What-ifs from ZULU

After watchin ZULU on Classic movies last night- the following qns come to mind:
a) WI the outpost at Rorke's Drift had been overrun by the Zulus ?

OR b) WI Lord Chelmsford's column hadn't been surrounded & defeated at Isandhlwana ?

c) Rorke's Drift was an event where the largest no. of VCs was awarded for a single engagement- 11 in all amongst the surviving members of the South Wales Borders garrison 120-odd strong (which of course were mostly awarded out of Imperial desire to defelct public attention to the disaster at Isandhlwana)- what other poss battle could've rivalled such a great no. of VCs being awarded ?
 
a. from what I've read, not much would have happened afterward. Cetshwayo (sp?) didn't want to do anything so grand as to invade Natal, and the Zulus who fought at Rorke's Drift would have had to return home anyway, for food and religious reasons.

b. Technically, it wasn't Chelmsford's column that was annihilated, just the camp, as a big chunk of his troops were on the road to Ulundi. But if the camp had stood off the Zulus, then Chelmsford's plans would have carried on as written; it would probably have been easier for them, since a big chunk of the Zulu army would have been destroyed early on.

c. Something in WW1 maybe?
 

MrP

Banned
a) Well, panic in the British controlled areas. There's a detachment of about two companies at Helpmekaar, down the road. IOTL they marched to RD, but turned back on seeing smoke, wrongly believing the place had been overwhelmed. Other than that, there's nothing to stop the Zulus marauding south. They would not do so. That was never the plan. But the white civilians were sure that they would.

b) Well, only half of it was, to be fair. Your best bet is that the Chelmsford doesn't tear off with half his force on a wild goose chase. The Zulus planned to attack the next day, I think, as it as astrologically auspicious. Oh, I didn't mean to make that pun. Sorry. Anyway, the Zulus attack a British force with twice the fighting capabilities and are probably badly mauled. They might win, but I honestly couldn't say. If they do the British throw more money and men at the problem. If the Zulus don't, they are defeated somewhat sooner.

c) Something in one of the Great Wars, probably the former, since I have a vague feeling (but am open to correction) that by WWII the criteria for the VC were much, much more stringent (cf. Jeremy Clarkson's documentary on his father-in-law, a VC winner of WWII).

-

As an aside, Smith-Dorrien, commander of II Corps of the BEF at the start of WWI (he took over after the former GOC, Grierson, died of a heart attack), was at Isandhlwana, and barely got away with his life. You can butterfly him to death ITTL, leading to a quite different GOC for II Corps - if he's less competent, bad news for the BEF.
 

Highlander

Banned
One thing I always wondered after watching that - what if they had a couple of the early Maxim machine guns?
 
Top