Battle of Rorke's Drift

Battle of Rorke's Drift
Part of the Anglo-Zulu War
The Defence of Rorke's Drift, by Alphonse de Neuville (1880)
Date 22–23 January 1879 Location Rorke's Drift, Natal Province, South Africa 28°21′29″S 30°32′12″E / 28.35806°S 30.53667°E / -28.35806; 30.53667Coordinates: 28°21′29″S 30°32′12″E / 28.35806°S 30.53667°E / -28.35806; 30.53667 Result British victory
Belligerents
British Empire	Zulu kingdom
Commanders and leaders
Lt. John Chard Lt. Gonville Bromhead	Prince Dabulamanzi kaMpande
Strength
139–141 British Army regulars 11 colonial troops 4 civilians 100 NNH cavalry (briefly engaged, then fled)	3,000–4,000 Zulus: iNdluyengwe ibutho: 500 to 700 men uThulwana, iNdlondo, uDluko amabutho: c. 3,000 men
Casualties and losses
17 killed 15 wounded	351 confirmed killed about 500 wounded

3,000–4,000 Zulus:

The Battle of Rorke's Drift, also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was a battle in the Anglo-Zulu War. The defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers and Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead, immediately followed the British Army's defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana on 22 January 1879, and continued into the following day, 23 January.

Just over 150 British and colonial troops successfully defended the garrison against an intense assault by 3,000 to 4,000 Zulu warriors. The massive but Zulu attacks on Rorke's Drift came very close to defeating the tiny garrison but were ultimately repelled. Eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded to the defenders, along with a number of other decorations and honours.

Rorke's Drift, known as kwaJimu ("Jim's Land") in the Zulu language, was a mission station and the former trading post of James Rorke, an Irish merchant. It was located near a drift, or ford, on the Buffalo (Mzinyathi) River, which at the time formed the border between the British colony of Natal and the Zulu Kingdom. On 9 January 1879, the British No. 3 (Centre) Column, under Lord Chelmsford, arrived and encamped at the drift.

On 11 January, the day after the British ultimatum to the Zulus expired, the column crossed the river and encamped on the Zulu bank. A small force consisting of B Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th (2nd Warwickshire) Regiment of Foot (2nd/24th) under Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead was detailed to garrison the post, which had been turned into a supply depot and hospital under the overall command of Brevet Major Henry Spalding, 104th Foot, a member of Chelmsford's staff.

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