Tragic ending at Rharhabe still resonates
Battle of Amalinde between King Hintsa’s and Prince Ngqika’s armies in 1818 had no real winners after 500 ‘soldiers’ lost their lives in bloody skirmish
Let me break the conspiracy of silence and discuss one of the sore points in our rich history.
The topic I choose is the Battle of Amalinde in 1818, two centuries ago. It was one of the crucial and momentous events in the annals of this country.
It left deep scars, and still arouses passions and controversy. The battle itself was most unfortunate and untimely.
It left a divided nation worst divided. What a calamity!
The governor of the Cape Colony, Lord Charles Somerset, was finalising his plans for invading Xhosaland.
In the face of this threat, the Rharhabe region was unable to set aside its petty disputes and quarrels. With a pressing need to close ranks and forge unity, the Xhosas instead stumbled into a fratricidal clash of arms that was a perfect boon to the British imperialists.
The Xhosas had not lost their senses. The uncomfortable truth is that the Rharhabe region was faced with a serious predicament. Prince Ngqika, head of the region, had lost his way and become not just a liability, but a danger. The country was faced with the age-old problem of how to correct or discipline delinquent royalty. The majority of the traditional leaders referred the matter to the Xhosa Sovereign, His Majesty King Hintsa. The charges they laid against the Rharhabe paramount were serious – in essence, treason and selling out to the British. They alleged he was conniving with the British instead of rallying forces in defence of Southern Xhosa land (the territory South of the Fish River.)
The gravity of the situation called for drastic action. After careful weighing of pros and cons, the king decided to act.
He led his army to the Rharhabe land on what was meant to be a punitive expedition. Prince Ngqika and his tribal base Amambombo were not penitent, nor ready to parley. Instead they were defiant and ready to stand their ground and fight. AmaNtinde, AmaGqunukhwebe, ImiDange, AmaMbalu, AmaNdlambe and ImiDutshane all joined the King’s army which was placed under the command of the redoubtable Prince Mdushane.
Neither side was begging for peace and the two armies advanced on each other and clashed on the plains of Amalinde. The astute Prince Mdushane kept a sizeable number of forces hidden away from the battlefield. Prince Ngqika`s army was misled into thinking the numbers were equal.
It was much later in the day after the two armies had been slogging in what seemed to be heading for a stalemate, that a change occurred.
The appearance of those who had remained behind in hiding changed not only the balance of forces, but the outcome of the battle. This was deadly man-toman combat in which no quarter was asked – or given.
Despite their gallant stand, Prince Ngqika’s forces buckled under the sheer weight of numbers. The slaughter was horrific and the rout complete.
Many braves, blue crested heroes perished casualties on both sides.
There was no jubilation among the victors, only relief it was over. The pervading atmosphere was traumatic because crane with of the high number dead and wounded.
The defeated left the battlefield but were not pursued.
There was no drive to Prince Ngqika’s great place either to capture him or ransack the home. The victors were not calling for retribution. The casusbelli had been political and it was assumed that Prince Ngqika had been taught a lesson.
The general expectation was that he would come to surrender and place himself at the mercy of his victorious brethren. There were fond hopes that unity could now be achieved.
Prince Ngqika had not been in the battlefield. He had been in the forested hill above the Amalinde plains watching and of keeping a safe distance with a few aides. What was in his mind? Was he contrite and remorseful? When the Xhosa monarch ( Ahh Zanzolo!) led his army across the Kei River, the purpose was to subject Prince Ngqika to corrective punishment. The army under Prince Mdushane was not an invading force. The combatants at Amalinde were brethren, all belonging to the house of Phalo.
It was expected that Prince Ngqika would behave as a disciplined senior member. It is true that in the battlefield with participants wielding weapons and tempers frayed, things would and did get out of hand.
● According to Wikipedia: Wounded and facing defeat, Ngqika’s remaining army, led by his eldest son Maqoma, fled to the slopes of Ntaba ka Ndoda. It is reported that over 500 men lost their lives on that fateful day in October 1818. As the sun went down, Mdushane’s men fuelled huge bonfires with the corpses of Ngqika’s men.
In the final analysis, there was no real victor between the amaNgqika and the amaNdlambe as the consequences for both were profound.
Soon after the battle, Ngqika applied to the British for assistance and in December 1818, a military expedition under the leadership of Colonel Brereton set out to attack Ndlambe.
Matters became worse when Nxele attacked Grahamstown unsuccessfully.
Battle of Amalinde in 1818 was one of the momentous events in annals of this country