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352:. Three formed the Zikhali Horse squadron, named after their chief. The troopers fought well against the Zulus and were dismissed late in the battle by Colonel Durnford who was eager to save as many of his men as possible from the chaotic battle. The mounted NNH soldiers escaped quickly from the battlefield, and many black NNH troopers are credited with stopping to give rides to native and British soldiers struggling to escape the battlefield on foot. Most notably,
25:
295:, the NNC officers, NCO's, and soldiers who possessed firearms were deployed along the barricade. The rest of the NNC, stripped of their command and armed only with spears, were posted outside the mealy bag and biscuit box barricade within the stone-walled cattle kraal. They broke and fled as soon as the Zulu force came into sight, some NCOs and Captain Stephenson joining them. Lieutenant
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in
January 1879, the NNC's commander, Colonel Durnford, frequently voiced his opinion that the NNC troops should be used as scouts for the advancing British army, as their appearance (similar to Zulu warriors) would confuse Zulu scouts. The NNC was, in his view, particularly well-adapted to
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The Natal legislature established the Natal
Mounted Police in 1873 and appointed Major J. G. Dartnell as commander. However, they were slow to appropriate funds for the organization. The first trooper enrolled in March 1874. The first headquarters were at Fort Napier in
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Primarily due to logistical and budget constraints, but also due to the
European population's fear that arming the black population would create a severe security risk, initially fewer than one in ten NNC troopers were issued rifles; the rest made do with traditional
338:, and other tribes, as well as black Christians from Edendale Mission. The NNH were much better-equipped than their infantry counterparts; they wore tan-colored European uniforms, rode horses with full equipment, and bore a
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and cowhide shields. The officers and NCOs, about 90 men per battalion, carried rifles, ammunition and bayonets. In addition, soldiers who were issued a musket firearm were provided only four rounds of
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was rescued and ridden to safety by an NNH trooper. Around 200 NNH troopers survived
Isandlwana, but unlike the NNC infantry, were recommitted to the war; the remainder of the NNH saw action at the
291:, NNC units fought alongside British counterparts and sustained heavy casualties. Many NNC were killed in hand-to-hand combat while trying to retreat across the Buffalo River. At the
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and three
European officers per company. Units received rudimentary training at best. Elements of standard British infantry training were not added until after the Zulu War.
322:, where several NNC troops and a small British force were ambushed and killed by Zulu troops. After the war, the NNC was disbanded and the troops returned to civilian life.
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and illness resulting from over-exposure to the sun in the South
African summer) and were not encumbered with heavy equipment. Instead, the commander of the British forces,
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After
Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift, British commanders in South Africa worried about the loyalty of their NNC detachments, and many were incorporated into the
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Due to budget constraints, the
British were unable to provide NNC troops with uniforms. Instead, soldiers wore traditional tribal apparel with a red cloth
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force. Formed of six troops of approximately fifty men each, the NNH was largely recruited from the amaNgwane, a Natal tribe traditionally hostile to the
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force in conquered
Zululand and saw action during the Zulu civil wars which began in the early 1880s. The NNH was finally disbanded during the 1899–1902
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10 captains, 20 lieutenants, 30 sergeants, 30 corporals and some 100 soldiers, or about 20% of the total each battalion had some sort of firearm.
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in addition to traditional spears. Units of the NNH were led by
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roles, as NNC soldiers were generally in better physical condition than British regulars (some of whom were hampered by
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The Washing of the Spears: The Rise and Fall of the Zulu Nation Under Shaka and its Fall in the Zulu War of 1879
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and natives. The infantry was created in 1878. Most enlisted troops were drawn from the
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was created in 1873 to bolster the defenses of Natal. It enlisted European officers,
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While the bulk of the NNC consisted of infantrymen, the Natal Native Horse added a
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Members of the Natal Native Contingent (NNC) armed with assegais and shields, 1879
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Black soldiers of the queen: the Natal native contingent in the Anglo-Zulu War
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Smith, Keith I. (2008). "Major Graves and the Natal Native Contingent".
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at any one time. The bulk of the NNC fought with traditional African
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and Mpondo tribes, which had had long experience fighting the
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warriors. NCO's and officers wore Khaki and black uniforms.
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The Anglo-Zulu War-Isandlwana: the revelation of a disaster
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571:(Rev. ed.). Tuscaloosa, Ala: Univ. of Alabama Press.
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The infantry was created in 1878 under Lieutenant-Colonel
689:. Essential Histories 56. Oxford: Osprey Publishing Ltd.
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The structure of the NNC followed the pattern of regular
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and only about 20% of the unit had some sort of gun.
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Military units and formations of the British Empire
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Zulu War - Volunteers, Irregulars & Auxiliaries
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Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research
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214:of 100 black soldiers each, with six European
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192:as part of the Zululand expeditionary force.
152:. The Contingent saw action during the 1879
710:. Men-at-Arms 388. Osperey Publishing Ltd.
639:The 100 Worst Military Disasters in History
364:. After the war, the NNH was retained as a
287:Battlefield performance was uneven. At the
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311:for his gallantry in the ensuing battle.
109:Learn how and when to remove this message
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354:Horace Smith-Dorrien
158:Natal Mounted Police
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210:, divided into ten
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532:Morris, Donald R.
326:Natal Native Horse
316:Natal Border Guard
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738:978-1-78200-365-6
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360:and at the
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400:References
350:Isandlwana
278:heatstroke
245:ammunition
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69:newspapers
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544:cite book
454:Holt 1913
442:Holt 1913
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222:Equipment
212:companies
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747:See also
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228:bandanna
204:regiment
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253:shields
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374:Boers
336:Zulus
301:Swiss
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