Mashiya
Mashiya begat Ngwekazi, Jozi, Mafu, Manyaza, Nsele and Matshangela. He ruled during the middle 1800’s. Mashiya’s term was very short as he died at a very early age, leaving behind his father Dhlomo. When Mashiya died, Ntsele succeded his throne. amaHlubi are the oldest in origin and are a much older tribe than either the amaZulu or amaXhosa. There is a lot of literature about the AmaHlubi, but very little is known or documented about the origins of this tribe. Dhlomo was survived by his son Mashiya. Then the name AmaHlubi (the princess mother of Dhlomo) was used during the time of Dhlomo. At the death of Mashiya, the only son of the chief of the Hlubis at Buzi, chief Dlomo faced the challenge of bringing up and choosing a suitable son from Mashiya’s children who could be chief in Mashiya’s position. After Ngwekazi, the firstborn of Mashiya, lost the chief’s position against Ntsele, who was not expected to be chosen as chief, Ngwekazi decided to disgrace his tribe and to take revenge for his loss. He forcefully took a girl (Nobusi) of Ngweni with the intention to marry her, although he knew that she was in love with Ntsele. With the assistance of the Zizi’s princess Ayanda, Nobusi was found. Ngwekazi was attacked and killed by the Ngweni’s for taking their princess and the killers were not found. Ntsele and Nobusi got married just as Nobusi’s ancestors predicted to her that her bridegroom would be a hero of the Thukela. The story of amaHlubi, telling us about their origins. He does this in a very pleasant way, by narrating the story of a chief that was not biologically born to be chief. His focus is on how this man came to be chief, not by way of overthrowing the existing chief, but through following his heart, sheer courage, and ignoring those who negatively talked behind his back. He listened to his elder brothers, and in doing so, he protected his own dignity as a decent honourable man. While Ntsele’s younger brothers refused to get grandfather chief Dlomo water from the fountain when he requested this of them, Ntsele listened to his mother when she instructed him to entertain the old man’s needs. Nobody knew that this was the main reason that made chief Dlomo decide on Ntsele as the suitable chief for the Hlubis because Ntsele put the tribe’s needs ahead of his own. Chief Dlomo also realised Ntsele’s humbleness when he agreed to do the job of fetching water from a fountain under a small cliff, the job that was seen as something stupid to do by those who didn’t know this secret. The amaHlubi Kingdom grew larger but the tribe began to divide into a number of jealously opposed factions.