Last Saturday saw the commemoration of the Battle of Isandhlwana in the town of Nquthu in KwaZulu-Natal. Isandhlwana is the name of the hill where the historic battle between the invading British and the Zulu army took place – a battle that to date remains the single greatest defeat of the British Army at the hands of a native army.
On the 22nd January 1878 some 20 000 Zulu warriors attacked a troop of British soldiers, resulting in the defeat of the first British invasion of Zululand. The battle is significant because it proved the might of the Zulus against the military weapons of the British – the British troops were armed with the state-of-the-art rifles and mountain guns, as well as a rocket battery, with the Zulus mostly using traditional assegais and shields.
Saturday’s commemoration included a reenactment of the great battle, and was attended by thousands of people, including the Amakhosi and King Goodwill Zwelithini .
Click here to watch a short clip on the day’s events.
Image courtesy of wikipedia.org