The Kingdom of Swaziland: Studies in Political History D. HUGH GILLIS GREENWOOD PRESS The Kingdom of Swaziland States and Tribes in Southeast Africa The Kingdom of Swaziland Studies in Political History D. HUGH GILLIS Contributions in Comparative Colonial Studies, Number 37 GREENWOOD PRESS Westport, Connecticut • London Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Gillis, D. Hugh, 1918– The kingdom of Swaziland : studies in political history / D. Hugh Gillis. p. cm.—(Contributions in comparative colonial studies, ISSN 0163–3813 ; no. 37) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–313–30670–2 (alk. paper) 1. Swaziland—Politics and government—To 1968. I. Title. II. Series. DT2777.G55 1999 968.87—dc21 98–41422 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright ᭧ 1999 by D. Hugh Gillis All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 98–41422 ISBN: 0–313–30670–2 ISSN: 0163–3813 First published in 1999 Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. Printed in the United States of America The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984). 10987654321 To Celia, who shared the work and kept me going on Contents Illustrations ix Preface xi Chronology xiii Introduction 1 1. The Ngwane-Swazi 9 2. Expanding and Consolidating 19 3. Boundaries: The Transvaal 29 4. Boundaries: Portuguese Territory 37 5. The Concessions Scramble 47 6. Independence Fades 57 7. Governing by Committee 69 8. Politics in Flux 79 9. The Boer Administration 89 10. Assassination: The King’s Part? 101 11. War in South Africa 111 12. The British Takeover 121 13. Annexation or Protectorate? 131 viii Contents 14. A Test of Wills 141 15. Partition Carried Through 151 16. Regency to Kingship 163 Glossary 173 Notes 175 Archival and Library Sources 193 Recent Books on Swaziland 195 Index 197 Illustrations States and Tribes in Southeast Africa frontispiece Swaziland 8 Southwest Swaziland: Shiselweni Area 13 Southern Africa 28 Alleyne Commission Sketch Map 35 Von Wielligh Sketch Map 41 Eastern Boundary Dispute 44 Swaziland Capitals: Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century 83 Relief Map of Swaziland 91 Swaziland: Late Nineteenth Century 113 Preface This book examines aspects of the political history of Swaziland and covers the period up to 1921 when the late Sobhuza II assumed the kingship. At the commencement of my research, the most reliable accounts on the background of the Swazi were by two anthropologists, Hilda Kuper and Brian Marwick, supplemented by a general history prepared by J. S. M. Matsebula. Then Philip Bonner’s investigations into nineteenth-century Swazi history were published—important studies by a southern Africa– based historian. Since then a number of specialized and unpublished studies have thrown additional light on facets of the kingdom’s development. Still, by comparison with other regions of Africa, explorations into the history of the Swazi kingdom are relatively scarce. Apart from the first two chapters, this work is derived almost exclusively from a reading of official documents and other accounts contemporary with the period examined. The resources of the Public Record Office in London and the Swaziland National Archives have been used extensively and have been augmented by those of other institutions that possess relevant infor- mation. During the preparation of this work, I have become indebted to many persons, especially in Swaziland. My former colleague, Mveli Elliott Gin- indza, helped to arrange my visits to the Kingdom since 1980. Others who have contributed in different ways include Dominic Mngomezulu, who was my research assistant for a time; R. Sicheme Mamba, who read the first few chapters; former associates in the Ministry of Education; district offi- cers from rural ministries whose monthly meetings I attended for four years; and Peace Corps and World University Service of Canada volunteers at the Rural Education Centres who, along with local participants, helped xii Preface me to appreciate the remarkable strengths of rural life in Swaziland. I am grateful also to Fr. James Somers, for providing materials, and to P. R. Forsyth-Thompson, for assisting with accommodation. Archival and library staffs have always been helpful and cooperative. I refer particularly to those at my major centers of research: the Swaziland National Archives at Lobamba and the National University of Swaziland in Kwaluseni; the State Library at Pretoria and the University of the Wit- watersrand in Johannesburg; and the Public Record Office and British Li- brary in London. Most of the writing was done at the archives in Lobamba. The book was undertaken after my having spent six years working with the rural populace of the kingdom under programs initiated by the Cana- dian International Development Agency and the World Bank. Preliminary investigations were supported by grants from the Social Science Research Council of Canada and Saint Mary’s University in Halifax; but subsequent research and writing, over a ten-year period, were carried out on my own. Chronology Sixteenth to Migrations southward eighteenth centuries Seventeenth Probes toward Lubombo and Pongola century Mid-eighteenth Ngwane settlement at Shiselweni century Early Sobhuza I travels north nineteenth century Mid-nineteenth Mswati II consolidates kingdom century 1840s Cape Dutch trekboers contact Swazi 1844–45 British missionaries enter kingdom 1846 and Alleged land sales to Dutch republics 1855 1855–65 Mswati II’s excursions north-northeast 1860 Boers form South African Republic; first land concession granted 1865 Death of Mswati II 1866 Boers beacon western boundary 1869 Portugal-Republic treaty 1875 Mbandzeni installed as king; Rudolph treaty; MacMahon arbi- tration xiv Chronology 1876 Swazi assist Boers against Pedi 1877 Transvaal annexed by Britain 1878 Swazi support British against Pedi 1879 Western boundary delineated; gold discovered in northern Swa- ziland 1880–90 The concessions scramble 1881 Pretoria Convention: Transvaal reverts to Boer control; bound- aries confirmed 1884 London Convention 1887 Offy Shepstone named king’s agent 1888 ‘‘White committee’’ given charter by king 1889 Swazi claim to eastern territory rejected; death of Mbandzeni; regency takes over; de Winton-Joubert commission 1890 Government Committee established 1893 Colesburg Convention endorses Swaziland’s transfer to Repub- lic 1893–94 Volksrust Convention withdraws organic proclamation 1894 Bhunu assumes kingship 1895–99 Boer administration; Krogh named commissioner 1898 Hut tax introduced; Bhunu accused in assassination 1899 Bhunu’s death; Labotsibeni becomes queen-regent 1899–1902 Boers and British at war 1902 Vereeniging peace agreement; Milner appointed to South Africa; Enraght-Moony to oversee kingdom 1903 Rubie report; order-in-council 1903–6 Inter-Colonial Native Affairs Commission 1903–15 East coast fever plagues cattle herds 1904 Milner’s proclamation regarding administration and conces- sions; hut tax reimposed 1904–8 Smuts concessions commission 1905 King’s private revenue concession canceled; Milner succeeded by Selborne 1906 Swaziland placed under High Commission; Coryndon named resident commissioner 1907 Partition proclamation; Selborne reorganizes administration; Swazi deputation to London 1908 ‘‘Closer union’’ recommended for southern Africa 1909–14 Swazi moved to reserves; ask for additional land; national funds started Chronology xv 1910 Union of South Africa established 1911 Swazi ask for title deeds to reserves 1912 European landowners given freehold title 1913 Swazi seek redress 1914 Queen-regent purchases land from private owners 1914–15 Illness and death of Malunge 1914–18 World War I 1915 Resettlement on reserves completed 1916 Sobhuza and companions sent away for schooling 1917 Swazi labor contingent in France; Honey replaces Coryndon 1918 Swazi oppose transfer of kingdom to Union government; peti- tion of grievances presented 1919 Farmers’ Association presses for reforms 1921 European Advisory Council elected; Sobhuza II installed as king; regency ends Introduction When the king of Swaziland, Sobhuza II, died in August 1983, The Times of London carried a brief news dispatch stating that feudalism and polyg- amy were residual characteristics of the kingdom’s social fabric under the late monarch. While later reports modified that impression, it is likely that an image of a remote, primitive society was not far removed from percep- tions held by those unfamiliar with the kingdom and its history. That, partly, is the justification for this book: an account, however incomplete, of factors that contributed to the distinctive character of the present-day kingdom. Swaziland’s evolution toward a modern state was necessarily cau- tious, harried by forces of commanding influence from within and outside its boundaries and adhering, with dogged persistence, to traditional cus- toms and institutions while not eschewing the advantages that might wait upon social and political renovation. Swaziland was the last of Britain’s territorial possessions in Africa to be granted independence. Its transition from protectorate status to self- government, although delayed, was not otherwise remarkable. The British government, in the wake of two world wars, was preoccupied by demands for self-rule from