Osprey Essential Histories 56 : The Zulu War 1879

The Zulu War of 1879 remains one of the best known British colonial wars and included two battles whose names reverberate through history. At Isandlwana the Zulus inflicted a crushing defeat on the British, the following day the gallant British defence at Rorke's Drift re-established British prestige. Yet there was more to the war than these two battles, what followed was six months of brutal fighting, until the Zulu kingdom was broken up, its king imprisoned and the whole structure of the Zulu state destroyed. Years of strife followed, until the British finally annexed Zululand as a colonial possession. Text by Ian Knight.

Contents

• Introduction
• Chronology
• Background to War : The Zulu Kingdom
• Warring sides
• Outbreak : British Invasion Plans
• The Fighting : The January Battles
• Portrait of a Soldier : Fighting for the Empire
• The World around War : Reaction to the War
• Portrait of a Civilian : Zulu attitudes towards the War
• How the War Ended : Renewed Offensives
• Conclusion and Consequences : Pacifying Zululand
• Further Reading
• Index