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Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma
Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma, a nineteenth-century anti-colonial resistance figure, has become an increasing presence in the South African cultural landscape, a process that culminated in the renaming of Fort Beaufort to KwaMaqoma in March 2023. This minor dissertation examines two commemorative statu...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English English |
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Department of Historical Studies
2025
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| _version_ | 1867613144916951040 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Matose, Kineiloe |
| author2 | Van Sittert, Lance |
| author_browse | Matose, Kineiloe Van Sittert, Lance |
| author_facet | Van Sittert, Lance Matose, Kineiloe |
| author_sort | Matose, Kineiloe |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma, a nineteenth-century anti-colonial resistance figure, has become an increasing presence in the South African cultural landscape, a process that culminated in the renaming of Fort Beaufort to KwaMaqoma in March 2023. This minor dissertation examines two commemorative statues of Nkosi Maqoma with the aim of unpacking the very different local and national political projects in which his memory has recently been mobilised. The first statue, commissioned by the Eastern Cape government through independent heritage project Zemk'iinkomo: uNkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma, is a concrete representation of Maqoma initially designed to stand opposite the statue of Queen Victoria in Qonce. Instead, it was erected on the mountain of Ntaba kaNdoda in 2015, a site of particular significance to both Maqoma and the history of the amaJingqi. Here, thirty-eight years after Maqoma's supposed bones were reinterred on the mountain as part of an attempt to turn him into the father of the Ciskean Bantustan and create a Ciskean national identity, Maqoma was once again mobilised by local political groups in defence of a disputed claim to traditional authority. The second statue is a bronze of Maqoma found amongst more than a hundred other bronze statues as part of Dali Tambo's Long March to Freedom Exhibition. This national memorial project is currently situated next to Canal Walk (a shopping and entertainment precinct) in Cape Town. In this Exhibition, Maqoma is portrayed as part of a linear history of resistance to apartheid that culminated in African National Congress (ANC) rule. The history, figurative and literal mobility of these two heritage-tourism projects opens a window to consider the complex questions and contestations of memory, heritage-tourism, and politics in which Nkosi Maqoma's statues are currently embroiled. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/41784 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | English eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:31:28.055Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Department of Historical Studies |
| publisherStr | Department of Historical Studies |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/41784 Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma Matose, Kineiloe Van Sittert, Lance Rousset, Thierry Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma, a nineteenth-century anti-colonial resistance figure, has become an increasing presence in the South African cultural landscape, a process that culminated in the renaming of Fort Beaufort to KwaMaqoma in March 2023. This minor dissertation examines two commemorative statues of Nkosi Maqoma with the aim of unpacking the very different local and national political projects in which his memory has recently been mobilised. The first statue, commissioned by the Eastern Cape government through independent heritage project Zemk'iinkomo: uNkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma, is a concrete representation of Maqoma initially designed to stand opposite the statue of Queen Victoria in Qonce. Instead, it was erected on the mountain of Ntaba kaNdoda in 2015, a site of particular significance to both Maqoma and the history of the amaJingqi. Here, thirty-eight years after Maqoma's supposed bones were reinterred on the mountain as part of an attempt to turn him into the father of the Ciskean Bantustan and create a Ciskean national identity, Maqoma was once again mobilised by local political groups in defence of a disputed claim to traditional authority. The second statue is a bronze of Maqoma found amongst more than a hundred other bronze statues as part of Dali Tambo's Long March to Freedom Exhibition. This national memorial project is currently situated next to Canal Walk (a shopping and entertainment precinct) in Cape Town. In this Exhibition, Maqoma is portrayed as part of a linear history of resistance to apartheid that culminated in African National Congress (ANC) rule. The history, figurative and literal mobility of these two heritage-tourism projects opens a window to consider the complex questions and contestations of memory, heritage-tourism, and politics in which Nkosi Maqoma's statues are currently embroiled. 2025-09-12T09:07:46Z 2025-09-12T09:07:46Z 2025 2025-09-11T13:22:33Z Thesis / Dissertation Masters Masters http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41784 en eng application/pdf Department of Historical Studies Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma Matose, Kineiloe Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| title_full | Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| title_fullStr | Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| title_short | Ah Jongumsobomvu! an analysis of the commemorative statues of Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| title_sort | ah jongumsobomvu an analysis of the commemorative statues of nkosi jongumsobomvu maqoma |
| topic | Nkosi Jongumsobomvu Maqoma |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41784 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT matosekineiloe ahjongumsobomvuananalysisofthecommemorativestatuesofnkosijongumsobomvumaqoma |