Great Zulu Battles 1838-1906

Ian Knight is probably the preeminent authority on Zulu History, and this is a fascinating account of a series of 10 different battles that occurred over the course of 70 years, featuring Zulus against the Boers, Zulus against the British, and Zulus against Zulus. Probably the best known Zulu battle is Rorkes' Drift, but that incident really deserves its own book, and Knight and other authors have already done so (see Ian Knight's "Campaign Series 42, Rorkes' Drift 1879", for a good overview, but he also has done a more thorough analysis of that battle in another book). If you want a more detailed study of the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 then there is no shortage of other good books to read, but in terms of the development and showcasing of Zulu warfare after Shaka and into the early 20th Century, then this is an excellent and exciting piece of work.

A useful and informative introduction to the Zulu wars. Several major battles are covered in depth, and the general trends of the war explained. Overall tactics for the Zulu Nation are discussed in some length, however the same treatment is not given to the British side. The reader is left with the overall impression that the main tactic of the Zulu Nation was to field vastly superior numbers, and without this there was little chance of victory. There is a lack of detail on the weapons and equipment and dress used by each side which would have been an important and interesting addition