John Chang

The Kingdom of Zimbabwe (c. 1220–1450) was a medieval BakaLanga kingdom located in modern-day Zimbabwe. Its capital, Lusvingo, now called Great Zimbabwe is the largest stone structure in precolonial Southern Africa. This kingdom came about after the collapse of the Maphungubwe kingdom. After the collapse of the Lusvingo kingdom, the BakaLanga established a new kingdom at Khami, which was followed by the Lozwi dynasty at Nalatale and Dlodlo. This kingdom was destroyed by the Nguni, first Zwangendaba and later on Mzilikazi. Contents 1 Name 2 Origin 3 Culture and expansion 4 Economy 5 Rise of Mutapa and decline of Zimbabwe 6 Aftermath 7 See also 8 References 9 Sources Name Main article: Name of Zimbabwe is the modern name issued to the most prominent pre-colonial civilization in southern Africa. The name is derived from one of two possible terms: the Shona ( or "great stone houses") or Kalanga ( or "Homestead of Stone"). Origin Although the Kingdom of Zimbabwe was formally established during the medieval period, archaeological excavations in the region suggest that state formation here was considerably more ancient. In the early 11th century, people from the Kingdom of Mapungubwe in Southern Africa are believed to have settled on the Zimbabwe plateau. There, they would establish the Kingdom of Zimbabwe around 1220. 16th century records left by the explorer João de Barros indicate that Great Zimbabwe appears to have still been inhabited as recently as the early 1500s.[1] Culture and expansion The rulers of Zimbabwe brought artistic and stonemasonry traditions from Mapungubwe. The construction of elaborate stone buildings and walls reached its apex in the kingdom. The institution of was also used at Zimbabwe, along with an increasingly rigid three-tiered class structure. The kingdom taxed other rulers throughout the region. The kingdom was composed of over 150 tributaries headquartered in their own minor zimbabwes.[2] They established rule over a wider area than the Mapungubwe, the Butua or the Mutapa. Economy The Kingdom of Zimbabwe controlled the ivory and gold trade from the interior to the southeastern coast of Africa. Asian and Arabic goods could be found in abundance in the kingdom. Economic domestication, which had been crucial to the earlier proto-Shona states, was also practiced. The Great Zimbabwe people mined minerals like gold, copper and iron. They also kept livestock, as it is explained by its theory of cattle hypothesis.[] Rise of Mutapa and decline of Zimbabwe In approximately 1430 prince Nyatsimba Mutota from the Great Zimbabwe travelled north to the Dande region in search of salt. He then defeated the Tonga and Tavara with his army and established his dynasty at Chitakochangonya Hill. The land he conquered would become the Kingdom of Mutapa. Within a generation, Mutapa eclipsed Great Zimbabwe as the economic and political power in Zimbabwe. By 1450, the capital and most of the kingdom had been abandoned. Aftermath The end of the kingdom resulted in a fragmenting of proto-Shona power. Two bases emerged along a north-south axis. In the north, the Kingdom of Mutapa carried on and even improved upon Zimbabwe's administrative structure. It did not carry on the stone-masonry tradition to the extent of its predecessor. In the south, the Kingdom of Butua was established as a smaller, but nearly identical, version of Zimbabwe. Both states were eventually absorbed into the largest and most powerful of the Kalanga states, the Rozwi Empire.