Definitive biography of Lord Chelmsford, the Victorian general who rose to prominence during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. Foreword by celebrated Anglo- Zulu historian and writer Ian Knight. Essential reading for any enthusiast of Anglo-Zulu history. Very successfully fills a gap in this market.
After six battles, the war of 1838 between the Zulu people and the invading Boers and their Port Natal allies reached a stalemate. The Boers occupied half the Zulu kingdom and Dingane, the Zulu monarch, was discredited.
A history of the dispossession of African people in the Cape Colony, from the arrival of Europeans until the end of the Cape Frontier Wars.
Set during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879, this alternate history reimagines the conflict with rich detail and depth. The narrative explores what could have been, offering fresh perspectives on the events and characters involved. Acclaimed for its storytelling, the book is enhanced by a foreword from historian Ian Knight, adding context and credibility to the reinterpreted historical events.
In The Eight Zulu Kings, well-respected and widely published historian John Laband examines the reigns of the eight Zulu kings from 1816 to the present. Starting with King Shaka, the renowned founder of the Zulu kingdom, he charts the lives of the kings Dingane, Mpande, Cetshwayo, Dinuzulu, Solomon and Cyprian, to todays King Goodwill Zwelithini whose role is little more than ceremonial. In the course of this investigation Laband places the Zulu monarchy in the context of African kingship and tracks and analyses the trajectory of the Zulu kings from independent and powerful pre-colonial African rulers to largely powerless traditionalist figures in post-apartheid South Africa.
The ignominious rout of a British force at the Battle of Majuba on 27 February 1881 - and the death of its commander, Major General Sir George Pomeroy-Colley - was the culminating British disaster in the humiliating Transvaal campaign of 1880-1881 in South Africa. For the victorious Boers, who were rebelling against the British annexation of their
"John Laband tackles the questions that swirl about the assassination in 1828 of King Shaka, the celebrated founder of the Zulu kingdom ... What was it about the nature of his kingdom that it produced so many intransigent opponents to his rule, including prominent members of the royal house? Why were Shaka's relations with the British Cape Colony apparently key to his survival? And why did the powerful army he had created acquiesce so tamely in the usurpation of the throne by Dingane, his half-brother and assassin?"--Back cover.
Toward the end of the nineteenth century, the British embarked on a concerted series of campaigns in South Africa. Within three years they waged five wars against African states with the intent of destroying their military might and political independence and unifying southern Africa under imperial control. This work deals with these conflicts.
Long before coal-fuelled ships and machine-tooled firearms, in the age of sail and black powder, the Portuguese were engaged all around the coasts of Africa in capturing trading towns, seizing slaves and searching for mineral riches. They fought their ancient Muslim foes wherever they encountered them, overthrew African kingdoms and resisted Dutch, Omani and Ottoman rivals.
Between 1838 and 1888 the recently formed Zulu kingdom in southeastern Africa was directly challenged by the incursion of Boer pioneers aggressively seeking new lands on which to set up their independent republics, by English-speaking traders and hunters establishing their neighboring colony, and by imperial Britain intervening in Zulu affairs to safeguard Britain's position as the paramount power in southern Africa. As a result, the Zulu fought to resist Boer invasion in 1838 and British invasion in 1879. The internal strains these wars caused to the fabric of Zulu society resulted in civil wars in 1840, 1856, and 1882-1884, and Zululand itself was repeatedly partitioned between the Boers and British. In 1888, the old order in Zululand attempted a final, unsuccessful uprising against recently imposed British rule.This tangled web of invasions, civil wars, and rebellion is complex. The A to Z of the Zulu Wars unravels and elucidates Zulu history during the 50 years between the initial settler threat to the kingdom and its final dismemberment and absorption into the colonial order. A chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, maps, photos, and over 900 cross-referenced dictionary entries that cover the military, politics, society, economics, culture, and key players during the Zulu Wars make this an important reference for everyone from high school students to academics.