rorkesdriftvc.com :: View topic - Disembowelment of the enemy dead at Isandhlwana.

Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2008 9:19 pm

Purification ritual, disembowelment of the enemy dead to allow their spirits safe passage to the after-life.

Was this ritual applied to the bodies of the dead Zulus or just the enemy of the Zulu?

Many of the Zulu dead were dragged into the dongas by relatives, other corpses were simply left with their shields covering their faces in token burial. But no mention of disembowelment. Why give the enemy safe passage to the after-life and not your own soldiers.

Or is there an account of ritual, disembowelment of the Zulu Dead?

Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2008 10:10 pm

Excellent point raised, Peter. I'm curious about it, also. What did disembowelment mean to the Zulu? (I'm sorry if I'm asking a question that "everyone" knows the answer to; I don't.)

I am really curious. Might there be any connection to the "salting of the fields" by victorious Romans, for example during the Punic Wars? (Look, if this sounds odd, I'm just asking...but I'm a real person who is asking the question. Smile

)

Thank you,

Barbara

Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:36 am

The quick and dirty explanation given in the movie ZULU notwithstanding, the ritual disembowelment of dead enemies was just one of several actions that needed to be taken to protect a Zulu warrior from the vengeful spirits of his victim. Were this not done, natural decomposition would cause the remains to swell and this could result in a like swelling of the body of the living slayer. Other parts of the program were to take and wear some article of clothing or adornment (provided it wasn't too bloodstained), removing oneself from the company of others for a period of time (two weeks?), and "wiping the axe" or having intercourse with a stranger. There was also the belief that stabbing an already dead enemy reflected favorably on the stabber, which accounts for things like seventeen spear wounds in the Prince Imperial, five which would have been fatal in themselves (the numbers might be wrong, but the sense is there). Something like the "counting coup" of the Plains Indians, I guess.

It simply wasn't necessary to disembowel their fellows as their spirits should be benign anyway.

I used to consider myself pretty savvy about the Romans until you mentioned "salting the fields", Barbara. What's that all about?

Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 10:37 am

Greetings,

This article will help answer your question:

Knight, Ian. �� Wet with Yesterday�s Blood� -- The Disembowelling [sic] Controversy.� Journal of the Anglo Zulu War Historical Society 6 (December 1999). This article is an interesting examination of the Zulu practices of disemboweling, mutilating, and removing parts from the bodies of dead adversaries.

Good luck.
Cheers,
Harold Raugh

Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 12:33 pm

Sawubona:

The Romans sowed fields with salt to destroy the ability for crops to grow. It was the final step in the complete destruction of an opponent's home area. I think it was Carthage that suffered the most well known example.

Bill

Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 4:01 pm

Bill, Sawubona:

Yes, a very practical technique used to further devastate an enemy. I just wondered whether it might have had some superstition attached, as well. I could go on but am eating breakfast!

Barbara

Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 6:36 pm

Disembowelling was considered necessary in any form of combat and believe it or not still occurs in certain instances of 'faction fighting' in KwaZulu-Natal.

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 8:20 pm

If I'm not mistaken the British were pretty "gutted" when they first came across that kind of Zulu behavior in war. What I'm very interested in is whether the British and Zulu had some common understanding of what it meant "to fight" one another That is, does everything go to inflict death under those circumstances circa 1879 in KwaZulu Natal? Also I'd wonder what would've happened to British soldiers if they surrendered at Isandhlwana. Summarily shot or taken prisoner? And was it "understood" either or?

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 10:25 pm

Peter H,the custom of disembowlment was in practice from the very beginning's of Zulu history. Ritter's Shaka Zulu explain's it in detail, and as other's have previously mentioned it was in no way intended as an abuse of the slain, but rather a combination of efficient soldiery and superstition. regard's Leslie.
Rich. the practice of " counting Coup " common of the American Plain's Indian's was exclusivley to demonstrate an individual's personal bravery, the idea being to charge your selected opponent and just touch them with your weapon, bow, Lance, and in no way inflict injury.such naievty was pretty much abandoned when the white settler's, soldier's on twigging this promptly shot them down. regard's Leslie, Hi all L.J.Knight,

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 10:30 pm

Sorry Rich. and Sawubona, sorry mate that last bit was for you. regard's Leslie

Posted: Thu Nov 13, 2008 11:00 pm

On a similar idea of different cultures and surrendering etc.

I recall reading in one of the books that I have that a Zulu was captured by some British soldiers and the British officer asked (something along the lines of) "Why don't I have you shot?" to which the Zulu replied " That is our way of fighting, not yours"

Cheers

Sime Shocked

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:24 am

Ken
Do you have evidence that this practice still takes palce in KZN? I have never really encountered it but I would presume that most of the people to whom it is done are dead and would not present alive to Edendale Hospital. It would be interesting to perform a mortaury based study to see the incidence of this practice in PMB and surrounds. With the growing impact of western cultural beliefs it may simply be that most faction fights now make use of firearms. Even the old fashioned depressed skull fracture associated with a knobkierrie blow to the front of the head seems to be less common than in days gone by

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 12:27 pm

I checked my facts regarding "counting coup" and in "Growing Up Native American" by Adler, the author mentions that a certain Yellow Shirt was first to count coup on a dead Crow. In a related footnote he describes counting coup as striking an enemy dead or alive. I confess that touching an already dead enemy doesn't strike me as a particularly noteworthy act of bravery, but it apparently was worthy of recognition none-the-less.

Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 11:11 pm

1)Source :Extract from Laband
The atrocities attributed to the Zulu warriors, who disembowelled the dead and dying, are now seen as part of a ritual in which the stomach of a slain enemy was slit to release his spirit and his clothing taken and worn to cleanse the killer from the guilt of homicide.

2)Unknown source

The assegai spear required that the Zulu men rapidly close with their enemies and fight in close combat. The Zulus abandoned traditional sandals and ran barefoot to increase their speed. They used their hide shields to protect them from enemy javelins during the charge. Zulus would run directly at the enemy soldiers and stab them in the stomach to disembowel them. Zulus abandoned some of the purification rituals to accommodate this new style of shock tactics.

3) Source: Smith-Dorrien Memories of Forty-Eight Years Service

Zulus would be regarded as comparative angels. As a matter of fact, the Zulus were a very noble race with a high standard of morality, but they bought to kill, and undoubtedly killed the wounded and mutilated the bodies; but a predominant superstition with them was that if they did not disembowel a fallen enemy, their own stomachs would swell up when that of their dead enemy did, and that therefore they must let out the gas.

4)Source: Military History .com

The Zulu army took no prisoners, routinely disembowelling its victims to prevent their corpses from harbouring evil spirits.

5)Source: Napoleon Eugene, Prince Imperial

After death the Prince was ritually disembowelled by one Hlabanatunga, a common Zulu practice to prevent his spirit seeking revenge on his killers in the afterlife.

1) Release the sprit cleanse killer from guilt
2) Shock Tactics
3) Stop their own stomachs from swelling.
4) Prevent Corpses from harbouring evil spirits
5) Prevent the spirit seeking revenge on his killers

Here is five reasons I have found to disembowel the enemy. I quite like number
2 (Shock Tactics)

Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 2:04 am

All. " Prior to the arrieval of European's in North America. warfare among the the Plain's Indian's. particulary the " Lakota " was considered a " rough game ", in which killing an enemywas not as important as " counting coup" counting coup ment rushing up to an enemy, usually on horseback and simply touching him with the or with a decorative wooden " coup stick ". in essence the warrior stating, i could of killed you. but i did not.and there was nothing you could of done to stop me. a coup showned distain for the enemy as not being worty of killing. to a warrior to die in battle wasthe ultimate honour, so it was a huge disgrace t be merely touched by the enemy in battle. regard's L.J.Knight.