Ndwandwe

The Ndwandwe were a major power in the country of the Mkuze and Phongolo rivers under their chief Zwide. Their rivalry with Dingiswayo's Mthethwa and the rising Zulu kingdom changed the fortunes of many communities in southeastern Africa. Dingiswayo was captured and killed in fighting with Zwide's people around 1817 or 1818. Shaka then brought many Mthethwa warriors into his own growing power. In 1819 and 1820 he defeated Ndwandwe armies, including at the Mhlatuze River. The defeats broke up Zwide's loose confederacy. Leaders such as Soshangane and Zwangendaba took followers northward, carrying the consequences of these wars far beyond their former home.