Anglo-Zulu War royal capital. While Cetshwayo's army numbered perhaps 35,000 men, it was essentially a militia force which could be called out in time of national danger. It had a very limited logistical capacity and could only stay in the field a few weeks before the troops would be obliged to return to their civilian duties. Zulu warriors were armed primarily with "Assegai" thrusting spears, known in Zulu as "iklwa", clubs, some throwing spears and shields made of cowhide. The initial entry of all three columns was unopposed. On 22 January the centre column, which had advanced from Rorke's Drift, was encamped
South African Wars (1879–1915) the direct control of the appointed British Governor. It had a more restrictive political system than the neighbouring Cape Colony and its small (mostly British) white population had an uneasy relationship with the powerful independent Zulu Kingdom on their northern border. The Anglo-Zulu War (1879) led to the later annexation of Zululand to Natal in 1897. At the close of the South African Wars, the colony became part of the 1910 Union, and is now known as Kwazulu-Natal, a province of South Africa. The land of indigenous Khoi Khoi and Sotho people, Basutoland was positioned between the Cape Colony, Orange