1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,000 Speaker 1: Hey everyone. Technically you're getting two days in history today 2 00:00:03,120 --> 00:00:05,680 Speaker 1: because we were running two episodes from the History Vault. 3 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:08,879 Speaker 1: You'll also here two hosts, me and Tracy V. Wilson. 4 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:13,119 Speaker 1: Hope you enjoy. Welcome to this Day in History Class 5 00:00:13,160 --> 00:00:15,560 Speaker 1: from how Stuff Works dot Com and from the desk 6 00:00:15,640 --> 00:00:17,799 Speaker 1: of Stuff you Missed in History Class. It's the show 7 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:20,119 Speaker 1: where we explore the past one day at a time 8 00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:27,080 Speaker 1: with a quick look at what happened today in history. Hello, 9 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:29,319 Speaker 1: and welcome to the podcast. I'm Tracy V. Wilson, and 10 00:00:29,360 --> 00:00:33,559 Speaker 1: it's September two. Shaka, the founder of the Zulu Empire, 11 00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 1: was killed on this day. In a number of aspects 12 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:40,440 Speaker 1: of Shaka's life are really hard to conclusively pinned down. 13 00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:42,920 Speaker 1: He use the subject of all kinds of stories in 14 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:46,000 Speaker 1: folklore and pieces of oral tradition, some of which are 15 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:49,720 Speaker 1: probably exaggerated and others of which historians haven't completely agreed 16 00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:53,840 Speaker 1: on the details of. He was born in about seventy seven, 17 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:58,279 Speaker 1: and the Zulu people existed at this time. Africa has 18 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:02,440 Speaker 1: been home to literally thousand of nations and peoples and tribes, 19 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:05,479 Speaker 1: all with their own languages, their own cultures, their own 20 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,840 Speaker 1: unique aspects, and the Zulu are one of them. Shaka 21 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:12,160 Speaker 1: was the son of a Zulu chieftain, although much of 22 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:16,119 Speaker 1: his childhood and youth were spent among another tribe. When 23 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:19,280 Speaker 1: Shaka's father died in eighteen sixteen, Shaka returned home to 24 00:01:19,319 --> 00:01:22,560 Speaker 1: take his father's place, overthrowing an older brother to do it. 25 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:25,640 Speaker 1: And at the time there were not many people among 26 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:28,959 Speaker 1: the Zulu. There were only about fifteen hundred Zulu. It 27 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:31,840 Speaker 1: was one of the smallest peoples in the area. But 28 00:01:31,959 --> 00:01:34,400 Speaker 1: Shaka changed all that, and that's really when the Zulu 29 00:01:34,440 --> 00:01:38,440 Speaker 1: became an empire. He had proven himself through military service 30 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:42,000 Speaker 1: in his youth, and he said about reorganizing the Zulu 31 00:01:42,120 --> 00:01:45,440 Speaker 1: army to reflect his own innovations and what he had 32 00:01:45,520 --> 00:01:49,800 Speaker 1: learned in this time and in other militaries. He upgraded 33 00:01:49,800 --> 00:01:52,760 Speaker 1: their weapons and armor and instructed them in new tactics 34 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:56,120 Speaker 1: and new strategies. And then he began a conquest of 35 00:01:56,160 --> 00:02:00,480 Speaker 1: the neighboring clans and people's, absorbing their men burs into 36 00:02:00,520 --> 00:02:03,880 Speaker 1: the Zulu after defeating them in battle. Although this made 37 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: the Zulu Empire much larger and much more powerful, it 38 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:11,520 Speaker 1: also led some mass migrations and huge amounts of displacement 39 00:02:11,600 --> 00:02:15,040 Speaker 1: as people fled the advancing Zulu army and the violence 40 00:02:15,080 --> 00:02:17,720 Speaker 1: that was coming along with it. This period is known 41 00:02:17,720 --> 00:02:21,680 Speaker 1: as the Meficane or the scattering. Over the next year, 42 00:02:22,160 --> 00:02:25,680 Speaker 1: the Zulu quadrupled in size, and soon Shaka's army was 43 00:02:25,760 --> 00:02:30,359 Speaker 1: large enough to challenge the most powerful armies in Southern Africa. 44 00:02:30,960 --> 00:02:34,480 Speaker 1: The Zulu Kingdom became the most powerful nation on that 45 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:38,359 Speaker 1: part of the continent. At times, though Shaka's military conquest 46 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:42,560 Speaker 1: had been tremendously violent, he had a growing reputation of 47 00:02:42,639 --> 00:02:46,200 Speaker 1: being brutal in the world of warfare, and then in 48 00:02:46,280 --> 00:02:50,800 Speaker 1: eighteen seven, his mother died. His mother's death seems to 49 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:54,480 Speaker 1: have sent him into just an uncontrollable spiral of grief. 50 00:02:55,200 --> 00:02:59,320 Speaker 1: He launched a massacre, and he outlawed the planting of 51 00:02:59,360 --> 00:03:02,200 Speaker 1: crops the use of milk for a year, along with 52 00:03:02,240 --> 00:03:06,079 Speaker 1: the slaughter of milk cows. Aside from the obvious problems 53 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:08,760 Speaker 1: that would come from banning the planting of crops for 54 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:12,359 Speaker 1: a year and the slaughter of animals that were needed, 55 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:16,200 Speaker 1: milk was a major part of the Zulu diet. So 56 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:20,640 Speaker 1: this led to a massive, massive famine, and in eighteen 57 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:25,000 Speaker 1: two half brothers killed Shaka to stop him from destroying 58 00:03:25,080 --> 00:03:28,680 Speaker 1: what was left of the empire he had created in 59 00:03:28,720 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 1: eighteen seventy nine. A little over fifty years later, the 60 00:03:31,520 --> 00:03:35,280 Speaker 1: Zulu people were devastated in the Anglo Zulu War, which 61 00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:38,840 Speaker 1: ended in a decisive victory for the British over the Zulu. 62 00:03:39,040 --> 00:03:41,600 Speaker 1: You can learn more about that war in the September 63 00:03:42,520 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 1: seventeen episode of Stuffy Miss and history class at the 64 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:48,920 Speaker 1: same time. Though today the Zulu people are the largest 65 00:03:49,040 --> 00:03:53,000 Speaker 1: ethnic group in South Africa. Thanks to Christopher Hasciotis for 66 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:55,720 Speaker 1: his research work on today's episode, and thanks to Tari 67 00:03:55,800 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: Harrison for her audio work on this podcast. You can 68 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:01,360 Speaker 1: subscribe to the Stay in his Class on Apple Podcasts, 69 00:04:01,360 --> 00:04:04,480 Speaker 1: Google Podcasts, and wherever else you get your podcasts, and 70 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:06,360 Speaker 1: you can tune in tomorrow for the birth of a 71 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:18,159 Speaker 1: woman who made her round at a pretty impressive glass ceiling. Hello, 72 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:22,200 Speaker 1: Welcome to this day history class, where we desked off 73 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:33,120 Speaker 1: a little piece of history every day. The day was September. 74 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:39,880 Speaker 1: Japanese mountaineer Junko Tabe, known for being the first woman 75 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:42,600 Speaker 1: to summit the highest mountain on each of the seven continents, 76 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:47,039 Speaker 1: was born. Tabe was raised in Miha Ambachi, a small 77 00:04:47,080 --> 00:04:50,200 Speaker 1: town in northern Japan. She grew up during World War 78 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:53,960 Speaker 1: Two and relative poverty, and was considered a quote weak child, 79 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: but she did not let that label define her. She 80 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:01,200 Speaker 1: became interested in mountaineering when she was ten years old. 81 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:05,120 Speaker 1: On a school field trip, she climbed Mount Asahi and 82 00:05:05,279 --> 00:05:08,400 Speaker 1: Mount Chaosu, two peaks that are part of Mount Nasou, 83 00:05:08,720 --> 00:05:12,760 Speaker 1: a group of volcanoes in Japan. She liked how climbing 84 00:05:12,800 --> 00:05:16,400 Speaker 1: mountains was challenging but not competitive, a person who could 85 00:05:16,480 --> 00:05:18,520 Speaker 1: quit in the middle of the mountain if they wanted to. 86 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:23,719 Speaker 1: In nineteen sixty two, Tabei graduated from Showa Women's University 87 00:05:23,760 --> 00:05:27,480 Speaker 1: in Tokyo with a degree in English literature. She planned 88 00:05:27,520 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 1: to teach, but she soon made climbing a priority and 89 00:05:30,920 --> 00:05:34,520 Speaker 1: took jobs to support herself. She worked as a medical 90 00:05:34,600 --> 00:05:39,040 Speaker 1: journal editor and joined several mountain climbing clubs. She also 91 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:42,560 Speaker 1: married climber Massa Nobo Tabei, whom she met in nineteen 92 00:05:42,600 --> 00:05:46,360 Speaker 1: sixty five, but the climbing clubs she was part of 93 00:05:46,400 --> 00:05:50,280 Speaker 1: consistent mostly of men, and weren't a completely supportive environment. 94 00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:54,479 Speaker 1: She formed the Joshi Tohan Club for women and continued training. 95 00:05:55,640 --> 00:05:58,440 Speaker 1: She climbed go Toke and practiced her climbing skills on 96 00:05:58,440 --> 00:06:02,400 Speaker 1: Mount Fuji. She went with a group up Annapurna three 97 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:05,800 Speaker 1: in Nepal. It was her first expedition to the Himalayas 98 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:09,520 Speaker 1: and it took place in nineteen seventy and she worked 99 00:06:09,560 --> 00:06:12,400 Speaker 1: in places besides her job as a science journal editor, 100 00:06:12,800 --> 00:06:17,400 Speaker 1: she offered piano lessons and English tutoring. Still, she set 101 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:21,960 Speaker 1: her sights on summoning Mount Everest. Tabai and Aco Miyazaki 102 00:06:22,080 --> 00:06:24,600 Speaker 1: planned to lead a trip up Mount Everest in nineteen 103 00:06:24,640 --> 00:06:28,599 Speaker 1: seventy five, but potential financiers were not convinced that ten 104 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:31,279 Speaker 1: women could make the climb to the summit. The group 105 00:06:31,400 --> 00:06:34,760 Speaker 1: did eventually make enough money to fund their expedition thanks 106 00:06:34,760 --> 00:06:37,880 Speaker 1: to a TV network and Tokyo newspaper, but it was 107 00:06:37,920 --> 00:06:41,600 Speaker 1: a small amount considering previous costs for trips of Mount Everest. 108 00:06:42,720 --> 00:06:47,000 Speaker 1: Fifteen women and six sherp reporters ascended Mount Everest. Once 109 00:06:47,040 --> 00:06:49,720 Speaker 1: all of the team had gathered, they began practicing the 110 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:53,039 Speaker 1: climbs at base camp. For a couple of months, the 111 00:06:53,040 --> 00:06:56,880 Speaker 1: climbers moved between camps, hiked sections up and down the mountain, 112 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:00,440 Speaker 1: and got adjusted to life on the mountain. Then they 113 00:07:00,440 --> 00:07:04,080 Speaker 1: began the climb, but on May fourth, Tabey and her 114 00:07:04,120 --> 00:07:09,039 Speaker 1: tipmates were buried by an avalanche. They survived, but there 115 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:12,560 Speaker 1: was pressure on her to give up. She was bruised 116 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:15,600 Speaker 1: and it could not walk and time was tacking. The 117 00:07:15,720 --> 00:07:19,240 Speaker 1: monsoons were on their way. After a couple of days, 118 00:07:19,280 --> 00:07:22,360 Speaker 1: Tabei began to walk again, and on May tenth, she 119 00:07:22,600 --> 00:07:26,480 Speaker 1: and Ashrba began to climb the mountain again. She had 120 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:30,080 Speaker 1: to crawl sometimes on the ascent, but on May sixteenth, 121 00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:32,800 Speaker 1: the two of them made it to the summit. That 122 00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:35,320 Speaker 1: made Tabe the first woman to reach the top of 123 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:38,120 Speaker 1: the mountain, and she got a lot of press attention 124 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:42,800 Speaker 1: for her accomplishment. In the following years, she summited Kilimanjaro, 125 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:48,760 Speaker 1: Mount Aconcagua, Denali, Mount Elbrest, Vincent Massif, and Jabba Peak 126 00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:51,720 Speaker 1: that made her the first woman to summit the highest 127 00:07:51,720 --> 00:07:56,400 Speaker 1: mountain on each continent in n Tabei went on to 128 00:07:56,480 --> 00:08:00,840 Speaker 1: advocate for environmentalism. She did post graduate work at Koshu 129 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:05,680 Speaker 1: University in Fukuoka, Japan, studying mountain degradation caused by waste 130 00:08:05,720 --> 00:08:09,840 Speaker 1: people leave behind. She also was director of the preservation 131 00:08:09,960 --> 00:08:15,400 Speaker 1: organization Himalayan Adventure Trust of Japan. Taba died of cancer 132 00:08:15,440 --> 00:08:20,000 Speaker 1: in She has survived by Masanobu Taba and their children. 133 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:23,520 Speaker 1: I'm Eve cheff Coote and hopefully you know a little 134 00:08:23,520 --> 00:08:26,920 Speaker 1: more about history today than you did yesterday. If you 135 00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:30,800 Speaker 1: feel like correcting my pronunciation or my accent on anything 136 00:08:30,840 --> 00:08:33,160 Speaker 1: that I've said in the show, feel free to leave 137 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:37,680 Speaker 1: a very kind comment on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook at 138 00:08:37,920 --> 00:08:43,080 Speaker 1: t d i h C podcast Come back tomorrow for 139 00:08:43,120 --> 00:08:50,240 Speaker 1: another Tidbit from History. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, 140 00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:52,959 Speaker 1: visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 141 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:54,160 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.