My Great grandfather William McCombe was in the 1st Battlion 13th Reg and fought in the Zulu War. I have his medal from the conflict but until now I have been unable to determine which battle he was involved in. Thank you for this as it gives me an insight into what he must have experienced. Fantastic video and I will certainly watch more from your channel.
Hi, how are you? I'm not sure if you are a fan of podcasts but if you are my new one has just launched. It is about British military history and season one is the Anglo-Zulu war. If it sounds like your cup of tea then here is the link - podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-redcoat-history-podcast/id1464633664 or you can just google Redcoat History Podcast. Any thoughts pr feedback welcome and I may even have to get you on as a guest!
Your series is the best history tour I've ever seen on RU-vid. I cannot thank you enough for it. I know it's a labor of love for u but it has to have been a chunk out of pocket
That’s really nice to hear thanks a lot. Yeah it does cost a lot more money than I can ever make back but I’m just proud to share these stories with the world.
Another top video Chris. I am so envious that you have walked those grounds. I am yet to get out there. It's quite incredible to think that Hackett survived despite that quite bizarre and horrific injury.
Cheers, Keith. Yeah, sadly he didn't live a long and fulfilling life after tho. Kambula is probably one of my favourite battlefields to visit. Stunning.
@@redcoathistory I've yet to get out there mate, something always got in the way. I will definitely visit one day. Your video tours are excellent and certainly scratch an itch for me. lol
Another absolutely top-class video in this absolutely top class series mate........👌👌 I love British military history and, as I can't get out to thee battlefields, you've done both the fallen British and Zulu men proud. 🇬🇧✌️
@@fatherglyn Hi there - if you check my video feed there are a handful of Boer war videos though I haven't covered it for the podcast yet (hopefully one day). I haven't ran any commercial tours myself but I'm hoping to become legally badged to do so this year. WIll keep you posted!
I LOVE your knowledge on this subject. I thought I knew everything about the Zulu wars. But realised I know very little. Have managed to do a video about Habani mountain?
Hi thanks a lot. I also still have a lot to learn. I have a new podcast out now if you interested...you can check my website www.redcoathistory.com for more. With regards Hlobane mountain I'm really keen to do something but I think I should take a guide as it's very big and difficult to climb. Will let you know! Cheers
Just finished the first series of the podcast and it is brilliant, thank you very much. I am not really ready to move on yet so I am going to digest all of the Anglo-Zulu War RU-vid stuff now :).
@@redcoathistory They're actually for an upcoming documentary. About the war but focusing on Isandlwana & whether or not some better decisions could have been made & trying to figure out the exact approach of the Zulus. Yeah, it's tough going on resources. Even the British military maps of the day are a bit sketchy.
Redcoat: British military history Thanks Christian. Will do. FYI. Felt like I watched Isandlwana unfold at the weekend seeing my Man City team getting clobbered by Leicester. BTW Have you done a Hlobane video? Looks like a beautiful place. All the best.
Andrew Murphy ha ha funnily enough I’m a Leicester lad myself 😜 - Hlobane is on my list but I’m told I’ll need a guide and a 4x4 whixh makes it a very expensive day out
Well presented thank you a classic story of not fighting to your strengths, not easy for a Zulu army who employed the same tactics time and again.The initial orders of not attacking were sound but not easy to carry out with an army of farmers/warriors that were used to the chest and horns tactics.
In 1978, a group of us went down to Natal from Johannesburg to play extras in the making of the film Zulu Dawn. The set was on a farm called Hindenburg, about 15km from Babanango. The Babanango Hotel was the only "place of entertainment" for miles around. On a couple of occasions we took Denholm Elliot, Bob Hoskins, Simon Ward, and some others to the hotel for the evening - my friend had a driver's licence for a minibus and James Faulkner asked him to be "taxi driver". We made good acquaintance with these guys. We were camped there (on set) for nearly 6 weeks and took part in many of the battle scenes.
@@redcoathistory At some point I'll post the pics onto one of my websites. I don't use social media as my computer systems focus on eCommerce, and I don't trust social media, as these will hack into my data at the first opportunity. One of my websites is tagmakers.co.uk and if you use the "Contact Us" page on that website I will reply.
Awesome video mate, perfectly put together. So glad I found your channel the other day. I've been fascinated with the two films, seen them both don't know how many times. But I've been blissfully unaware that there were other battles. As far as I knew, Isandlwana and Rorkes drift were the only ones. Never in the slightest have I ever heard of Kambula, Ulundi, Eshowe, Ntombe Drift, Hlobane and Fort Melvill. So I've learnt soooo much in the last few days. Any idea why the other battles aren't as famous, or have I just been under a rock:) I hope there's more you can do and haven't covered yet on the Zulu war.
Thanks mate. Yeah I guess everyone remembers isandlwana and Rorkes Drift due to the drama of the battles and the subsequent films. Personally I think some of the other battles such as Khambula and Ntombe Drift equally as interesting. Thanks again for watching and for your kind words.
Thank you, Chris. An outstanding presentation as always. I measured the still visible features in Google Earth to get an idea of scale of the site and dropped a polygon approximating the perimeter of 90 transport wagons (5 meters +) over the area to the NW of the hill/ redoubt. The hexagonal wagon kraal made perfect sense as a defensive position and fits perfectly with the terrain. I was surprised by its size. With a little imagination you can almost see its shape on the landscape.
Thanks Gerry! Are you mainly interested in the Anglo Zulu war or all British military history? I'm thinking of starting a podcast - is that something you'd listen to?
Redcoat: British military history, interested in all British military history, however I do have a soft spot for the Anglo Zulu war stemming from watching Zulu as a young lad. Podcasts would be something I would definately listen to. Must say I love the videos, a factual, unbiased account portraying the bravery of the warriors on both sides.
Hi Richard - let me know if you come and I'll give any advice I can! BTW you probably already know but my new podcast is out now about the AZW - podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-redcoat-history-podcast/id1464633664 - please let me know what you think.
Thanks for commenting. Now I think about it, it's actually quite complex...I don't think Rorke's Drift was a major defeat for the Zulus especially not strategically but you are right in that they were beaten back from the ramparts of the mission station and so I should be more precise in my speech. Hope you enjoyed the video otherwise and that you keep in touch.
There was 3 battles in the opening 48 hours of the Anglo-Zulu War (Isandlawana,Nyezane River and Rorkes Drift). Historians estimate 2,500-3,000 Zulu KIA from these battles.
There were 7 major battles. The British won 5, as Redcoat listed. Zulus won at Isandlwana and Hlobane. Intombe was not really a major battle. Seige of Eshowe was not a Zulu victory either.
I cannot find a single video on the topic of how the British could have better defended themselves at the battle. I have some of my own ideas but I am no tactical expert. Would like to see something like this done. Just my observatons they should have formed an infantry square around the water and ammunition supplies with a natural barrier like a gully or hill side to cover one side of it. Could have bolstered their position with various wagon carts the had.
Thanks Joe - it's nice of you to say so but I'm afraid my Zulu is very basic. I do speak intermediate level Sesotho which is another South African language tho - so there is hope for me yet I hope. One day I'll try and learn Zulu properly.
Sorry not a 'red-out' but pronounced 'ree-dowt' otherwise nice to see somewhere that I have read about umpteen times in 'Washing of the Spears'. Would love to see Hlobane mountain if only from the bottom.
@@redcoathistory You're in a better place now .... thanks for all these walks,great perspective on what the ordinary soldier had to cope with and how terrain affected battlefield command.
@@redcoathistory Your video presentations are fascinating and well made. You can always learn more and improve your pronunciation as I'm sure you have done in the past in a similar way with your knowledge of this period of history. 👍
Great fully that British held their own way better in that battle then at Isandlwana all the way but still and least after seeing Colonel Dunford and the last of the regiment of that battle held their own for over half a hour during the last stand took down many of those spear enemies with them right guys
@@snowflakemelter1172 anthill in Africa are tough, any anthill big enough to hide a man is far harder than a sandbag of the same size . I have shot many while walking in the veld as target practice with a Martini Henry 577/450 and the bullet never made it more than a few inches into the anthill.
@@snowflakemelter1172 don't know where you live but come to Africa and I will prove it to you , anthill are not just piles of sand , they have the consistency of concrete.
Question? Why is it ALWAYS THAT MAGIC NUMBER OF 20'000 ZULUS, no matter what battle the it's ALWAYS "20'000" ZULU WARRIORS. Can you see the false and deceptive narrative here? British at Isandhlwana approximately 2'000 Zulu warriors. 20'000 And then there is the question of who counted the Zulus to check it was actually 20'000
Hi there, that's Interesting. Thanks for sharing - I'd be very keen to see more info on the false narrative so please feel free to share any sources etc.
@@peezebeuponyou3774 Apartheid and Colonisalism, both have been proven as white supremacy instruments that re-writr history to suit their narrative. If you know anything about Critical thinking ud know history is written by the winners...
Thank you very much. Love the way you explain the positions advancements and showing exactly or about positions as it is today. You opened my eyes as to the exact movements of the Jameson raid as well (explained very well). Spioenkop being one of my favourite battlefields Ive been too. One skirmish that is seems to be forgotten is the one that took place between krugersdorp and hekpoort (Its called the forgotten battle) DWARSVLEI battle. And on the same farm was another incident www.sahistory.org.za/place/dwarsvlei-near-pretoria. If you could find more info concerning this would be highly appreciated to map out position and movements. The second incident is of quite good information. 9 Oct 1900 captain of the royal scots fusiliers Hugh Montague Trenchard was ambushed> Trenchard survived to become a great man who changed the course of history. He become the father of the Royal Air Force and architect of modern air power dictating the role of aerial bombing warfare in both first and second world wars.. without him there would not have been a barrle of britain.
Hi - funnily enough I have been to the battlefields of the Magaliseberg area and I hope to explore them more. I will aim to make a video there when I take a deep dive into the Anglo-Boer war in 2022. Do you live in Joburg?
@@redcoathistory please do and if I can tag along will be the highlight of my time. Yes I stay in krugersdorp, that is what got me so interested in the Jameson raid. When I lived on the family farm just outside Ladysmith was when the history bug bit me and got so into it bei g the first battle field I visited was the spioenkop. Email me with pleasure and let's get things cracking for next year. eagleeyeprinting16@gmail.com
@@eagleeyeprintingdesigning5443 Great stuff - interestingly the battlefield of Dwarsvlei is right on the main road as you drive out of Joburg into the Magalies...I'd have to check which road on the map - but I had driven past it a number of times without realising!