This volume recounts the battles of Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift,
exploring how they were fought, how they have been remembered, and what
they mean for us today.
The battle of Isandlwana on 22 January 1879, the first major battle in
the Anglo-Zulu war, witnessed the worst single day's loss of British
troops between the battle of Waterloo in 1815 and the opening campaignns
of the First World War in August 1914. Moreover, decisive defeat at the
hands of the
Zulu came as an immense shock to a Victorian public that had become used
to easy victories over less technologically advanced indigenous foes in
an expanding empire.
The successful defence of Rorke's Drift, which immediately followed the
encounter at Isandlwana (and for which 11 Victoria Crosses were
awarded), averted military disaster and went some way to restore wounded
British pride, but the sobering memory of defeat at Isandlwana lingered
for many years,
while the legendary tale of the defence of Rorke's Drift was reawakened
for a new generation in the epic 1964 film Zulu, starring Michael
Caine.
In this new volume in the Great Battles series, Ian F. W. Beckett
tells the story of both battles, investigating not only their immediate
military significance but also providing the first overarching account
of their continuing cultural impact and legacy in the years since 1879,
not just in Britain
but also from the once largely inaccessible and overlooked Zulu
perspective.
