Zulu Dawn Zulu Dawn Zulu Dawn is a 1979 American war film about the historical Battle of Isandlwana between British and Zulu forces in 1879 in South Africa. The screenplay was by Cy Endfield, from his book, and Anthony Storey. The film was directed by Douglas Hickox. The score was composed by Elmer Bernstein. "Zulu Dawn" is a prequel to "Zulu", released in 1964, which depicts the historical Battle of Rorke's Drift later the same day, and was co-written and directed by Cy Endfield. The film is set in British South Africa, in the province of Natal, in January 1879. The first
Ndwandwe–Zulu War Ndwandwe–Zulu War The Zulu Civil War or Ndwandwe–Zulu War of 1817–1819 was a war fought between the expanding Zulu Kingdom and the Ndwandwe tribe in South Africa. The Zulus were originally a close-knit ethnic group community that had migrated to the eastern plateau of present-day South Africa; they became a strong tribal nation largely due to the efforts of an ambitious chieftain named Shaka (c. 1787–1828, reigned 1816–1828). A rebellious young man, Shaka was estranged from his father, who was a Zulu chief named Senzangakhona, and became a warrior with the Mthethwa people. The Mthethwa paramount chieftain Dingiswayo helped Shaka