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I'm going to start my thread today with a quick look at the Battle of Nyezane. Most people don't realise that this Anglo-Zulu War battle was a British victory fought on the same day as the defeat at Isandlwana.
The battle was fought by Colonel Pearson's Coastal Column. As they advanced towards the mission station at Eshowe they were ambushed by Zulus emerging from behind Wombane Hill.
This is Wombane hill viewed from the modern road to Eshowe. The Zulu Impi that emerged from behind the hill numbered in the region of 6,000 warriors. Heavy British rifle and artillery fire checked their advance.
The British were then able to bring forward a Royal Navy team under Midshipman Coker who opened fire with their Gatling gun. This was the first time the British had used this multi-barreled weapon on land. (The photo is the memorial to the battle)
Coker survived the battle but sadly died of sickness during the subsequent siege at Eshowe. I managed to find his grave in the derelict graveyard there in 2015.
By 9:30 a.m. the battle was over. It had been a short, sharp fight. Twelve men on the British side were killed and 20 injured. As usual, it’s hard to give an exact figure for Zulu casualties but estimates put the figure of Zulu dead somewhere between 300 and 600.
