Conflicts & Resolutions · Battle

Battle of Rorke's Drift

1879 · 19th century · Part of the Anglo-Zulu War

The Battle of Rorke's Drift was fought on 22–23 January 1879 during the Anglo-Zulu War, when about 150 British soldiers defended a mission station on the Buffalo River against some 3,000–4,000 Zulu warriors, hours after the disaster at Isandlwana. The garrison held, and eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded. The defence was celebrated in Britain and later in the film Zulu (1964).

Battle of Rorke's Drift
Image: Alphonse de Neuville · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Battle of Rorke's Drift. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/battle-of-rorkes-drift
MLA
“Battle of Rorke's Drift.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/battle-of-rorkes-drift. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Battle of Rorke's Drift.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/battle-of-rorkes-drift.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Battle of Rorke's Drift’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/battle-of-rorkes-drift (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻