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Anglo-Zulu War of 1879

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  Quote Chookie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Anglo-Zulu War of 1879
    Posted: 15-Sep-2011 at 17:50

I was a bit ambivalent about where to put this, so it's here (mods can move it if required).

The Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 was for the most part orchestrated by four men, none of whom were Zulu. These men were, in southern Africa, Sir Theophilus Shepstone, Sir Bartle Frere and Lieutenat-General Sir Frederic Thesiger (he became Lord Chelmsford on his fathers death) the other man, in England, was the Colonial Secretary, Lord Carnarvon. Although these men were the principal architects, the British government as a whole must carry it's share of the blame – it should have exercised far more control over it's representatives abroad.

Shepstone was an “old Africa hand” who had been appointed as” Diplomatic Agent to the Native Tribes” in 1845. in 1851 this was upgraded to Secretary for Native Affairs. In 1877 he was responsible for the annexation of the Transvaal. "Nothing but annexation," wrote Sir Theophilus to the Colonial Office, "will or can save the state, and nothing else can save South Africa from the direst consequences. All the thinking and intelligent people know this, and will be thankful to be delivered from the thraldom of petty factions by which they are perpetually kept in a state of excitement and unrest because the government and everything connected with it is a thorough sham" ( Life of Sir Bartle Frere, ch. 18). He then moved on to the annexation of Zululand.

In 1877, Sir Bartle Frere was appointed to the position of Governor of the Cape and High Commissioner of Native Affairs for South Africa. When he arrived he was immeditaely swamped with accounts of Cetshwayo's cruelty to his own people (especially converts to Christianity). These accounts were mostly unfounded and had ben propogated by missionaries and Natal newspapers in the hope of provoking a British invasion of Zululand.

Frere had extensive experience in India, but he was totally out of his depth in Africa. In a communication to Shepstone in April 1877, he said this;- “To maintain a standing army of 40,000 unmarried young men, would task the resources of a country as rich & populous & industrious as Belgium, & if Cetwayo can, manage it, without a constant succession of conquests, he is fit to be War Minister to any great military power in Europe”. This might have been true, if the Zulu army had been a standing army. It wasn't.

The Zulu army was reorganised by Shaka after he seized power in 1816. Before he came to be King, tribal conflicts were, for the most part ritualised with few casualties caused by the light throwing spears used. Shaka introduced the short, heavy-bladed thrusting spear known as the assegai pr iklwa, he also introduced the basic tactic used by all Zulu armies – the horns of the buffalo (izimpondo zankomo). In this, an enemy would be pinned by a frontal attack, then flanked and encircled.

The army was known as an Impi, made up of several amabutho which were age-grade regiments. Zulu boys from the age of fourteen lived in an amakhanda (military kraal) where they herded cattle, tended crops and received mandatory military training. This lasted for two or three years, after which they were formed into their amabutho, where they spent a further eight months before dispersing to their home areas, where for three months of the year they served as both police and enforcers. In essence, they were “a strong, well-regulated militia”. A standing army they were not.

In contrast to Shaka, Cetshwayo, while he bought guns from anywhere and everywhere didn't give as much attention to the impis as they thought he should (no change there), both British and Boers supplied him with a variety of rifles of varying accuracy, range and calibre, but by far the greatest contribution came from the dead at Isadlhwana....

Cetshwayo was bending over backwards to avoid a war he didn't want and knew he couldn't win. His efforts were in totally in vain. I don't propose to go into detail on his efforts as Bartle Frere and Chelmsford were intent on having their war. The process had been started by Shepstone before he was recalled in 1878 for alienating the Boers by his arrogant and high-handed treatment of them and their concerns.

The male regiments, due to natural wastage (disease and accident), warfare and varying birth-rates (which could be due to almost anything), were not of a uniform size. One regiment which fought in the Zulu centre at Isandlhwana, (the iNgobamakhosi) had a strenght of 6,000 men, the other two regiments of the centre were far smaller – the uMonambi mustered 2,000 and the uVe (which was the smallest regiment in the army) fielded only 1,000.

The Political Landscape – Britain

When Frere arrived in South Africa, he immediately came under the influence of Shepstone, who had over a period of time, convinced himself that the natives needed to be "civilised" and that that form of civilisation should be administered by Britain.

Lord Carnarvon (another of the dogs of war), who was Colonial Secretary at when both Frere and Chelmsford were appointed, resigned from the Cabinet in February 1878 as a protest against the British manouvres regarding the "Eastern Question" (basically Imperial Russia vs the Ottoman Empire - Russia was winning). Carnarvon had been very interested in the "African problem", but not to the extent of starting wars.

He was replaced by Sir Michael Hicks Beach. Hicks Beach knew very little about Africa and even less about Carnarvons machinations. Additionally, he was faced with the second Anglo-Afghan war and other problems arising from the Treaty of San Stefano. In essence where Carnarvon was an acvtive player, Hicks Beach was otherwise engaged...

Hicks Beach wrote, in a letter to Frere "The Government are not prepared to comply with the request for more troops. The fact is, that matters in Eastern Europe & India, as you have by this time heard, wear so serious an aspect that we cannot now have a Zulu war in addition to other greater and too possible troubles...."

As an aside here, the “Scarmble for Africa” is normally thought to begin in 1880's. I disagree for a variety of reasons. Chief among them the fact that European powers were already carving up the Continent – albeit in the North. I suggest that the starting point for the scramble was either the annexation of Griqualand West in 1871 (the Kimberley diamond fields were discovered there in 1867) or the beginning of the Voortrekker movement in 1848. My personal opinion involves diamonds.


The Political Landscape – South Africa

The principal players here were Chelmsford, Frere and, before he was releived, Shepstone. Sir Garnet Wolseley, who for a short time, was Lieutenant-Governor of Natal (1875-1876) was told by Shepstone that “it would take only a thousand British soldiers to win over Zululand because Cetshwayo was a murderous tyrant whom his subjects could not wait to see the back of”. As Shepstone was the acknowledged expert on matters African, this was accepted as fact. In actuality, it was a total fabrication. Cetshwayo wasn't a tyrant, he was a constitutional monarch as the Council of Chiefs (iziKhulu) could and ocassionally did over-rule his decisions.

Unlike how he was portrayed in official reports, Cetshwayo's actions from his “coronation” by Shepstone in 1873, right up until the invasion of Zululand, were aimed at keeping the peace. Frere, on the other hand, was uninterested in peace. In 1876, there had been a border “incursion” in which the Zulus had crossed the border to retrieve some criminals. Frere and his cronies totally ingored this event. Two years later things were different – three minor unrelated events were blown up into a “clear and present danger” - which they weren't. On one ocassion a party of Zulu in pursuit of an erring wife or two crossed into Natal, captured the runaways and took them back to face execution. The second incident involved a surveyor from the colonial engineer's office, he and a assitant were caught by Zulus whilst inspecting a ford near Fort Buckingham, they were questioned for a couple of hours by the Zulus then turned loose minus the contents of their pockets. The surveyor didn't bother reporting it as he thought it meaningless (the assistant didn't). The third incident occurred October when a quarrel between two groups of Swazis (one living in Natal and one in Zululand) turned into a minor skirmish in Natal.

Frere, when referring to these events described them as follows “not accidents, but acts....to keep up the terror [Cetshwayo] believed he had inspired, and to try how far he might go”.

At the same time Cetshwayo was telling Sir Henry Bulwer (at the time Lieutenant Governor of Natal) “I hear of troops arriving in Natal, that they are coming to attack the Zulus, and to seize me; in what have I done wrong that I should be seized like an “Umtakata” (wrongdoer), the English are my fathers, I do not wish to quarrel with them, but live as I have always done, at peace with them”.

For money you did what guns could not do.........
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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15-Sep-2011 at 19:14
Like most colonial wars it seems the Brits wanted the natural resources of the disputed terrain. Despite their mistreatment, however, the Zulus continue to respect the courage of their British foes. Ceteshwayo's great-grandson is an honorary member of the Royal Welsh regiment and visited Britain to present the recruits with leeks in 2008
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  Quote Bulldog69 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Sep-2011 at 08:19
Pray tell what natural resources there are in Zululand?

I would suggest that if you were a settler in Natal in 1879, the shadow of the Zulu empire (note the word Empire - most of the territory the Zulus claimed as Zululand had been won at assegai point only a few years earlier) would loom pretty large over your life. The Zulus were an aggressively expansionist regime and were not the 'goodies' that modern history paints them. The fact that the British had so many willing African allies (allies who outnumbered the British redcoats) when they invaded Zululand speaks volumes.

The simple fact is that Natal / South Africa could not have progressed so long as the Zulus sat next door, cheerfully raiding hither and thither, pillaging, stealing cattle and snatching slaves whenever they wished. They were an anachronism in what was by then becoming the modern world.

Would any european country of the late nineteenth century have tolerated the occasional raping, pillaging and bloodshed visited upon them by a horde of (eg) vikings living nearby?


Edited by Bulldog69 - 16-Sep-2011 at 08:36
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  Quote Bulldog69 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Sep-2011 at 08:25
Some info on the run up to the Zulu War:

Various internal incidents began to catch the attention of the British - missionaries were expelled and some of those Zulus who had converted to Christianity were murdered. In 1876, the inDlondo and uDloko impis both earned the right to marry after a punitive raid on a subject village – alas, the women selected were either young, or already married and many fled – only to be brought back an executed. This incident caused the British to send a warning to Cetshwayo. Another warning was issued in 1878, after another two impis (the uThulwana and the younger InGobamakhosi) fought a savage battle over women, leaving around sixty dead, including some of the women they were fighting over.

 

Perhaps Saul David, in his book ‘Zulu’ puts it best: “most historians have accused Frere of provoking an iniquitous and unnecessary war… though the Natal settlers would not have described the conflict as either”.

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  Quote Centrix Vigilis Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Sep-2011 at 08:37
Originally posted by Bulldog69

Pray tell what natural resources there are in Zululand?

I would suggest that if you were a settler in Natal in 1879, the shadow of the Zulu empire (note the word Empire - most of the territory the Zulus claimed as Zululand had been won at assegai point only a few years earlier) would loom pretty large over your life. The Zulus were an aggressively expansionist regime and were not the 'goodies' that modern history paints them. The fact that the British had so many willing African allies (allies who outnumbered the British redcoats) speaks volumes.

The simple fact is that Natal / South Africa could not have progressed so long as the Zulus sat next door, cheerfully raiding hither and thither, pillaging, stealing cattle and snatching slaves whenever they wished. They were an anachronism in what was by then becoming the modern world.

Would any european country of the late nineteenth century have tolerated (eg) the occasional raping, pillaging and bloodshed visited upon them by the vikings living next door?
 
 
1. Interesting analogy can also thus be made reference the Great Comanche Nation (tho my ghostly Yavapai-Comanche cousins will no doubt be miffed at me for this example) here substituted for the Zulu.
 
By the time they had been whupped in the Dura and forced onto the reservation...they held a similar claim to fame and had for nearly 150 years. Yet the American government was castigated then and to a degree now... for the elimination of their threat and subjugation. Interesting he thinks.Wink
 
2. Nope and thus the US government acted.
 
Pardon the semi-hijack of the thread....and it is just fine here. Carry on.


Edited by Centrix Vigilis - 16-Sep-2011 at 08:37
"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"

S. T. Friedman


Pilger's law: 'If it's been officially denied, then it's probably true'

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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16-Sep-2011 at 19:18
Originally posted by Bulldog69

Pray tell what natural resources there are in Zululand?
I would suggest that if you were a settler in Natal in 1879, the shadow of the Zulu empire (note the word Empire - most of the territory the Zulus claimed as Zululand had been won at assegai point only a few years earlier) would loom pretty large over your life. The Zulus were an aggressively expansionist regime and were not the 'goodies' that modern history paints them. The fact that the British had so many willing African allies (allies who outnumbered the British redcoats) when they invaded Zululand speaks volumes. The simple fact is that Natal / South Africa could not have progressed so long as the Zulus sat next door, cheerfully raiding hither and thither, pillaging, stealing cattle and snatching slaves whenever they wished. They were an anachronism in what was by then becoming the modern world.Would any european country of the late nineteenth century have tolerated the occasional raping, pillaging and bloodshed visited upon them by a horde of (eg) vikings living nearby?

Gold and diamonds? The Zulu may not have been the "goodies" but Cetewayo didn't want a war with Britain, despite supporting rebellions by neighboring tribes. His main aim was to safeguard Zulu independence and prevent subjugation by the whites

Edited by Nick1986 - 16-Sep-2011 at 19:18
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  Quote Bulldog69 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2011 at 00:15
Gold and diamonds? I think your geography of South Africa is letting you down.
 
The significant gold and diamond deposits in South Africa are no where near Zululand - please do not do the old knee jerk reaction of thinking every colonial war was about stealing someone else's gold. Its a bit like the modern trend of thinking saying every war is 'about oil' makes you clever and insightful.
The diamonds of South Africa are overwhelmingly found in the Kimberley area - a quick glance at a map will make you aware of your mistake. South Africa's gold  is overwhelmingly in the Transvaal and had not been discovered in 1879. Again, the Transvaal is not in Zululand.

Cetshwayo certainly wanted to avoid war with Great Britain - for the simple reason that he knew he would lose it. But how were the Zulus, a society based entirely on perpetual expansion, continual subjegating those around it, and living off stealing other peoples' cattle and women, meant to survive in the 'modern' era? The only way the Zulus would have existed happily in the midst of european societies was to change their way of life enormously. Alas, this was never going to happen.
The Twsana of modern day Botswana are a good example of how African tribes were able to co-exist with the new reality of Colonial Africa. Unlike the Zulus, the Twsana embraced trade with the British and did not feel the need to launch murderous raids on their neighbours. When the Twsana came under increasing pressure from the Boers, they appealed for (and received) a British Protectorate.  


Edited by Bulldog69 - 17-Sep-2011 at 00:16
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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17-Sep-2011 at 19:44
I was under the impression South Africa had many diamond mines. Were the Brits aware there were no diamonds in Zululand? I learned nothing in my school geography classes, no thanks to my useless teacher Mrs Wickens who was better-suited to modelling plus-size clothing.

Edited by Nick1986 - 17-Sep-2011 at 19:44
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  Quote Bulldog69 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-Sep-2011 at 10:25
I have never read anything that indicated the British had any reason to believe there were diamond deposits there, no.
She sounds like a typically incompetent teacher - not sure why that profession seems to attract so many morons these days.
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  Quote Kevinmeath Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11-Oct-2011 at 14:54
I find the Anglo-Zulu war fascinating, especially the Zulu victory at Isandlwana and defeat at Rorkes drift, both illustrated that soldiers of any army can be over confident.
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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11-Oct-2011 at 19:26

Did the British and Zulus have the same singing match depicted in the film?
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  Quote Chookie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12-Oct-2011 at 16:59
Sorry Nick, they didn't. Basically because the 2/24th Warwickshire Regiment wasn't Welsh at the time - ity didn't become Welsh until the Caldwell-Childers reforms of 1881. There were less than 20 Welshmen present.......

S, No "Men of Harlech" singalong........
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  Quote Bulldog69 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 14-Oct-2011 at 06:36
Not just the 'sing-off' was made up - virtually the whole film is fictional (though a damn good film).

It was not even filmed in the correct location, but rather up in the Drakensbergs, and the layout of the mission station is wrong. The Zulus certainly never 'saluted fellow braves' at the end - they scarpered as Lord Chelmsford's force came to relieve the defenders.
 
It is worth noting that Cy Endfield (the co-writer / director / producer) was regarded as a 'communist' by the CIA and was not allowed to work in Hollywood at the time.
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  Quote Kevinmeath Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28-Oct-2011 at 17:34
Originally posted by Chookie

Sorry Nick, they didn't. Basically because the 2/24th Warwickshire Regiment wasn't Welsh at the time - ity didn't become Welsh until the Caldwell-Childers reforms of 1881. There were less than 20 Welshmen present.......

S, No "Men of Harlech" singalong........
The regiment had been based in Brecon since 1874 and was in the process of becoming 'Welsh'.
 
The 2nd battalion was a young battalion and had a high proportion of young soldiers in it , even the 1st battalion recieved 50-60 men a year from Brecon.
 
So the battalion (especially the 2nd) was more Welsh than most regiments but could not really be described as 'Welsh' in todays concept.
 
Also the demographics of South Wales (its new recruitment ground) were such that many local people were new immigrants from all over Greater Britain and even the world-- immigration into South Wales at that time was huge.
 
For instance John Williams VC (real name Fielding) was born in Cwmbran (so 'Welsh') to Irish parents, new immigrants to the coalfield.
 
Best description is that they were 'British' (including Ireland at that time) with a stong Welsh flavour.
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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05-Dec-2011 at 19:01
The historical officers and men of the 24th were very different from their on-screen portrayals. Pvt Hook's depiction as a rogue deeply offended his daughters. In reality he was a model soldier who didn't drink alcohol
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  Quote Michael Mckean Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 12-Feb-2012 at 08:30

I personally find this war fascinating. Zulu is probably one of if not my favourite film, Zulu Dawn was ok but definitely could not live up to the original. Despite its greatness, Zulu contains many historical innacuracies:

  • The British troops wore tea-tan stained helmets. not pure white and with no badge.
  • Hooky was displayed as a villain as the film potentially needed one to make things more interesting. He was actually one of the greats at Rorkes Drift
  • The reverend Witt was never drunk.
  • Colour segeant Bourne was actually only 24 years old.
  • Bromhead was actually partially deaf
  • There was no dispute between the two commanders(bromhead and chard)
  • Ardendorff stance is debated, it is not known as to whether he actually fought.
  • Some of the wrong rifles are used.
  • There was no heroic singing
  • The 24th at the time was not a Welsh regiment

Overall, the British wiped out a kingdom. The defeat at Isandlwana was down to poor leadership and tactics as Chelmsford made the fatal mistake of splitting his forces, sending one half deep into Zulu territory. The Brits may have underestimated the Zulus at first, huge numbers and determination proved that natives could outmaneuver modern equipped armies.

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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31-May-2012 at 19:16
Fula, what do you know about the Zulu army?
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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 30-Jun-2012 at 19:27
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  Quote lirelou Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-Jul-2012 at 01:40
My hat's off to Birddog and CV. How refreshing to hear a viewpoint on a colonial war which doesn't parrot the sophomoric swill that  "they were after to natives gold and diamonds" BS. As for the British Army underestimating their enemies, that too must be approached with care. Colonial campaigns required the same care of marshalling and logistical planning that any ordinary overseas campaign would. The newspapers at home might easily have written off the opposition as "fuzzy-wuzzies' or whatever, but it is unlikely that military planners did. Military medicine was not tremendously advanced at the time, and as many troops (if not more) could be expected to die from the various rigors of the campaign as in battle.  
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  Quote Nick1986 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-Jul-2012 at 19:29
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