The Defence of Rorke's Drift


Alphonse de Neuville painted this excellent scene of the battle after studying the various accounts of the action and the uniforms worn by the men involved. This painting was quickly commissioned by the Fine Art Society and completed within a year of the battle. It was exhibited in London in March 1880 and is now in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Australia. On the right, Bromhead is receiving ammunition to fire his rifle at the attackers. Chaplain Smith, in white helmet and long coat, hands out more ammunition behind him. Just in front of Smith is Surgeon Reynolds attending to Dalton's wound. The white dog is Dick, Reynold's pet terrier. The wounded are being brought out of the burning hospital and Chard is in the middle of the painting, pointing to the north perimeter. The soldier firing on the south perimeter, on the left, is Private Dunbar who shot back at the Zulu marksmen on the Shiyane.


Zulu War


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by Stephen Luscombe