Crossing the Buffalo: The Zulu War of 1879
Jun 2012 · Hachette UK
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About this ebook
A new and complete history of Zululand, and its destruction at the hands of the British in 1879.
This book is not only a complete history of the Zulus but also an account of the way the British won absolute rule in South Africa.
In the early decades of the nineteenth century, Shaka Zulu established a nation in south-east Africa which was to become the most politically sophisticated and militarily powerful black nation in the entire area. Although the Zulus never had any quarrel with their British neighbours, the rulers of the Cape Colony could not conceive of them as anything but a threat. In 1879, under dubious pretences, the British finally crossed the Buffalo River, and embarked on a bloody war that was to rock the very foundations of the British Empire.
The story is studded with tales of incredible heroism, drama and atrocity on both sides: the Battle of Isandlwana, where the Zulus inflicted on the British the worst defeat a modern army has ever suffered at the hands of men without guns; Rorke's Drift, where a handful of British troops beat off thousands of Zulu warriors and won a record 11 VCs; and Ulundi, where the Zulus were finally crushed in a battle that was to herald some of the most shameful episodes in British Colonial history.
Comprehensive, vast in scope, and filled with original and up-to-date research, this is a book that is set to replace all standard works on the subject.
This book is not only a complete history of the Zulus but also an account of the way the British won absolute rule in South Africa.
In the early decades of the nineteenth century, Shaka Zulu established a nation in south-east Africa which was to become the most politically sophisticated and militarily powerful black nation in the entire area. Although the Zulus never had any quarrel with their British neighbours, the rulers of the Cape Colony could not conceive of them as anything but a threat. In 1879, under dubious pretences, the British finally crossed the Buffalo River, and embarked on a bloody war that was to rock the very foundations of the British Empire.
The story is studded with tales of incredible heroism, drama and atrocity on both sides: the Battle of Isandlwana, where the Zulus inflicted on the British the worst defeat a modern army has ever suffered at the hands of men without guns; Rorke's Drift, where a handful of British troops beat off thousands of Zulu warriors and won a record 11 VCs; and Ulundi, where the Zulus were finally crushed in a battle that was to herald some of the most shameful episodes in British Colonial history.
Comprehensive, vast in scope, and filled with original and up-to-date research, this is a book that is set to replace all standard works on the subject.
Ratings and reviews
5.0
2 reviews
Mike Trotter
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November 5, 2013
Thoroughly enjoyable and gives an honest and thought provoking account of British intent in Africa
Smelokuhle Chonco
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March 19, 2018
Great book
About the author
Having spent many years as a police superintendent, Dr Adrian Greaves now devotes all his time to the study of the Anglo-Zulu Wars. He is the founder/editor of the Journal of the Anglo-Zulu War Historical Society, and gives regular battlefield tours of Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift. This is his third, and most complete book on the subject.
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