/Mkhungu. Although it is your surname, I'm reasonably sure it doesn't derive from a tribal/family or "clan" name such as Khumalo, Ngcobo, Mkhize etc - but I'm on dodgy ground here if I offer advice on I'm not qualified to give. Do you know for certain how far your surname goes back in your family? The Mkhungu/o who escaped to Natal in June 1857 was a brother of Cetshwayo (although a European would call him a half-brother) and a full brother to three older princes, all killed at Ndondasuka in 1856, including, of course Mbulaze (Mbuyaze), their father's choice as a heir. Mkhungo was one of at least 24 children of Mpande. He was born in or about the year 1844 or 1845 and was only 11 or so when he escaped with some of his family (brother Sikhotha & some princesses) & was placed by Shepstone with Colenso at Ekukanyeni, near Pietermaritzburg. By 1879, he'd moved north to Weenen county, somewhere between Estcourt & the Zulu border. His surrogate for the AZW is explained above. However, by the turn of the century I believe he was a chief in the Eshowe District, by which time Zululand had been incorprorated into Natal. I don't know when he moved back to former Zululand nor whether he was affected by the civil war, although I thought I had a note soemwhere, so I'll keep looking. He appears to have lived into the 20th century but I can't find a note at the moment of when he died. Not surprisingly, he had come under a strong European influence from a very early age. If there is a connection with your family, it wouldn't seem that you will have to bridge a very big gap in time. If you live in RSA, the Killie Campbell Africana Library in Durban or the Pietermaritzburg Archives will help if they can. Can anyone else correct or add to this? Good luck Peter
27th March 2005	Peter Ewart Please excuse the "typos" which litter the above. Among other errors, para 2 should begin "I've only ever come across..." Peter
29th March 2005	Sibongiseni Mkhingo Thank you Peter. The MKHUNGO surname is found, predominantly, in the South Coast of KwaZulu/Natal (Port Shepstone and surrounding areas) where I was born. Some sources have linked it to the CELE surname and others have linked it to the MPONDO people (predominantly found in the Easten Cape). I suspect the MPONDO link is based on the South Coast location more than anything "scientific". I am seriously struggling with tracing it's roots. I need all the help I can get.