ken <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: >James A. Donald wrote: >> So far the Pentagon has >> shattered the enemy while suffering casualties of about a thousand, >> which is roughly the same number of casualties as the British empire >> suffered doing regime change on the Zulu empire - an empire of a >> quarter of a million semi naked savages mostly armed with spears. > >Be fair. They had a trained and disciplined army. Most of whom >would obey orders to the death. That's worth a hell of a lot in >battle.
You also had to look at what they were up against. Witness the complete massacre at Isandlwana (the classic Zulu bull-and-horns overran the British camp because the troops were too far away from their ammunition to resupply, no doubt copying Elphinstone's tactic in Afghanistan) vs. post-Isandlwana use of Gatling batteries and massed field artillery (some of which was converted Naval artillery), e.g. Ulundi, where post-battle reports were of piles of Zulu dead mown down by Gatlings. The British only thought that the Zulus were just semi-naked savages until Isandlwana. Peter.
