About Nongoma

This area was once the home of King Zwide, a late 18th century Ndwandwe monarch who was eventually defeated by Shaka, at the beginning of the Mfecane wars. On 30 March 1883, a Zulu clan, the Mandlakazi under Zibhebhu, defeated the uSuthu (another Zulu clan which were pro King Cetshwayo kaMpande) in the Msebe Valley close by to Nongoma. The town itself was only established in 1887 with the building of Fort Ivuna by the British as a buffer zone between the Zulu warring factions. It was originally called Ndwandwe but was later replaced by an earlier name given by the local tribesmen to the sacred area where the town stands, KwaNongoma (place of the diviner or mother of songs). In June 1888 Nongoma was destroyed by the uSuthu but later rebuilt. The fort was used during the Bambatha Rebellion of 1906. Two zulu monarchs are laid to rest in the Nongoma area: