The National Army Museum Book of the Zulu War - Tapa dura

The beginning of the war with the Zulus, a fiercely independent and extremely brave warrior race, came as a shock to the Empire when the might of the British army was defeated at Isandlwana in 1879 - 1300 British troops and their African allies were killed. In the aftermath, Zulu reserves mounted a raid on a British border post at Rorke's Drift, which was held by just 145 men. After ten hours of ferocious fighting the Zulus were driven away. Eleven VCs were awarded after the action. But eventually superior weaponry carried the day for the British (though not before the exiled French prince, Louis Napoleon, was killed in a skirmish). Invading Zululand, the British took the capital of Ulundi when 5,000 British defeated 20,000 Zulus. King Cetewayo was captured and the war was over. In The National Army Museum Book of the Zulu Wars , Ian Knight draws on letters and dispatches to bring to life this extraordinary war - one which saw great acts of bravery and courage on both sides.

Ian Knight is a leading authority on the Anglo-Zulu War and is the author of over thirty specialist publications on the subject as well as being involved in a number of television documentaries. He is frequently asked to conduct tours of the battlefield of Isandlwana.