|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Battle of Rorke's Drift
Cranston Military Prints  By Subject Military Art 19th Century Conflicts Zulu War  Battle of Rorke's Drift |
[UP] - Battle of Ulundi - Battle of Isandhlwana - Battle of Rorke's Drift - Zulu War Print List |
| Battle of Rorke's Drift. Our page of art prints and paintings depicting the Battle of Rorke's Drift during the Zulu War. |
| Navigation | |
| Page 2 of 2 | Previous .. Page 2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Navigation | |
| Page 2 of 2 | Previous .. Page 2 |
| Text for the above items : |
The Defence of Rorke's Drift by Jason Askew. The Battle at Rorke's Drift, also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was an action in the Anglo-Zulu War. The defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers, immediately followed the British Army's defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana on 22nd January 1879, and continued into the following day, 23rd January. 150 British and colonial troops successfully defended the garrison against an intense assault by approximately 2000 Zulu warriors. The intense and noisy Zulu attacks on Rorke's Drift came very close to defeating the tiny garrison, but were ultimately repelled by blasts of Martini-Henry rifle fire-and some smart bayonet work-with some guts behind the bayonet thrusts! Eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded to the defenders, along with a number of other decorations and honours. Of particular note in the painting is the dog 'Pip' - he survived Isandlwhana by retreating along the fugitive's trail to Rorke's Drift. During the Zulu attacks on Rorke's drift, Pip did his part in the defence - by jumping on the mealie bag parapets and barking at Zulus- who were hiding in the long grass and sneaking up to the defences, then biting any Zulu who came within range. Unfortunately Pip was not officially recognised for his part in the action. He was not awarded a VC, on the basis that he was a volunteer canine that accompanied an officer, rather than a War Office issued canine. Conversely, if Pip had been killed, then he would not have been officially listed as a casualty, as he accompanied the army in a strictly private capacity. British army horses were in a different category as they were War Office issue, therefore the loss of a horse in action, or to disease, carried a financial liability for the War Office. |
This Heroic Little Garrison, Defence of Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. Men of the 24th of foot, or 2nd Warwickshire regiment (later in 1881 to become the South Wales Borderers) repel the massed Zulus attempting to smash through the mealie bag entrenchment. At the conclusion of the battle, hundreds of Zulus lay dead. According to official figures the British lost 25 men, 11 Victoria crosses were awarded. |
The Defence of Rorkes Drift by Alphonse De Neuville. (PC) By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 24th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night. |
Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. No text for this item |
Soldier, 24th of Foot at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P) No text for this item |
Rorkes Drift January 22nd, 1879 by Stuart Liptrot Defending the barracades, men of the 24th of Foot, or 2nd Warwickshire regiment (later in 1881 to become the South Wales Borderers) repel the massed Zulus attempting to smash through the mealie bag entrenchment. At the end of the battle, hundreds of the Zulu warriors of the uThulwans, iNdlondo and uDloko regiments lay dead. According to official figures the British lost 25 men, 11 Victoria crosses were awarded for the defence of Rorkes Drift. |
Defence of Rorkes Drift by Brian Palmer Men of the 24th Foot defend Rorkes Drift against an overwhelming number of Zulus near the barricades, and the hand to hand fighting. Surgeon Reynolds can be seen attending a wounded soldier. |
Plugging the Gap by Mark Churms. Lt Gonville Bromhead stands over Private Hitch, B Co. 2/24th. Rorkes Drift, front barricade |
Rorkes Drift by Jason Askew. The painting depicts the climax of the Zulu attacks at the defence of Rorkes Drift. The Zulus were unable to effectively penetrate the mealie bag defenses at Rorkes Drift, even though they succeeded in burning down the hospital, and peppering the storehouse with bullet holes. The confined space available to the British garrison caused a certain degree of physical compression, but this in fact worked against the Zulus, as it drove the defenders closer together with the result being that the volley fire from the defenders was concentrated and subsequently very effective at close range, as opposed to the spread out skirmish line type formation used at Isandlwhana. The Zulu attacks also became uncoordinated, being driven forward by charismatic individuals, but lacking the support of the necessary numbers needed to overwhelm the desperate defenders, who now appreciated that they were literally fighting for their lives. |
Wounded by Mark Churms. Corporal Allen and Corporal Lyons, B. Company 2nd Battalion 24th Foot Rorkes Drift Back Wall, 6pm January 22nd 1879. After the initial Zulu assault on the back wall of the post failed at about 4.30pm, a fire-fight broke out between Zulu snipers posted on the terraces of the Shiyane (Oskarsberg) Hill and the defenders posted behind the barricade of wagons and mealie-bags. This section of the wall as commanded by Sergeant Henry Gallagher, of B Company. At about 6 pm, Corporal Lyons was leaning over the barricade to aim when he was hit in the neck by a bullet which paralysed him, as his friend, Corporal Allen, bent to help him, Allen too was shot through the arm. In the foreground Corporal Attwood of the Army Service Corps distributes ammunition. The wall was abandoned shortly after and the British retired to the small are in front of the storehouse. Allen was later awarded the VC, and Attwood the DCM. He was born at Churcham, Gloucestershire, and served for five years in the Monmouthshire Militia before joining the 24th Regiment. He served through the Kaffir War 1877-8 before his bravery at Rorkes Drift for which he was presented with the Victoria Cross by Lord Wolseley on August 3rd 1879. He later served in the 1st Volunteers Battalion Royal Fusiliers. |
To the Meallie Bags, Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P) No text for this item |
Defence of Rorkes Drift by Alphonse De Neuville. By about 6pm the Zulu attacks had extended all around the front of the post, and fighting raged at hand-to-hand along the mealie-bag wall. Lieutenant Chard himself took up a position on the barricade, firing over the mealie-bags with a Martini-Henry, whilst Lieutenant Bromhead directed any spare men to plug the gaps in the line. The men in the yard and on the front wall were dangerously exposed to the fire of Zulu marksmen posted in the rocky terraces on Shiyane (Oskarsberg) hill behind the post. Several men were hit, including Acting Assistant Commissary Dalton, and Corporal Allen of the 14th. Surgeon Reynolds treated the wounded as best he could despite the fire. Once the veranda at the front of the hospital had been abandoned, the Zulus had mounted a determined attack on the building itself, setting fire to the thatched roof with spears tied with burning grass. The defenders were forced to evacuate the patients room by room, eventually passing them out through a small window into the open yard. Shortly after 6pm Chard decided that the Zulu pressure was too great, and ordered a withdrawal to a barricade of biscuit boxes which had been hastily erected across the yard, from the corner of the store-house to the front mealie-bag wall. In this small compound the garrison would fight for their lives throughout most of the coming night. |
Rorkes Drift 1879 - Against All Odds The story of historys most famous rearguard action, The story of the extraordinary events of January 22nd 1879 has never lost any of its fascination. The defence of Rorkes Drift by a handful of British redcoat soldiers provides history with a tale of incredible courage and valour, qualities displayed by the brave men of both sides who fought to the death on that momentous day. While Britain cheered its heroes, she also plotted a merciless revenge on the Zulu nation. Featuring extensive re-enactment action footage and dramatised eye-witness accounts of the battle, this DVD tells the story of the British soldiers who successfully defended Rorkes Drift against more than 4000 Zulu warriors. It also includes period images and photographs, computer graphics and expert comment from Ian Knight, one of the worlds leading authorities on the Zulu Wars. Narrated by Hu Pryce |
Defence of Rokes Drift, 1879 by Henry Dupray. No text for this item |
Rorkes Drift - Zulu War. Ian Knight and Ian Castle. If Islandlwana was the supreme humiliation of the British Empire at the outset of the 1879 Zulu War, then the heroic epic of Rorkes Drift , fought on the same day, was its redemption. The defence of this isolated mission station and hospital by a scratch force commanded by a couple of junior officers and a handful of largely Welsh soldiers has long held legendary status - thanks partly to the film Zulu . In this fully illustrated battlefield guide, those acknowledged authorities on all things Zulu, Ian Knight and Ian Castle, give an account of the action in which more VCs (14) were won on one day than ever before or since. Given the epic facts the book cannot fail to thrill - but it is an expert analysis too. |
Rorke's Drift by Keith Rocco. Natal province January 22nd 1879. |
Sergeant at Rorkes Drift by Chris Collingwood. (P) No text for this item |
Colour Sergeant Frank Bourne at the Defence of Rorke's Drift by David Pentland. No text for this item |
Wounded by Mark Churms (P) The original study for Wounded which was not used due to the size of the figures compared to the rest of the series even though as an oil study it shows more detail and is probably the best in this series of studies by Mark Churms. |
Eve of Distinction by Mark Churms (P) The original oil study for the larger painting of Eve of Distinction |
| Navigation | |
| Page 2 of 2 | Previous .. Page 2 |
|
Contact Details |
|
Sign Up To Our Newsletter!
This website is owned by Cranston Fine Arts. Torwood House, Torwoodhill Road, Rhu, Helensburgh, Scotland, G848LE Contact: Tel: (+44) (0) 1436 820269. Email: cranstonorders -at- outlook.com
|
|
|
