When the British ultimatum delivered to King Cetshwayo's representatives at the Lower Thukela Drift (on 11 December) expired - it required King Cetshwayo to dismantle the Zulu military system, a demand that the British High Commissioner, Sir Bartle Frere, knew would be impossible to accept - war broke out. British troops had already crossed into Zululand (No 4 column under Colonel Henry Evelyn Wood, crossed the Ncome river on 6 January 1879). But on this day the No 3 column, under Colonel Richard Glyn, crossed at Rorke's Drift. The next day, the first engagement between British troops and Zulu warriors occurred in the Batshe valley to the east of Rorke's Drift.
By Alistair Boddy-Evans, About.com GuideJanuary 11, 2013
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Comments
I believe it is true that King Cetshwayo tried to negotiate with the English foreign minister. I don’t believe that England took Cetshwayo seriously as a negotiating partner. I wonder what the effect of a negotiation would have had on the future of South Africa politics. Of course the native South Africans would have had to negotiate too with the Boers.
John Navarra
Daytona Beach, Florida
Why are most of the topics here about South Africa? I find it completely unfair that a continent of over a billion people is represented like this with most of the information centered on South Africa
Have you not tried to browse?
Indeed! A quick browse around the site quickly reveals the width and depth of coverage across the continent!