Kingdom Chronicles:

The Legacy of
Great Zimbabwe
By Tapiwa A Shumba

According to Confucius, Our greatest glory is in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
Sounds very cryptic, in every fashion of the words, though in certain subjective light, does make
some sense when related to a present day context. Only time remains the greatest yet silent witness
to the evolution of the human race since its inception to the present day.

In the last Kingdom Chronicles, I took your mind to a very different place, era and culture to what
you would not normally have an idea about. The idea that certain parts of Africa had monarchies,
and even still to this day have some ancient tribal monarchies that to exist on the African continent
was intended to awaken your curiosity and appreciation for the vast diverse cultures there are in the
world we live in.

OK, Now for the selfish, bit!!! No different this instance, neither. As much as I would be tempted to
state that this oeuvre is about knowledge interdependence, its more about understanding where my
original cultural heritage was spawned. Great Zimbabwe, a ruined city in the south-eastern hills of
Zimbabwe near Lake Mutirikwe and the town of Masvingo may have some clues to what I seek.

With construction started in the 11th century to the 15th, it became the capital of the Kingdom of
Zimbabwe during the country's Late Iron Age. Rumoured in the 18th to 19th centuries to have been
constructed by an early tribal clan known as the Lemba, even to this day the architectural and
masonry prowess of the remaining ruins testify to African ingenuity and engineering abilities let
alone artistry.

Kingdom Chronicles:
The Legacy of
Great Zimbabwe by Tapiwa A Shumba

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I remember as a young pre-teen gent, there were tales of the Lembas being Jewish descendants of
African skin. The Lemba are indeed a very unique ethnic group in that they are a southern African
ethnicity found in Zimbabwe and South Africa, with smaller, little-known branches in Mozambique
and Malawi. Myths of their origin broadly speaking speculate about migrations from the North,
which is a common trait to many African ethnicities now in present day Sub-Sahara Africa.

Reported Lemba oral tradition elaborates and articulates that their male ancestors migrated to
Southeast Africa to find gold. Shortly after, their ancestors inter-married with local women and
became established in Africa. At some point of growth, the tribe split into two groups, with one
settling in Ethiopia and the other traveling farther south, along the east coast. The Lemba even to
this day affirm that the second group settled in Tanzania and Kenya, building what was referred to
as "Senna II".

Others members of the Lemba purportedly resettled in Malawi, where their descendants reside
today. Many inhabited Mozambique, sooner or later migrating to Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Renowned Zimbabwean archaeologist, Ken Mufuka deliberated that the Lemba may have
contributed to this but may not have been solely creditworthy.

Tudor Parfitt and Magdel le Roux, Mr. Mufukas colleagues, motioned that they (the Lemba) had at
least facilitated construction of the monumental city. Should you ever get the chance to take that
dream holiday to Southern Africa particularly Zimbabwe (Lucky Bugger you!!!), the oral history
on the ground would clarify some things mentioned in this writing. In addition that the Gokomere
ethnic grouping was more proactive in the construction of the Great Zimbabwe dominion, but thats
a story for another day.

Anyway, so it so interesting about Great Zimbabwe for you to be even reading this? Well, after
several centuries the significance of Great Zimbabwe as a fully functional, trading kingdom had to
be investigated and then acknowledged. Archaeological finds in recent decades and years propose
the idea that Great Zimbabwe became a centre for trade, with artefacts hinting that the city formed
part of an exchange network coupled to Kilwe and stretching as far as China. The international
trade was mainly in gold and ivory commodities. It has been in recent decades speculated that more
than 20 million ounces of gold were drawn out of the earth.

The international commercialism was in summation to the local agricultural trade, which saw cattle
especially as central trade goods. Thus it is why through so many historical sources, that the
mention of cattle as being prized goods and protected by the royal court seems to be noted almost as
gospel. Its evolution has been affiliated to the descent of Mapungubwe from just about 1300 AD, as

Kingdom Chronicles:
The Legacy of
Great Zimbabwe by Tapiwa A Shumba

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a result of climatic variety and possibly the greater accessibility of gold in the back country of Great
Zimbabwe.

It would also be wise to note that Great Zimbabwe precedes the Khami and Nyanga cultures.
Remnants of those cultures still do tend to exist in the present day, but more as folklore tales and
stories to be shared around a bonfire under starlight. The question though still remains, why did the
Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe decay? Why the city was completely abandoned? Well, Im no
historian however, as a comic at times Id probably reckon they heard there was a big summer party
near the Zanzibar beach, then got kidnapped by Arabs n sold as slaves along the way.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, so it was a tasteless joke! Aw, come on seriously? There were no beach parties
back in them days mate. Anyway, the causes for the decline and eventual desertion of the
geographical area around 1450 A.D. may have been as a result of a decrease in trade compared to
geographical regions further north. The depletion of the gold mines, political imbalance and
calamity, theft of livestock by neighbouring rivals ethnic groups, and water shortages induced by
climatic change.

There would be more factors that may have forced people to migrate from Great Zimbabwe
however, that are another grand mystery that histories as the greatest of teachers will let each one of
us solve for our own selves.
Cited references:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Zimbabwe, Great Zimbabwe, Cited: 1/02/17
http://bechollashon.org/heart/index.php/articles/835, ANCIENT ZIMBABWE AND THE LEMBA
TRIBE, David L. McNaughton, dlmcn.com, November 1, 1997, Cited: 1/02/17
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemba_people The Lemba People, Cited: 1/02/17
http://www.rhodesia.nl/rhodesiana/volume19.pdf, Rhodesiana: The Pioneer Head, Cited: 1/02/17

Kingdom Chronicles:
The Legacy of
Great Zimbabwe by Tapiwa A Shumba

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