African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 336: Chapter 16: Supporters of the Ndebele People

The Zhuhai Trade Region and the former Zhuhai Special Zone have some differences; the Zhuhai Special Zone was established to attract investment from Australia and Macau and other regional merchants.

The East African government did not consider this, aiming to grab a share in the Far East southern market. The choice of Zhuhai is due to the best southern locations being long occupied by the British and French.

Behind Tang Family Bay is Xiangshan County. Currently, Xiangshan County is almost the Zhongshan and Zhuhai of the past, so its potential is still believable.

This belief is only Ernst’s own; actually, his people don’t quite understand. Currently, Xiangshan is entirely an inland county, with the coast mostly muddy flats. For example, East Africa leasing Tang Family Bay to build a port, which only has a few small fishing villages at the seaside, all trade infrastructure funding has to be self-financed.

However, trade of this era is like this; the Qing Government has only opened up the coast for more than twenty years, the good places have long been taken by Britain and France. Only Guangzhou and Shanghai, with advantageous geographical positions, can connect inland via the Zhujiang and Yangtze River waterways, places that everyone covets and cannot monopolize.

In the past, the Germans came late and had to choose the northern Jiaozhou as a base; to connect the mainland, Germany even arduously needed to build railways. In the end, before it warmed up, the Japanese picked it up cheaply.

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East Africa, Matebe Plateau.

Lobengula indeed has some true abilities; by integrating the military leaders of the Ndebele people at various levels, the almost entirely armed Ndebele people forcefully organized a rebel army of fifty thousand, along with a Shona Tribe auxiliary army of a hundred thousand.

They seized the inland transport hubs set up by East Africa, cutting off the supply routes established during the Southern conquest. If these routes can’t be opened in time, over time, the East African troops at the border would fall into a food scarcity situation.

Sivert personally went to South Salzburg Province, organizing a suppression force of over five thousand, heading south along the Luangwa River, while dispatching cavalry to inform the Matebe Plateau border troops to coordinate the suppression from east, west, and south directions.

Bulawayo.

The capital of the Matebele Kingdom, Lobengula’s base.

The kingdom’s Prime Minister is reporting the uprising situation to Lobengula: ”Your Majesty, our military leaders across the regions have accomplished their tasks, destroying seventy-eight East African points and killing over ten thousand enemies.”

Obviously, this battle report is fake news; if there really were over ten thousand East Africans within the inland Matebe Plateau, the Ndebele revolt wouldn’t even have a chance to ignite.

The points set by East Africa in Matebe mainly maintain grain transport and commercial roads, with each point staffed with a maximum of twenty to thirty people, some even just a handful.

However, Lobengula, in high spirits, did not scrutinize this data too much; falsifying war achievements is only human nature, as long as the desired effect is achieved.

Lobengula: ”Very well, order them to continue with greater effort. We shall drive the East Africans entirely out of the Matebele Kingdom in one go.”

Lobengula is highly ambitious, having long battled for the throne, conquering non-submissive forces everywhere.

Just when he had subdued various powers, ascending the throne, the East Africans came. At that time, Lobengula had not grasped East African’s strengths and weaknesses, and with the kingdom weak from disruption, he could only stare helplessly at East African troops entering the Matebele Kingdom.

The overwhelming East African Southern Road Army indeed intimidated Lobengula initially, but he quickly realized East Africa’s main forces were primarily focused in the east and south against the Portuguese and Boers.

Simultaneously, East African Kingdom sent envoys, demanding Lobengula to submit to East Africa, sharing exclusive benefits and tributing were unbearable for Lobengula.

Lobengula told his subordinates: ”The whites, though able to defeat brave Ndebele warriors, entirely rely on their firearms’ advantage. We too have organized our firearm units; once we defeat the entrenched East Africans in the south, our Matebele Kingdom will ultimately seize victory.”

As a branch of Zulu people, Ndebele are no strangers to firearms, having suffered greatly under Boers. So, after former king Mzilikazi led his tribe to migrate into Zimbabwe, he actively connected with the Portuguese, purchasing firearms and forming his firearm force.

Once Lobengula took the throne, he continued this practice; however, their suppliers changed from their enemy Portuguese to Boers.

Although the Portuguese Governor of Mozambique was indifferent to East Africa, the strength of East Africa indeed commanded respect. In the absence of homeland support, clashing with East Africans would only benefit the Southern British.

Boers were different; they greatly welcomed Ndebele people coming with gold to trade, and regarding East Africa Kingdom? Do you think gold is important!

Previously, such behavior of Ndebele carrying gold bricks out would surely receive Boer ’education’, but the arrival of Germans posed a threat to Boers.

However, for Boers to fight Germans themselves? Just imagining it made Boers feel uneasy. However, Ndebele people came seeking cooperation; thus, Boers had ways to test out German’s might.

Boers smuggled weapons and supplied firearms to the Matebele Kingdom, getting firearms from British merchants and then crossing the Limpopo River, trading with Ndebele in the dense forests on both banks.

Within three months, Boers supplied Ndebele with five thousand muskets, mostly British Army’s retired weapons post-Crimean War.

Previously, Boers definitely wouldn’t support Ndebele this much; after all, the land north of the Limpopo River was something they coveted.

Now, as it’s become East Africa Kingdom’s territory north of Limpopo, blocking Boer’s expansion route, Ndebele transformed from enemy into a pawn to exploit. After all, the Ndebele are ravaging East Africa Kingdom, while Boers profit from gold — a win-win, why not?

The five thousand firearms were Lobengula’s confidence source, plus an original thousand-plus firearm troops, organizing up to six thousand firearm soldiers, with over ten thousand remaining troops, he saw himself as the likely victor.

Lobengula was clearly misled by Boers, thinking East Africa Kingdom was similar to Boers — white settlers with firearm superiority but few in number in Africa.

Yet, this scenario existed only in Zimbabwe; East Africa had a greater immigrant population in Zambia compared to the whole Ndebele tribe in Zimbabwe.

Due to distance reasons, development in Zimbabwe lagged, resulting in fewer personnel, misleading Lobengula.

Though East Africa’s troops in Zimbabwe were numerous, they didn’t farm themselves; cutting off their food supply meant they couldn’t last a month before surrendering.