Peasants and Nationalism in the Development of Land Ownership Structure in Zimbabwe from Pre-Colonialism to the Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) Period
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LAND TO THE PEOPLE: Peasants and nationalism in the development of land ownership structure in Zimbabwe from pre-colonialism to the Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI) period. Bridget M. Mupfuvi Salford Business School University of Salford, Greater Manchester United Kingdom Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, March 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................................... 2 CHAPTER ONE ..................................................................................................................... 10 THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING: INTRODUCING THE STUDY ......................... 10 1.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 10 1.2 Key Research Questions ................................................................................................. 16 1.3 Significance of the study ................................................................................................ 19 1.4 Historical Significance of the Study ............................................................................... 20 1.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 25 1.7 Chapter Outline .............................................................................................................. 26 CHAPTER TWO .................................................................................................................... 30 BACKGROUND TO LAND ISSUES IN ZIMBABWE ...................................................... 30 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 30 2.2 The Meanings of Land to Zimbabwean Peasants ........................................................... 31 2.2.1 Land as an asset of production .................................................................................... 31 2.2.2 Land as a place of belonging ....................................................................................... 33 2.2.3 Land as a Political Instrument ..................................................................................... 34 2.3 Land Tenures systems in pre-colonial Zimbabwe, among the Shona people ................ 36 2.3.1 Land holding under the control of lineages ................................................................. 41 2.4 The Geography of Zimbabwe ......................................................................................... 43 2.5 Pre-Colonial land ownership among the Shona and the impact of colonialism ............. 48 2.6 - The era of treaties - 1880 – 1889: their bearing on land usage in Mashonaland ......... 49 2.7 The Lippert Concession, 1889 ........................................................................................ 50 2.8 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 52 CHAPTER THREE ................................................................................................................ 54 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY – PRESENTING A HISTORIOGRAPHIC STUDY . 54 3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 54 3.2 Epistemological Underpinnings and Research Knowledge claims ................................ 54 3.3 Historical Research: A definition ................................................................................... 56 3.3.1 Limitations of document research ............................................................................... 58 3.3.2 Why use secondary data? ............................................................................................ 61 3.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 62 CHAPTER FOUR .................................................................................................................. 63 PEASANT PERSPECTIVES, GLOBAL NARRATIVES AND SIMILARITIES AND COMPARISON WITH THE ZIMBABWEAN PEASANT NARRATIVES .................... 63 4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 63 4.2 The Conception of Peasantries ....................................................................................... 63 4.2.1 The Social Organisation of Peasant Communities ...................................................... 72 4.2.2 Impact of colonial rule on the agrarian economy ........................................................ 76 4.2.3 Peasant differentiation and petty commodity production ............................................ 78 4.3 Labour control strategies employed on the peasantry .................................................... 81 4.3.1 Peasantries and struggles ............................................................................................. 84 4.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 90 CHAPTER FIVE .................................................................................................................... 92 THE IMPACT OF THE BRITISH INVASION OF ZIMBABWE ON NATIVES’ LAND OWNERSHIP ......................................................................................................................... 92 5.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 92 5.2 Paternalism in Victorian England ................................................................................... 92 5.3 Analysis of Colonial Land Policy and its Impact on Access to Land: Early impact of colonialism on access to land, cattle and trade in Zimbabwe ............................................... 97 5.3.1 The 1893 War in Matebeleland ................................................................................... 99 5.3.2 The First Chimurenga, 1896-7 .................................................................................. 101 5.3.3 The Native Reserves Order in Council, 1898 ............................................................ 102 5.4 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 109 CHAPTER SIX ..................................................................................................................... 111 CATTLE, LAND AND COLONIALISM IN ZIMBABWE ............................................. 111 6.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 111 6.2 Cattle and Social Practices ........................................................................................... 113 6.3 Bantu Cattle Complex .................................................................................................. 121 6.4 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 129 CHAPTER SEVEN .............................................................................................................. 130 LAND MANAGEMENT IN COLONIAL ZIMBABWE.................................................. 130 7.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 130 7.2 Land Tenure in Colonial Zimbabwe ............................................................................. 130 7.2.1 The Tragedy of the Commons: .................................................................................. 133 7.2.2 What is the Commons? .............................................................................................. 133 7.3 The Land Apportionment Act, 1930............................................................................. 134 7.3.1 Implications of the Land Apportionment Act, (1930) ............................................... 141 7.3.2 Memorandum on Colonial Agricultural Policy, 1943 ............................................... 150 7.4 The Native Land Husbandry Bill (1950) ...................................................................... 161 7.4.1 Origins of the Native Land Husbandry Act (1951) ................................................... 161 7.4.2 Objectives of the NLHA (1951) ................................................................................ 163 7.5 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 164 CHAPTER EIGHT .............................................................................................................. 166 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NATIVE LAND HUSBANDRY ACT, 1951 ............... 166 8.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 166 8.2 Strategies for implementation of the NLHA ................................................................ 166 8.2.1 Grant of Farming Rights ............................................................................................ 167 8.2.2 Grant of Grazing Rights ...........................................................................................