In 1879, thousands of Zulu warriors attacked 150 British soldiers. The Battle of Rorke's Drift ended after 12 hours and the tiny garrison survived

On January 22, 1879, the British Army suffered one of its most devastating defeats in colonial warfare when a large Zulu force overwhelmed its camp at Isandlwana in present-day South Africa. Just hours later, a small British garrison at nearby Rorke’s Drift found itself facing thousands of Zulu warriors.

What followed became one of the most famous defensive actions in British military history.

Around 139 to 150 British soldiers and colonial troops defended the mission station at Rorke’s Drift against an estimated 3,000 to 4,000 Zulu warriors. The fighting continued for more than 12 hours, with repeated attacks on the hastily constructed defenses.


By the morning of January 23, the Zulu force had withdrawn. The British had lost 17 men, while Zulu casualties were estimated at around 500.

The defense earned 11 Victoria Crosses, Britain’s highest award for military gallantry, making Rorke’s Drift one of the most heavily decorated actions in British military history.

How the battle began

The Battle of Rorke’s Drift was part of the Anglo-Zulu War, which began in 1879 after Britain sought to expand its influence and territory in southern Africa.

The conflict followed an ultimatum issued by Sir Bartle Frere to King Cetshwayo of the Zulu Kingdom. After the ultimatum was rejected, British forces invaded Zululand.

Lieutenant-General Lord Chelmsford led the central British column across the Buffalo River at Rorke’s Drift, a mission station close to the border between the British colony of Natal and the Zulu Kingdom.

The British advance, however, soon ran into disaster.

On January 22, a large Zulu army attacked the British camp at Isandlwana. About 1,700 British and colonial troops were killed in the battle, one of the most serious defeats suffered by a British army against an indigenous force.

After the victory, a Zulu force of roughly 4,000 warriors moved toward Rorke’s Drift.

A small garrison prepares for an attack

Rorke’s Drift had originally been established as a trading post by James Rorke before becoming a Swedish mission station. By the time of the war, its two main buildings were being used as a hospital and a storehouse.

Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead was stationed there with his company, along with around 100 troops from the Natal Native Contingent.

Lieutenant John Chard had been sent to Rorke’s Drift to make defensive preparations. As the senior officer present, he took command when news arrived of the disaster at Isandlwana and the approaching Zulu force.

The garrison faced a difficult decision.

Retreat would have meant abandoning wounded hospital patients and exposing the men to attack in open country. Chard, Bromhead and Assistant Commissary James Dalton instead decided to defend the station.

The soldiers quickly turned the mission into a makeshift fortress.

They built barricades using mealie bags, biscuit boxes and crates of tinned meat. The buildings were prepared with loopholes through which soldiers could fire at attackers.

They had little time to prepare.

Thousands of Zulu warriors arrive

At around 4:30 p.m. on January 22, the Zulu force reached Rorke’s Drift.

The defenders were dramatically outnumbered.

Most Zulu warriors carried the short stabbing spear known as an assegai, or iklwa, along with a cowhide shield. Some had firearms, including older muskets and a small number of modern rifles.

The British troops, meanwhile, had Martini-Henry breech-loading rifles and a large supply of ammunition.

As the Zulu warriors approached, the British opened fire.

The rifle fire inflicted heavy casualties, but the attackers continued advancing. Some reached the defensive barricades and attempted to break through. Others engaged the defenders at close quarters.

The British soldiers repeatedly pushed them back.

But the Zulu attacks did not stop.

The hospital becomes a battlefield

One of the most dangerous moments came when the Zulu warriors attacked the hospital.

The building caught fire as fighting intensified around it. British soldiers defending the hospital were forced into close combat as Zulu warriors attempted to reach the patients inside.

The defenders used bayonets and rifle fire to hold them back.

As the situation deteriorated, soldiers began hacking holes through the walls of the building so that patients could be moved from one room to another and eventually into the defended area.

The evacuation took place while the battle continued outside.

By nightfall, the British position had become increasingly difficult to defend. The defenders withdrew toward a smaller, final defensive line constructed in the center of the station.

The Zulus continued attacking through the night.

The final hours

For nearly 12 hours, the garrison faced repeated assaults.

The British defenders were exhausted, many were wounded and ammunition and defensive positions were under constant pressure. Yet the attackers could not break through the final defenses.

At around 4 a.m. on January 23, the Zulu force finally withdrew.

The battlefield was left covered with the dead and wounded.

British losses were 17 dead and 10 wounded, although almost every surviving defender had suffered some form of injury. Zulu losses were estimated at around 500.

The small garrison had survived.

Eleven Victoria Crosses

The defense of Rorke’s Drift became an enormous boost to British morale because it came immediately after the catastrophe at Isandlwana.

The British government celebrated the action, and 11 men received the Victoria Cross for their conduct during the battle.

It was the largest number of Victoria Crosses awarded for a single action involving one regiment.

Among the recipients was Corporal Christian Schiess, a Swiss national serving with a British colonial unit. Despite being wounded, Schiess continued fighting during the defense.

He became the first Swiss national to receive the Victoria Cross and later struggled financially before dying in poverty.

Why Rorke’s Drift became famous

Rorke’s Drift had little impact on the ultimate outcome of the Anglo-Zulu War. The conflict continued after the battle, with the Zulus eventually defeated at the Battle of Ulundi in July 1879.

King Cetshwayo was captured, the Zulu monarchy was suppressed and Zululand was eventually brought under British control.

But Rorke’s Drift acquired a life of its own in British military history.

The extraordinary disparity between the size of the attacking force and the small garrison defending the station made the battle a powerful story of survival against overwhelming odds.

American military historian Victor Davis Hanson later described the action as an exceptional example of a beleaguered force surviving despite being vastly outnumbered.

The battle also became part of popular culture through paintings by artists including Lady Elizabeth Butler and Alphonse-Marie-Adolphe de Neuville.

Its worldwide fame grew further after the release of the 1964 film Zulu, starring Stanley Baker and Michael Caine.

More than 140 years later, Rorke’s Drift remains remembered not because it changed the course of the Anglo-Zulu War, but because of what happened during one extraordinary night: a small, hastily fortified garrison held its ground against a much larger Zulu force after the British Army had suffered a devastating defeat only hours earlier.