Battle of Rorke's Drift
22nd January 1879

Battle of Rorke

Battle of Rorke's Drift, 22nd January 1879

On January 22nd 1879, during the Zulu War, the small British field hospital and supply depot at Rorkes Drift in Natal was the site of one of the most heroic military defences of all time. Manned by 140 troops of the 24th Regiment, led by Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers, the camp was attacke by a well-trained and well-equipped Zulu army of 4000 men, heartened by the great Zulu victory over the British forces at Isandhlwana earlier on the same day. The battle began in mid afternoon, when British remnants of the defeat at Isandhlwana struggled into the camp. Anticipating trouble, Chard set his small force to guard the perimeter fence but, when the Zulu attack began, the Zulus came faster than the British could shoot and the camp was soon overcome.

The thatched roof of the hospital was fired by Zulu spears wrapped in burning grass and even some of the sick and the dying were dragged from their beds and pressed into the desperate hand-to-hand fighting. Eventually, Chard gave the order to withdraw from the perimeter and to take position in a smaller compound, protected by a hastily assembled barricade of boxes and it was from behind this barricade that the garrison fought for their lives throughout the night. After twelve hours of battle, the camp was destroyed, the hospital had burned to the ground, seventeen British lay dead and ten were wounded. However, the Zulus had been repulsed and over 400 of their men killed. The Battle of Rorkes Drift is one of the greatest examples of bravery and heroism in British military history. Nine men were awarded Distinguished Conduct Medals, and eleven, the most ever given for a single battle, received the highest military honour of all, the Victoria Cross.

OUR RECOMMENDATION FOR THIS BATTLE

Stand Firm the 24th (Rorkes Drift) by Chris Collingwood.

DHM1494. Stand Firm the 24th (Rorkes Drift) by Chris Collingwood.

During the battle for Rorkes Drift, 24th Warwickshires man the improvised ramparts of the inner barricade as the Zulu attack reaches its height.

Signed limited edition of 1150 prints.

Image size 25 inches x 15 inches (64cm x 38cm)

Price : £90.00

Battle of Rorke's Drift Art Prints

Natal province January 22nd 1879. Rorkes Drift by Keith Rocco.Click For DetailsAX0021
Sergeant at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P)Click For DetailsCCP0004
CCP5. Zulu Warrior at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood Zulu Warrior at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P)Click For DetailsCCP0005
CCP6. Soldier, 24th of Foot at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood Soldier, 24th of Foot at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P)Click For DetailsCCP0006
CCP0035. Helping Hand, Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. Helping Hand, Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood.Click For DetailsCCP0035
CCP36. To the Meallie Bags, Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. To the Meallie Bags, Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P)Click For DetailsCCP0036
CCP37. Tending the Wounded at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood Tending the Wounded at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P)Click For DetailsCCP0037
CCP55. Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P)Click For DetailsCCP0055
CCP0056. Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood.Click For DetailsCCP0056
Pencil detail of men of the 24th of Foot, or 2nd Warwickshire regiment (later in 1881 to become the South Wales Borderers) standing in preparation to repel the massed Zulus attempting to smash through the mealie bag entrenchment. At the conclusion of the battle, hundreds of Zulus lay dead. According to official figures the British lost 25 men, 11 Victoria crosses were awarded. Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood.Click For DetailsCCP0057
The story of historys most famous rearguard action, The story of the extraordinary events of January 22nd 1879 has never lost any of its fascination. The defence of Rorkes Drift by a handful of British redcoat soldiers provides history with a tale of incredible courage and valour, qualities displayed by the brave men of both sides who fought to the death on that momentous day. While Britain cheered its heroes, she also plotted a merciless revenge on the Zulu nation. Featuring extensive re-enactment action footage and dramatised eye-witness accounts of the battle, this DVD tells the story of the British soldiers who successfully defended Rorkes Drift against more than 4000 Zulu warriors. It also includes period images and photographs, computer graphics and expert comment from Ian Knight, one of the worlds leading authorities on the Zulu Wars. Narrated by Hu Pryce Rorkes Drift 1879 - Against All OddsClick For DetailsCROM1071
By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night.Defence of Rorkes Drift by Alphonse De Neuville.Click For DetailsDHM0022
By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night.The Defense of Rorkes Drift by Alphonse De Neuville.Click For DetailsDHM0202
Lt. John Rouse Merriot Chard, Royal Engineers.At about 3.30 on the afternoon of 22nd January 1879, Lieutenant John Rouse Merriot Chard, Royal Engineers, was supervising repairs on the military pont on the Mzinyathi river, at the border crossing at Rorkes Drift, when survivors brought news that the advanced British camp at Isandhlwana had been over-run by the Zulus, and that a wing of the Zulu army was on its way to attack Rorkes Drift. Chard ordered Driver Robson to pack up the wagon and return to the mission station, where a stockpile of supplies was under the guard of B Company, 2/24th Regiment. Chard, in consultation with his fellow officers, made the historic decision to make a stand at Rorkes Drift. Eve of Distinction by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0370
Corporal Allen and Corporal Lyons, B. Company 2nd Battalion 24th Foot Rorkes Drift Back Wall, 6pm January 22nd 1879. After the initial Zulu assault on the back wall of the post failed at about 4.30pm, a fire-fight broke out between Zulu snipers posted on the terraces of the Shiyane (Oskarsberg) Hill and the defenders posted behind the barricade of wagons and mealie-bags. This section of the wall as commanded by Sergeant Henry Gallagher, of B Company. At about 6 pm, Corporal Lyons was leaning over the barricade to aim when he was hit in the neck by a bullet which paralysed him, as his friend, Corporal Allen, bent to help him, Allen too was shot through the arm. In the foreground Corporal Attwood of the Army Service Corps distributes ammunition. The wall was abandoned shortly after and the British retired to the small are in front of the storehouse. Allen was later awarded the VC, and Attwood the DCM. He was born at Churcham, Gloucestershire, and served for five years in the Monmouthshire Militia before joining the 24th Regiment. He served through the Kaffir War 1877-8 before his bravery at Rorkes Drift for which he was presented with the Victoria Cross by Lord Wolseley on August 3rd 1879. He later served in the 1st Volunteers Battalion Royal Fusiliers. Wounded by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0371
Depicting Private Hook and Private Williams, B Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Foot inside the burning hospital at Rorkes Drift, 7pm January 1879. At about 6 pm the Zulus first forced their way into the hospital building where some thirty patients were defended by a handful of able-bodied men. A running fight ensued as the patients were evacuated from room to room, a desperate struggle made all the more terrible when the Zulus set fire to the thatched roof. Here Private Alfred Henry Hook holds Zulus of the uThulwana regiment at bay whilst Private John Williams helps a patient escape, Hook received a head wound when a spear struck off his helmet.Pinned Like Rats in a Hole by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0372
Acting Assistant Commissary J.L. Dalton commissariat and transport department and colour sergeant F. Bourne, during the battle at the front wall about 6pm at Rorkes Drift. Frank Bourne was born on the 27th April 1854 in Balcombe Sussex, when Bourne was 18 he joined the 24th Regiment in 1872, being promoted to Corporal in 1875 and Sergeant in 1878. Sergeant Bourne was promoted to Colour Sergeant soon after the rgeiment arrived in Natal. Colour Sgt bourne was part of B company whose job was to guard the hospital at Rorkes Drift. Colour Sgt Bourne played a major role in keeping the defending troops effective. Colour Sgt Bourne was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his role in the defence, and it is surprising that he was not awarded a Victoria Cross as 11 were awarded for the defence. Col Sgt Bourne retired form the army in 1907, but joined again for WW1, serving in Dublin. He was the last survivor of Rorkes Drift, passing away at the age of 91 on the 8th May 1945 by coincidence being VE day.Pot That Fellow by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0373
Lt Gonville Bromhead stands over Private Hitch, B Co. 2/24th. Rorkes Drift, front barricade Plugging the Gap by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0560
Crouching low behind their shields, the warriors of the uThulwans, iNdlondo and uDloko regiments advance around the foot of Shiyane hill. Led by their commander, Prince Dabulamnzi kaMpnade, the main Zulu force attacks the British outpost at Rorkes Drift, 4.50pm, 2nd January 1879. Into the Fire by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0561
Private Robert Jones. Decorated for conspicuous bravery and devotion to the wounded at Rorkes drift. Private Robert and William Jones, posted in a room of the Hospital facing the hill, kept up a steady fire against enormous odds, and while one worked to cut a hole through the partition into the next room, the other shot Zulu after Zulu through the loophooled walls, using his own and his comrades rifle alternatively when the barrels became to hot to hold owing to the incessant firing. By their united heroic efforts six out of the seven patients were saved by being carried through the broken partition. the seventh, sergeant Maxwell being delirious, refused to be helped, and on Robert Jones returning to take him by force he found him being stabbed by the Zulus in his bed, Robert Jones died in 1898 in Peterchurch Herefordshire . Both men were awarded the Victoria Cross. Last Man Out by Mark Churms.Click For DetailsDHM0564
Men of the 24th Foot defend Rorkes Drift against an overwhelming number of Zulus near the barricades, and the hand to hand fighting. Surgeon Reynolds can be seen attending a wounded soldier. Defence of Rorkes Drift by Brian PalmerClick For DetailsDHM0926
Men of the 24th of foot, or 2nd Warwickshire regiment (later in 1881 to become the South Wales Borderers) repel the massed Zulus attempting to smash through the mealie bag entrenchment. At the conclusion of the battle, hundreds of Zulus lay dead. According to official figures the British lost 25 men, 11 Victoria crosses were awarded. This Heroic Little Garrison, defence of Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood.Click For DetailsDHM1197
During the battle for Rorkes Drift, 24th Warwickshires man the improvised ramparts of the inner barricade as the Zulu attack reaches its height. Stand Firm the 24th (Rorkes Drift) by Chris Collingwood.Click For DetailsDHM1494
Depicting one of the nighttime Zulu attacks on Rorkes Drift. The South Wales Borderers defend the outpost by the light of the burning hospital building. Night of the Zulu by Bud Bradshaw.Click For DetailsDHM1593
The painting depicts the climax of the Zulu attacks at the defence of Rorkes Drift. The Zulus were unable to effectively penetrate the mealie bag defenses at Rorkes Drift, even though they succeeded in burning down the hospital, and peppering the storehouse with bullet holes. The confined space available to the British garrison caused a certain degree of physical compression, but this in fact worked against the Zulus, as it drove the defenders closer together with the result being that the volley fire from the defenders was concentrated and subsequently very effective at close range, as opposed to the spread out skirmish line type formation used at Isandlwhana. The Zulu attacks also became uncoordinated, being driven forward by charismatic individuals, but lacking the support of the necessary numbers needed to overwhelm the desperate defenders, who now appreciated that they were literally fighting for their lives. Rorkes Drift by Jason Askew.Click For DetailsDHM1791
On January 22nd 1879, during the Zulu War, the small British field hospital and supply depot at Rorkes Drift in Natal was the site of one of the most heroic military defences of all time. Manned by 140 troops of the 24th Regiment, led by Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers, the camp was attacke by a well-trained and well-equipped Zulu army of 4000 men, heartened by the great Zulu victory over the British forces at Isandhlwana earlier on the same day. The battle began in mid afternoon, when British remnants of the defeat at Isandhlwana struggled into the camp. Anticipating trouble, Chard set his small force to guard the perimeter fence but, when the Zulu attack began, the Zulus came faster than the British could shoot and the camp was soon overcome. The thatched roof of the hospital was fired by Zulu spears wrapped in burning grass and even some of the sick and the dying were dragged from their beds and pressed into the desperate hand-to-hand fighting. Eventually, Chard gave the order to withdraw from the perimeter and to take position in a smaller compound, protected by a hastily assembled barricade of boxes and it was from behind this barricade that the garrison fought for their lives throughout the night. After twelve hours of battle, the camp was destroyed, the hospital had burned to the ground, seventeen British lay dead and ten were wounded. However, the Zulus had been repulsed and over 400 of their men killed. The Battle of Rorkes Drift is one of the greatest examples of bravery and heroism in British military history. Nine men were awarded Distinguished Conduct Medals, and eleven, the most ever given for a single battle, received the highest military honour of all, the Victoria Cross.Defence of Rorkes Drift by Lady Elizabeth Butler.Click For DetailsDHM2000
HD0021. Defence of Rokes Drift, 1879 by Henry Dupray. Defence of Rokes Drift, 1879 by Henry Dupray.Click For DetailsHD0021
By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night.Rorkes Drift 22nd January 1879 - Defending the Hospital by Jason AskewClick For DetailsJA0002
By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night.Rorkes Drift 22nd January 1879 - Defending the Store House by Jason AskewClick For DetailsJA0005
Defending the barracades, men of the 24th of Foot, or 2nd Warwickshire regiment (later in 1881 to become the South Wales Borderers) repel the massed Zulus attempting to smash through the mealie bag entrenchment. At the end of the battle, hundreds of the Zulu warriors of the uThulwans, iNdlondo and uDloko regiments lay dead. According to official figures the British lost 25 men, 11 Victoria crosses were awarded for the defence of Rorkes Drift.Rorkes Drift January 22nd, 1879 by Stuart LiptrotClick For DetailsLI0001
Private William Jones VC is shown in the art print standing in fornt of the doorway in the hospital as the Zulu warriors break into the hospital and rush the entrance. Private Robert Jones. Decorated for conspicuous bravery and devotion to the wounded at Rorkes drift. Private Robert and William Jones, posted in a room of the Hospital facing the hill, kept up a steady fire against enormous odds, and while one worked to cut a hole through the partition into the next room, the other shot Zulu after Zulu through the loophooled walls, using his own and his comrades rifle alternatively when the barrels became to hot to hold owing to the incessant firing. By their united heroic efforts six out of the seven patients were saved by being carried through the broken partition. the seventh, sergeant Maxwell being delirious, refused to be helped, and on Robert Jones returning to take him by force he found him being stabbed by the Zulus in his bed, Robert Jones died in 1898 in Peterchurch Herefordshire. Both men were awarded the Victoria Cross.Private William Jones, VC by Stuart LiptrotClick For DetailsLI0003
Individuals shown: Lieutenant G. Bromhead, Lieutenant J.R.M. Chard, Private F. Hitch, Corporal W.W. Allen, Private W. Jones, Private J. Williams, Private R. Jones, Surgeon J.H. Reynolds, J.L Dalton and Private A. Hook. Victoria Cross Winners at the Defence of Rorkes Drift, January 22nd - 23rd 1879 by Stuart LiptrotClick For DetailsLI0004
Colour-Sergeant Frank Bourne of the 24th Regiment at the Defence of Rorkes Drift during the Zulu attack on Rorkes Drift. Colour Sergeant Frank Bourne, 2nd battalion South Wales Borderers. Frank Bourne was born on the 27th April 1854 in Balcombe Sussex. When Bourne was 18 he joined the 24th Regiment in 1872, being promoted to Corporal in 1875 and Sergeant in 1878. Sergeant Bourne was promoted to Colour Sergeant soon after the rgeiment arrived in Natal. Colour Sgt bourne was part of B company whose job was to guard the hospital at Rorkes Drift. Colour Sgt Bourne played a major role in keeping the defending troops effective. Colour Sgt Bourne was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal for his role in the defence and it is surprising that he was not awarded a Victoria Cross as 11 were awarded for the defence. Col Sgt Bourne retired form the army in 1907 but joined again for WW1, serving in Dublin. He was the last survivor of Rorkes Drift passing away at the age of 91 on the 8th May 1945 by coincidence being VE day.Colour Sergeant Frank Bourne DCM by Stuart LiptrotClick For DetailsLI0006
The original study for Wounded which was not used due to the size of the figures compared to the rest of the series even though as an oil study it shows more detail and is probably the best in this series of studies by Mark Churms. Wounded by Mark Churms (P)Click For DetailsMARK0006
The original oil study for the larger painting of Eve of Distinction Eve of Distinction by Mark Churms (P)Click For DetailsMARK0007
The original oil study for the larger painting of Pinned Like Rats in a Hole, part of the Rorkes Drift series by Mark Churms. Pinned Like Rats in a Hole by Mark Churms (P)Click For DetailsMARK0008
Study for the original painting Wounded. Cpl Allen and Cpl Lyons, Rorkes Drift 1879 by Mark Churms. (P)Click For DetailsMC0026
Ian Knight and Ian Castle.<br><br>If Islandlwana was the supreme humiliation of the British Empire at the outset of the 1879 Zulu War, then the heroic epic of Rorkes Drift , fought on the same day, was its redemption. The defence of this isolated mission station and hospital by a scratch force commanded by a couple of junior officers and a handful of largely Welsh soldiers has long held legendary status - thanks partly to the film Zulu . In this fully illustrated battlefield guide, those acknowledged authorities on all things Zulu, Ian Knight and Ian Castle, give an account of the action in which more VCs (14) were won on one day than ever before or since. Given the epic facts the book cannot fail to thrill - but it is an expert analysis too. Rorkes Drift - Zulu War.Click For DetailsNMP10393
OUR RECOMMENDATION FOR THIS BATTLE

The Defense of Rorkes Drift by Alphonse De Neuville.

DHM202. Defence of Rorkes Drift by Alphonse de Neuville.

By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night.

Open edition print.

Image size 32in x 19in (81cm x 49cm)

Price : £45.00

Battle of Rorke's Drift

Battle of Rorke's Drift, 22nd January 1879

On January 22nd 1879, during the Zulu War, the small British field hospital and supply depot at Rorkes Drift in Natal was the site of one of the most heroic military defences of all time. Manned by 140 troops of the 24th Regiment, led by Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers, the camp was attacke by a well-trained and well-equipped Zulu army of 4000 men, heartened by the great Zulu victory over the British forces at Isandhlwana earlier on the same day. The battle began in mid afternoon, when British remnants of the defeat at Isandhlwana struggled into the camp. Anticipating trouble, Chard set his small force to guard the perimeter fence but, when the Zulu attack began, the Zulus came faster than the British could shoot and the camp was soon overcome.

The thatched roof of the hospital was fired by Zulu spears wrapped in burning grass and even some of the sick and the dying were dragged from their beds and pressed into the desperate hand-to-hand fighting. Eventually, Chard gave the order to withdraw from the perimeter and to take position in a smaller compound, protected by a hastily assembled barricade of boxes and it was from behind this barricade that the garrison fought for their lives throughout the night. After twelve hours of battle, the camp was destroyed, the hospital had burned to the ground, seventeen British lay dead and ten were wounded. However, the Zulus had been repulsed and over 400 of their men killed. The Battle of Rorkes Drift is one of the greatest examples of bravery and heroism in British military history. Nine men were awarded Distinguished Conduct Medals, and eleven, the most ever given for a single battle, received the highest military honour of all, the Victoria Cross.

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