Pre-colonial Mutapa State
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| Gatsi Rusere Munhumutapa 1589-1623 |
* Picture is part of the National Stamp Collection issued by the Zimbabwe Post Office in conjunction with the Zimbabwe National Archives in 1985 to honor the 50th Anniversary of the National Archives. The picture is from Portuguese historical collection.
The Mutapa (western adaptation) of the Munhumutapa or Mwenemutapa or Monomutapa depending on the Shona dialect was one of Western Mozambique and present day Zimbabwe’s greatest kingdoms. The Mutapa state is believed to have been an Iron Age state which spanned across three centuries till its decline in the 19th century.
The economy of this empire was based on agriculture and trade. The area spanned from Kami, Naletale, Zumbo across the Zambezi River into Tete, Sena, Sofala, Mapungumbwe into the Indian Ocean. The capital of the state was in the Dangamombe and Great Zimbabwe area. The Mutapa traded in gold and discovered most of the gold mines that are known in present day Zimbabwe. Some believe that they even knew the diamond deposits in the Manicaland area but never showed them to the white settlers because they saw what had happened to them when gold was discovered so they kept it a secret for generations.
The Mutapa traded gold for ceramics and beads which were a status symbol in that day and time. The Mutapa required his subjects to pay tribute in the form of cattle and prove their allegiance to the Munhumutapa. The Munhumutapa was the leader of the Mutapa Empire and used religion to consolidate their power. One had to be a warrior to be the commander and Munhumutapa.
There is dispute by locals as to who built Great Zimbabwe, some say it was the Mutapa other attribute it to the Rozvi empire, all we know it was the local Africans living in the area who showed their architectural and artistic skills which serve as a monument today as we try to understand their culture and how it impacts us.
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| A Portuguese depiction of Nyatsimba Mutota |
List of all Munhumutapas
· Nyatsimba Mutota
· Changamire
· Gatsi Rusere
· Mutapa Mukombero
· Mavura * puppet for Portuguese
The Mutapa Empire was perhaps the first present day Zimbabwean state that fought colonialism and euro-domination and won against the Portuguese invaders in 1570s.
9 Comments
by Anonymous
What were your sources for this article?
by nomore mushayi
can you give the decline of the nutapa state
by Global Black History
Oral Tradition & Zimbabwe Archives
by Anonymous
this article is too shallow and it lacks analysis, it seems an armature
wrote this…… where are the references?
by Peter
It appears to me your comment is the one that is shallow and lacking analysis. Maybe the writer only wanted to write as much as they have actually written. You neither agree nor disagree with the substance in the writer’s article instead you choose to criticise without much analysis of the subject yourself.
by manyears mdutshwa chuchu
what is funny is
the truth we all know has never been written till I wrote my series on zimbabwea ancient
history
look criticall the guy looks more like a whiteman who is cheating who who really is telling lies
my book exposes and tells it as it was as it is and as it shall ever be the truth
written by an aboriginal the fact that the picture was from the archives does not mean
much remember whites were in it for mental colonisation of the black man
as evidenced by the learned poor black brothers who always want to refer to
to white writtings and taking them for gospel truth wake up this is no longer sleeping time
by nyasha simbo
is this a historian who wrote this or .the writer lacks academic skills on hw to write since he or she did not mention reference,there is no examples especially on names of portugueese,names of the poor black brothers etc,bt thanks hey we will add more flesh to this skeleton
by youngblacksmart
what makes one a historian? there is a difference between history and propaganda. it seems to me you my friend are a victim of academia of the eurocentric kind that has told you that if you see black people in a picture they must be ‘poor’. why would you refer to your brothers in this way? black history has something called oral tradition and forklore passed from generation to generate. Get educated it 2015 and black people are becoming their own historians and we dont have to follow the rules of ‘massa’
by Lloyd
thank you
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