Dingane kaSenzangakhona

Dingane kaSenzangakhona (ca. 1795-1840) was a Zulu chief who became king in 1828 by assasinating his half-brother Shaka, the founder of the Zulu nation.

Dingane lacked Shaka?s military and leadership skills, however, and the cracks in the kingdom began to show as rebel chiefs broke away. These cracks were exacerbated by armed conflict with the newly arrived Voortrekkers.

He ambushed and killed about 500 Boers in 1838. In revenge the forces of Andries Pretorius killed about 3,000 Zulus in the Battle of Blood River. Subsequent Boer intervention in Zulu domestic affairs led in 1840 to the overthrow and death of Dingane and the crowning of Mpande, his half-brother.