A ZULU DESERTER'S ACCOUNT OF ISANDULA BATTLE.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 120, 21 May 1879, Page 4

A ZULU DESERTER'S ACCOUNT OF ISANDULA BATTLE.

" Tbe Zulu army, consisting of the TJlundi corps, abont 3000 strong,* the Nokenke Regiment, 2000 Btrong; the Nkobamakoei Regiment, including the Uve, about 5000 strong; the Umcityu, aboot 4COO strong; the Nodwengu 2000 strong; the Umbonambi, 3000 strong j and the Udkloko, about 1000 elrong, or a total of about 20,000 men io all, left the military kraal of Nodwengu on the afternoon of l7ih Jannary. It was first addressed by the King, who said :— " I am sending you oat againat the whites, who have invaded Zaluland and driven away our cattle. You are to go against tbe column at Rorke's Drift, and drive it back into Natal; end, if the state of tbe river will allow, follow it up through Natal, right up to Drakensburg. .You will attack it by daylight, and tbe^e are enough of you to c eat it up,' and you will march slowly, ao as not to tire yourselves,' "We accordingly left Nodwengu late in the afternoon, and marched in column to the west baok of the Wbite Umfolosi, about six miles distant, where we bivouacked for the nigbt. Next day wo marched to tho leipezi military kraal, about nine miles off, where we slept, and on the 19th we ascended fo tbe table land near the Isiblungu bills, a march of about equal duration witb tbat of tbe day previous. On this day the army, which had hitherto been marching in single column, divided into two, marching parallel to and in sight of each other, that on the left consist of Nokenke, Umcityu, and Nodwengu Regiments, under the command of Tyingwayo ; the other commanded by Mavuraingwana. There were a few mounted men belonging to the chief Urirayo, who were made use of as scouts. On the 20th we moved across the open country, and slept by the laipezi Hill. We saw a body of mounted white men on thia day to our left (a strong reconnaieance was made on (be 20th, to the west of the Isipezi Hill, which wwaye y probably tbe force here indicated). On the 21at, keeping away to tbe eastward, we ocoupied a valley running north and south under the spars of. tbe Ngutu Hill, which concealed thelsandlana Hill, distant from us about 4 miles, and nearly due west of our encampment. We had been well fed during our whole march, our scouts driving in cattle and goats, and on that evening we Ht onr camp fires as usual. Our ficonls also reported to us that they had seen tbe vedettes of the English force at sunset on some hilis west-south-west of us (Lord Chelmsford with some of his staff rode up in this direction, and about this time, and saw some of ihe mounted enemy). Our orders of encampment on the 21st January were as follows: — On the extreme right were the Nodwengu, Nokenke, and Umcityu; the centre waa foimed by (he Nkobamakosi and Mbonambi, and the left of tbe Undi Corps and the Udkloko Regiment. On the morning of the 22nd January, there was no intention whatever of making any attack, on account of a superstition regarding the state of the moon, and we were sitting resting, when firing was heard on our right (tbe narrator was in the Nonenke Regiment), which we at .first imagined was the Nkobamakosi engaged, and we armed and rah forward in the direction of the sound. We were, however, soon told.iLwas the white troops fighting with;Matyanna f _9 people, some ten" miles away to our left front, and returned to our original position. J JUt8 t after we had sat down again, a auiall herd of cat.le came past our line from our right, being driven by some of our ecout^ and just when they were opposite U the Umcityu Regimeut, a body of mounted men on the hill to the west were seen galloping evidently trying to en.-, them off. When saveral hundre 1 y^rds off tbey perceived, the Umcityu, and, dismounting, fired one volley et them and retired. The Umcitvu at once jumped up and charged , an example which was taken up by the Nokenke and Nodwengu on their ri^ht and jhe Nakobamakori .and Mhonamti on ibe left, while tbe Undi Corps and the Udkloko formed a circle (aa 19 customary in Zulu warfare when a force is about to be engaged) and remained Where they were. With the latter were the two commanding officers, Mavimingwana ane Tyiogwayo and several of the King's brothers, who with these two corps bore away to the north-west, after a short pause, and, keeping on the northern side of the Isandlana, performed a turning movement on tbe right without any opposition from the whites, who, from Ihe nature of the ground, could not ace them. Tbus the original Zulu left became their extreme right, while their right became their centre, and the centre their left. The two regiments wbich formed the latter, the Nkobamakos and Mbonambi, made a turning along the front of the camp towards the English right, but became engaged long before they could accomplish it j and Ibe Uve regiment, a battalion of tbe Nkobamakosi, was repulsed and had. to retire until reinforced by tbe other batallion, while tbe Mbonambi suffered very severely from the artillery fire. Meanwhile, the centre, consisting of tbe Umcityu on tbe left centre, and the Nokenke ond Nodwenga, higher up on the right, under the bill, were making a direct attaok on the left of the camp. The Umoityu coffered very severely, both from artillery and musketry fire ; the Nokenke from musketry fire alone ; while the Nodwengu loaUeaa.. When we at last

carried the camp our regiments became mixed up ; a portion pursued the fugitives down to the Buffalo river, and the remainder plundered the camp ; while the Undi and Udkloko Regiments made the bestof their way to Rorke's Drift, to plunder the posts there, in which tbey failed, and lost very heavily after fighting all the afternoon and night, We stripped the dead of all their clothes. To my knowledge no one was made prisoner, and I saw no dead body carried away or mutilated. If the doctors carried away any dead bodies for the purpose of afterwards doctoring the army, it was done without my knowledge of it ; nor did I see any prisoner laken and afterwards killed. I wag, however, one of the men who followed the refugees down to the Buffalo river, and ooly returned to the English camp late in the afternoon. (Tbis portion of the prisoner's statement was made very reluctantly.) The portion of tbe army which had remained to plander the camp did so thoroughly, carrying off the maize, breadstuffa (sic), and stores of all kinds, and drinking all the spirits as were in camp. Many were drunk, and all laden with their booty ; aud towards saosefc the whole force moved back to the encampment of tbe previous night, hastened by having seen another English force approaching from the south. Next morning the greater part of the men dispersed to their homes with their pluoder, a few accompanying the principal officers to the king, and they have not re-assembled since.