Anglo-Zulu War 1879- An Overview
With hindsight the Zulu war was caused by British aggression. Within a few years from the emergence of the Zulu nation British adventurers were attracted to it in search of trade and treasure, and by 1840, Natal, a British colony had sprung up on the southern borders of Zululand. By the 1870s the British had begun to conduct a policy of inclusion, they hoped to incorporate the British colonies, the Boer republics and the African regions under a common British rule in order to aid trade and economic development. However, it was believed that a strong Zulu nation was a threat to this ideal, thus in December 1878 the British High Commissioner in South Africa, Sir Henry Bartle Frere, picked an argument with King Cetewayo, believing that the Zulu's armed with spears and shields would soon fall under a show of British superiority.