He convinced the Matabele and the Shona that the settlers (almost 4,000-strong by then) were responsible for the drought, locust plagues and the cattle disease rinderpest ravaging the country at the time.

Months passed before the British forces were strong enough to break the sieges and defend the major settlements, and war raged on until October of the following year.

The Mlimo planned to wait until the night of 29 March, the first full moon, to take Bulawayo by surprise immediately after a ceremony called the Big Dance.

His plan was to kill all of the settlers in Bulawayo first, but not to destroy the town itself as it would serve again as the royal kraal for the newly reincarnated King Lobengula.

The Mlimo decreed that the settlers should be attacked and driven from the country through the Mangwe Pass on the Western edge of the Matobo Hills, which was to be left open and unguarded for this reason.

Frederick Selous, the famous big-game hunter, had heard rumours of settlers in the countryside being killed, but he thought it was a localised problem.

The Matabele headed into the countryside armed with a variety of weapons, including: Martini-Henry rifles, Winchester repeaters, Lee-Metfords, assegais, knobkerries and battle-axes.

[4] Armstrong immediately brought this information to the Chief of Scouts, Burnham, and the two men presented it to the administrator of Southern Rhodesia, Earl Grey.

The two men hurried back to Bulawayo, with warriors in pursuit[8] After the assassination, overseas press hailed Burnham and Armstrong as "heroes of the British Empire".

[3][13] Based on British Army reports, Carrington believed that the Mlimo was a central authority and that "his orders fly about from one end of the country to another with great rapidity".

[14] Historian Terence Ranger writes that "Carrington was almost certainly over-estimating the centralization (of the Mlimo)", and that "Baden-Powell and other reporters tended to run the various shrines in the Matopos into one".

[21] Initially, the company declined to review the matter and Burnham left Rhodesia on 11 July 1896, a week after the Bulawayo Field Force disbanded, to return to the United States and later joined the Klondike Gold Rush.

[17][28] Referring to the court's report, Harley writes, "The finding of the Judge (Watermeyer) was that the native killed was the Chief Priest of the M'limo.

"[29] But historian Hugh Marshall Hole writes, "On their return they were greatly applauded for having achieved their dangerous errand, but some time later, when it was found that Mlimo was still at work, an official inquiry was held, with the result that the whole affair was exposed as an elaborate hoax.

[34] Clarke and Lott both point out that Armstrong was given a gold watch and a letter of appreciation from the board of the British South Africa Company after the verdict was rendered.

In June 1896, Father Prestage, captain van Rooyen, Hans Lee, and Armstrong met at Mangwe with "Several hundred natives assembled to hear the statement made by witnesses that Gotani the man shot by Burnham was the M'limo of the Matabele.

[32][33] Taylor includes in his report an affidavit by "one Jonas, head messenger at the A.N.C's office at Mangwe," who says, "I swore on oath that Jobane was the M'limo, I knew I was lying at the time, I have never received any cattle from Mr. Armstrong but he paid me the five shillings.

"[39] In 1976, Lott said that Ranger relied on "the American scholar Richard Werbner" for his assessments, and that "recent research has confirmed that Burnham killed the rainmaker (Iwosana) of the tribe (Makalanga) who was Hobani or Tshobani (Sindebele), fourth son of Banko's family.

"[28] The Bradfords further remark, "If Jobani was innocent, he was a victim not of Burnham but of white misconception of the M'limo cult and of the difficulty in distinguishing friend from foe that marks irregular warfare.

"[40] While there appears to be no clear consensus about either the identity of man assassinated in the Matopos or his role, historian Howard Hensman states "With the downfall of Wedza and shooting of the M'Limo in a cave in the Matoppos by the American scout, Burnham, the Matabele rebellion may be said to have come to an end.

[46] In addition to the mediums, traditional leaders played a major role in the rebellion, notably Chief Mashayamombe, who led resistance in his chieftaincy in Mhondoro, south of the colonial settlement of Salisbury barracks (now Harare).

[49] The company was able to muster reinforcements from the Cape Colony, and with the war in Matabeleland ending, Gen. Carrington was able to concentrate his forces in the Mashonaland region; the Matabele rebels there retreated into granite kopjes in the Matobo Hills.

[50][page needed] With no central command to oppose him, Carrington was able to bring Maxim guns against each stronghold in turn, until resistance ended.

Until 1924, the region was administered by the British South Africa Company which had conquered it from various chieftains and Lobengula; facts often neglected in 21st century history lessons.

Working with Burnham was a useful experience for Baden-Powell, not only because he had the time of his life commanding reconnaissance missions into enemy territory, but because many of his later Boy Scout ideas took hold here.

As Chief of Scouts under Major Allan Wilson, Burnham became known in Africa as he-who-sees-in-the-dark and he gained fame in the First Matabele War when he survived the British equivalent of Custer's Last Stand, the Shangani Patrol.

[57][58][59] In 1901, Chief Kadungure Mapondera, who had in 1894 proclaimed his independence of company rule,[47] led a rebellion in the Guruve and Mount Darwin areas of Mashonaland Central.

Then, for the first and probably the only time, they gave a European person the Matabele royal salute, "Bayete"[61] though this should be considered alongside the fact that from 1898 onwards Ndebele chiefs were paid agents of the Company administration[citation needed].