The Battle of Isandlwana on the 22nd of January 1879 was one of the most devastating defeats suffered by Britain at the hands of local inhabitants. Far from cowing the Zulu, the Sihayo skirmish galvanized them into action. He had about five hundred men with him, including a body of cavalry called the Natal Native Horse. Lunging, parrying and thrusting, they disappeared into the masses of Zulu warriors. It was an awesome spectacle, a living black carpet of some 20,000 warriors quietly waiting with scarcely a murmur. The NNH were good fighters, tribesmen who were devoted to Durnford and had an animosity toward the Zulu. Drummer boys gutted like sheep. As Shepstones fragile territories were bordered by Zululand, he formally outlined how regular border incursions by the Zulus were effecting the stability of the region. The British Army's casualties after the sharp but brief engagement was ten killed and eighty-seven wounded, in exchange for nearly sixty times that number of Zulu dead. However, as the battle begins it soon becomes obvious that the main Zulu army of 20,000 are fast approaching over the hills and Wood signals the retreat. What was Anthony Durnfords real role in the Zulu Wars? There had to be a pretext for starting a war, a cloak to cover naked British aggression. What happened to Lord Chelmsford after Isandlwana? [1] The eldest succeeded as 3rd Baron Chelmsford and later became Viceroy of India and first Viscount Chelmsford. The No. The British were in the opening stages of a campaign against the Zulu, the most powerful tribe in South Africa, and so far the search for its main impi (army) had been largely in vain. On the contrary, he was determined to drive the Zulus into a corner and make them fight.. Tents were soon erected, white mushrooms springing up in neat white rows some eight hundred yards along the foot of Isandlwana. . The camp proved free of Zulu, so Chelmsford ordered his troops to snatch a few hours rest. No. The following day, a mounted force under Major Charles Dartnell encountered a strong Zulu force. After centuries of being attacked the British Empire grew to be the greatest the planet has ever seen. He was eventually awarded a VC after intensive lobbying by the press - but not until January 1880, by which time the celebrations had died down. The shocking sight brought Lonsdale to his senses, and a single sweeping glance told him the camp had been taken by the Zulu. Lieutenant Smith-Dorrien gathered up the flotsam and jetsam of the campstragglers, officers servants and the likeand organized them into a party to retrieve ammunition. The stampede was checked by the redcoats of 2nd/24th, advancing with bayonets fixed. Can never understand why more Zulus werent killed at islandwana. Lord Chelmsford is most famous for having lost the battle of Isandlwana where the British Army was wiped out by the Zulus. The British demanded that Cetshwayo disband his army, permit a British resident to live in Ulundi, surrender Sihayos son to British justice and pay a cattle fine of five hundred head. Suppose the Fingos, Swazis, Mashonas, Griquas and others joined the Zulu in an all-out campaign of white extirpation? [3][4][5], Afterwards, the British government, anxious to avoid the Zulus threatening Natal, issued orders for the hasty relief of Chelmsford of his command and for him to be replaced with Sir Garnet Wolseley. [6] However, this order could not be implemented until the arrival of Wolseley, and in the meantime Chelmsford ignored diplomatic overtures from King Cetshwayo[7] and made plans to capture Ulundi, aiming to defeat them in a decisive engagement and salvaging his reputation before Wolseley's arrival. To augment this early-warning screen, an infantry picket line was posed in a curve about 1,500 yards from camp. If I had a good horse I would ride straight to Maritzberg.. Instead, Benjamin Disraeli's government - preoccupied with the Russian threat to Constantinople and Afghanistan - made every effort to avoid a fight. he expected natal to be on a war footing.it wasnt. He had however requested a posting overseas in order to benefit from the cheaper cost of living. The Center, or No. But Dalton, an ex-NCO, came from what was considered the wrong background, and was ignored for almost a year. You are just a bit upset that the British gave them a taste of their own medicine and comprehensively defeated them. Without orders the impi formed the impondo zankomo, the beasts or buffalos horns. The Victorian public was dumbstruck by the news that 'spear-wielding savages' had defeated the well equipped British Army. Chelmsford ordered Ulundi to be burnt, after which he handed over command to Wolseley on 15 July at the fort at St. Paul's and left South Africa by ship for England two days later. What Was the Prelude to the Battle of Isandlwana? Battle of Isandlwana - Wikipedia It was Cetshwayos principal homestead, which made it a prime target. Theres plenty of Keyboard worriers on here!!! With only around 100 British troops protecting the convoy, this is a decisive Zulu victory. No matter how sincerely a historian (including myself) may strive to present all the facts in an objective fashion, there will always be a perspective. Some witnesses claim that Coghill and Melville fled Isandlwana out of cowardice, not to save the colours. He retired in 2016 after being in the city and sometimes even in the stadium as Leicester won the title. Frederic Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford - Wikipedia A painting of Coghill and Melville attempting to save the Queens Colour of the 1st Battalion 24th Regiment. Chelmsford said no doubt poor Col. Durnford had disobeyed orders, in leaving the camp as he did Ld. 3 column was rightly considered the greatest threat. When the British Empire declared war against the Kingdom of Zululand in January 1879, many believed the war was a foregone conclusion. This dangerous mixture of self-confidence and contempt for their foes infected the whole British force. Albert Benckes poem, for example, highlighted the deaths of the soldiers stating. Thesiger was educated at Eton College.[1]. So confident was Chelmsford of an easy victory that he took with him a mere 7,800 troops. Taliking shite mate, the English were by far the largest contingent in what was at the time an English regiment. It was just the way of the World back then so move on and get over it. London has agreed to send seven regiments and two artillery batteries to support Chelmsfords campaign. First, Mehokazulu had been guilty of violating the border, invading Natal with a force of indeterminate size. All that aside any man who fought at both battle on either side were brave men. Early on it was decided the main British objective would be oNdini, which the whites called Ulundi. [1][2], Thesiger returned to England in 1874 as colonel on the staff, commanding the forces at Shorncliffe Army Camp, and was appointed to command a brigade at Aldershot, with the temporary rank of brigadier general, in 1877. The three offensive columns would converge on Ulundi; the two defensive columns would guard against the possibility of a Zulu incursion into Natal and Transvaal while Chelmsford was away. Three crewmen survived, though wounded. The game was indeed up, and the various companies succumbed one by one, red islands swallowed up in a black tidal wave. The way of the world was you generally ran an empire or got conquered by one. Because of the Sihayo homestead skirmish the central or No. Queen Victoria, however, would not see the truth. Pulleine had a screen of cavalry vedettes posted on the Nquthu Plauteau as well as a few on the conical kopje that rose about a mile from camp. There was supposedly a lack of screwdrivers in camp as well. A bullet suddenly zipped past Londale's ear, but he took it in stride. lots of bad clean wounds amongst the fatal hits, apparently the Martini Henry rifles jammed after repeated firing,and as many as 1000 zulus were mortally wounded and died after the battle. Talking shite mate. After years of domination, enslavement and conquest of many innocent African tribes it was the British who soundly defeated the Zulu and ended their independent nation. 3 Popular Myths of Isandlwana - 1879 Zulu War Meanwhile Lord Chelmsford was urgently burying all the evidence that could be used against him. Because it suited those responsible for the disaster to exaggerate the importance of Rorke's Drift in the hope of reducing the impact of Isandlwana. Few remember that it was fought on the same day that the British Army suffered its most humiliating defeat Few, however, remember that it was fought on the same day that the British Army suffered its most humiliating defeat at nearby Isandlwana. 31st December 1878 Sir Henry Frere grants an extension to the ultimatum. Isandlwana: The defeat that stunned Victorian Britain - BBC News To Sir Henry, South Africa was in chaos, a seething cauldron of national, economic, and racial animosities that might boil over at any time into open conflict. Why in the name of all that is holy do we not laager? Even Col. Richard Gyn, the nominal head of No. The loins, stationed behind the chest, became a kind of reserve. . Hall 1978 quotes the London Standard reporting 473 counted dead and another 1000 or more wounded. The clash between British Troops and Zulu Warriors led to a brutal battle that has been retold numerous times, however much of the tale has proven to have more basis in fiction than facts: According to the enduringly popular 1964 movie Zulu, the 24th Regiment who comprised much of the garrison at both Isandlwana and Rorkes Drift was composed largely of Welshmen. On January 21 Chelmsford decided on some preliminary reconnaissance to the east. As they were trying to cross the Buffalo River, however, Coghill lost the Colour in the current. There were lessons to be learned from this campaign against the amXhosa, but unfortunately Chelmsford probably drew the wrong conclusions. 4th July 1879 - The main Zulu force of around 15,000 men attack Lord Chelmsford's army at the Battle of Ulundi. Judging from the reports filtering in, it was clear that at least some Zulu were in the northeast, and it was possible they were planning to fall on Chelmsfords rear. The British would recover from this disaster and eventually triumph over the Zulu, but subsequent victories could never erase the memory of what happened near the wind-swept peaks of Isandlwana. Gwas Inglubi! (Stab the white men! To judge people of 200 years ago against modern values is disingenuous. Chelmsford probably felt the Zulu campaign would be a near carbon copy of the Ninth Cape Frontier war. Chelsmfords own field regulation mandated laagers on campaign, but at Isandlwana the instructions were ignored. Horror piled upon horror in mind-numbing succession. It seemed too incredible that an entire Zulu army had in effect marched around the Britishuntil he got confirmation in the form of the Zulu left horn as it sped toward him in full attack mode. what happened to lord chelmsford after isandlwana. Despite this defeat, he was able to score several victories against the Zulus, culminating in the British victory at the Battle of Ulundi, which ended the war and partly restored his reputation in Britain. 12th January 1879 The central column destroys Sihayos camp. In taking over the Transvaal, Britain also inherited a long-standing, festering border dispute between the Boers and the Zulu. Chelmsford, concerned about the arrival of Wolseley and wanting to redeem himself after the catastrophe at Isandlwana, refuses any such compromise. Back at Ulundi, King Cetshwayo had been both baffled and alarmed by the British ultimatum. So what if there is a mismatch? Isandlwana Mount is about three hundred yards long, its southern end thrusting into the sky. Of the 1200 killed at Isandlwana, over 2/3rds were blacks. From left to right there was Captain Younghusbands C Company, 1/24th; some native units; then Captain Mostyns F Company, 1/24th; Captain Cavayes A Company, 1/24th; and Lieutenant Porteouss E Company, 1/24th. 4th June 1879 Aware that Chelmsford is preparing a second invasion of Zululand, Cetshwayo sends envoys to discuss peace. We are all settlers here! He had to be reported confidentially as hopeless.' Furthermore, Shepstone expressed concern over the increasing amount of firearms falling into Zulu hands, further fuelling the case for war. The British had unknowingly sown the wind; now they were going to reap the whirlwind. History is full of mismatches where either side wins. And the notion that some revolution might topple Cetshwayo from his throne was also to prove illusory. Finally, about five miles from Isandlwana, Lonsdale stumbled upon his own 1st Battalion, 3rd Regiment, NNC. The donga was deep, so deep Durnfords men could even shelter their horses with perfect safety. When they attacked travelling settlers they would kill ever man, woman, child and even babies. Thanks Leonidas I just wish people would stick to military history and not make political points on this forum. Bottom line is the Zulus got soundly beaten in enough battles to lose the war and the losses of Zulus in combat vastly outnumbered those of the British. When the last round was fired the Zulu closed, and it was bayonet and clubbed rifle against stabbing spear.