Course:HIST317/Empire - Abroad/Tristan

The Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 was an event that brought about serious change in the Southern African region for decades to come. It would prove to be a war in which the last of the African Empires would collapse under British might. However, for Britain this war would prove a hard earned victory against the African tribesmen.

Battles would often be unpredictable as to who would emerge the victor. While the British had more advanced technology and military training, the sheer number of Zulu warriors meant that the British could be swarmed and ambushed, as in the Battle of Isandhlwana in January of 1879, where the Zulu massacred British troops.

To best understand why the British felt the urge to conquer the Zulu I intend to research the motives of the Europeans in the Southern African region. As well as the surrounding African groups who were in a symbiotic existence with the British and Boers in the area, who may have had tensions with the Zulu. Much like how the Huron peoples of North America joined the French while the Iroquois aligned themselves with the British to strengthen their positions against one another.

Focusing on key battles will be the largest aspect of my paper, but the end results of the war cannot be overlooked. As the Zulu were the last free African kingdom in the region, European Imperialism would have a significant effect on how the African indigenous people could live for the coming decades.

Primarily my sources will be textbooks and journal entries but I imagine there are newspaper articles and political cartoons to utilize as well. Though considering most primary sources of the events were recorded by the British and other Europeans, I may have to expect a certain amount of ethnocentrism in the accounts.