Original subtitles

[Shaka] I only need 50 of you for the time being, that is.

Strategy!

Speed!

And physical contact!

Phase one!

Phase two!

[gasping]

Has he named a successor?

[Dingiswayo] Sigujana.

[Shaka] The least likely candidate.

Salute your king!

[speaking Zulu]

[chanting in Zulu]

These so-called Zwalos have almost reached Kwa Bulawayo.

That is the time to strike

Let the people think his death was caused by the white men.

See to it.

[intro music playing]

[singing]

[narrator] The more I’d learnt about the king and his people,

the more I realized just how arrogant the attitudes of the Colonial Office

and Lord Charles were in this whole affair.

Shaka had so far proved a most affable host.

His power was his security,

and we were fools to have thought that we could simply change

the course of history with what we like to think of as the mystique of white civilization.

They are like monkeys trying to steal the autumn harvest.

And yet you treat them like kings!

Why, N kosi?

[Shaka] There are things we must learn, Ngomane.

Awungikhumule, Mfowethu.

[Ngomane] What things can they teach us,Nkasi yeZqu?

[Shaka] Like how many Monkeys fight in their armies.

What they really want from us,

And what we can learn from them. Awungiboleki isihlangu sami,'Mfowethu

[tribal chants]

[everyone chanting]

[chanting continues]

[drum roll]

[whistling]

[chanting continues]

[loud chanting continues]

[screaming in devastation]

[intense music]

[Dingane] Kill that man, Mgobozi!

[Mgobozi] Sukani!

I said kill him. Kill him!

[Dingane] Kill him!

That verdict is not ours to decide, Dingane.

I am the king's brother!

In the name of my ancestors,

I order you to kill him now!

Yes, Dingane.

You are his brother

but also his heir.

Mas' hambeni.

You've destroyed the evidence, Dingane,

but not your guilt.

[Mkabayi] I wonder what he could have told us about you, Mhlangana and Mbopha?

You're a fool, Dingane.

If you truly wanted to rule in his place, you should have

planned Shaka's death the way Shaka would have planned it.

[Mkabayi] Using a valid strategy. He has built a nation of warriors!

Would you have the people believe' that an uFasimba would ever

turn his spear against his own emperor?

It is the work at destiny.

As a man lives, so shall he die.

You remember that, Dingane.

Remember that.

[panting and writhing in agony]

[coughs]

She asks... can you save him?

Can you give him life...

Like you did to that girl.

She was in a coma!

[Flynn] She would have recovered by herself if they hadn't tried

to... bury her.

Will you tell him?

You know he'll never understand that.

He can relate only to Light and Darkness.

He feels the Darkness approaching and he

wants you to give him back Light.

Are you washing your hands of the whole thing?

And why not? Hmm?

I think it would be fair to say that ah he had it coming to him.

Oooh... do you think we deserve to die? Do you?

What!

You listen to that' mob out there, Fynn!

I tell you Mr. Fynn,

Shaka's armies Shaka may be a greater without threat than we've ever dreamed possible!

[Farewell] And I fear that we may be the first victims of that anarchy!

We have a chance to win the king's Favour!

We cannot fling it to the wind!

If we control Shaka's soul.

We control the whole of Southern Africa!

Control his soul?

Ah!

That's the game isn't it?

By proving that we have the powers of life and death!

That's the game all right, Mr. Fynn.

And at this, "minute" is called survival!

Well we don't have those powers, Lieutenant.

And that man is coughing up blood and phlegm

which would indicate a punctured lung.

And if that is the case...

then he's as doomed as that girl he had murdered.

Well then, you must pray.

For him?

No.

For us.

[panting]

[coughing]

[indistinct chatter]

[military drums beating]

[Scottish bagpipes playing]

Beg pardon, Sir.

What is it, Captain?

News from the north, Sir.

Shaka.

What the devil's that savage up to now?

Nothing, Sir. Unless, that is, the Zulus are given to being

commanded by spirits.

Oh, get on with it, man! Speak plainly!

According to a report from Col. Cloete, Sir, we have every reason to believe that Shaka

has been murdered.

Murdered?

Not by Farewell, I hope.

No. Sir, by one of his own people, apparently.

-Hmm. Are you sure? -Yes, Sir.

I took the liberty of checking Col. Cloete's sources.

Stabbed through the heart, apparently. Over a week ago.

Good.

Very good.

Tell Col. Cloete to return his troops to the Cape as soon as possible.

Isn't that a bit hasty, Sir?

The Zulus may have regrouped under new leadership.

Highly unlikely, Captain.

Shaka was a fluke!

The natives will revert to their natural state of Snivelling old women.

And now you must excuse me. I have a luncheon appointment.

Good day.

Come, Ladies!

[Fynn]AII around us was death and destruction.

The uncertainty caused by the attempt on the king's life

had created such panic and mistrust that warrior turned on warrior

and any poor soul found not displaying the required amount of grief at the king's demise

was summarily slaughtered or impaled.

It was a most terrible period of our stay,

and fear and uncertainty became our constant companions.

Iph' in yanga ?

[Ngomane] Vul’ indjel.a!

Iniani inkasi namhlanie?

He asks after the king's health, Mr. Fynn.

Thank you, Mr. Vegte. I got that.

The Great Elephant's condition is... stationary.

The moment there is any...

improvement he'll' be informed.

I hope you're not lying.

[Dingane] If the king is dead and you are keeping the truth from the Zulu people,

your carcasses will provide the cushions for Shaka grave.

If you don't believe what I'm sayin' to you,

then go and look for yourself!

I'll return at sunset

to be further informed.

And if he does peg out, Boy, you'll be the last one to find out!

Well, how is he really?

He's dying, Francis.

Don't seem to be a damn thing I can do about it!

If his ever doesn't break, I doubt he'll make sunset.

It has been many days. Too many!

People must see Shaka now, before panic sets in.

Well?

He can't stand up, let alone walk to the gate!

Then we'll have to give him a helping hand.

Francis, the man is dying!

Let's try, Henry.

It might be our last hope.

[Scottish bagpipes playing]

I'm afraid there is nothing we can do, Mrs. Farewell.

From Colonel Cloete's notification it would appear that your husband

never succeeded in making contact with that savage.

[Somerset] Indeed, it is doubtful that his party ever set foot on the shores of Natal.

I've said as much in my communique to Lord Bathurst whose foolish idea it was

to sanction this whole affair.

But how can you simply assume they never got there?

There is no mention of them in any other reports we've received.

One report, Sir Charles one miserable report from a messenger from God knows where,

tells you Shaka is dead

and you believe him.

Um... yes, I'm, truly sorry, Mrs Farewell...

and if there's anything I can do

to hasten your return to England I should be only too happy to oblige.

Mrs. Farewell!

Anything to help!

[grunts]

Mrs. Farewell!

Excuse me.

Mrs. Farewell.

Simpson. Harlow Simpson-South African Commercial Advertiser.

If you will permit, Ma'am, I have an inquiry or two to make.

-In reference to what, Mr. Simpson? -Your husband.

and Shaka Zulu.

Oh, that's old news, isn't it?

As your newspaper has so dauntlessly reported, they're both dead.

"His Majesty's valiant knight pitted against the Zulu Dragon

inflicting death even as the warmth of life drained from his own veins!"

I have rarely read such trash Mr. Simpson.

even in the shoddiest of drawing room plays!

It nettles me to have my husband's name tainted

by your waggish tabloid!

Good day, Mr. Simpson! Drive on!

You are right Mrs. Farewell.

It was trash!

Perhaps I can make it up to you by printing the truth.

-With your help, that is. -And what is the truth?

"His Majesty's valiant knight pitted against the blindness and racial

bigotry of the Cape's governor."

Stop!

Somerset firmly believes the only way to deal with these

“kaffirs” is to blow their heads off!

Your husband's outlook was more enlightened.

His eulogy could be a valuable lesson

to the future administrators of Colonial Africa.

But then there's no reason to write an eulogy, is there?

He's alive, isn't he?

And on what do you base that assumption, Mr. Simpson?

Your intuition.

and the fact that you came to see Somerset to help find your husband.

Well, I admire your resourcefulness, Mr. Simpson,

but I suggest you concentrate your efforts on more current topics.

As I said,

my husband is old news.

Drive on!

If you should reconsider, Madam.

I think you will find our "waggish" tabloid'

may prove to be your best and only ally!

[grunts]

[mellow music playing]

An added touch for show.

[speaking Zulu]

The people are assembled.

[grunts in pain]

[mellow music playing]

[speaking Zulu]

All right then.

you're on your own now.

[grunts in pain]

[crowd cheering]

[sweeping music playing]

[crowd cheering]

[chanting]

All he needed was a dose of Power.

In the past few weeks we've done a great deal of rushing and very little 'treading'.

I fear the angels won't let us get away with it for much longer.

Well, the angels have always been a rather understanding lot, Fynn.

But I take your point.

No d'you know, I think that Shaka's a believer ?

like most great men. The empire that he's built was in his imagination.

before it became a reality.

Well, you've saved his skin, old boy.

so now let's deal with his imagination.

[crowd chanting]

[crickets chirping]

[pants]

May I speak, Ndabezitha?

I know who was responsible for the attempt on your life.

Go on.

Perhaps my brother's son... can tell you.

Well?

After you were wounded, my brother,

I sent spies north of Pongolo river.

They tell me that Soshangane, Zwide and those few who survived onli Hill

have built a new and powerful army trained in the”ixwa" and the methods of Shaka.

The spies tell me that an attack on kwaBulawayo was planned.

as soon as Zwide received confirmation that

the Great Elephant has fallen, Ndabezitha.

How can you be sure that Zwide's conspiracy was not born

in the heart of one of my faithful subjects.

...you, for instance.

We share the same blood, Mfowethu.

Few men know you as well as I.

IfI had wished to take your life

I would have succeeded, my brother.

Leave me now.

[speaking Zulu]

Ndabezitha.

Ngomane.

Ndabezitha.

Choose ten of the uFasimba

and have them impaled in the centre of the cattle fold

where all can see.

[Shaka] Even if the man was an imposter,

my regiment should have realized it before the final blow was dealt.

Men are often blind, Nkasi,

as... as YOU are

in the case of your half-brother.

I have known since the night of the stabbing

that Dingane is to blame.

And...

and yet you let him live?

I need him now,

more than ever.

He'll attract dissenters, like cow dung attracts flies.

And when they try to strike again...

I'll be prepared.

It is Mkabayi

that, surprises me!

[intense music]

[crow cawing]

[intense music]

[Shaka]If what they say is true,

then their "isangoma" possesses powers we cannot ignore.

I want those powers at my service.

If the leopard were offered wings to fly,

he would be foolish to refuse them.

[grunts]

What is this marking used for?

[Vests]It is used to transmit feelings

ideas over great distances.

[Shaka]I have messengers for that.

[Vests]But this ensures that what you say here is heard

there in exactly your words.

[speaking Zulu]

[Vests] Writing is also a way of storing ideas.

so that what you say today maybe heard generations from now.

It is a form of immortality.

Who was he?

A King.

Joji?

Oh, no that's not George.

That is a King of Kings.

That's Christ.

Was Christ greater than Joji?

He's greater than George. He's greater...

than Shaka.

This death.

Hanging from a tree

near weeping old women

is not worthy of a King!

No, it's not.

How did he come to die?

He was... he was betrayed

by those that he loved the most.

Yes.

It is a mistake to love.

Especially for a King.

Why're you ever silent?

Are you afraid?

Do you bow down before this dead king Christ?

No.

-Christ is not my king. -Ah!

You have doubts

that Christ is the King of all .Kings

Yes Nkosi. I... I have my doubts.

So you two belong to different tribes.

Yes.

And King Jesus came from your tribe.

Not from my tribe.

From his tribe.

The ways of you Whites are a dark mystery!

Those warriors near the tree with "ixwas".

Were they part of his regiments?

No. He had no regiments.

Only twelve men. Unarmed.

Yet you call him King of Kings?

Greater than Shaka?

Yebo, Nkosi.

Why?

Look at his lips.

They're moving.

[Fynn] He's saying

"forgive them Baba, for they know of what they do."

Forgive.

How can anyone expect to rule with such a foolish strategy?

Many are of the same opinion.

And what does my brother George think?

George...his people . ..his country

people all over the world

they worship that King

as the Divine Sovereign sent by the Ancestors to bring peace.

But, uh, Nkosi... I know, very well

that King Jesus had great power.

Well, whether my friend Zacharius or you know it or not.

Christ is the Lord of the Whites.

[Fynn] He is the Lord of the Zulus.

He is the lord of all men.

He is the son of the Heavens!

Do you derive your powers from him?

He is Power.

With Christ in your heart, you're stronger than all the regiments an earth!

[old squirmy voice]

If Christ is power...

why did he not save...

himself?

Christ had to die

so that the Heavens would pass that power onto me.

The youth they have given me

is proof that I have inherited that power.

Heavens belong to Zulu

and Shaka is their son!

If the Swallows wish to be my "friends",

they must remember that

In this land

there is only

one Nkosi yamaKhosi,

only one King of Kings.

Shaka.

Yebo, Nkosi.

[sweeping music playing]

That is a gift from the Swallows.

But you cannot fault, uh, Shaka's deductive reasoning.

Christ to Heaven, Heaven to Zulus, Zulus to Shaka.

I wouldn't be surprised if someday Christ were

wedged snugly into Zulu genealogy.

that seems to be the curious legacy of Jesus...

to be adopted by others.

Did he say "youth"?

Youth?

The Macassar Oil Francis!

Your added touch for show.

You didn't really think it would go unnoticed, did you?

He thinks we've rejuvenated him! Not just aesthetically.

Physiologically.

I wish you'd stop doing that!

What?

Thinking.

It always seems to get us into deeper trouble!

It also gets us more of what we want.

[Zulu's women singing]

"I, Shaka.

“King of the Zulus and of the country of Natal,

"do hereby on the seventh of November in the year of Our Lord

"eighteen hundred and twenty four

"and in the presence of my chiefs and of my free will,

"grant, make over and sell unto F.G. Farewell and Company

"the entire and full possession, in perpetuity

"of the Port of Harbour of Natal

"together with the islands there in

"and the surrounding country

"with all rights to the ivory,

"rivers, mines and articles

"of all denominations contained there in...

"In witness where of

"I have placed my hand before

"the said F.G. Farewell,

"whom I hereby acknowledge as the

"Sole Chief of the said country

"with full power and authority.

"I do this as reward for the Whites' kind attention to me

"in my recent illness

"from a wound.“

[speaking Zulu]

-Ngomane... -[speaking Zulu]

[Ngomane]They are like monkeys trained to steal the autumn harvest...

and yet you treat them like king

Why, Nkosi?

[speaking Zulu]

If the Whites offer you wings,

it is because they wish to make you their victim.

[speaking Zulu]

Look at these men!

From now on

you will pay them the respect due to kings.

[crowd chanting]

I never would have thought hair oil could become a political asset.

That's because you're not a practical man.

All right. I'll be practical.

The bottle's almost empty. What happens when it runs out?

Your pessimism isn't very British.

Why should it be?

I'm Irish.

[chanting continues]

[seagulls squawking]

I hereby solemnly declare

that henceforth this bay be named Port Natal,

and the surrounding area to be British territory.

Mr. Wilkins...

[canon fire]

J“ God save the gracious king J'

[all singing]

J‘ Long live the noble king J‘

J“ God save the King J‘

I Send him victorious J‘

J‘ Happy and glorious J‘

J‘ Long to reign over us I

J‘ God save the King! J'

Three cheers for his gracious majesty, King George!

-Hip hip hooray! -Hip hip hooray! -Hip hip hooray!

[sweeping music playing]

[horses neighing]

[goats bleating]

Fat lot of use this is going to do us stuck out here in the middle of nowhere.

Yeah. I reckon we start building ourselves a ship...

get the 'ell out of here

before His High and Mighty starts sticking us up on those poles of his.

Do let us know when you plan to leave, Gentlemen.

That attitude's all very well, Mr. Farewell.

But somebody's got to start doing something or none of us

is going to get out of here alive!

And how far do you think we'll get without his help?

Tell me, because it will take more than us to put a sea faring ship together.

So... tell him.

Oh, don't talk nonsense, man

Nobody tells Shaka anything.

When the time is right, Gentlemen, we will confront the

matter and until then, do please concentrate on life as it is.

And what are you going to do when your bleeding Macassar oil runs out?

Uh, excuse me, Gentlemen, I think we have visitors.

[Zulu chanting]

[speaking Zulu]

Febana.

Yes, Mgobozi?

The Great Elephant wishes to see you and Mbuyazi immediately.

Tell him that we will leave for kwaBulawaya this afternoon.

You will leave immediately.

No one keeps the Great Elephant waiting.

We'll leave as soon as we can.

Asiya!

Somehow this place is getting more and more ominous by the day.

Look, Francis, I don't want to be difficult,

but I do think Mr. Ogle has a point.

What are we going to do when the hair dye runs out?

Oh, by then we'll be back in Cape Town.

Won't we, Lieutenant?

[sweeping music playing]