From the 1810s until its destruction by the British in 1879, the Zulu kingdom was the largest in southeastern Africa, occupying most of what is today KwaZulu-Natal province, in South Africa. The Zulu kingdom was rather small and insignificant until King Shaka (ruled c. 1816–1828) conquered many neighboring polities. Shaka is a highly ambiguous figure in popular memory today. For Zulu ethnic nationalists in South Africa, and for many Pan-Africanists throughout the world, he serves as a symbol of African achievement and anti-colonial resistance. For many whites, in contrast, Shaka became a symbol of African barbarism. However, the debates about Shaka do not necessarily follow racial lines: some whites have seen Shaka as a rather heroic figure, while many black South Africans have seen Shaka as an oppressor who indiscriminately slaughtered not only his opponents, but also innocent noncombatants, including women and children.