Zulu War Timeline

(January 11, 1879 – September 1, 1879)

The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom in southern Africa. Sparked by British imperial ambitions under High Commissioner Sir Bartle Frere, the war saw the Zulu army achieve a stunning victory at Isandlwana before ultimately being defeated by superior British firepower and organization. The war ended with the capture of King Cetshwayo and the dismantling of the independent Zulu Kingdom. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Background and Origins

Shaka Zulu builds the Zulu Kingdom

1825

Shaka Zulu, the first Zulu king, had through war and conquest built the small Zulu tribe into the Zulu Kingdom, which by 1825 encompassed an area of around 11,500 square miles (30,000 km2).

Image source: Shaka

Assassination of Shaka Zulu

1828

In 1828 Shaka was assassinated at Dukuza by one of his inDunas and two of his half-brothers, one of whom, Dingane kaSenzangakhona, succeeded him as king.

Battle of Blood River

Dec 16, 1838

Dingane suffered a crushing defeat on 16 December 1838, when he attacked a group of 470 Voortrekker settlers led by Pretorius at the Battle of Blood River.

Image source: Battle of Blood River

Boers form the Republic of Natalia

1839

In 1839, the Boer Voortrekkers, under Pretorius, formed the Boer Republic of Natalia, south of the Tugela, and west of the British settlement of Port Natal (now Durban).

Image source: Natalia Republic

British annexation of Natalia

1842

In 1842, war broke out between the British and the Boers, resulting in the British annexation of Natalia. Natal was claimed by the British as a colony on 4 May 1843.

Image source: Colony of Natal

Mpande orders purge of dissidents

1843

In 1843, Mpande ordered a purge of perceived dissidents within his kingdom.

Mpande invades Swaziland

1852

Mpande began raiding the surrounding areas, culminating in the invasion of Swaziland in 1852.

Image source: Mpande kaSenzangakhona

Battle of Ndondakusuka

1856

This culminated in 1856 with the Battle of Ndondakusuka, which left Mbuyazi dead.

Image source: Battle of Ndondakusuka

Umtonga flees to Utrecht district

1861

In 1861, Umtonga, another son of Mpande, fled to the Utrecht district, prompting Cetshwayo to assemble an army on the nearby frontier. The Boers complied on the condition that Umtonga's life was spared, and Mpande signed a deed transferring land to the Boers.

Image source: Cetshwayo

Cetshwayo removes boundary beacon

1865

When in 1865 Umtonga again fled from Zululand to Natal, Cetshwayo, fearing that the still living Umtonga might be used to supplant him, removed the beacon and claimed the land ceded by the Swazis to Lydenburg.

Image source: Anglo-Zulu War

Discovery of diamonds near the Vaal River

1867

The discovery of diamonds in 1867 near the Vaal River, some 550 mi (890 km) northeast of Cape Town, ended the isolation of the Boers in the interior and had a significant effect on events.

Keate arbitration attempt fails

1869

Questions were raised as to the validity of documents signed by the Zulus concerning the Utrecht strip; in 1869 the services of the lieutenant-governor of Natal, Robert William Keate, were accepted by both parties as arbitrator, but the attempt to settle disagreements proved unsuccessful.

Cetshwayo becomes absolute ruler of the Zulus

1873

Such was the political background when Cetshwayo became absolute ruler of the Zulus upon his father's death in 1873. One grievance later cited was his apparent breaking of promises made to Theophilus Shepstone at the king's 'coronation' in 1872.

Langalibalele imprisoned on Robben Island

1873

Langalibalele had been falsely accused of rebellion in 1873 and, following a charade of a trial, was found guilty and imprisoned on Robben Island. In 1874 Bishop Colenso took up the cause of Langalibalele and the Hlubi and Ngwe tribes with Lord Carnarvon.

Image source: Langalibalele

Bartle Frere appointed High Commissioner for Southern Africa

1874

In 1874, Sir Bartle Frere was appointed as British High Commissioner for Southern Africa to effect plans, inspired by the British North America Act 1867, for a ruling white minority over a black majority in South Africa.

Image source: Henry Bartle Frere

Carnarvon's federation plan rejected by Boers

1875

Lord Carnarvon, Secretary of State for the Colonies, who had brought about federation in Canada in 1867, thought a similar scheme might work in South Africa. In 1875 he approached the Orange Free State and the Transvaal Republic, but the Boer leaders turned him down.

Road to War

Shepstone annexes the Transvaal Republic

1877

By 1877, Sir Theophilus Shepstone, the British Secretary for Native Affairs in Natal, annexed the Transvaal Republic for Britain using a special warrant. He also persuaded the Boers to give up their independence.

Image source: Theophilus Shepstone

Shepstone meets Zulu leaders at Blood River

Oct 1877

Earlier in October 1877, Shepstone attended a meeting with Zulu leaders near the Blood River to resolve the land dispute between the Zulus and the Boers. His paternal speeches failed to placate them, and they accused him of betraying them.

Shepstone warns Carnarvon about Cetshwayo

Dec 1877

In December 1877, Shepstone wrote to Carnarvon: 'Cetshwayo is the secret hope of every petty independent chief hundreds of miles from him who feels a desire that his colour shall prevail.'

Boundary commission appointed by Henry Bulwer

Feb 1878

In February 1878 a commission was appointed by Henry Bulwer, the lieutenant-governor of Natal since 1875, to report on the boundary question.

Boundary commission reports in favour of the Zulus

Jul 1878

Following a commission inquiry on the border dispute which reported in favour of the Zulu nation in July 1878, Sir Henry Bartle Frere, acting on his own, added an ultimatum to the commission meeting, much to the surprise of the Zulu representatives.

Zulus under Mehlokazulu seize refugee woman

Jul 28, 1878

On 28 July 1878 a party of Zulus under Mehlokazulu, chief son of Sihayo, seized a woman at the kraal where she had taken refuge and carried her back to Zululand, where she was put to death in accordance with Zulu law.

Frere privately reveals intent to make demands on Zulu

Oct 14, 1878

The first intimation to the British government of Frere's intention to make 'demands' on the Zulu was in a private letter to Hicks Beach written on 14 October 1878.

Hicks Beach opposes a Zulu war

Nov 1878

Sir Michael Hicks Beach, who replaced Carnarvon as Secretary of State for the Colonies, wrote in November 1878 that matters in Eastern Europe and India wore so serious an aspect that Britain could not have a Zulu war in addition to other greater troubles.

Image source: Michael Hicks Beach, 1st Earl St Aldwyn

Frere delivers ultimatum at the Ultimatum Tree

Dec 11, 1878

Frere sent a provocative ultimatum on 11 December 1878 to King Cetshwayo, delivered on the banks of the Thukela river at the Ultimatum Tree. It demanded the Zulu army be disbanded, acceptance of a British resident, and that missionaries be allowed to return to their stations.

Image source: Harold Johnson Nature Reserve

Full text of ultimatum reaches London

Jan 2, 1879

The full text of Frere's demands did not reach London until 2 January 1879, after the ultimatum had already been issued.

The War of 1879

Anglo-Zulu War fought

Jan 1879 - Jul 1879

The Anglo-Zulu War, or simply the Zulu War, was fought in present-day South Africa from January to early July 1879 between forces of the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom.

British forces cross into Zululand

Jan 11, 1879

Cetshwayo returned no answer to the demands of Bartle Frere, and in January 1879 a British force under Lieutenant General Frederic Thesiger, 2nd Baron Chelmsford invaded Zululand without authorization by the British Government. On 9 January they moved to Rorke's Drift, and early on 11 January commenced crossing the Buffalo River into Zululand.

Aftermath and Legacy

Disraeli's government ejected from office

1880

Together with famines, diplomatic misadventures, and other unpopular wars overseas (such as the Second Anglo-Afghan War), the Zulu War contributed to the ejection of Benjamin Disraeli's government from office in 1880, after only one term.

Image source: Benjamin Disraeli

British decide to restore Cetshwayo to power

1882

This arrangement led to much bloodshed and disturbance, and in 1882 the British government determined to restore Cetshwayo to power.

Cetshwayo returned to Zululand

1883

Following the conclusion of the Anglo-Zulu War, Bishop Colenso interceded on behalf of Cetshwayo with the British government and succeeded in getting him released from Robben Island and returned to Zululand in 1883.

Usibepu attacks Cetshwayo's kraal at Ulundi

Jul 22, 1883

A collision very soon took place; Usibepu's forces were victorious, and on 22 July 1883, led by a troop of mounted Boer mercenary troops, he made a sudden descent upon Cetshwayo's kraal at Ulundi, destroying it and massacring many of its inhabitants.

Image source: Zibhebhu kaMaphitha

British annex Zululand

1887

The British Empire made the Zulu Kingdom a protectorate and later annexed it in 1887.

Film Zulu depicts Battle of Rorke's Drift

1964

Zulu (1964) depicts the Battle at Rorke's Drift. Colour Sergeant Frank Bourne (1854–1945), last survivor of Rorke's Drift, later became a Lieutenant-Colonel and OBE recipient.

Image source: Zulu (1964 film)

Film Zulu Dawn depicts Battle of Isandlwana

1979

Zulu Dawn (1979) depicts the Battle of Isandlwana.

Image source: Zulu Dawn

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life references Rorke's Drift

1983

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983) includes a chapter depicting a British officer trying to shave during the Battle at Rorke's Drift.

Image source: Monty Python's The Meaning of Life

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life references Rorke's Drift

Key Facts

The war began on January 11, 1879, when British forces invaded Zululand after an ultimatum issued by Sir Bartle Frere that the Zulu king could not realistically accept.
On January 22, 1879, the Zulu army inflicted one of the worst defeats ever suffered by the British Army against an indigenous force at the Battle of Isandlwana, killing over 1,300 British and allied troops.
Later on the same day as Isandlwana, around 150 British soldiers successfully defended the mission station at Rorke's Drift against thousands of Zulu warriors, earning 11 Victoria Crosses—the most awarded for a single action.
Despite early victories, the Zulus were decisively defeated at the Battle of Ulundi (oNdini) on July 4, 1879, which marked the destruction of the Zulu military system.
King Cetshwayo kaMpande was captured in late August 1879, and the Zulu Kingdom was subsequently partitioned into thirteen chiefdoms, leading to decades of civil conflict and eventual British annexation in 1887.

Source

This Zulu War timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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