The declaration of Munhumutapa Day as a national statutory holiday via Statutory Instrument 148 of 2026 highlights a massive double standard in modern Zimbabwe’s approach to history. State machinery and public discourse routinely romanticize pre-colonial African rulers, presenting their empires through a flawless lens. Concurrently, the Ndebele community proudly commemorates King Mzilikazi Day every September at Mhlahlandlela.
Yet, beneath the surface of these celebrated African figures lies a grim reality of conquest, raiding, systemic slavery, and internal brutality. If modern Zimbabwe can officially codify and respect holidays for rulers whose legacies are deeply intertwined with bloodshed and human subjugation, a glaring historical double standard is exposed. The country's white minority possesses every historical right to remember Cecil John Rhodes—the man who actually laid the physical, structural, and legal foundations of the modern nation-state. When measured by tangible societal advancement, infrastructure, and the eradication of barbaric tribal practices, Rhodes' claim to historical appreciation far outmatches the rulers who preceded him.
Deconstructing the Pre-Colonial "Utopia": Shona and Ndebele Realities
The popular narrative that pre-colonial Zimbabwe was a peaceful utopia shattered by European arrival is completely disconnected from historical facts. Prior to 1890, the territory was defined by institutionalized violence, human trafficking, and severe regional instability.
The Shona Mutapa Empire (The Munhumutapas)
Long before Western colonization, the Munhumutapas actively ran an empire built on imperial expansion and aggressive plunder. They routinely extracted heavy tribute from subjugated regional clans under threat of complete annihilation.
More critically, the Mutapa state and its offshoots were deeply embedded in the lucrative Indian Ocean slave trade. For generations, pre-colonial Shona rulers partnered with Swahili, Arab, and Portuguese traders, exchanging captured fellow Africans for luxury goods, fabrics, and firearms. This system reached its peak with the rise of the Prazeros—powerful Portuguese and Afro-Portuguese feudal warlords who controlled massive private estates (prazos) along the Zambezi valley. To enforce their rule and secure captives for transport, these warlords relied heavily on the Chikunda, fearsome private slave armies composed of heavily armed men who terrorized local populations, raided villages for human cargo, and maintained a brutal economy of terror long before the pioneer column ever crossed the Limpopo.
Shona Religious Barbarism and Tribal Customs
Beyond the political violence, pre-colonial Shona society was governed by deeply disturbing spiritual and social practices that modern civilization has thankfully left behind:
- Human Sacrifice: In dark corners of pre-colonial Shona spiritual systems, actual human sacrifices—often young virgins or captured enemies—were offered to powerful rainmaker deities like Dzivaguru to appease the spirit world during devastating droughts.
- The Slaughter of Twins: Across various Shona clans, the birth of twins was viewed as an evil omen and an offense to the ancestral spirits. Under strict cultural protocols, newborn twins were systematically murdered—either smothered, abandoned in the deep bush to be eaten by wild animals, or packed into clay pots and crushed.
- Internecine Warfare: The region was trapped in a cycle of endless, bloody tribal conflicts between rival Shona dynasties (including the Mutapa, Rozvi, and Changamire), ensuring that local communities lived in a state of permanent fear and physical insecurity.
The Ndebele Kingdom (Mzilikazi’s Rule)
When King Mzilikazi migrated north during the Mfecane, he did not build a self-sustaining economic infrastructure; he established a militaristic raiding state. The Ndebele economy survived by launching violent impis into Shona territories, burning down villages, looting cattle, and destroying grain reserves.
This state structure relied entirely on a rigid, institutionalized tribal caste system:
- Zansi: The elite ruling class of pure Zulu/Nguni origin who held absolute political, economic, and military power.
- Enhla: The middle class, made up of Sotho and Tswana groups assimilated during the long migration from the south.
- Hole: The heavily discriminated bottom tier, composed entirely of conquered Shona peoples. The Hole were treated as second-class subjects, stripped of their original language, forced into menial labor, and systematically barred from upward mobility or real social power.
The Modernizing Titan: What Cecil John Rhodes Actually Brought
The arrival of Cecil John Rhodes and the British South Africa Company (BSAC) fundamentally altered this trajectory, moving the territory from a primitive, iron-age raiding economy into a connected, industrialized state.
The Eradication of Barbarism
The establishment of the Rhodesian state brought an abrupt, permanent end to centuries of localized horrors. Roman-Dutch law and British administrative structures successfully outlawed the internal slave trade, dismantled the predatory Chikunda bands, banned human sacrifice, and criminalized the slaughter of twins. For the first time in history, a unified legal peace protected regular citizens from arbitrary tribal execution and endless inter-ethnic warfare.
Infrastructure and Global Connectivity
Rhodes’ driving vision linked an isolated territory directly to the global economy. Under his direction, thousands of kilometers of railway lines were laid from Cape Town through Bulawayo to Salisbury, slicing through rugged terrain to establish a backbone for modern transport. Alongside the railways came telegraph lines, engineered bridges, paved roads, and the founding of planned cities with modern sanitation systems.
Literacy, Education, and Healthcare
The transition to Western governance introduced formalized schooling and written literacy, transforming the country's human capital. Scientific agricultural practices replaced primitive subsistence farming, while the introduction of modern Western medicine, hospitals, and immunization campaigns systematically targeted deadly tropical diseases, drastically increasing the life expectancy and population growth of all demographics.
The History of Rhodes Day in the Rhodesian Calendar
For nearly a century, the achievements of the pioneer era were formally commemorated across the country through Rhodes Day, an official statutory holiday.
- The Origins (1895): The holiday was officially instituted under The Bills of Exchange Regulations, 1895, specifically timed to honor Cecil John Rhodes' birthday on 5 July 1853.
- The "Rhodes and Founders" Four-Day Weekend: To create a significant national celebration, the holiday was dynamically scheduled for the first or second Monday in July. It was immediately followed on Tuesday by Founders' Day, which honored the broader pioneer column, explorers, and early settlers. This sequence created a highly anticipated, annual four-day long weekend.
- How the Day Was Observed: It was marked by widespread civic pride and leisure. Families traveled to national parks like Inyanga or Victoria Falls, and cities hosted major sporting tournaments, agricultural exhibitions, and Christian services of thanksgiving.
- The Pilgrimage to the Matopos: A central ritual for many Rhodesians was making the physical journey to World’s View in the Matopo Hills to stand directly at Rhodes' granite gravesite, reflecting on the foundation of the country.
- Political Erasure: In 1979, during the short-lived internal settlement under Bishop Abel Muzorewa, the holiday was renamed Ancestors' Day. When Robert Mugabe took power in April 1980, the holiday was permanently abolished and replaced by Heroes' Day and Defense Forces Day in August, actively scrubbing Rhodes' name from the national calendar.
The Regional Footprint across Central and Southern Africa
Rhodes Day was not confined to Southern Rhodesia; it defined the calendar of British Central Africa:
- Northern Rhodesia (Zambia): Because Northern Rhodesia was directly founded and administered by Rhodes’ BSAC, Rhodes Day was an official statutory public holiday. Settlers across Lusaka and the Copperbelt mining towns like Ndola and Kitwe observed the exact same four-day weekend.
- Nyasaland (Malawi) & The Federation Era: Nyasaland was an imperial protectorate and did not originally celebrate Rhodes. However, during the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (1953–1963), the federal government imposed the holiday uniformly across all three territories to forge a unified British colonial identity. Following independence in 1964, Zambia and Malawi immediately abolished the holiday.
- South Africa’s Delicate Stance: Interestingly, South Africa never officially adopted Rhodes Day. Following the Union of South Africa in 1910, Afrikaners (Boers) deeply loathed Rhodes for orchestrating the illegal Jameson Raid. Making his birthday a national holiday would have fractured the union. Instead, South Africa observed generic milestones like Settlers' Day, while the English-speaking minority in Cape Town and Kimberley held private remembrance ceremonies at the Rhodes Memorial.
The Shared Resting Place: The Irony of the Matopos
Despite the ideological battles played out in modern politics, history has anchored both legacies to the exact same earth. In a fascinating twist of historical irony, both King Mzilikazi (at Entumbane) and Cecil John Rhodes (at World's View) chose the sacred granite landscape of the Matopo Hills for their final resting places.
The Matopos stand as physical proof that modern Zimbabwe is a product of dual histories. It is the intersection of an African warrior king who conquered the region by the spear, and a Western imperial visionary who built the state through industry. Neither legacy can be erased from the landscape, and both figures remain the titans who carved out the country's modern borders.
Conclusion: The Case for Resurrecting Rhodes Day
History must ultimately be judged by what is left behind for posterity. King Mzilikazi left behind a rigid tribal caste system and a raiding economy. The Munhumutapas left behind a legacy of tribute extortion, internal warfare, and active participation in the slave trade. Cecil John Rhodes, by contrast, left behind cities, railways, mines, schools, and hospitals. He is in many ways the Father of the nation.
White Zimbabweans possess a deep, multi-generational connection to the land their ancestors developed. Celebrating Rhodes Day is not an act of malice toward other ethnic groups; it is a legitimate act of honoring the pioneer spirit, the building of modern infrastructure, and the institutional heritage that still keeps the country functioning today.
A mature, confident nation should possess the space to tolerate different communities remembering their respective founders. If modern Zimbabwe can officially accommodate the remembrance of the Munhumutapas' raiding empire and tolerate the private celebrations of Mzilikazi’s iron rule, it must allow the quiet, dignified remembrance of Rhodes’ civilizational legacy. Whether observed privately within the borders or commemorated internationally by the diaspora on the 5th of July, Rhodes Day deserves a legitimate, respected place in the historical consciousness of white Zimbabweans and the broader national story.
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