Abstract available in the pdf file.

[Truncated abstract] The senior Imperial officers who took part in the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 are comparatively well known and their service in that brief period has been well documented, as indeed has that of many of their junior colleagues. Much less, however, is known about the officers who served as commandants of the Natal Native Contingent, although more than half of them were Imperial officers on special service duties. Most of the rest were British ex-officers who lived in South Africa, while one of the remaining two was an adventurer and mercenary. Many of them had already found service with the South African force during the Ninth Cape Border War against the Ngqika and Gcaleka which had only ended in mid-1878. According to official documents, the Natal Native Contingent initially numbered more than 8,000 native troops, in three regiments, under the command of European officers and non-commissioned officers. At the time of the invasion of Zululand in January, 1879, the contingent therefore made up about 62% of the invading force. This bald statistic, as so often, hides the true story. The thesis examines each of the commandants, and the extent to which their abilities and personalities were reflected in the performance of the native troops under their command, while at the same time revealing the evolution of the Contingent itself as an arm of the invading force under Lieutenant General Lord Chelmsford ... The haste with which the regiments were assembled, their often inhuman treatment by their officers, the minimal or non-existent training they received and the way they were armed and dressed all combined to qualify their subsequent performance in the field. A comparison of the NNC is drawn with the performances of the Native Mounted Contingent, and the men of Colonel, later Brigadier General, Evelyn Wood?s Irregulars. The conclusion of the thesis is that the commandants did indeed have a profound effect on the quality and performance of the Africans who served under them. In general, the units under serving British officers performed best, while the colonial officers did less well. The mercenary officer was almost certainly the worst, but by only a slim margin.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy / This thesis provides a detailed account of the. events leading up to the war between Britain and the Zulu kingdom in 1879, and undertakes to explain why the war came about Theophilus Shepstone, Natal's Secretary for Native Affairs, had long aspired to bring Zululand under British control, When King Mpande died in 1872, his heir, Cetshwayo, was anxious for British support against rival claimants, and against the South African Republic, with which he had a border dispute. He therefore invited Shepstone to preside over a ceremony recognizing him as King. Shepstone's hopes that his 'coronation' of Cetshwayo would lead to greater control over Zululand were disappointed, but it did serve as a precedent for British intervention. The war of 1879, in the event, did not arise out of purely local causes, but was more the result of British imperial policy. Lord Carnarvon, the Secretary of State for the Colonies, aspired to 'confederate' the various territories of southern Africa into a 'self-governing' (that is, settler governed) dominion under the British flag. To this end Shepstone annexed the Transvaal in 1877. The border dispute now became a dispute between Britain and the Zulu kingdom, and relations deteriorated sharply. Sir Bartle Frere, the High Commissioner entrusted by Carnarvon with the task of implementing his confederation policy, decided that the continued independence of the Zulu kingdom was an insuperable obstacle to confederation. He therefore took advantage of certain border incidents (and of the warlike reputation of the Zulu) to send an ultimatum calculated to bring about war. The question this thesis particularly addresses is whether the war was an incidental by-product of a confederation policy carried out for other reasons, or whether bringing Zululand under British control was inherent in the policy itself. It argues that the latter was the case. The purpose of confederation was neither retrenchment nor to safeguard naval bases, as some have argued, but a comprehensive political and economic reconstruction of South African society in Which an independent Zulu kingdom could have no place. On the other hand, to argue that Zululand was invaded to facilitate the advance of capitalist production in South Africa., as others have done, is to state the case too narrowly. The desirability and inevitability of capitalist production was assumed rather than consciously striven for by those who believed that the invasion of Zululand was necessary to facilitate the progress and civilization of South Africa. / AC2017

SUBMITTED IN FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY, UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND, 2002 / I have long since been interested in the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. I have come to realise that the many British versions need to be balanced by a more Zulu oriented approach. Therefore the purpose of this thesis is to attempt to present a Zulu perspective which I hope will encourage a popular Zulu involvement both in research and tourism. What is prominent in my thinking is bringing to the foreground the lesser known, but nevertheless, significant, coastal campaign of the Zulu War of 1879. As the campaign unfolds I will attempt to see the developments from the Zulu position as they defended their homeland from British aggfe3sion. They, especially the younger warriors, were prepared to die for their King and traditional way of life. They had a proud military tradition and were intent on victory once war broke out on 11th January.

The Battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C. is an event of Greek history that has inspired numerous subsequent receptions. Many of these later ‘receptions’ of the battle have been studied in varying degrees of detail by scholars over the years, however certain periods, or modes of reception have been ignored or neglected in this scholarship. In this dissertation I examine some of these neglected areas of research. These areas include: the uses and abuses of the Battle of Thermopylae in contemporary popular culture. In this section I focus primarily on Frank Miller’s graphic novel 300 (1998/9), as well as Zack Snyder’s 2006 film of the same name. Secondly I focus on a ‘national’ response to the ‘Thermopylae theme’, in which I consider its use in South Africa. I narrow my focus to examine its use as a motif in the poetry of the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. Finally I explore how the Battle of Thermopylae was employed by writers of children’s literature in the Victorian period, where I delimit my discussion to Caroline Dale Snedeker’s The Coward of Thermopylae (1911), as well as Andrew Lang’s short story: ‘The Spartan Three Hundred’ in The True Story Book (1893). These categories cover films, graphic novels, poetry as well as fiction and non-fiction for children. Yet despite being disparate categories, each of these periods, places or genres maintains the ‘kernel’ of the story of Thermopylae: a few, brave Greeks who fought for freedom against the countless Persians invading their land. At the same time different elements of the story are exploited to highlight various issues important in the different contexts and periods. It is my hope that this thesis will not only play a role in researching these lesser known appropriations and adaptations of the Battle of Thermopylae, but that it will also ‘break boundaries’ in the field of reception studies within the discipline of Classics. / Theses (M.A)-University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, 2009.

his dissertation examines representations of the Zulu in a variety of discourses. It also examines the role of black nationalisms in the construction of Zuluist discourse. The production of images of the Zulu began with the first Anglo-Zulu encounter in the nineteenth century. In 1879, the Anglo-Zulu War set a trend for image-making which was developed further in the twentieth century. The appearance of The Washing of the Spears and Zulu, initiated a chapter in the study of the Zulu which gave rise to publications that created startling mages of the Zulu. Despite the publication of the James Stuart Archive, as well as serious studies of the Zulu, authors continued to use the same popular interpretations of the Zulu. During the early twentieth century, the 'native question' dominated South African politics, while in the 1990s, political protest, conceptualised as aggressive marches by 'warriors' and tourism have been the major representations. / History / M.A. (History)

his dissertation examines representations of the Zulu in a variety of discourses. It also examines the role of black nationalisms in the construction of Zuluist discourse. The production of images of the Zulu began with the first Anglo-Zulu encounter in the nineteenth century. In 1879, the Anglo-Zulu War set a trend for image-making which was developed further in the twentieth century. The appearance of The Washing of the Spears and Zulu, initiated a chapter in the study of the Zulu which gave rise to publications that created startling mages of the Zulu. Despite the publication of the James Stuart Archive, as well as serious studies of the Zulu, authors continued to use the same popular interpretations of the Zulu. During the early twentieth century, the 'native question' dominated South African politics, while in the 1990s, political protest, conceptualised as aggressive marches by 'warriors' and tourism have been the major representations. / History / M.A. (History)