Preface
The ‘dustheap’ of pre-Apartheid South African historiography has claimed
a number of casualties, one being the late ANC president Josiah Tshangana Gumede, whose lifestory has not yet been recorded in detailed fashion. This book aims to explore the life of Josiah, a South African political leader with a long record of service to his fellowmen, a fighter for civil rights and an opponent of racial injustice. Josiah is well-known as the first president of the ANC to have met Josef Stalin in Moscow in 1927; who was ousted in 1930 mainly because of his communist sentiments. It is less known that he acted as an induna for king Dinizulu in the struggle to save great portions of Zululand from passing into the hands of the Transvaal boers in the 1880s; toured England in 1892 as a member of a Zulu Choir; led a deputation of Sotho chiefs to England in 1907 concerning their land claims; was a crown witness in Pietermaritzburg’s first Communist trial in 1919; and received an honorary life presidency of the ANC in 1943.
Who was Josiah Gumede? Where did he come from? What were the forces, the events and influences, which moulded him? How did he rise from an ordinary position as land agent to become the president of the ANC in 1927? What was the significance of his numerous visits to Europe? These are but some of the questions that will be discussed in this book.
During the course of four research visits to England, Belgium, Holland, Germany, and France, I have located an extraordinary collection of archival material, documents, newspaper articles and letters dealing with Gumede’s five overseas visits. Most of this material has not yet been used by any scholar to date. Possibly one of the most productive ‘producers of knowledge’ of the Zulu, and later the African’s history, Gumede conducted highly public and often conflictual debates on a variety of issues, in particular the Union of South African Racial Policy after 1910. This book sets out to bring his writings out of the shadow into the light where critics and readers can reflect on his philosophy of life.
My debts are many and great. I would like to express my gratitude to the many people and institutions who contributed to this book. Proffs. John Hendricks, Gary Minckley, Roy Du Pre, Ian Edwards, Appolon Davidson, Robert Edgar and Stephen Ellis gave valuable insights and guidance. Thanks to the late Archie Gumede, Marike Sherwood, Baruch Hirson, Clarence Williams, Shula Marks, Yousuf Rassool and Jane Eaton. This book could not have been completed without the generous assistance of Dr Brian Willan who encouraged me from the start. I have benefited enormously from his biography of Solomon Plaatje.
