Editing Shaka (section)

==Early life==
Shaka (roughly translated as "[[Gastrointestinal tract|intestinal]] [[beetle]]") was born to the reigning [[Zulu people|Zulu]] king. He was the eldest of many sons, but was considered to be a [[Legitimacy (family law)|bastard]] child and was sent away to live with his mother's tribe, known as the Elangeni, leaving his half-brother to rule the [[Zulu Kingdom|Zulu kingdom]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Colenso family and Elangeni |url=https://amershammuseum.org/history/people/19th-century/colenso/ |access-date=2024-02-01 |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20191026133643/https://amershammuseum.org/history/people/19th-century/colenso/ |archivedate=2019-10-26|website=Amersham Museum |language=en-GB}}</ref> At the time, the Zulu were a regional tribe relying on [[Pastoralism|pastoral]] livestock, [[sorghum]], and [[milk]]. When Shaka reached a suitable age, he and his mother were sent to the [[Mthethwa Clan|Mthethwa]] [[clan]], the most powerful regional tribe. There, he matured, and served as a warrior under Jobe, and then for [[Dingiswayo]], a respected warrior and chief of the clan. When Inkosi Dingiswayo discovered Shaka was royalty, he put him in charge of a regiment, helping to develop Shaka's military tactics and strategy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Allen |first=MAJ Calvin R. |title=Shaka Zulu's Linkage of Strategy and Tactics: An Early Form of Operational Art? |url=https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA612214.pdf}}</ref>

After Inkosi [[Zwide kaLanga|Zwide]],  the king of the [[Ndwandwe]] (Nxumalo) nation, murdered Dingiswayo, Shaka sought to avenge his death. During that encounter, Zwide's mother, Ntombazi, a [[sangoma]], was killed by Shaka. Shaka chose a particularly gruesome revenge on her by locking her in a house with [[jackals]] or [[hyenas]] inside. They devoured her, and in the morning, Shaka burned the house to the ground. Shaka continued his pursuit of Zwide. It was not until around 1825 that the two military leaders met in the vicinity of [[Pongola, KwaZulu-Natal|Pongola]], near the present-day border of [[Mpumalanga]], a province of South Africa. Shaka was victorious in battle, although his forces sustained heavy casualties, including his military commander, Mgobhozi Ovela Entabeni.{{sfn|Stapleton|2010|p=}}

Already at this time, Shaka had grown famous for his use of the short stabbing [[spear]]. This spear was referred to as the "iklwa," see: [[assegai]].<ref>The Zulu Kings by Brian Roberts</ref> It was deadly and easy to thrust, whereas before, tribesmen barely tried to customize or improve their weapons. Shaka's innovative tactics, among them the "bull horn", devastated Zwide's forces at the [[Battle of Gqokli Hill#:~:text=The Battle of Gqokli Hill,21' 15.77%22 E).|battle of Gqokli Hill]].

In his initial years, Shaka had neither the influence nor reputation to compel any but the smallest of groups to join him, and upon Dingiswayo's death, he moved southwards across the [[Thukela River]], establishing his capital, [[Bulawayo (Zulu Empire)|Bulawayo]], in [[Qwabe]] territory. He never returned to the traditional Zulu heartland. In Qwabe, Shaka may have intervened in an existing succession dispute to help his own choice, Nqetho, into power.{{sfn|Colenso|Durnford|2011|p=}}