Lozikeyi Dlodlo
She was the leader and the inspiration for the second Anglo-Matabele war, also known as the War of the Red Axe and the First Chimurenga, which is considered Zimbabwe’s first war for Independence.
Born to Ngokho Dlodlo in 1855, Lozikeyi got married to King Lobengula so as to strengthen the king’s support base as the Dlodlo family were traditional healers and military expertise.
When King Lobengula disappeared, Queen Lozikeyi became the de facto leader of the Ndebele. She was in charge of the King’s army and together with her twin brother, Muntuwani, she ensured that the army had enough ammunition ahead of the 1896 war by using the weaponry her husband did not use in the first Anglo-Matabele war of 1893.
She came from a family of traditional healers, known as Iziyanga, who believed that the power of the Ndebele warriors was peak during the full moon. With this knowledge, the warriors made the first attack on the night of March 29, 1896, beneath a full moon. The attack happened at the Big Dance ceremony, where the Ndebele warriors, and their allies, the Shona, would kill any white person they encountered.
The fight went on until August 1896, when the two parties decided to negotiate. Queen Lozikeyi guided two negotiations that oversaw the reinstatement of the Ndebele autonomy, as well as, the prevention of more deaths.
