First published in 1880, just a year after the titular conflict took place, this account by Frances Colenso (1849–87) of the 1879 war between British settlers and the Zulu population in South Africa is remarkable in its defence of the Zulu people, a very unusual view for a British writer at this time. Colenso was the daughter of controversial bible scholar John William Colenso, the first Anglican bishop of Natal. This book was intended to support her father's criticism of British policy, but while she credits her father's influence and opinions in shaping her book, Colenso is careful to state that the work is her own. Beginning with the causes of the conflict, which she identifies as an unjust and barbaric British invasion, Colenso describes the Zulu war chronologically to its conclusion. The military details of the war were provided by Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Durnford, a close friend of Colenso's.
Gillings locates on maps and illustrates with both historical and modern photographs, battlefields of the 1879 war, many of them in addition to those officially recognized and developed for tourists.
The tradition of Irish soldiers in the British Army can be traced back many hundreds of years. Henry V at Agincourt faced a superior French army with his small band of brothers that included in their
Filled with colorful characters, dramatic battles like Isandhlwana and Rorke's Drift, and an inexorable narrative momentum, this unsurpassed history details the sixty-year existence of the world's mi
The Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 has a character that inspires and fascinates readers and increasing numbers of visitors to South Africa. The two volume biographical dictionary of the participants is a uniq
Osprey's study of the battle of Isandlwana, which was fought on 22 January 1879 and was the greatest defeat suffered by the British Army during the Zulu War (1879). A Zulu army of 24,000 warriors had
Describes what life was like for a Zulu warrior in times of peace and war, discussing the weapons and training they received and their 1879 war with the British.
Mention of the Zulu War of 1879 inevitably conjures up images of the redcoats at Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift; it is often forgotten that the limited number of Imperial troops available led to the rai
The War of Mlanjeni was the longest conflict in South African history until the second Anglo-Boer War. The loss of life was substantially heavier than that of the Zulu War of 1879 and the political af
'A very remarkable people, the Zulu', the British Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, said on hearing of a fresh disaster in the war of 1879, 'They defeat our generals; they convert our bishops; they h
The breech-loading, single-shot .458in Martini-Henry rifle has become a symbol of both the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 and the numerous battles in Egypt and the Sudan in 1884-85, but continued to be used b
