Achievements and problems faced by Chief Moshoeshoe

Achievements and problems faced by Chief Moshoeshoe

His achievements were mainly positive;

By the time he died, he placed his state with a record- that is; it survived the period of M'fecane and created a defensive state.

He founded a new nation of Basuto land, which is presented day Lesotho.

He ruled his multi-tribal nation for over 100 years without major revolts from his people.

He created a new nation of one people, language and culture. He then defended this new nation against African leaders or Boer and the British enemies.

He is remembered to have given birth to a spirit of nationalism among the Basuto people.

Moshoeshoe was a great African leader in the nineteenth Century. He is ranked with the great leaders and statesmen outside Africa during the nineteenth Century.

He collected people of many different tribes, which made them to recognize him as their rightful leader.

Problems faced by Moshoeshoe

Those people in his community who were far away from the center managed their own affairs and because of this many groups could break away from the main Sotho- Confederation.

There was no standing army to defend the state from internal and external enemies.

Moshoeshoe was faced with hostile neighbors especially the Tlokwa and Ngwane who constantly attacked and look away his cattle.

He was also attacked by refugees who raided his people for cattle and food harvest.

The Boers also attacked his country in their desire for land.

This was the period of scramble for Africa and he constantly faced aggression from George Cathcart, a British colonial agent.

He faced hostile neighbors like the Zulu, Boers, Swazi, and Tlokwa among others.

Many of his people were mostly refugees who were too poor too provide themselves with everything. Hence he had to cater for them.

The Boers constantly fought him over land and cattle.

The Zulu and Ndebele, Tlokwa, Swazi also resented him for land, cattle, and young able bodied men and women.

He faced threat from the Boers and the British who wanted to colonize the Basuto.

In 1848, the British from the Cape annexed the Orange Free State, as they tried to grab Basuto land to attach it to the Cape colony. This led to war from 1850 to 1852.

During the war the Basutoland defeated the British supported by the Tlokwa and the Rolong tribes. The Cape colony Governor Sir George Cathcart forced Moshoeshoe to pay a fine of 10,000 herds of cattle for his victory. He managed to provide 3,500 herds on the appointed day, but the Cape forces attacked him to recover the rest.

After the 1854 Bloemfontein Convention, conflict resulted between the Boers in the OFS and the Basuto people over land.

In 1858 the first Orange Free State- Basuto war was fought which ended in Basuto were defeated by the Boers.

In 1868 due to pressure to the British his area was declared a protectorate.

He was constantly troubled to create and preserve his state.

He rivaled many larger states in the region-Ndebele, Zulu.

He lived in fear of raids over cattle and land from Shaka, Sekoyale, and Mzilikazi among others.

His state was a young nation in comparison with old kingdoms like the Ndebele and the Zulu.

European rivalry and suspicion over his state.

Why Moshoseshoe requested for British protection in 1868

In March 1868, the British answered Moshoeshoe's pleas for protection, as the former declared Lesotho as the British Colony of Basutoland. Moshoeshoes with this became of the following:

Moshoeshoe had many enemies as early as he comes to power like the Tlokwa, Zulu, Matiwane, and Ndebele.

New troubles had soon came with the invasion and horsemen woth firearms - these were the Kora, Griqua and the Boers from the West and then from the South.

There were also continued Boer threats from the Orange Free State to incorporate his state there.

He .wished to control a wider area that bore little relation to the borders agreed upon between the British and the Boers their inaccurate maps. Moshoeshoe (Moshesh) associated the British with military power that could humble the Boers.

On the whole he had failed to challenge the Europeans in his land.

In 1850's and 1860's, the British were supplying arms to the Orange Free State, while they had banned their sale to the Basotho and other Africans North of the Orange.

The British had on a number of occasions intervened to solve the Sotho-Boer conflicts.

Moshoeshoe wanted to protect the independence of his people. The Basuto and other groups like the Boer- Pedi of Sckwati, and Laka of Manko pane had threatened the Sotho.

The Basuto (Sotho) people were prosperous farmers of wheat and maize for export in cape colony and elsewhere.

He wanted the British to conduct relations with the Boer on his western lands.

The worst effects of the Second Sotho-Boer war 1865 -69 encouraged Moshoeshoe to request for British protection. The Sotho were defeated and sued for peace with the Boers at Thaba Bosiu.

When the war resumed, Boer attacks on the Sotho were even more disastrous.

The influence the British High Commissioner Philip Wodehouse on the Sotho in 1860's.

As Moshoeshoe grew older, disputes began to emerge among his sons and relatives! the royal family.

The fear of the Orange Free State bankruptcy from the war and of the Sotho anarchy at the time made the British answer Mosboeshoe's pleas for protection in March 1868.

The reduced abilities of Moshoeshoe to conduct the war as he was over aged.

Many of his war generals were disunity.

The increased military pressure of the Boers over his land. Influence of the French Missionaries on Moshoeshoe.

Many Sotho people were starving due to wars with the Boers. The Sotho people were in desperate circumstances of war.

Lesotho was declared as the British colony of Basutoland which brought the war to end at the Second Treaty of Aliwal North.