Rorke's+Drift

Rorke’s Drift was a battle in the Anglo-Zulu war. The British mission station of Rorke’s Drift was under the command of Lieutenant John Chard and Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead. The battle immediately followed the British Army’s defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana. At Rorke's Drift, 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 attacks on Rorke’s Drift came very close to defeating the tiny garrison but were repelled.

In January 1879, the British invaded KwaZulu in South Africa, without the sanction of the home government. The Zulu warriors refused to give up on this battle against the British. When the Zulus attacked, wielding their short spears, they were unable to reach the men behind the barricades and they were blasted by rifle fire at point blank range. Most of those who did mount the breastwork were repulsed by the bayonets of the defenders. Some of the Zulus were armed with rifles, purchased from traders, but they were not trained marksmen and the British soldiers were able to pick them off at long range.

 After a number of unsuccessful attacks, the Zulus set fire to the hospital, burst in and began to spear the patients. Fighting went on all night from the blazing hospital as the Zulus made charge after charge on the barricades. Both sides fought with brave courage. Those who were badly hurt got right back up and continued to fight until they couldn’t fight any longer. When dawn came, the Zulu’s went on taking their wounded with them. They had left at least 351 dead warriors around the barricades, and the British soldiers lost less than 20 men. Along with nine other soldiers, Lieutenants Chard and Bromhead were awarded Victoria Cross for their bravery in the battle. It was a huge victory for the British, after losing 1,300 men at Isandlwana earlier that day, the heavily outnumbered British force at Rorke's Drift was able to defeat the Zulus.