It happened thus:—Just after the volley had been poured in by the Zulus on either flank, Lord William Beresford, who had literally cut his way through about fifty Zulus who had tried to surround him, turned in the saddle to see how his men were getting on, and saw upon the ground a dismounted and wounded trooper about to be assegaied by half-a-dozen Zulus. Wheeling his horse round like lightning, he swept like a thunderbolt on the group, knocking three of the savages over with his horse's shoulder, and placing the other three hors de combat with a front and back-hander of his long, heavy sabre. In another moment Beresford had the wounded man safely en croupe, and carried off from what would have been a cruel death. Commandant D'Arcy, with equal gallantry, was not so fortunate, for seeing a wounded man on the ground he sought to carry him off, but his horse, being restive, reared and fell back, so that the unfortunate trooper was overtaken and assegaied, while D'Arcy was so severely bruised by falling on his revolver, that, although able to get back safely, he was unable to take part in the next day's fight. Three men killed, four wounded, and thirteen horses killed, was the total loss to our men.
A little before daybreak on the 4th, Wood, with his flying column, crossed the White Umvolosi, leaving the 1-24th Regiment in laager with all the heavy baggage and supplies. Lord Chelmsford was so pleased with Buller's magnificent reconnaissance, that he determined to advance at once upon Ulundi, giving every temptation to the Zulu army to attack, upon the plain which had been admirably surveyed two days previously by Colonel Buller. Nothing could have been better considered, nothing could have been better planned, and nothing could have been better worked out, than the details of this splendid action. Every punctilio had been observed by Lord Chelmsford as regards his answers and promises to Cetywayo. The General had said he would not cross the river, thereby placing himself at some considerable disadvantage in a strategic point, and yet up to noon of the 3rd instant no act of submission was made. On the 4th, therefore, the main body crossed after Wood's column, and knowing that the Zulu army were somewhere between the river and Ulundi, had good reason to hope that they would show fight. Lord Chelmsford therefore advanced boldly, and without any undue show of caution, across the plain. They had nothing in the shape of baggage with the exception of ammunition and water-carts; but each man carried in his haversack biscuit and preserved meat for four days.
The crossing of the river was made without any opposition, although the movements of our troops were carefully watched by a body of Zulus from a neighbouring hillock on the left, and a more brilliant and picturesque sight could not be imagined. The banks of the river were covered with tamarinds and acacia, growing right down to the water's edge; while creeping plants, such as the convolvulus, the jessamine, and the deadly nightshade, were festooned from tree to tree. The wild guava, the pomegranate, and many a sweetly-scented bush, pushed upward their luxuriant undergrowth, and gave out faint odours as they were crushed by the horses' hoofs. Bees were humming among the sweetly-scented dholiocs, and the ripple of the stream as it rushed and bubbled over the clear pebbles below made a music that seemed out of place with thoughts of bloodshed and strife. With Buller scouting far in front, Wood's division led the van, Newdigate next, and Drury-Lowe, with his gallant Lancers, brought up the rear. The fortified camp on the right bank of the Umvolosi had been left with a Gatling gun, 900 Europeans, and 250 natives, under Colonel Bellairs. As soon as favourable ground had been reached, Wood was signalled to halt and wait for the main body; and the order was then given to form a large hollow square, with the ammunition, two Gatlings, and the entrenching tool-carts and bearers in the centre. Inside this square were also two companies of Engineers and some native Pioneers attached, under Major Chard and Captain Ainsley, together with the impedimenta, consisting of water-carts, ambulance-waggons, and stretchers. The square, although large, was not unwieldy, and the steady marching of the men prevented the slightest noise or confusion. The flying column under Wood held the post of honour in the front half of the square. Major Tucker, with the 80th Regiment, and Major Owen and two Gatlings in the centre, held the front face. On his right flank were two 7-pounders of Major Tremlett's battery, under Lieutenant Davidson, with seven companies of the 13th Light Infantry, under Major England, supplemented in continuation of the right face by two more of Tremlett's guns, in charge of Captain Brown and Lieutenant Slade; then came one 9-pounder of Major Le Grice's battery, under Lieutenant Crookenden; four fine companies of the 58th making up the remainder of the right face. The rear face was composed of one gun of Le Grice's battery, two companies of the 21st Fusiliers, under Major Hazlerigg, and three companies of the 94th, under Colonel Malthus. On the left or west flank were the remaining three companies of the 94th, two 7-pounders of Major Harness's battery, under Lieutenant Parsons; eight companies of the 90th, under Major Rogers; and two guns of Major Le Grice's battery, attached pro tem. to Major Harness, under Lieutenant Elliott. Buller's Cavalry were away scouring the front and flanks, while Colonel Drury-Lowe, with two squadrons of the 17th Lancers, and Captain Shepstone's Basutos, formed the rear guard. The numbers of all ranks were as follows:—Flying Column, 2192 Europeans and 573 natives; Newdigate (2nd Division), 1870 Europeans and 530 natives; making a total of 5165 men.
Lord Chelmsford and his staff rode in the centre, in rear of the front face. He, of course, assumed the chief command; and his clear, sharp, soldierlike voice rang out like a trumpet to the men: "The square will wheel to the right." This order was taken up by the division as quickly and calmly as though by a brigade of Foot Guards at Aldershot or the Curragh. After moving on for a few miles they began to approach the smaller kraals; and Buller, with his advanced and seemingly ubiquitous riders, could be seen dashing here and there in every direction to tempt the Zulu columns, which could now be discerned along the horizon towards the left front. At the extreme end of the plain the sun glanced down upon a long line of white shields marching in a sort of double column, with skirmishers thrown out in European fashion in front and on the flanks. The square was now halted, while the first kraal was fired. This, some of Shepstone's Basutos said, was named Umlambo-Bogivimo, and Buller's men having applied their flints and steel to the task, the flames and smoke ascended to the sky. Next they came to the great kraal of King Panda, called Unodwengo; but although this was at first fired, it was found the smoke acted as such a screen to the Zulus that Lord Chelmsford ordered its extinction. Strong columns could now be seen moving out in quick though good order from Ulundi, and as they seemed bearing down upon the right front, the square took ground to the right and was halted in a capital position, pointed out to Lord Chelmsford by Buller. Our troops were now assailed by a dropping but harmless fire from the Ulundi column on the right front, and from a strong Zulu force operating in some broken ground from Unodwengo, now on the left. It was now half-past eight, and by nine o'clock the Zulu attack was fully developed. Buller's men then made a strong demonstration on the left, driving the Zulus from the hollow where they were sheltered, back to the Unodwengo kraal. This movement was well supported by Shepstone and his Basutos, who skirmished splendidly on the left and rear face of the kraal. While this, however, was going on, a Zulu on a white horse was seen leading strong reinforcements from his proper right to assist in the attack upon the cavalry on the left. The scene was now most exciting. Buller and his men fought in two ranks, the first mounted and ready to dash at a moment upon any weak point in the enemy's line; the second, dismounted, and making capital practice at long ranges, with their saddles as a rest for the rifle. As soon as the front rank became too hardly pressed, they cantered to the rear, dismounted, and relieved the second rank. This is the old Dutch mode of fighting the Zulus, and it has rarely been found unsuccessful. Colonel Lowe, at this juncture, asked Lord Chelmsford's permission to send out a squadron of his Lancers, or even a troop; but the general wisely declined, as the ground was broken, and the Zulu line too powerful to be charged. Nothing could be finer than the way in which Buller and Shepstone retired, bringing the Zulu columns and their horns under the deadly hail of our Gatlings and Martinis. Now, thought the Zulus, was the time for their grand attack. Were not the mounted men, under the terrible Buller, flying before the fierce onslaught of the Zulu braves? Still the line of white shields came roaring on, like the big white billows that roll on to and break into foam upon the South Afric shore. The ridges on the front and left were now swarming with Zulus, fierce, stern, and terrible, as with fiendish and maniacal shouts they swept over the soft and springy veldt to be shattered, bloody and broken in their pride, by the leaden tempest that now whistled from all sides of the square. "Steady, my lads; close up, fire low, and not so fast!" cried Evelyn Wood, who had his men under splendid control. "Are the mounted men all in?" said Lord Chelmsford to General Newdigate. "They are, my lord," replied Buller, who was just lighting a cigarette. "Then give the enemy a round or two of shrapnel," said the chief. Shells from the right and left were now poured in; but still on came the line of white shields. File-firing from the Martinis was poured in, but the Zulu columns were deployed, and, regardless of the mitraille, still came on in half-open order. But, under cover of their strong lines of skirmishers, the Zulu attack was now changed and further developed on the rear face, where Malthus and Hazlerigg held post. Hazlerigg, whose tall and stalwart form was conspicuous above the files of his men, made his front rank reserve its fire till the Zulus had arrived within sixty yards, and then the word was given to fire low and steady. The kraal of Unodwengo was, it has been said, upon the left, and it proved rather a thorn in the side. Behind the rising ground from which the Basutos had been driven now came a stream of thousands of Zulus sweeping round the left flank from Ulundi. Their wild yells and unearthly war-cries smote upon the air, and were heard through the ping and rattle of the rifle-fire. Under cover of the Unodwengo kraal, and sweeping over the ground beyond, this strong body, led by the chief on the white horse, formed a hollow square, and after a few moments' pause to collect themselves, dashed like a whirlwind upon the right rear angle of the square. Now every one knows that the angle of a square, like the salient angle of a bastion, is its weakest point, and for a moment it seemed a question whether the attack would succeed. The angle was held by two of Hazlerigg's companies, and although Le Grice's solitary gun, admirably served, poured forth its most deadly shells, and Hazlerigg kept his men firing in the most steady manner, at one moment it seemed as though it would come to close quarters fighting. But one terrific volley from the 21st, the 94th, the 58th, and Royal Engineers, shattered their order, their square was broken, and after a moment's pause they sought shelter from so terrific a fire. Meanwhile the front attack had again developed, and here the gallant 80th were placed at a certain disadvantage. That awkward dip in their front enabled the Zulus to make their formation for attack out of sight and out of fire, so that Major Tucker's men had to reserve their fire until the tops of the enemies' heads were seen above the mound. But the 80th behaved so coolly and so steadily that the front attack at length slackened, and the Zulu line wavered, and finally ceased to fire.
It was now a quarter to ten, and as signs of wavering were remarked in every face of the attack, Colonel Drury-Lowe at this juncture had been allowed to file his men out from an opening in the rear face, and was just forming them in squadrons, when a spent ball knocked him off his charger. He was stunned, however, only for a moment, and was again in the saddle, smiling at his mishap. Now was the moment for which the gallant Lancers had so long waited. Now every man gripped his weapon with stiffened sinews and determined heart. "Go at them, colonel, but don't pursue too far!" shouted Lord Chelmsford, as he raised his helmet to the men. Moving first at a walk to steady his men, Lowe advanced in column of troops from the right, and as soon as the ground was favourable gave the words in succession, "Trot!" "Form squadrons!" "Form line!" "Gallop!" "Charge!" Away across the broad grassy slopes, and greeted by a burst of cheering from the square, went the splendid blue-and-white line, their pennons fluttering in the morning air, and their bright and deadly steel-topped bamboo lances in rest. On they went, driving the flying Zulus headlong into a donga, where sweeping round it the pursuing squadrons forced the enemy out into the open to fly for safety towards the mountains northward. But flanking the donga, and hidden by the long grass, half of a Zulu regiment was posted to cover the retreat, and as the squadrons of Drury-Lowe's men came on a volley was poured in, which emptied several saddles, and was fatal to poor young Wyatt-Edgell, who was gallantly leading on his men. His men, almost maddened as they saw him fall, spurred more furiously on to take immediate and bloody vengeance.
A moment more and the bristling line of steel meets the black and shining wall of human flesh, rent, pierced, and gashed by a weapon as death-dealing and unsparing as their own assegai. Still, though crushed and stabbed by the lances, and though their firm array was scattered like sea-foam, the Zulus fought on in stubborn knots, nor cried for quarter, stabbing at the horses' bellies as they went down, and trying to drag the men off their horses in the mêlée. The lance was now relegated in most cases to its sling, and the heavy sabres of the troopers became red with gore. Never was a cavalry attack better timed or more effective, and never did that oft-abused arm, the lance, better vindicate its reputation as a weapon of pursuit. But now a troop of the King's Dragoon Guards, under Captain Brewster, and some irregular cavalry, are let loose from different sides of the square, and, with Lord William Beresford full six horse-lengths in advance, charge full and fair upon the flying savages, who are cut down in scores until they gain the crests of the hill; but even there no safety or rest is found, for shrapnel, fired with time-fuzes, scatters them like chaff in the wind.
The attacking force consisted of twelve regiments, and could not have been less than 23,000; 15,000 surrounding the British square, and 8000 in reserve. Their loss has been estimated at 1500, but it should probably be put down as double, for during the whole of the action they could be seen carrying their dead and wounded away. The total loss to our troops was not heavy—some dozen killed and about eighty wounded. Amongst those killed was one officer, of whom might well be said, "We could have better spared a better man." In the gallant white-and-blue line of squadrons that swept like a torrent upon the scared and flying Zulu hordes, there rode no braver, no more knightly spirit than young, gallant Wyatt-Edgell. The scion of a noble house, and a soldier by hereditary tradition and birth, he had all the accomplishments and chivalrous attributes of his race. His loss was a great blow to all, and his premature though glorious death cast a deep gloom not only over his own regiment, but over the entire camp in which he had spent so many cheerful days, esteemed and loved by officers and men alike, from highest to lowest.
After the battle of Ulundi and the destruction of the king's five great kraals, Lord Chelmsford marched his division back to Entonyani, where they remained some days, having had a storm of rain and thunder lasting thirty-six hours. As they had no tents the first night, the state of affairs may more easily be imagined than described. The rain came down in perfect torrents, sweeping away the bivouac fires and pouring through the camp like the overflow of a mighty river. The men behaved admirably, taking all the discomforts of their situation with the good humour and jocularity of disciplined troops. The horses naturally suffered most, although every attempt was made to picket them in a sheltered spot. On arriving at Entonyani they found tents waiting for them, and were thus enabled to get dry and refit. The nights were exceptionally cold and with heavy dews, causing some little sickness amongst the men.
In fully estimating the importance of this battle, we must not forget the surroundings, nor the associations of the place. The valley of the Umvolosi is essentially the heart of Zululand. It is the richest and most fertile portion of the country, and as such was chosen as the royal abode. The two branches of the river, named after the district, converge through it towards the main stream which flows on to St. Lucia Bay. The one by which the king's great kraal but lately stood passes through a comparatively open country; and its waters, gleaming clear in the sunlight, are called "White," just as the waters of the other branch, which run through a more bushy and broken district, are called "Black." In the basin drained by this extensive water-system the Zulu nation was originally cradled. Thither Dingaan retired after he had slain his brother near the Nonoti. There the brave and bustling Dutchman Retief and his companions were treacherously murdered in 1838; and there, again, Bongore, led into a trap the unsuspecting Boers, who were again duped by his representations, they believing that the king was alone at Mahlabatini. The valley where this last battle was fought is with the Zulus a sacred and historic spot. It is rife with what is most dear to the Zulu pride—legends of bloody massacre, treacherous surprise, and savage revenge. Dingaan fled from thence; Panda died there; Cetywayo was first recognized and crowned there. Could the tall and wooded grey cliffs that looked down upon the combat speak, they could tell, in a direful tale of tyrannous cruelty and wrong, most of the annals of the Zulu nation. Year by year they witnessed the periodical gathering together of Cetywayo's legions, and watched the steady outgrowth of the savage power whose overthrow, by British troops and British discipline, they beheld but a few months since. But signal and satisfactory as this victory was, it could not be accepted as final until Cetywayo had completely submitted, though some of its effects were immediate and important.
The day after the battle of Ulundi, and before the victory was known to the troops of the 1st Division, about 700 Zulus, with all their cattle, women, and children, came into the camp at Richard's Cove, near Port Durnford, to tender submission and to claim protection. There is not the slightest doubt but that they had heard of the battle, although there was not a whisper of the engagement heard amongst these people. General Crealock, to give importance to the ceremony, ordered a general parade of the division at midday, and it was impossible not to be struck with the attenuated condition of his battalions, although every available man was put on parade. Both brigades made up rather a weak division. The 1st Brigade was made up of the Buffs, two companies of the 88th, two companies of the "Shah's" and "Active's" bluejackets, and one of the marine artillery; while the 2nd Brigade was composed of the Royal Artillery, 57th, 60th Rifles, and 91st—in all twenty companies. At half past twelve the General, surrounded by his staff, rode on to the ground, and the division was wheeled into line. Then a galloper was sent out to the Zulus who were halted on the crest of the neighbouring hills, and they were told to advance and lay down their arms. Three hundred fine-looking fellows then advanced in good order, and arriving at the prescribed distance, made the customary obeisance while they deposited assegais and guns, in number about seventy, fire-arms mostly of the old pattern.