Great Britain seemed to suffer from an awfully high number of military catastrophes in the 19th century. The annihilation of Elphinstone's army in Afghanistan, the annihilation of the columns at Isandlwana, and the death of Gordon at Khartoum are all prominent failures, and while the Crimean War was a "victory", its only lasting cultural contributions seem to have been a name for ski masks and the disaster of the Charge of the Light Brigade.
What could prevent these disasters from taking place? Better equipment and training, comparable to the continental European armies? Better leadership? Or is a colonial "grab-it-if-it-isn't-colored-on-the-map-yet" policy bound to produce the occasional poor leaders and/or military disaster?