Rorke's Drift

 battlefield, religious organisation

Site of Rev. Otto Witts Swedish Lutheran mission. Site of an epic but indecisive battle (22 - 23 January 1879) at the start of the Anglo-Zulu War. A make shift garrison of 139 troops (only about 100 of them able bodied and ready to fight) withstood the onslaught of Cetshwayo-kaMpande's Zulu army, an impi of some 4,000 warriors. At 16h30 about 600 warrirs of the iNdlu-yengwe ibutho attacked from around the west flank of Oskarberg and by 16h50 the defenders were fully engaged by everything Prince Dabulmanzi could throw at them. The desperate struggle continued in mounting fury until nearly midnight. By the first light of dawn, 04h00, the worn out Zulus had disengaged and, for the the being, disappeared. They reappeared at 07h00 on the northeast slope of the Oskarberg and the Brits braced themselves for the final assault, but the exhausted warriors, near starvation, retreated back into Zululand so as to avoid Lord Chelmsford's approaching relief column. The British had lost 17 dead and about 370 Zulus had been killed. At least 100 wounded Zulus who had been left behind on the battle field were sought out and finished off with bullets and bayonet, and two captive Zulus were hanged on a gallows. The Swedish mission was rebuilt shortly after the war, and is still there.
A feature film (1964) depicting the battle was basically a fantasy, completely at odds with the historical accounts. One detail Hollywood did get right was having many of the Zulus wearing the head ring of an older, experienced warrior who had taken a wife. The two main impis were the Dloko, some 2,000 men 41 - 44 years in age, and the uTulwana (1,500 men) who were all 45 or older.