Battle of Ulundi, 4th July 1879
The final battle in the Zulu war of 1879 Ulundi was the decisive action that finally broke the military power of the Zulus. Facing the estimated 20,000 Zulus were 4,166 British troops, 958 natives and 2 gatling machine guns. Lord Chelmsford's flying column crossed the White Mfolozi river and formed up in a large square formation outside the Zulu chief King Cetshwayo's homestead. The Zulus made a desperate and valiant last stand but it was hopeless and within half an hour their attacks had failed and British lancers chased the stragglers from the field. About 1500 Zulus lay dead with the same number wounded, Cetshwayo was captured on the 8th August 1879 ending the Zulu War.
See Also:
Zulu Wars Index
Zulu (Warrior S.)
, Ian Knight.,
A nice book up to the normal osprey standard looking at the training, organisation and skills of the Zulu warriors. Often regarded as primative savages by the uninformed this book helps give a realistic picture of what was a highly organised army.
Knight, Ian, The Zulu War 1879: Twilight of a Warrior Nation A great book, very thick for an osprey book at nearly 100 pages, packed with great illustrations ,lots of photographs from the period, and 3 D battle maps. The book also includes orders of battle for the two main armies and covers the whole campaign. Written by Ian Knight one of the leading experts on the war and also includes some advice on wargaming the campaign.
How to cite this article:
Dugdale-Pointon, TDP. (23 January 2001), Battle of Ulundi, 4th July 1879, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_ulundi.html
