Battle of Hlobane

Evelyn Wood sent mounted troops and colonial auxiliaries against Hlobane Mountain on 28 March 1879. Difficult ground, divided columns and the arrival of a large Zulu army turned the raid into a confused retreat through narrow passes.

The defeat inflicted serious losses and directly preceded the Zulu attack on Wood’s fortified camp at Kambula. The two engagements demonstrate the contrast between vulnerable forces caught in broken terrain and disciplined troops protected by a prepared defensive position.

Fiction set at Hlobane can examine reconnaissance failure, colonial cavalry, local auxiliaries and the speed with which a raiding operation became a struggle for survival.