Fugitives Drift was established by David Rattray along with his wife Nicky and built an excellent lodge for travellers and tourists to indulge in this fantastic story. Sadly, in January 2007, David was murdered by an intruder but Fugitives Drift is a fantastic legacy to something he founded with his wife Nicky and it still continues today. Rob Caskie has taken over as the lead guide. Like David, Rob speaks fluent Zulu, understands the history inside out and is perhaps the best orator I've ever heard.
The two battles that I was fascinated with were the battle at Isandlwana where the Zulu army wiped out around 1,300 British troops on 22nd January 1879. Later on that day, a lesser force of Zulus who missed out on the action at Isandlwana, wanted their chance and so against orders, they attacked Rorke's Drift. The defensive action went down in the history of the British Army as amongst it's most amazing battles which saw eleven Victoria Crosses awarded. About 140 British troops struggled with close to 4,000 Zulus in a fight that raged all night.
My stay at Fugitives Drift started with an afternoon trip to the Rorke's Drift site. It's a few miles from the Lodge and we started going round the museum which had been hospital building at the time of the battle. As with most battleground museums, there were numerous artefacts from the battle (rifles, bullets, buckles, spears etc) yet the most eye-catching item I saw was a model of the battleground. It presented the later phases of the fight when the hospital had been cleared out and the soldiers were defending the store behind their stacks of mealie bags. The model showed a few red coated troopers surrounded on every side by Zulus several deep and this was the first occasion I'd honestly had the opportunity to visualise the battle properly. All the films and images I've witnessed in the past were generally close ups with a few people however this model provided an overall impression which was quite honestly, shocking.
To assist travellers and tourists imagine the layout, there are lines of stones marking where the defensive lines were placed. Rob started the tale detailing what Rorke's Drift was and the reasons why it had been assaulted. He made you realise there was clearly so much more to the battle than only a struggle between black and white, British redcoat versus Zulu warrior. Overall, the excursion was about three hours and everyone only sat listening to this excellent story teller recounting the incidents of 22nd January 1879.
Back at the lodge, I freshened up in my superb room. It really was a shame I couldn't spend longer in the room since it was so comfortable however it was time for beverages just ahead of dinner and so I made my way to the dining area. The room is much like a museum with pictures, flags, notes, firearms and a great deal more covering the walls. The dinner itself was fantastic. Everybody staying at the Lodge sat around the a single table. It had been an extremely satisfying evening but an early start the next day meant it wouldn't be a late night.
My 6:30am alarm call was a nice hot pot of tea being delivered to my room (its nice to see some British customs still live on). We'd a nice hot breakfast just before heading off for our early morning excursion of Isandlwana. This battlefield is across the Buffalo river and our historian was a Zulu called Joseph. Isandlwana is a very different battlefield to Rorke's Drift. It occurred on a massive plain in the shadow of a mountain so the orientation took a lot longer as we first visited the museum ahead of moving on to the hilltop where the Zulu commanders were standing 129 years ago. We moved on to the battlefield itself and parked up. Now the talk was going to be a few hours hence we got deck chairs which we carried up the mountain to a vantage point that gave us a terrific view of the battleground. However, the elevation was about a mile above sea level therefore it wasn't the easiest climb I'd ever tried.
Joseph, like Rob offered all of us a compelling lecture and genuinely helped us visualise the scene. He also said that although he was a Zulu, he wasn't there to present 'their side of the story', he was going to give us the facts on what happened, occasionally in really graphic detail. At the appropriate times, he'd echo the Zulu cries that had been made back in 1879 and as Joseph's voice echoed around us, it added much more realism to the location. The storyline was fascinating. I listened as Joseph recited what was happening and my eyes wandered around the scenery which was littered with stacks of white stones. These piles of stones are the graves of the British troops who are buried where the died. Every heap of stones represented 6-8 men except for two large heaps which were for up to forty men. The hard African soil meant it was out of the question to dig anything but shallow graves for the soldiers and pile stones upon them.
Just after the talk was over, we had time to walk round several of the graves and memorials at Isandlwana before heading back again for lunch. This was an amazing destination and I most certainly could have done with having an extra day as there was a Zulu village to visit in addition to the walk down to the Buffalo river where Lieutenants Melvill and Coghill lost their lives saving the Queen's Colour of their regiment and years later became the very first men to be posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.
There was a time that when a white man in car was seen in this region, it usually meant these folks were lost. Today, there is an industry based on the work David and Nicky Rattray started meaning there's a large desire for those battles between the army of the biggest Empire the world has ever seen and the best warriors Africa has ever produced.
The two battles that I was fascinated with were the battle at Isandlwana where the Zulu army wiped out around 1,300 British troops on 22nd January 1879. Later on that day, a lesser force of Zulus who missed out on the action at Isandlwana, wanted their chance and so against orders, they attacked Rorke's Drift. The defensive action went down in the history of the British Army as amongst it's most amazing battles which saw eleven Victoria Crosses awarded. About 140 British troops struggled with close to 4,000 Zulus in a fight that raged all night.
My stay at Fugitives Drift started with an afternoon trip to the Rorke's Drift site. It's a few miles from the Lodge and we started going round the museum which had been hospital building at the time of the battle. As with most battleground museums, there were numerous artefacts from the battle (rifles, bullets, buckles, spears etc) yet the most eye-catching item I saw was a model of the battleground. It presented the later phases of the fight when the hospital had been cleared out and the soldiers were defending the store behind their stacks of mealie bags. The model showed a few red coated troopers surrounded on every side by Zulus several deep and this was the first occasion I'd honestly had the opportunity to visualise the battle properly. All the films and images I've witnessed in the past were generally close ups with a few people however this model provided an overall impression which was quite honestly, shocking.
To assist travellers and tourists imagine the layout, there are lines of stones marking where the defensive lines were placed. Rob started the tale detailing what Rorke's Drift was and the reasons why it had been assaulted. He made you realise there was clearly so much more to the battle than only a struggle between black and white, British redcoat versus Zulu warrior. Overall, the excursion was about three hours and everyone only sat listening to this excellent story teller recounting the incidents of 22nd January 1879.
Back at the lodge, I freshened up in my superb room. It really was a shame I couldn't spend longer in the room since it was so comfortable however it was time for beverages just ahead of dinner and so I made my way to the dining area. The room is much like a museum with pictures, flags, notes, firearms and a great deal more covering the walls. The dinner itself was fantastic. Everybody staying at the Lodge sat around the a single table. It had been an extremely satisfying evening but an early start the next day meant it wouldn't be a late night.
My 6:30am alarm call was a nice hot pot of tea being delivered to my room (its nice to see some British customs still live on). We'd a nice hot breakfast just before heading off for our early morning excursion of Isandlwana. This battlefield is across the Buffalo river and our historian was a Zulu called Joseph. Isandlwana is a very different battlefield to Rorke's Drift. It occurred on a massive plain in the shadow of a mountain so the orientation took a lot longer as we first visited the museum ahead of moving on to the hilltop where the Zulu commanders were standing 129 years ago. We moved on to the battlefield itself and parked up. Now the talk was going to be a few hours hence we got deck chairs which we carried up the mountain to a vantage point that gave us a terrific view of the battleground. However, the elevation was about a mile above sea level therefore it wasn't the easiest climb I'd ever tried.
Joseph, like Rob offered all of us a compelling lecture and genuinely helped us visualise the scene. He also said that although he was a Zulu, he wasn't there to present 'their side of the story', he was going to give us the facts on what happened, occasionally in really graphic detail. At the appropriate times, he'd echo the Zulu cries that had been made back in 1879 and as Joseph's voice echoed around us, it added much more realism to the location. The storyline was fascinating. I listened as Joseph recited what was happening and my eyes wandered around the scenery which was littered with stacks of white stones. These piles of stones are the graves of the British troops who are buried where the died. Every heap of stones represented 6-8 men except for two large heaps which were for up to forty men. The hard African soil meant it was out of the question to dig anything but shallow graves for the soldiers and pile stones upon them.
Just after the talk was over, we had time to walk round several of the graves and memorials at Isandlwana before heading back again for lunch. This was an amazing destination and I most certainly could have done with having an extra day as there was a Zulu village to visit in addition to the walk down to the Buffalo river where Lieutenants Melvill and Coghill lost their lives saving the Queen's Colour of their regiment and years later became the very first men to be posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.
There was a time that when a white man in car was seen in this region, it usually meant these folks were lost. Today, there is an industry based on the work David and Nicky Rattray started meaning there's a large desire for those battles between the army of the biggest Empire the world has ever seen and the best warriors Africa has ever produced.
About the Author:
The Anglo Zulu War of 1879 last only six months but had a significant impact on both the Zulu Kingdom and the Disraeli government.. This article, Fugitives Drift Lodge Offering The Ultimate Zulu Battlefield Experience has free reprint rights.