Rorke's Drift 1879

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=160 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <B>Site Index</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Zulu War 1879"><U>Home Page</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#FFFF00" FACE="Times New Roman" > </FONT><A HREF="id6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Build up and Aftermath"><U>Build up and Aftermath</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" > </FONT><A HREF="id5.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Isandhlwana"><U>Isandhlwana</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Rorkes Drift 1879"><U>Rorke's Drift 1879</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Roll of Defenders of Rorkes Drift"><U>Roll of Defenders of Rorke's Drift</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Rorkes Drift VC Winners"><U>Rorke's Drift</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Rorkes Drift VC Winners"><U>VC Winners</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id11.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Other Award Winners"><U>Other Award Winners</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Film Zulu"><U>The Film </U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Film Zulu"><U>'Zulu'</U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Zulu Dawn"><U>The Film </U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Zulu Dawn"><U>'Zulu Dawn'</U></A></div> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#CC3300" FACE="Arial" ><B>The Zulu War 1879</B></FONT><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#FFCC99" FACE="Arial" >   </FONT> <FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B>|  </B></FONT><FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#FFFF00" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B> </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Zulu War 1879"><U><B>home</B></U></A></FONT></div> <div> <IMG SRC="02658020.png" border=0 width="600" height="2" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> Rorke's Drift 1879</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="0602c010.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="257" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div>  <script language=JavaScript>  </script>  </div> <bR> <div> <B>What Really Happened</B></div> <bR> <div> The British invaded Zululand in 1879. In early January five British columns marched up through Natal to a remote mission outpost </div> <div> manned by a Swedish Reverend, Otto Witt.  The outpost was located at a place called Rorke’s Drift.  The mission station was adapted </div> <div> for use by the army as a store department for food and equipment and also as a hospital for the sick.  The column is said </div> <div> to have consisted of 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 24th foot; a squadron of Mounted Infantry; about 200 Natal volunteers; 150 Natal </div> <div> Police; two battalions of the Native Contingent; some Pioneers and six Royal Artillery guns.  In overall charge of this column was </div> <div> Commander-in-Chief Lieutenant General Lord Chelmsford.</div> <bR> <div> After a brief rest Lord Chelmsford crossed the Buffalo River by the ford (or drift), a quarter of a mile away, with the bulk of the </div> <div> company to march into the Zulu Kingdom intending to destroy the Zulu capital.  He left behind the men of ‘B’ company, 24th Regiment,</div> <div>  together with a company of Natal Native Contingent to look after the stores and the hospital patients.  Major Henry Spalding of the </div> <div> 104th Regiment was left behind in overall command at Rorke’s Drift.</div> <bR> <div> On Wednesday, 22nd January, a young officer rode into Rorke’s Drift with a message from Chelmsford saying that the main </div> <div> column had camped some nine miles away at Islandlwana and that a “big fight” was expected.  Reverend Witt and George Smith </div> <div> and Surgeon Reynolds climbed a hill ‘to watch the fun’ through field glasses.  </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="208" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 246 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="096c5f00.jpg" border=0 width="197" height="240" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> Lt John Rouse Merriot Chard</div> <bR> <div> Everyone assumed that Lord Chelmsford would not permit the Zulus to reach the mission, so  there was little concern on the part </div> <div> of the people left behind.  However, Spalding decided to bring up the company that had been left some ten miles down the road at </div> <div> the fort at Helpmekaar.  He departed leaving Lt. John Rouse Merriot Chard of the 5th Company Royal Engineers in charge.  Chard </div> <div> was just thirty-one and had arrived in Durban on the 5th January and had never actually seen any action.   His main responsibility </div> <div> was the ‘ponts’; a South African word for a flat-bottomed ferry worked on cables or ropes.  He was well liked by his fellow officers </div> <div> but was described as being ‘a plodding, dogged sort… and hopelessly slow and slack.”</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="0a153220.jpg" border=0 width="339" height="290" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <bR> <div> It is said that Spalding left camp with the immortal words to Chard “You will be in charge, although, of course, nothing will happen </div> <div> and I shall be back again early this evening.”    At 3.15pm two men rode into the camp.  They advised that Lord Chelmsford had </div> <div> gone out that morning with half his force leaving 1,800 officers at Islandlwana.  At noon a Zulu force rushed the unprepared the c</div> <div> amp and had slaughtered the bulk of the men.  This Zulu force was now advancing towards Rorke’s Drift.  Hearing this news </div> <div> Acting Assistant Commissary, James Langley Dalton, a veteran of some thirty years, began moving 200 1bs of maize/corn </div> <div> sacks to build a barricade. He also ordered that six men should take up stations in the hospital to defend the patients and the </div> <div> hospital building. This included Surgeon James Reynolds.  When word was received that the Zulus had been sighted Missionary </div> <div> Witt exercised his right to depart, leaving George Smith in charge of spiritual nurture.  </div> <bR> <div> Some of the Islandlwana survivors did reach the outpost but instead of staying to help defend it they rode instead for Helpmekaar.  </div> <div> When the Natal Native Contingent saw this they too abandoned their posts and followed their fleeing comrades.  </div> <bR> <div> This now left about only 170 men to defend the depot and about 30 of these were patients.  Chard decided in addition to the </div> <div> four-foot barricade of maize and corn sacks to set up a second line of defence by using biscuit boxes.  This would mean that if </div> <div> the first barricade fell then the men could retreat behind the second barricade into the small area in front of the store.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="214" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 256 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="099c8fa0.jpg" border=0 width="200" height="250" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> At about 4.30pm the first warriors of the four thousand Zulu warriors swept down from the Hill and began to attack the back </div> <div> of the British position, closest to the hospital.   Chard was impressed by the fact that the Zulus’ pace did not slacken even though </div> <div> they were running into a suicidal attack. They braved rockets, artillery and concentrated rifle fire without even breaking their stride.  </div> <bR> <div> The Zulu Army was made up of citizen-soldiers who had a reputation for being ferocious warriors.  The main tactical unit was </div> <div> the ‘ibutho’ the plural for this being the ‘amabutho’.  They were made up of conscripted men in their late teens from throughout the </div> <div> Zulu kingdom.  These men remained in service to the King until they were given permission to marry, which normally occurred </div> <div> when a man reached the age of thirty.  Once married the ‘ibutho’ were passed from active duty to reserve.  So when the British </div> <div> invaded the Zulu Land, King Cetshwayo KaMpande was able to muster an army with a total strength of about forty thousand warriors.  </div> <bR> <div> The Zulu weapon was the ‘assengai’ a short stabbing spear the blade of which measured from twelve to eighteen inches in length, </div> <div> with the shaft adding another two or three feet.  They were also equipped with shields, which were made from cowhide, oval in </div> <div> shape measuring about three and a half feet long by two feet wide.  Some lighter throwing spears and clubs and also some </div> <div> carried firearms; however these were obsolete models, antiquated flintlocks left over from the Napoleonic Wars and sold to the </div> <div> Zulus by unscrupulous arms dealers.  </div> <bR> <div> The British in 1879 carried Martini-Henry Mark1 rifles.  They measured four feet from butt to muzzle and fired .450 calibre </div> <div> unjacketed lead bullets.  Each rifle could sight over a thousand yards but were best at about three hundred to four hundred yards.  </div> <div> A soldier could operate this rifle at around twelve aimed rounds or twenty-four un-aimed rounds per minute.  The rifle was also </div> <div> sometimes fitted with a bayonet; a blade measuring twenty-two inches long, which was nicknamed ‘the lunger’.  </div> <bR> <div> But back to Rorke’s Drift.  Initially the British repulsed the Zulus but there was a weakness in the barricade in front of the hospital.  </div> <div> The Zulus that survived the first assault took cover in the bush at the bottom of the hill and began to advance slowly on their </div> <div> tummies towards the weakness in the barricade.  They began to throw torches at the hospital roof, which </div> <div> was made of thatch.  Inevitably the roof caught fire.  </div> <bR> <div> The hospital was made up of lots of little rooms with the rooms at the back of the hospital that faced the hill </div> <div> not having inter-connecting doors which made communication inside very difficult.    </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="311" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 407 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0b92b900.jpg" border=0 width="299" height="400" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at </div> <div> hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, </div> <div> firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug </div> <div> the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu </div> <div> marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="314" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF3333" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 198 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="09d2cc00.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="192" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. </div> <div> Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital </div> <div> had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched </div> <div> roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, </div> <div> eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the </div> <div> Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected </div> <div> across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the </div> <div> garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="416" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF3333" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 307 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0ba902c0.jpg" border=0 width="400" height="300" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> From his position outside Chard could see that the hospital was now on fire and he naturally assumed that the men in the</div> <div>  hospital would not survive the blaze.  The first barricade had now been breached by the Zulu warriors so he ordered his </div> <div> men to retreat back to the safety of the area in front of the store and the biscuit boxes defence.  </div> <bR> <div> In the hospital things were indeed becoming dire.  Strangely no one had counted on the Zulus actually setting fire to the thatch, </div> <div> so no precautions like water buckets had been made.   Besieged by Zulus a lone man in one of the small rooms had no option </div> <div> but to break through the mud brick wall into the next room, in order to escape.  This then became their form of defence of the </div> <div> British within the hospital.  As the Zulus swarmed through into each room; the British soldiers hacked their way through into </div> <div> another room, taking patients wherever possible with them.  Eventually they reached a room with a window that overlooked the </div> <div> yard outside which was in front of the biscuit box barricade.  The burning hospital roof was now falling in adding to the confusion </div> <div> so a decision was taken to leave the hospital by the means of this window.  But this would still mean that they would have to </div> <div> run the gauntlet of 30 yards to the relative safety of the biscuit box defence.</div> <bR> <div> As they began to exit Chard spotted their predicament and asked for volunteers to help evacuate the men and patients.  </div> <div> Unfortunately not all of the men made it and their comrades witnessed the barbarity of the Zulu Warriors at close hand </div> <div> as they repeatedly stabbed and in accordance with Zulu ritual ripped open their enemies stomach.  </div> <bR> <div> So what was George Smith doing during all this? Although refusing to actually fight, Reverend Smith had filled a haversack with </div> <div> bullets and went from post to post encouraging the men.  According to Private John Jobbins from ‘B’ company the Reverend Smith, </div> <div> in between handing out ammunition, was praying that the Zulus would go away and leave the garrison in peace.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="311" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 406 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0ad28900.jpg" border=0 width="296" height="400" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> When darkness fell the fire from the smouldering hospital helped the British to see the Zulus whenever they tried to rush the </div> <div> barricades.  However, eventually the hospital thatch had burnt itself out and the Zulus were able to use the cloak of darkness to </div> <div> mount attack after attack against the few remaining men.    </div> <bR> <div> After hours and hours of ceaseless fighting, ammunition was low, down to only a box and a half.  As the first streak of dawn </div> <div> lightened the African sky the exhausted British soldiers were able to see the full extent of the slaughter.  They attempted to </div> <div> rally themselves for what they assumed would be the final attack by the Zulus, resulting in their total extermination.  But, </div> <div> instead of attacking, the Zulus suddenly got up and as one began to retreat.  I’m sorry to say but they did not as was shown </div> <div> in the 1964 Zulu film salute the surviving soldiers.  What the British could not see from their low vantage point and what the </div> <div> Zulus could see from their high vantage point was Lord Chelmsford and his company moving towards Rorkes Drift.  </div> <bR> <div> Lord Chelmsford had marched back into camp at Islandlwana during the night and found the mutilated corpses of his men.  </div> <div> In the early hours of Thursday 23rd January he set out for Rorke’s Drift expecting to find a similar scene of carnage but </div> <div> instead he found Chard and his men including George Smith.</div> <bR> <div> It is said that over 800 British soldiers, 52 officers and some 500 of their African allies had been annihilated by </div> <div> the Zulu force at the Battle of Islandlwana.  </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="185" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 205 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="037afc60.jpg" border=0 width="175" height="198" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div>  <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lX1WIjfHTE4&hl=en_GB&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lX1WIjfHTE4&hl=en_GB&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>  </div> <bR> <bR> <div> In the film ‘Zulu’ Richard Burton provides the narration and at the end of the film he observes that 11 of the 1344 Victoria </div> <div> Crosses awarded since 1856 were bestowed upon the survivors of Rorke’s Drift. This was the highest number ever awarded </div> <div> for a single engagement in British Military History.  Also awarded were five Distinguished Conduct Medals.  </div> <bR> <div> Another myth from the 1964 film ‘Zulu’ was that Rorke’s Drift was defended entirely by Welshmen. Perhaps Richard Burton </div> <div> may have had something to do with this!  However the British Garrison numbers were made up from Welshmen, </div> <div> Englishmen, Irishmen and Scotsmen.  The Natal Native Contingent (NNC) had been raised from local tribes </div> <div> that had a history of enmity with the Zulus.  </div> <bR> <div> The artist, Elizabeth Thompson (1846-1933), was commissioned by Queen Victoria to paint “The Defence of Rorke’s Drift.”  </div> <div> Elizabeth Thompson had married General Sir William Butler in 1879, the General had seen much service in Africa.  </div> <div> Lady Elizabeth Butler went down to Gosport where the 24th Regiment were billeted and made sketches with the help of </div> <div> the soldiers who even re-enacted the battle in their original uniforms that they had worn throughout the campaign.  </div> <div> Lady Butler was complimented on the fact that she only included two to three Zulu warriors in her painting. </div> <bR> <div> Although the Victorian British People were horrified by the annihilation of our forces by the Zulu warriors they also admired </div> <div> them and the Times wrote “We now have ample proof not only of the Zulus’ valour but also of their skill in strategy.”  </div> <div> The battle has been hallowed as one of the most heroic stands in military history.  </div> <bR> <div> The makers of the 1964 film ‘Zulu’ did not chose to show the part that George Smith played in the battle and wrote him </div> <div> completely out of the script. Although unable to receive the Victoria Cross for his part in the fight he was instead given </div> <div> permanent chaplaincy in the Army. After Rorke’s Drift George went on to win medals in Egypt before finishing his army </div> <div> career at Preston.  He died in 1918 just after armistice had been declared. George was described by a well-known writer </div> <div> as a big red bearded Norfolk giant.  </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>The VC Winners:</B></div> <div> Lieutenant J.R.M. Chard, R.E.; Lieutenant G. Bromhead, 2/24th; Surgeon J.H. Reynolds, A.M.D.; </div> <div> Acting Assistant Commissary J.L. Dalton, C. & T.D.; Corporal Allen, 2/24th; Corporal C.F. Schiess, N.N.C.; </div> <div> Privates F. Hitch, A.H. Hook, R. Jones, W. Jones, J. Williams, 2/24th.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="144" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 194 ><NOBR><div> <B><IMG SRC="0f07ebb0.jpg" border=0 width="126" height="187" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <div> Private Henry Hook</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="248" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 361 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="09ee7630.jpg" border=0 width="231" height="355" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>The DCM Winners:</B></div> <div> Col. Sgt. F.E. Bourne2/24th; 2nd Corp. F. Attwood, A.S.C.; 2nd Corp. M. McMahon, A.H.C.;</div> <div> Wheeler J. Cantwell, R.A.; Pte W. Roy, 1/24th.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="714" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 551 ><NOBR><div> <B><IMG SRC="0a8bf200.jpg" border=0 width="703" height="544" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> Rorke's Drift, taken shortly after the Battle</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="523" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 256 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="039b1fa0.jpg" border=0 width="177" height="250" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="03a43fa0.jpg" border=0 width="323" height="250" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="179"><div> Taken in 1917</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="325"><div> Evan Jones's Funeral in 1931</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> 25B/1428 Private Evan Jones of B Company, 2nd Battalion 24th Regiment<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" > </FONT></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="776" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="VOID" RULES="NONE" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER HEIGHT= 552 ><NOBR><div> was present at the famous defence of Rorke's Drift, 22-23 January 1879. Hanging in the South </div> <div> Wales Borderers Museum at Brecon is the Union Flag that flew over the little mission station and, on </div> <div> the morning of the 23 January 1879, signalled to the approaching relief column that the small garrison </div> <div> had indeed held out against repeated Zulu attacks. The young Private Evan Jones brought this flag home.</div> <div> Evan Jones was born in Bedwellty near Ebbw Vale in Monmouthshire.</div> <bR> <div> His real name was Patrick Cosgrove. He enlisted at Brecon on 20 July 1877, aged 18 years</div> <div> and 4 months, having had some previous service with the Royal Monmouthshire Engineers Militia.</div> <bR> <div> The young Private Evans was posted to 2nd Battalion on 26 January 1878 and subsequently</div> <div>      He later became a Drummer and was allowed to continue his service beyond 21 years, finally</div> <div> saw service in South Africa (1 February 1878 to 12 January 1880), Gibraltar, India and Burma.</div> <div> claiming his discharge as a member of the Permanent Staff of the 4th Militia Battalion on 17 October 1899.</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="717" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="VOID" RULES="NONE" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER HEIGHT= 151 WIDTH="713"><div> He next enlisted in the Royal Northern Reserve Battalion as a Musician and then joined the</div> <div> Montgomery Yeomanry. In April 1915, he was attested at Aberystwyth for the 2/7th Battalion The Royal WelchFusiliers and rose to the rank of Lance Sergeant before being discharged on 15 February 1919.</div> <div> His final spell of duty was as a Private in the Northumberland Fusiliers, and he is thought to have served</div> <div> as part of the army of occupation in Germany in 1919-1920. At the time of his discharge,Evan Jones had </div> <div> served in excess of 40 years with the Colours.He died aged 72 years and was buried in the </div> <div> Parish Churchyard at Welshpool.</div> <bR> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> Evan Jones' medal group, now the property of the National Museum of Wales,</div> <div> consists of South Africa Medal with clasp 1877-89, India General Service Medal with clasp Burma 1887-89,</div> <div> and Territorial Force Efficiency Medal - a rare combination of awards, particularly for a Rorke's Drift defender.</div> <div> Evan Jones was one of three defenders at Rorke's Drift from the 24th Regiment to see army service</div> <div> in the Great War, the others being Colour Sergeant Frank Bourne and Private John Williams VC</div> <bR> <bR> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="642" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 294 ><NOBR><div> <B><IMG SRC="03b761e0.jpg" border=0 width="630" height="286" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> 'B' Company Survivors of Rorke's Drift who had been repatriated through injury or illness. </div> <div> Probably taken at Pinetown, September 1879.</div> <bR> <div> Furthest left <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >CS Frank Bourne</FONT>, Far left on front row,<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" > Bromhead</FONT>. Behind the fourth from Bromhead is <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >John Williams</FONT>. </div> <div> To Frank Bourne's left is <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >Pte. Michael Minehan</FONT>, the company's right marker. The Sergeant two along </div> <div> from Bromhead's left is <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >Henry E. Gallagher</FONT>, and the man two along from Gallagher's left is <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >Sgt. Joseph Windridge</FONT>. </div> <div> The man to John William's left is <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >John Jobbins</FONT>. The man on the extreme upper right is <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >Drummer Patrick Hayes</FONT>. </div> <div> Hook<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFFF00" FACE="Times New Roman" > is at the back right in the middle. Two down diagonally to Hook's right is </FONT>George (Orchard) Edwards<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFFF00" FACE="Times New Roman" >. </FONT></div> <div> Five along from Edwards's left is (allegedly) <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >Robert Jones</FONT> and to his left <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" >William Jones</FONT></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> The Memorial at Rorke's Drift</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="464" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 271 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="14ac2080.jpg" border=0 width="450" height="264" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="465" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 300 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="14bdc250.jpg" border=0 width="220" height="293" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="14cdc250.jpg" border=0 width="220" height="293" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 300 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="14ddc250.jpg" border=0 width="220" height="293" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="14edc250.jpg" border=0 width="220" height="293" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="615" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 408 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="15858920.jpg" border=0 width="600" height="402" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> 120th Anniversary Celebrations</div> <bR> <bR> <div> Some Prints of the Action at Rorke's Drift</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="615" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FF0000" BORDERCOLORDARK="#FF0000" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 193 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0af2cb90.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="185" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0ae22bb0.jpg" border=0 width="290" height="187" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 407 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0ac2b900.jpg" border=0 width="299" height="400" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="0b829900.jpg" border=0 width="297" height="400" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div>     <A HREF="id5.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Isandhlwana"><U><IMG SRC="0a08b2b0.jpg" border=0 width="139" height="43" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A>     <FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="id10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Roll of Defenders of Rorkes Drift"><U><B><IMG SRC="09f8b2b0.jpg" border=0 width="139" height="43" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A><B>   </B></FONT></div> <div>  <embed src="HTMLobj-108/army.wav" autostart="true" hidden="true">  </div> <div> <B> <meta http-equiv="Page-Enter" content="revealtrans(duration=2,transition=23)">  </B></div> </td> </tr></table></body>