Tshekedi Khama
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TSHEKEDI KHAMA Tshekedi K-hama TSHEKEDI KHAMA by MARY BENSON FABER AND FABER 24 Russell Square London First published in mcmlx by Faber and Faber Limited 24 Russell Square, London, W.C. I Printed in Great Britain by Ebenezer Baylis and Son, Limited Worcester, and London All rights reserved © 196o by Mary Benson 557 41 To ELLA Faith in their hands shall snap in two, And the unicorn evils run them through; Split all ends up they shan't crack; And death shall have no dominion. -DYLAN THOMAS Twenty-Five Poems 1936 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book owes much to a manuscript written by the late Douglas Buchanan, Q.C. I am most grateful to his family and to his friend, Donald Molteno, Q.C., for entrusting it to me and hope that they feel I have done it justice in the rewriting and adaptation. I am also grateful to the Rev. J. H. L. Burns and Peter Sebina, for placing at my disposal the papers from which they intended to write their own accounts. The book as written is my sole responsibility, but among others whom I wish to thank for their help, either in giving me information or criticism, are: Margaret Roberts, Dr. Ellen Hellmann, Dr. S. M. Molema and Colin Legum; Sir Charles Arden- Clarke; the Hon. David Astor and Bridget Astor; Chief Bathoen II and his son, Seepapitso Gaseitsiwe; John Buchanan; Mr. Blackbeard; Mrs. Clarke; Robert Clarke; W. A. W. Clark; Guy Clutton-Brock; the Rt. Hon. Clement Davies, M.P.; Michael Foot; Halcro Ferguson; the Rt. Hon. Patrick Gordon Walker, M.P.; the Rev. A. F. Griffiths and the London Missionary Society; the Rev. A. J. Haile; Mrs. A. W. Hoernl6; Arnold Johnston; Chief S'retse and Ruth Khama; Chief Rasebolai Kgamane; Chief I-losea Kutako; Peter Kuenstler; Freda Levson; G. Mathiba; G. Marobela; W. T. Mansell; Mr. and Mrs. Minchin ; Dr. R. N lackay; Professor Z. K. Matthews; Miss Margery Perham; Sir Ronald Prain and the Rhodesian Selection Trust; the Rev. K. Raditladi; L. Raditladi; Obeditse Ratshosa; Phyllis Randone; Christopher Rieu; Tom Reay; Anthony Sillery; the Rev. and Mrs. A. Seager; the Rev. A. Sandilands; B'onyerile Khama; Rev. Michael Scott; Anthony Sampson; Tsoegang Sebina; Molwa Sekgoma; Manyaphiri Sekgoma; N1I. Selepen; Mrs. Shaw; Jane Symonds; A. Lee Tattersall; Mr. and Mrs. Woodford; Clifford Hopkinson; William l'lomer; R. A. R. Bent; officials of the High Commissioner's Office and of the Bechuanaland Protectorate Administration; Arthur Gaitskell; E. L. Mallalieu, Q.C.; and Mrs. V. Norman. CONTENTS Maps pages 16-17 PART I -THE KHAMAS x. Tyrant or 'A Man Under Authority'? 21 2. The Pagan and His Son 24 3. The Clarifier 37 PARTII -THE REGENT 4. Aristocratic Insolence 49 5. 'Who Was That Young African?' 58 6. First Appeal to Britain 75 7. 'A Young Volcano' 81 8. The Navy On Dry Land 9° 9. A Narrow Escape 1 12 io. Tshekedi and Bathoen v. the High Commissioner 124 x1. 'A Question of Personal Relationships' 135 12. The War Years 145 13. The Hereros and Michael Scott 153 14. Khama's Secret and Tshekedi's Dream 162 PART III - UNCLE AND NEPHEW 15. 'This Matter Will Not Please You' 173 16. 'A Very Disreputable Transaction' x86 17. Appeasing White Opinion '99 18. The Men on the Spot Advise 215 19. The Conscience of Parliament 231 2o. 'Can You Trust Tshekedi?' 24.6 21. The Amazing Journey 261 Contents PART IV - YEARS OF RECONSTRUCTION 22. 'Let Us Work Together' page 275 23. New Projects 287 24. '1 Have Won a Victory" 297 Epilogue by Michael Scott 307 Index 309 ILLUSTRATIONS Tshekedi Khama frontspiece Hulton Picture Library Khama the Great facing.page 32 London Missionary Society Queen Semane 32 The Herdboy at the Moraka 33 Hulton Picture Library The Chief's Lolwapa, Serowe 48 Ian Berry The Burial Ground of the Khamas 48 Chief Regent Tshekedi Khama and the Rev. Haydon Lewis-1926 (Beside the Khama Memorial) 49 London Missionary Society The Family Leaves Serowe for the Lands 96 Hulton Picture Library Tshekedi Khama-London 1930 97 Vandyk 'Join the Navy and See the Kalahari' 112 J. H. L. Burns The Tribe, the Navy and the Grandstand 112 J. H. L. Burns Awaiting the Admiral-Colonel Rey, third from left, greets Mr. Percivale Liesching 112 J. H. L. Burns The Rev. A. E. Jennings and Douglas Buchanan Set Out for London: Tshekedi Khama and Tsoegang Sebina see them off. 1934 113 The Wedding of Tshekedi Khama and Ella Moshoela with Seretse Khama as best man 192 J. H. L. Burns Tshekedi in his Office 193 Leon Levson Tshekedi on a Farm '93 Arriving at Waterloo-Met by W. A. W. Clark-1951 208 P.A.-Reuter Illustrations Arriving at the House of Commons with the Rev. Michael Scott and the Author facing page 208 Associated Newspapers Ltd. The Amazing Journey: at Southampton with Ella, Leapeetswe and Sekgoma 209 P.A.-Reuter Seretse and Ruth Khama with Jacqueline and Ian 209 Daiy Express Tshekedi Welcomes Seretse Back (In background, John Millard, the official who knew the secret) 256 Ian Berry The Serowe Kgotla Greets Seretse (left to right: Chief Bathoen, Chief Rasebolai Kgamane, Chief Seretse Khama, Chief Tshekedi Khama) 256 Ian Berry Tshekedi Watches His Men Boring for Water 257 Guy Clutton-Brock Discussing a Problem 257 Guy Glutton-Brock Seretse, Tshekedi and Rasebolai with John Buchanan 272 John Fry Guy Clutton-Brock and Tshekedi 272 Colin Legum Serowe 273 Ian Berry The Kgotla (in the background, Bamangwato tribal offices and Khama Memorial Hill) 273 Jurgen Scbadeberg Tshekedi's South African pass to visit Mafeking page 284 Bamangwato Line of Chiefs at end of book PRONUNCIATION Tshekedi-Tse-kay-di Khama-the Kh is pronounced with a slight guttural sound SOME PROPER NAMES Ngwato, BaNgwato, Bamangwato, Bamanwato-the tribe (BaNgwato means the people of Ngwato, the chief after whom the tribe was called) Mongwato-one member of the tribe Tswana, BaTswana, Bechuana-the tribe Motswana, Mochuana--one member of the tribe BaSotho, Basuto .Matabele, Ndebele Matsheng, Machen, Macheng, Matseng---early chief of the Ngwato Sckgome, Sekhome, Sekgoma-father of Khama III Kgama, Khama-Chiefs Kgama I and II have the old spelling: Khama III and his descendants the new. .Moshoeshoe, Moshesh-Chief of the BaSotho in Queen Victoria's time Mzilikasi, Mzilikgazi, Maselikase, Moselekatse-Chief of the Ndebele -tn *m. - i4 OkavaK goZ $V, P'w 0 4 KA L ÄA c A 0 w N IANDý9L,AG,kpI LAN i -----.PI91 <ý4 5 el BECU4UANALAND -" -4'4Re2llw.Z' Ma Roads. - Rserve Souw44ris SA M A N G fEROWE U Part I The Khamas CHAPTER x Tyrant or 'A Man Under Authority? shekedi Khama was at the peak of his eventful life when it was decided that this book should be written. A man in his prime is rarely a subject for a biography, but he had reached the end of a long series of controversies, some spectacular, some tedious, and had just achieved substantial advances for the Bamangwato that presaged a new era, so that the story seemed timely. The idea originated with Tshekedi's legal adviser and friend, Douglas Buchanan, Q.C., who, during a slow and fatal illness, w rote a record of their cases in the hope that 'it might help, in however small a degree, to bring about a better understanding between Europeans and Africans, to the benefit of each and the v,,,rld as a whole'. Buchanan regarded it as essentially a prrliminary work and hoped that Tshekedi himself would one ,!ay write fully about his country and his life. But Buchanan di.d in 1954 before it was completed. In March 1958 his friend, I),,nald Molteno, Q.C., knowing that I had been associated , ith Tshekedi since 195i, on behalf of the Buchanan family, .-ked me to adapt and complete the work. Tshekedi gave the !lizgestion his blessing in the following terms: 'I of course have 1:*, objection at all to your doing something about the MSS. ,hich I learn dear old Douglas wrote about me. I hope it will ! possible for you to confer with me before it is published. I :-.rrclv suggest this in order to see that it is factual. Both you .:l Douglas are my very great friends and you may be tempted rxaggcrate!' B;uchanan, in fact, had not intended Tshekedi to see the -irk before it was published because he feared that the Chief .ld disapprove of certain laudatory passages. I was prepared risk this and arranged with Tshekedi that I should take the 't.? draft out to him in Bechuanaland, where we could work 11 it together. Early in May 1959 I was ready. The problem 21 The Kihamas was how to fit my visit in between Tshekedi's innumerable activities-his visits to Mafeking, Lobatsi and Francistown, to Pretoria, Cape Town or Salisbury, to London or Strasbourg, to Bechuanaland Advisory Council Meetings, to his lands or cattle posts in the remote bush, or simply his daily duties in the Bamangwato Administration in Serowe. I was in London awaiting his invitation when, on May 22, I received a cable: TSHEKEDI SERIOUSLY ILL. ARRIVING LONDON WITH ELLA FOR TREATMENT. On Wednesday, June IO, 1959, Tshekedi Khama died. The B.B.C. carried the following item in its news bulletin: 'Tshekedi Khama, the former Regent of the Bamangwato tribe in Bechuanaland and uncle of Seretse Khama, died in a London hospital early today. He was 54. He had flown to Britain over a fortnight ago for treatment for a kidney complaint. On Monday, Seretse Khama-the former Paramount Chief of the tribe-flew to London to see him.