The Naval Brigades, Part 3: Armageddon – The Anglo-Zulu War

The Naval Brigades, Part 3: Armageddon – The Anglo-Zulu War

22 Mar 23
Posted by: LT JIM ROBSON RN
18 minutes, 23 seconds read
Message from the Editor

In this third instalment of his history of the Royal Navy’s Naval Brigades during the 19th century, the author reflects on the legacy of the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879, and demonstrates the lessons learned since the Crimean War. A 20 minute read.

The narrative of the Anglo-Zulu War in Britain was determined by the racial attitudes of 1879, and this has continued to cast a pall over the subject ever since. The source of this portrayal of the war lies in the defeat of the British Army at the Battle of Isandlwana, and the immediate reactions of the British press to that defeat. The Guardian, writing of the defeat at the time, placed great emphasis on the numbers of the Zulu Impi faced by the British at Isandlwana, as if sheer weight of numbers provided the only possible explanation for the defeat of British soldiers by an enemy considered…

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