We must now advert to the career of the most distinguished volunteer of the war, a prince who owned the most conspicuous dynastic name of the time—Napoleon Louis Bonaparte, Prince Imperial of France. Born in the purple and brought up amidst the greatest magnificence, the misfortunes of France became his own, and as an exile in England he studied at the Military College of Woolwich, where his success far surpassed even the sanguine expectations of his friends. The war in South Africa seemed to offer a sphere in which the heir of conquerors could learn to conquer. As a soldier, the prince earnestly desired to attain practical knowledge of his profession; as a Napoleon, he thirsted to distinguish himself by taking the sword each of his family had experienced to be the Key of Empire. Great Britain was the refuge of his family, and among the soldiers of Great Britain he felt at home. On the 27th of February, 1879, Prince Louis Napoleon received the sacrament of the Catholic Church before the Emperor's tomb at Chiselhurst, and then embarked in the steamer Danube for the theatre of war. His determination to go to Zululand was absolutely his own act, and his brave mother had to yield to his judgment what her own heart opposed. The prince was singularly calculated to win the affection of all. Pure, wise, and Christian, he had declared, "If I am restored to the throne of my father, I will have none near me whose truth, honour, and morality are not above suspicion." As free from affectation as possible, he was gay, simple, affable, and so full of kindliness as to draw to him the hearts of all with whom he came in contact. On the voyage out he mixed with the passengers as one of them, joined in their games, and made himself beloved as much by the charm of his manner as the goodness of his nature.[39] Arrived at Cape Town, the prince became the guest of Lady Frere, the Governor being absent in Natal. He only remained there a few days, during the stay of the Danube, and went on in that steamer to Natal. The prince had received permission from the authorities to accompany the staff of the British army, and the Duke of Cambridge had written letters on this subject to Lord Chelmsford and to Sir Bartle Frere.
The prince in action.
With that hatred of ostentation and desire of giving as little trouble as possible which markedly actuated all the proceedings of the prince, he merely took one servant to the front, and even left his faithful companion, M. Uhlmann, at D'Urban. Towards the end of April indisposition prevented his joining the head-quarters staff of Lord Chelmsford, but he was delayed only a few days in Pietermaritzburg. It soon became evident to all his companions in arms that the prince was the bravest of the brave. No idea of fear ever crossed his mind, and as this undaunted disposition was not tempered by experience, it should have induced greater watchfulness on the part of those men of high rank in the British army who were virtually his guardians during the campaign. In a reconnaissance which took place on Sunday, the 18th of May, the prince displayed that coolness in the face of danger for which he was remarkable. On that day twenty-five men of Bettington's Horse, and the mounted Basutos under Colonel Harrison, accompanied by the Prince Imperial, crossed the Blood river, and subsequently descended into the Ityotyozi valley, where they were to meet Colonel Buller and 300 men. They missed this force, however, and had to bivouac for the night near the south-east extremity of the Incqutu. No fires were allowed, and in shivering silence the night was passed, the enemy being expected at any moment. At daybreak they set off in quest of the road, and when approaching an ascent leading to a large kraal, were fired upon by sixty Zulus, who lined the ridge of rocks above. This fusillade was immediately returned, and without any hesitation Captain Bettington led straight up. The road was exceedingly steep and covered with boulders, but by a sudden charge the position was taken. Two Zulus were killed and seven horses captured. The prince evidently relished this engagement, and was as cool and collected throughout as if sitting in his study. In the captured kraal several relics of Isandhlwana were discovered, among which was a saddle of Colonel Black's, 2-24th, empty boxes of Martini-Henry, and an artillery forge bellows.
To show the narrow escapes which sometimes occurred, an incident that followed this little engagement may be related. Captain Bettington rode after three Zulus, two of whom were armed with guns and one with assegai. Thinking he was unarmed, they allowed him to come within ten yards. He called out and fired his revolver; two of the three loaded chambers missed fire, and one of the Zulus was just taking aim with his gun at a distance of only fifteen yards, when the third chamber exploded and the man fell dead. The other two ran away, and the remainder of the patrol came up shortly afterwards.
The prince was exceedingly fond of real work, and of sharing every privation and danger of his comrades. He was no feather-bed soldier. Anxious always to go out with patrols and on reconnaissance duty, it would have seemed ungracious to check his ardour, but his own daring and utter absence of fear made it specially necessary that men of tried experience should accompany him. At the commencement of June the Prince Imperial, attached to the Quartermaster-General's department, was at General Newdigate's camp. He had applied for and obtained leave to go on ahead of the division to the site of the new camp about to be formed. On the morning of the 1st of June, the reconnoitring party set out, consisting of the Prince Imperial, Lieutenant Carey of H.M. 98th Regiment, six selected men of Bettington's Horse, and one Kafir. Six mounted Basutos had been ordered to join the party, but they were left behind. The spot to which they were about to proceed was familiar to the prince, and he was aware
Death of the prince.
that it was in the vicinity of Lord Chelmsford's camp on one side, and of General Wood's on the other. The party started at half-past nine o'clock, and when they arrived at the neck of the Incenci mountain were joined by some officers, who, after riding some distance with them, went off towards the left, in the direction of General Wood's camp. After crossing a rivulet which forms a tributary to the Ityotyozi river, they reached a large flat-topped hill, and there the prince, ordering the men to slacken girths for a little, took a sketch of the country.[40]
Shortly after the march was resumed, the prince pointed out the kraal from which he had been fired upon on a previous occasion, and turned off to examine another one, which was found empty. Immediately afterwards the party descended towards a third kraal, about a mile further on, as the prince observed a small river—the Mbazani—at which the horses could be watered, and where coffee could be made for the men. The kraal consisted of five huts, with a small stone enclosure, and was distant about 200 yards from the river. In front there was an open space, on which fires for cooking had been made, but between the kraal and the river tambookie grass grew, five or six feet in height, with mealies and Kafir corn interspersed. The party halted on the open space, and the prince gave the order to "off saddle" for an hour. No sign of life was visible, except where two or three dogs furtively ran from the intruders. Water was obtained, coffee made, the horses were turned into the grass and grain crops, while with a feeling of perfect security all lay stretched, resting, on the ground.
The prince's heroism.