Weekly Meeting - Defence of the Drift (Paul Barnett)

Wed, May 1st 2019 at 7:30 pm - 10:30 pm

Friend: Tony Jenkinson
VOT: Mike Till


Defence of the Drift (Paul Barnett)

Paul was welcomed back to the Club to address us on this topic.

Most Members had viewed the film ‘Zulu’ over the years and Paul was able to show how the historic facts differed from the film. This Anglo-Zulu war was not even sanctioned by the Prime minister ( Disraeli ) or Queen Victoria essentially this battle was a defence of an isolated mission and trading station with a store and hospital with some boundary walling and the rest barricaded with Mealie Bags.

The ruler of the Zulu tribe was 29 stone King kaMpande who had fathered 78 offspring, but his son, Prince Dabulamanzi was the leader of the Zulu enemy involved in this battle. The defending troops were a mix British men supported by loyal native Zulus. British troops had been defeated at the recent Battle of Isandalwana. Amongst the English Regiments involved was Harry Hook VC of Churcham from  farming background who left wife (Comfort Jones) and three children behind to fight.

Numbers of Undi Corps of the Zulu enemy involved were at least 3,000. The garrison possibly 500 defenders but many had retreated for various undefined reasons.. The younger Zulu men were set to draw blood on their spears which gave them the right to request permission from the King to marry! The main attacking Zulu weapon was the short spear or assegai and a shield of cowhide issued for the battle which in the end lasted 12hours and 150 men stood and defended the base. Hook helped defend the hospital to the last when it was engulfed by fire. Reinforcements arrived the next morning 17 defending men killed and 400 Zulus dead with at least 500 wounded. The defenders showed no mercy and all were buried in one grave.

Hook bought himself out of the army but did not return to his family, remarrying in 1897 and having two more children. His civilian job was at the British Museum as, firstly ‘inside duster’ and promoted to Senior Umbrella Caretaker. He retired with ill health dying of pulmonary TB in 1905 when he had come to live in Roseberry Avenue, Gloucester, He was buried in Churcham, St Andrew’s churchyard.
 
Mike Till.

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