The fallen heroes
FROM W05
He was a father figure to many across the country and was known as The Soul of the Nation. Rekayi Tangwena
Rekayi Tangwena (c. 1910 – June 11, 1984) was a traditional chief from Zimbabwe’s eastern province of Manicaland.
He is well known as the man who helped Mugabe and Tekere cross into Mozambique to join the Zanla guerillas, who were waging a fierce bush war against Ian Smith’s Rhodesian government.
However, Chief Tangwena was also wellknown for his fierce resistance to having his people evicted from their ancestral lands to make way for white settlers.
He continued to resist even after the people’s homesteads had been destroyed by settler forces.
Rodgers Alfred Nikita Mangena
Rodgers Alfred Nikita Mangena (March 16, 1943 — June 28, 1978), born Rodgers Alfred Mangena in the Maranda area, commanded the Zipra, the militant branch of Zapu, in the Rhodesian bush war.
Mangena led a Zipra uprising against Zapu moderates in 1977 with hundreds of followers in camps in Zambia attacking Zapu’s headquarters in Lusaka.
Solomon Mujuru
Solomon Mujuru (born Solomon Mutusva; May 5, 1945 – August 15, 2011), also known by his nom-de-guerre, Rex Nhongo, was a military officer and politician who led Mugabe’s guerrilla forces during the Rhodesian war.
In post-independence Zimbabwe, he went on to become army chief before leaving government service in 1995.
After leaving his post in the Zimbabwe National Army, he got into politics becoming Member of Parliament for Chikomba on a Zanu PF ticket.
He was generally regarded as one of the most feared men in Zimbabwe.
It was generally thought that Mujuru had a tremendous amount of influence on who would lead Zanu PF and the country.
He was the only person believed to have had the stature to challenge Mugabe during party meetings.
Mujuru died in an inferno at his Beatrice farm.
Maud Muzenda
Maud Muzenda (October 8, 1928- August 22, 2017) Maud Muzenda was a towering figure in the struggle for Zimbabwe’s independence as she was constantly hounded by colonial authorities for supporting her husband.
She was married to former war hero and the late VicePresident, Simon Muzenda.
After independence, Ambuya Muzenda played a key role in tackling issues affecting women, particularly in her home district of Gutu and the entire province of Masvingo where she initiated projects that uplifted the lives of people in rural communities.
She assisted in educating many orphans and remained a motherly/grandmotherly figure to all throughout her life.
She died on August 22, 2003 after battling hypertension and diabetes.
Victoria Chitepo
Victoria Chitepo (March 27, 1928 — April 8, 2016)
Victoria Chitepo became involved with the National Democratic Party (Rhodesia), a nationalist movement that campaigned for political rights for Rhodesia’s black majority in 1960.
She was the wife of Herbert Chitepo, one of the country's nationalist leaders.
She led a women’s sit-in at Salisbury’s Magistrates’ Court in 1961 to promote the campaign for black citizenship.
In 1962, she travelled to Tanzania with her husband where for three years she worked as a social worker aiding black Rhodesian refugees.
After her husband was assassinated in Lusaka, Zambia in 1975, she remained in Tanzania until the birth of Zimbabwe.
She was found dead at her Mt Pleasant home.
Sally Mugabe
Sally Mugabe (June 6 1931 — January 27 1992)
Born Sally Francesca Heyfron — first wife to former President, Robert Mugabe — became the first heroine to be buried at the National Heroes Acre.
The Ghanaian-born former First Lady is largely honoured for her unwavering support for underprivileged members of society and her passion for children’s welfare.
After marrying the former president in 1961, Sally, whose country of birth became the first to gain independence on the continent, is known for aggressively pushing for the black majority rule.
Her role in promoting and supporting the war effort was widely acclaimed. In December 1961, she was charged with sedition and sentenced to five years in jail after leading protests at the Prime Minister’s Office against the Constitution.
In 1964, she gave birth to her only son, Nhamodzenyika, who, however, tragically passed on in Ghana in 1966.
Sally Mugabe was elected the deputy secretary of the Women’s League at the first Zanu Women’s congress held in Mozambique in 1978.
After the country’s independence in 1980 she actively campaigned for women’s rights.
In addition to being patron of Mutemwa Leprosy Centre, she established the Child Survival and Development Committee for Zimbabwe with the assistance from the United Nations Children’s Fund.
She is highly regarded for her worldwide fundraising efforts. In 1989, she became the first secretary of the united Zanu-PF Women’s League.
She was also secretary for women’s affairs in the politburo.
She died of a kidney failure in 1992.