["We Are Growing" playing]
♪ Ayete Gossy ♪
♪ We are growing higher ♪
♪ Growing higher ♪
[indistinct conversation]
[Senzangakona] Be careful with it.
Don't hurt it.
[speaking Zulu]
Shaka has a brother now.
Ngwadi.
Gendeyana is the father.
Things have changed.
How?
When we helped him escape, it was because I believed
it was for the good of our people?
I now know that we were right.
King K'andlo at the Qwabes wants him.
Makedama of the Elangeni also wants him.
Whether it be out at the true friendship or fear,
they all want him on their side.
Yet we, who know better than any of the prophesy,
remain silent.
I think the time has come for Shaka
to take his place here, in this royal house.
He knows nothing about his father...
except for the one sided stories his mother tells him.
It is time he heard the truth from your own lips.
And what is the truth?
That you love him.
[dramatic music playing]
You never cease to amaze me, my sister.
Your son will soon be a man,
and he will come and claim his right as a leader of Amazulu.
Win him back, brother!
Win him back from that woman before it is too late...
before we regret having saved his life!
[folk music playing]
Nkosi.
[speaking Zulu]
Ndabezitha... my prince.
I bring you a message from your father,
King Senzangakona.
He is grieved by the fact that his son
has chosen to wander in distant lands
to live under foreign kings.
He asks for his son's return to the home of his forefathers
so that he can publicly and in front of his own people,
be proclaimed heir to the throne of the House of Zulu.
And what of my mother?
[intense music playing]
My king requests the return of his son only.
Heir, you say, Lutuli?
Yes, Ndabezitha.
So be it.
Tell my father I will be the heir
to the throne of the Amazulu.
[Lutuli] Ndabezitha.
[speaking Zulu]
[dramatic music playing]
We have gathered the boys of an age...
set to become men.
Today...
you boys become men.
But first... receive the spear...
and war shield... symbols that you are prepared...
to fight... and to be the shield of Amazulu.
Usuyindoda... usuyindoda...
usuyindoda.
[intense music playing]
Today...
you are all going to receive "umnaele".
A symbol that you are men.
Shaka Zulu...heir to the Zulu throne,
step forward.
Wear it proudly...
my son.
[music continues playing]
Proudly? Must I wear it proudly?
And spit on my mother's pride?
Where were you when we nearly died of hunger?
Persecuted by the scum of this land.
Now, that your calf has grown to be a bull with horns...
you want him in your Royal House?
I accept the spear and shield...
symbols that make me a Zulu warrior.
But this...
I'll take by force...
as I've made everything that I am...
by force.
[speaking Zulu]
If my mother is not your royal wife.
Then I know no man Senzangakona Ka Jama.
Enough! Enough!
Leave the land of the Zulus now!
At sundown the warriors will follow.
If they catch you, they will kill you.
Go!
[indistinct conversation]
[theme music playing]
I will be king!
[thunder rumbling]
[wolf howling]
[narrator] Once again Shaka's destiny was being guided
by the great "Isangoma," Sitayi.
For that night as he fled the warriors of his father
legend records that she caused him
to stumble upon an ambush in the forest
and although, he did not realize it
his action on this fateful night
would in later years lead directly
to the fulfillment of the 'isangoma's' prophesy.
[people clamoring]
[leaves rustling]
[crickets chirping]
[owl hooting]
[breathing heavily]
[crickets chirping]
[bird cooing]
[grunting]
[birds chirping]
This is where I must leave you, Shaka.
I must go that way.
And I pray that when we are no longer wanderers
we will meet again...
under more pleasant circumstances.
Go now, before the Zulus find you.
Shaka...
[dramatic music]
thank you.
[narrator] The two fugitives, Dingiswaya and Shaka
would indeed meet again
but it would be under very different circumstances.
One would have become the king of a powerful paramountcy,
the other would still be a fugitive.
The years passed and Shaka continued to live under King Kandla
of the Qwabes at Gendeyana's kraal, together with his mother...
developing from adolescence into a powerful warrior.
His reputation as a skilled fighter gaining him support amongst the Zulus
and threatening his father's heirs.
And well they must have been concerned,
for all the while Sitayi maintained
her spiritual influence over Shaka's destiny,
as he moved ever closer to the goal she had set for him.
Since the disgrace of t he initiation ceremony all those years ago,
he continues to discredit you, Nkosi.
He has publicly challenged your supremacy as the leader of the Zulu people.
and now he has forbidden your Royal herdsmen
to take your cattle to the land of the Owabes.
Our failure to act against him will make the people feel
that we fear the superstition that surrounds him.
He is no longer your calf, Nkosi, he is a bull, testing its horns.
Frankly, elder, his reaction should not come as such a surprise to us.
After so many years of forced exile,
we should have anticipated his hostility.
Perhaps, Dadewetu, but we would be fools to condone it,
especially since his hostilities surpasses the limits of treason.
He must be brought back, baba, charged with high treason
and if found guilty by the council...
executed according to the laws of the land.
This is a vicious circle, Mudli. Exiled to avoid death.
Now the death penalty is a consequence of his exile.
Perhaps, my sister, you can think of another way of saving him?
My purpose, Nkosi, has never been to save him.
Personally, I only wish what is best for our people.
Can you see Dingane there and Siguiana
standing up to him after your death?
The Amazulu would be plunged into civil war.
With the support he is getting amongst your people, he could win.
The Elder is right.
We are faced with an act of high treason,
but who ultimately is to blame for that crime, the boy or his mother?
-Baba, I-- -Hey, let her finish, Mudli.
Can we truthfully say that Shaka's words and actions are the fruit of his own disloyalty?
Or are they, instead, a defiance of his mother?
Members of the council,
there can be no doubt that the boy represents power.
We have seen that in all his actions.
Why destroy that power when we can still harness it for the good of our people?
He's still young. He can be still molded.
but we must put an end to this woman's influence.
She must be tried for treason and witchcraft...
and if found guilty, executed.
You speak of witchcraft, Dadewetu.
It seems it has blinded you.
What does it take to open your eyes... the death of our king?
Enough.
We have waited too long, Mudli. Find him. Bring him back.
And I want him, alive.
[chanting]
[indistinct conversations]
You must go with your mother.
I will follow as soon as I can.
Shaka will look after you.
[dramatic music playing]
Go now.
Go well, my child.
Look after them, Shaka.
They need you more than ever.
If you reconsider, baba, we will be on the banks of the Umfungazi River.
We'll wait for three days.
If you don't come...
we'll move on.
She doesn't belong to me.
She never was meant to belong to me.
I'll never forget you, baba...
for what you have done for us... for her.
Go now, before it's too late.
[dramatic music continues playing]
Do you think Gendeyana will come?
No, but they will.
Their reputations at stake.
[people screaming]
[first warrior] They might be there! Find them!
They are gone. It is only him here!
Where have they gone?
[grunts]
Now, tell me, where have they gone?
I'll tell you... nothing.
They can't be far, we'll find them! Masahambeni madoda!
[foreboding music playing]
[birds chirping]
Go to grandmother's grave. I'll meet you there in a week at the most.
And, mother, this is the last time you're running.
Hurry! We must go.
[indistinct conversation]
Alive.
It'll only slow him down, to make our job easier.
[grunting]
[shouts]
[speaking Zulu]
He's down there!
[speaking Zulu]
[chanting]
[foreboding music playing]
[grunts]
[man grunting]
[men speaking Zulu]
[grunts]
[dramatic music playing]
[grunts]
[indistinct conversation]
[dramatic music playing]
[indistinct conversation]
[grunts]
[indistinct singing]
[speaking in native language]
[men speaking Zulu]
[Dilikane] Put that man down! Wozani, madoda!
Pick him up!
He needs help or he'll die!
Yes, he will. But not until he is tried for treason.
Now, pick him up!
Leave that man alone. I said, let him go!
This is none of your concern, old man.
Shaka belongs to us.
You are in Mtetwa territory now.
Your internal matters have no meaning here.
Pick him up!
I suggest don't, Zulu!
Who will stop us, you?
No, but they will.
[cheering]
Those Zulus are very far from home.
I wonder what they are doing here?
That's a very good question.
Now, move, you will take him to my Kraal?
All right, pick him up.
[children laughing]
Kuta! Keep an eye on the Zulus. I'm going to see what's happened.
[panting]
And now, father?
[speaking Zulu]
Will he live?
I'll do my best.
[people cheering]
[chanting]
-A Zulu, you say, are you sure? -Yes, Nikosi.
And what is his name?
They tell us he's called Shaka.
The Zulus are waiting for him, but I left my troops to see that they do not get to him.
He's getting the best medicine possible?
What are you saying?
His condition is desperate. It looks as though he may not recover.
I see, if he should recover, we should see him.
[speaking Mtetwa]
[drum roll]
[howling]
[foreboding music playing]
[howling]
[people panicking]
[foreboding music playing]
[women screaming]
[thunder claps]
[crowd clamoring]
[men singing]
[narrator] Shaka, the fugitive, was now about to reap
the rewards of that fateful night in the forest so many years ago,
when he delayed his own flight from danger to help an unknown warrior.
What he did not know then
was that the man whose life he'd saved was, in fact , a Mtetwa prince.
[grunts]
Rise, Shaka.
It is my fortune that you have recovered.
You--
It would appear that our destinies are interlocked, Shaka.
Godogwana?
Dingiswayo the "Wanderer."
[pleasant music playing]
I don't mean to sound disrespectful, Wena Wezulu...
but what are you doing here?
-[laughing] -Hlala phansi!
[speaking Zulu]
I'm trying my best to run my people's tempestuous hearts.
And what are you doing here?
Trying my best to run from my people's tempestuous hearts!
What is this talk of...
"Treason?"
I'm not completely sure.
But I think my father has decided that
a dead son is less of an inconvenience than a live one.
-[laughter] -What do you want me to say to you?
Whatever you think will fit the situation.
I want you and your men out of my kingdom by sunset.
How's that?
It's been known to work, Wena Wezulu.
What will I tell my king, Nkosi?
That his son is my guest.
My son, his guest, is that all he had to say?
-Yeba, Nkosi! -Phuma!
-Nkosi.
No purpose is served by getting so angry.
Since the day he was conceived,
this "Shaka" has brought me only disrepute and outrage!
Twice I have asked war with the Elangeni for his sake.
And now,
after two dozen of my best warriors return empty handed,
I am told that he lives under the shadow of the mighty Dingiswayo,
the ruler of what is becoming the most powerful paramouncy in this land!
That boy...
is already on my throne...
making decisions for me.
manipulating the fate of my house through his powerful friends.
We will be virtually isolated!
The time has come for me to force my hand.
The time has finally come for war!
But, Nkosi war with the Mtetwas is suicide!
they out number us ten to one!
-But perhaps by talking-- -No, Mudli! No more messengers.
No more discussions.
We're outnumbered, but Dingiswayo has other enemies
like King Pungashe of the Buthelezi.
I'm sure that he and I will find
that we now have a great deal in common.
War! There is no other way.
Our dignity is at stake.
[breathing heavily]
[dramatic music playing]
And, perhaps, my throne.
[indistinct chattering]
[pleasant music playing]
The king, I mean.
You two look like old friends.
What did you do? Save his life?
Yes.
[narrator] The Shaka had at last found a protector in Dingiswayo,
a man who dreamed of bringing peace,
unity, and a common identity to the peoples of his regime.
Dingiswayo had begun to realize a dream which would eventually be Shaka's to finish.
Here you learn to sleep in the open, like a soldier.
I told you men to keep this place clean!
-Dlaba? -Huh?
You just have to know how to keep them in line!
[laughs]
You will sleep over here...
[intense music]
You'll sleep over there.
I'll leave you men to get acquainted.
Kuta!
[speaking in native language]
I'm Mgobzi. This is Dlaba, and that's Nqoboka.
That's Mtonga. Over there is Joko.
Which place is mine?
Over here.
I don't care whose friend he is, he makes me nervous!
-Who? -The Zulu.
This is his first day here and he's already telling me how to run my regiment.
Why? What did he say?
He didn't have to say anything,
it's his eyes that did the talking.
I've never seen such an arrogant bastard in all my life!
Come, aren't you exaggerating a bit, Bhuza?
You see, all the men are pretty much on
the defensive when they arrive here.
Give him a chance to acclimatise to military life.
Oh, he'll get used to military life, all right.
I'll make sure he does.
[dramatic music playing]
[indistinct chattering]
He promises to be the best soldier we've ever had.
Only if his attitude changes. Men like him could be dangerous in battle.
He's too independent.
This is ridiculous. You couldn't hit an elephant from this distance!
Excuse me, General.
Yes?
The fronts are too far apart.
-Too far apart? -Yes, General.
By the time our spears reach the enemy, they have no thrust left.
I see.
And what do we suggest we do about that?
Rush the other line! Get in closer!
So we can throw our spears with more precision.
Maybe even stab the enemy!
Our traditional distance is 50 paces.
I know, sir. But I don't think it's effective.
Not effective?
Wars have been fought like this for as long as anyone can remember,
and you come along and say "It's not effective?"
Yes, General.
Who do you think you are?
A soldier, General. Trying to do my job as best I can.
Don't you realize, soldier,
that if we start rushing them,
they'll start rushing us?
That if they have more casualties, so will we?
I've thought of that, General.
I think it's advisable to make our shields bigger.
Large enough to cover the whole body.
In that way we can get as close as we need to and still be well protected.
Then why don't we just go into battle wearing our huts?
Too cumbersome, General.
The distance is 50 paces. Our shields remain the same.
-Is that clear? -Yes, General.
Now go back to your regiment.
And if you have any other smart ideas, keep them to yourself.
I don't like troublemakers.
Yes, General.
Next thing you know, he'll be telling us our spears are too long!
But they are, General.
[speaking in native language]
[chanting]
[speaking in native language]
Where are your sandals?
Here they are, General. They slow me down.
I won't be needing them.
Are you trying to tell me that
your feet are tougher than ox hide soles?
Yes, General.
[speaking in native language]
Put it out with your foot!
[indistinct conversations ]
As I said, General...
"I won't be needing them."
I don't care!
If you can put a volcano out with those feet!
You are a soldier! Soldiers wear sandals!
Put them back on!
Yes, General!
Generals like Bhuza are dangerous.
He lacks imagination.
His mind is as nimble as a slab of stone!
That's the way it should be.
Soldiers take orders without thinking.
Yes, Mgobozi. Soldiers should.
But not Generals!
Warfare must be a vital, creative process!
What can be creative about killing?
A man chosen to wield life and death on the battlefield
must be an artist.
If he isn't, he's simply a murderer.
What's the difference?
You'll know soon enough
when we march against the Dlamini.
[indistinct chattering]
[speaking in native language]
[men singing in native language]
[narrator] The Battle against the Dlaminis was to be a turning point
in Shaka's fighting career.
The battles were often staged in a manner somewhat
in the character of a jousting tournament.
These battles comprised demonstrative gestures
with the occasional flinging of long stemmed spears.
Whenever an army exhausted its supplies,
then the warriors would join their supporting spectators,
singing, hurling verbal abuse
and in this way generally trying to outdo the other side.
Occasionally some would enter the foray,
and some may be wounded or overpowered.
But it generally remained a festive occasion.
And when the day was done, and the battle fought,
it was argued that surely
war was won by subjugation, and not by destruction.
Shaka would not see it that way.
That's it? That's war?
Yes, in all it's gory details.
Not if I can help it!
Where does he think he's going?
He can't do that!
He doesn't strike me as the type who knows the meaning
of the word "can't, " General.
[people laughing]
[instrumental music]
[dramatic music playing]
[singing in native language]
["We Are Growing" playing]
♪ Be a man of greatness now ♪
♪ A man so tall a man so kind Be a man of wisdom now ♪
♪ A man of mind a man of blind Be a man of kindness now ♪
♪ A man so big strong in min Be a man so humble now ♪
♪ A man of men Now let it shine ♪
♪ This is what you are ♪
♪This is how it was Planned now ♪
♪ This is what to be Every kind of man now ♪
♪ This is what to say With a kind of meaning ♪
♪ This is what to feel With a kind of feeling ♪
♪ We are growing Growing higher and higher ♪
♪ Hear the children Hear the children ♪
♪ They are talking to him ♪
♪ Hear the wind blow Hear the wind blow ♪
♪ It is blowing for him ♪
♪ See the grass grow See the grass grow ♪
♪ It whispers his name ♪
♪ See the fire blow See the fire blow ♪
♪ In his heart is the flame ♪
♪ Ayete Gossy ♪
♪ Ay-y-y-ete Gossy ♪
♪ Ayete Gossy ♪
Subtitles downloaded with "Netflix subtitle downloader" UserScript by Tithen-Firion.