The Story of the Zulu Campaign

by Waller Ashe; Edmund Verney Wyatt-Edgell

Many beautiful flowers gladdened the eye on the march, amongst which were tiger lilies, convolvuli, primulas of a rich deep yellow, and another species having the appearance of a foxglove opened back. In the valley of the Amatikula were some thorn-bushes of osier-like growth, which the natives use for fencing their kraals, and these bore large purple bell-shaped flowers. On the coast grow some of a similar nature, and a full mile further on were white primulas, large yellow daisies, and small red and blue flowers not unlike forget-me-nots. After this came some rough marching, excessively trying to the waggons and oxen, over very steep hills, through patches of tiger-grass, and across ravines forty and fifty feet deep, with almost precipitous sides, at each of which it became necessary to unload the more heavily-laden waggons and carry the contents up by hand. All the hills were exceedingly rocky, being composed mostly of granite, but in some instances of nearly pure quartz, thickly clothed, however, with trees whenever the inequalities of the ground and surface allowed the soil to accumulate. The greater number of these trees were acacias in full bloom, their red, white, and yellow blossoms, and those of other flowering trees standing out in rich masses of gorgeous and Turneresque colour. Late in the afternoon the column arrived at the camping-ground near Fort Crealock, where the works were proceeding rapidly towards completion, and every preparation was being made to reconnoitre on to the Umlalasi. The laager was formed above a rocky pass, having at the bottom pools of water in splendid granite basins. Out of these two small streams issued, one running west and the other east, and falling ultimately into the Umlalasi and the Umlatoosi. The next day a patrol was sent out to explore a deserted kraal five miles distant. Barrow, with about 100 horsemen, also went out scouting; but after riding a couple of miles found the hills so closed in on either side and the path so blocked with bamboo cane grass that his men were compelled to dismount and lead their horses. The thick growth also shut out most of the view of the hills, the prospect of which, however, when a peep was obtainable, was delightful. By the side of the path was a torrent bed more than twenty feet deep, with nearly perpendicular sides, and over this slope went one of Barrow's men, horse and rider rolling over each other until the stream below was reached, luckily without causing any injury to the trooper—a Dutchman, whom Barrow congratulated by telling him he suffered no injury as he fell upon his head. A little hair rubbed off a remarkably sun-browned forehead was all the damage done, while the horse had only a few scratches. The latter part of the pass, the same afternoon, when the march was continued to Chelmsford, was very slippery sandstone and quartz; and at one point, where the waggons had to wind round in single file, the hills, clothed to their summits with trees, rose to some 300 feet in height. These heights were scouted as the troops advanced, but nothing but old women and children were seen.

The valleys through which the column passed were very fertile, with pleasing alternations of open wood, jungle, grass, and cultivation. The torrents, however, from the hills in the rainy season must do great injury to the crops of mealies, and several spruits and streams were crossed, flowing knee-deep between thickets of bamboo and tall rushes, which, when flooded, would have been impassable.

The second brigade was behind encamped on the Inyezani, and included the Buffs, Naval Brigade, 88th, and Sandham's battery, and came on to Chelmsford as the first brigade marched into camp at Napoleon hill.

The two main causes of the seemingly protracted delay in the advance of General Crealock's division were want of transport beasts, among which a severe epidemic had broken out, and the large amount of fort-building and road-making requisite in and around Port Durnford. Still, the time taken up in regard to this new base was by no means wasted, as it sufficed to keep a large and well-armed portion of the Zulu army idle in this vicinity, and thus gave Lord Chelmsford immense facilities for pushing on his men to the left front, whilst General Crealock was able to utilise his force towards the coast while waiting for transport to move up into the interior.

The sick-list still continued somewhat heavy, a very large proportion of officers and men being hors de combat. Much of the malaria, the medical authorities considered, arose from the effluvia caused by the decomposition of the numerous carcases of oxen and horses which lay all along the road, and literally tainted and poisoned the air. These carcases lay where the convoys had to pass, and the consequence was that whenever a detachment had to come or go to or from the fort, some portion, often a large percentage, reported themselves ill with fever. The remedy seemed easy, but was not so. The men were worked so hard at digging and entrenching, that it was impossible to detail fatigue parties to bury or remove the carcases, which, therefore, were left to breed pestilence in the camp.

On June 22nd General Crealock decided to make another strong reconnaissance towards the sea on the following day, and orders were given overnight that the entire cavalry force, consisting of two squadrons of mounted infantry, the Natal Horse, and the native Basuto scouts, should parade at daybreak with the whole of the 91st Highlanders. The General's object was to utilise his stay at Fort Napoleon by doing as much to open communications with Port Durnford as possible, and particularly to effect what improvements could be made in the road between the fort and that place.

The only result of this expedition was that the troops accidentally came upon a body of 250 Zulus, driving away a large number of oxen; of which, after a sharp skirmish, though without the loss of a man, they captured 192 fine head, as well as numerous women and children, who came to the General imploring protection. This was of course assured to them; and as they appeared hungry and half starved, biscuits and mealies were served out to them upon the ground. On the homeward march to Fort Napoleon they were overtaken by two very good-looking young Zulus, fully armed and equipped in war panoply. These men stated that they belonged to Cuzame, a powerful Zulu chief, who was now on his way with his wives and head men to Fort Napoleon to surrender. On arriving at the fort later on in the evening, this was found to be the case. After a long interview with General Crealock, in which Cuzame gave some valuable information in regard to Cetywayo's army then collecting for the defence of the big kraals, the chief was ordered by the General to leave his family and some of his warriors, and return to his kraal for his arms and cattle. This he expressed himself most willing and anxious to do.

It was now discovered that it was an error to suppose that the Zulus were a united nation, all regarding Cetywayo as their supreme autocrat and head. On the contrary, there were other chieftains with objects and ambitions of their own. Thus, a chief named Umsintwanga (or the "Old Fox") came in on the morning of June 26th, with the usual ivory tusk and proposals for peace. He and his party were seen at daybreak about two or three miles from the camp trying to ford a small stream, tributary to the Umlalazi. The vedettes could not quite make out their proceedings, as, when halfway across the stream, they turned back, ascended a neighbouring kop, and spent a considerable time in reconnoitring the position of the fort. This naturally excited the suspicions of the patrol, to whom the mounted vedettes reported, and a small mounted body of men was sent to make a circuit and cut them off in case they attempted to retire. Whether this movement was observed is uncertain, but eventually, after considerable delay, and after approaching the camp from several different points, the chief and his attendants, four in number only, came boldly up to the patrol, and requested to be brought into camp, to the presence of the great chief. At eight o'clock, Umsintwanga, who is a rather finely built, elderly man, inclined to be corpulent, was brought into the presence of General Crealock, who treated him with the greatest courtesy and respect. The countenance of the chief showed a curious mixture of dogged determination, savage cunning, and treachery. His hair was frizzed, and plastered elaborately with red clay and grease, while he wore a belt with some foxtails round his waist, and a species of garters of smaller tails tied below the knee. His mantle seemed to be an old and much-stained horse-blanket, and above this was a small tippet of leopard-skin, worn something like a herald's tabard. He carried no weapon save a stout knobkerrie, and his attendants, who were four splendidly stalwart Zulus, carried the tusk with the greatest ease and dignity. Care had been taken that the place of conference should be out of sight of the fort, and for this purpose the base of a small hollow near the camp had been chosen, where the rising ground intervened and prevented any observation of what was going on in the trenches and about the lines. The conference was not of long duration, for after waiting a reasonable time to allow the chief time to collect himself, the general at once and shortly asked what was the meaning and purport of his mission, and why he had come into camp. To this Umsintwanga, through an interpreter, replied that he was sent by the king and his indunas to sue for peace, and in proof of their overtures being sincere he desired to present the immemorial symbol of peace and friendship, the ivory tusk. He said further, that he was deputed to ask the stoppage of the 1st Division, the proceedings of which had much grieved and astonished the king, and he, therefore, was desired to ask that it should advance no further towards the king's kraal, while he, the ambassador, might be allowed to go through our division to Natal. Umsintwanga spoke tolerably well, and seemed not to have learnt his speech off by heart, as he occasionally hesitated, stopped, and now and then exchanged words and phrases for others which he thought more suitable. General Crealock, who listened with the utmost deference and patience to the somewhat long tirade, then rather abruptly said, "Am I to understand you distinctly, and without any reservation, that you, Umsintwanga, induna, come direct and with full authority from the king?" This query seemed to astonish and somewhat confuse the ambassador, who, after some little circumlocution, admitted that he had come, if not quite with the king's authority, at least with his knowledge and sanction. On being pressed a little more, the old chief further admitted that it was principally by the desire of the indunas, more than by that of the king, that he had come, and he still most positively adhered to the statement that his proposals were official and in good faith. Umsintwanga was then informed that he had not come to the proper camp with his proposals, that it was to Lord Chelmsford, and no other, that he must apply, and that even if he went to Lord Chelmsford he would not be listened to unless the demands specified in his lordship's ultimatum were complied with to the letter. The whole of the interview did not occupy more than a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes; and when it was over, it would have been quite impossible to have told, from the imperturbable countenances of the induna and his suite, whether they were disappointed or not. They seemed to take their rebuff as if they expected it, and were then conducted by a circuitous route away from our camp, and left, with the tusk, two miles upon their road.

It must here be remarked that Lord Chelmsford had throughout the campaign shown the greatest suavity and patience to any attempt at peaceful proposals, but he had by this time seen the necessity of a certain degree of firmness, and General Crealock, although he doubtless would have given a similar answer had he not been instructed, had a complete understanding with the Commander-in-chief that no proposals were to be listened to unless accompanied with the fulfilment of the conditions laid down in the chief's message to the last messengers. Brigadiers Bray and Rowlands, together with the whole of the General's staff, were present at the interview, and the induna and his attendants, although unwilling to manifest any surprise, were evidently impressed with the quietude and promptitude with which every wish and order of the General were carried out. Again on June 21st, General Crealock, then engaged in completing the fortifications at Napoleon hill, rode out across the Umlalazi river with a small staff and escort, to interview a chief named Umguelumgwizi, who had just made friendly overtures and expressed a wish to consult the General as to what his future line of conduct should be. Umguelumgwizi's kraal was some miles off, but the chief said he would come and meet the General; and not more than two miles in his direction had been traversed when he was seen coming, accompanied by several of his sons and head men. The Zulu chief was known to be rich in cattle, and possessed of considerable local influence. He was a man apparently about fifty-two or fifty-three years of age, and, in spite of a somewhat sinister expression, had a tolerably open and apparently honest manner of speaking. He was not by any means long in coming to the point, declaring emphatically that he had no quarrel with the English, or, for the matter of that, he added, with the Dutch. He had heard of and understood the award given by the English Commissioners in regard to the Dutch boundary, and he thought "Sompsen" and "Bartle" had behaved most generously to Cetywayo. He had been obliged to go out to fight on Cetywayo's side, but neither he nor his young men wished to go out again. If he refused, he would be accused of witchcraft, "smelt out" and "eaten out." What was he under these circumstances to do? General Crealock, who had listened very patiently to this somewhat long harangue, said he had spoken honestly and well, that as a soldier he did not wish to advise any man to desert his king or his chief, but that he could not be doing wrong in refusing to fight in what he considered an unjust cause. If he chose to come in and surrender, with his arms, his cattle, his wives, children, and his tribe, all should be protected, and all should be held for him in trust till peace was made. The chief, who seemed much pleased with General Crealock's kind and manly advice, consulted a few moments with those of his advisers who were with him, and then asked the General to give him one day for consideration. "Willingly, my friends," said Crealock, "and I will meet you on this side of the river to-morrow, when you can tell me your decision." Upon the Monday (June 22nd), therefore, directly after the General had made his usual tour of inspection among the road fatigues, he crossed over, this time with a couple of troops of Barrow's men, and met Umguelumgwizi with an immense following, consisting of his wives and children. The General, however, explained to the chief that he could only accept this surrender in part, and that it would not be complete until all his cattle and all his fighting men came in. This the chief promised to attend to.

On the 25th the 1st Brigade, under General Rowlands, crossed and moved down the river, encamping about six miles from here. The day following this brigade moved on to Port Durnford, and reinforced the small force there. On the 27th Clarke's Brigade started from this place, and moved on to support Rowlands', encamping and laagering up two hills in sight of the 1st Brigade. From this encampment a splendid view of Fort Durnford can be obtained.