I must’ve been between the age of 4 and 5 when my dad introduced me to this masterpiece. 34 years later and I’m still obsessed with this piece of our history.
Colour Sgt. Major Bourne lived till the age of 91 . He fought in the trenches of the first world war in the rank of colonel and died in his house on VE Day, 1945 at 16 Kings Hall Road, Beckenham, Kent.. On google earth street view you can see the blue disc on the front wall above the front door. If he had lived another 18 years to the age of 109 he could have gone to the cinema to watch "Zulu"
I love Men of Harlech being sung in Zulu, it's just beautiful and I always wonder if this actually happened for real. 11 VC's were won in one single battle which will never be beaten and most of them by B Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot, The South Wales Borderers and fair play to all of them Welsh, English or Otherwise. My favourite part of the film is at the end of the movie when Colour Sergeant Bourne is reading The Roll Call after the battle and Bourne says "Hitch I saw you, youre alive" to which the reply was " I am, oh thanks very much". This bit always makes me laugh about a battle which was vicious, hard and costly to both sides. This bit is my favourite line in a movie ever.
+leedscab123 They weren't Welsh. It was an English regiment: the 24th Regiment of Foot (aka the 2nd Warwickshire Regiment). And the regimental song was "The Warwickshire Lad". They never sang Men of Harlech. There were some Welsh there, but most of them were English. It didn't become a Welsh regiment until several years after this battle.
"The Zulus, in overwhelming numbers, launched a highly disciplined attack on the slopes of the mountain of Isandhlwana, and in spite of gallant resistance......."
the South Wales Borderers Museum in Brecon, Powys displays artifacts from the Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot). One of the rooms is devoted to the collection from Rorke's Drift but there is much more to see. The Borderer's chapel at Brecon Cathedral contains the original wreath given to the regiment by Queen Victoria. Stunning.
+CaliPatriot88 Not quite but close. I think Thermopalye has it (I consider it effectively a victory, taken in perspective of the war) and several battles in ww1 and 2 have more of a numerical difference than Rorkes drift. Still absolutely up there and no knock on Rorkes drift.
+Tancread of Galilee True but Thermopalye was a phyric victory seeing as how all the Spartans died and only stalled the Persians to give the Greeks more time to organize.
+CaliPatriot88 What about david IV of Georgia or (can't remember exactly) nobunagas ride out in a last ditch effort or that other Japanese defence that I can't quite recall (but I don't quite remember who but I think it had 3 men against an army although they had hattori hanzo)
LIVERPOOLSCOTTISH you could also make the argument that the defense of the foreign emissariates in the boxer Rebbellion was ultimately more impressive.
I remember hearing an radio interview from 1930s with an aged survivor of routes drift ..... interestingly he said if the zulu put holes in the bags used as barricades then there was nothing to the contents draining away leaving the British exposed.....and they would have easily been over run .
From another series of famous movies, "I know you can fire three rounds a minute, but CAN YOU STAND!?" The amount of lead these guys are throwing is terrifying!
Rick Rescorla of Hayle, Cornwall, was heard singing Men of Harlech in the South Tower on 9-11 while getting as many people out of there as he could before it collapsed killing him. RIP Soldier.
Hi Folks - From an South African old timer, the British left their mark on South African history after the Boer War . White against white, black against black and of course black against white folks.
Awesome movie What ever your political beliefs the men who fought at Rourkes drift didnt start it they werejust there at the hospital They fought not for glory but to save themselves I saw this when i was about 10 years old My dad let me stay up late to watch it with him We are a welsh born family who moved to Australia when i was a young fella about 6 years old Still proud of my heritage
Respect. For The British Army Welsh Guards and. The Zulu. Warriors. For their respect of their culture. And Dignity and honestly. Now that does deserve a Victorian Cross. 🙌🏻🥰👍🏼✌🏻🏴🏴🇨🇮🏴🇬🇧😉🇦🇺🇺🇸😘💪👊. We will fight you on the Beaches. Winston Churchill. Sounds like my Dad.🗽🍷
In the real world, the battle ended at sunrise when the Zulus saw Lord Chelmsford approaching with what was left of his command. The Zulus had been fighting all night long, were low on ammunition and hadn't eaten in days. The British weren't in much better shape, so neither side wanted to continue the fight. So the two armies passed each other at shouting distance. Only one Zulu warrior charged, and was shot down.
The defenders had expended over 90% of their ammunition at the end. They could have held off maybe one more charge, after which it would have been assagi vs. bayonet. And my money would be on the Zulus at that point.
Isandlwana was a surprise attack by the Zulus. After this defeat, the queen of England is reported to have asked: "who are these Zulus, and why are we fighting them?".
Zulu was a great film but it did great injustice to the missionary who was not an alcoholic and to Hook, who was not a thief, and to Bromhead, who was deaf but not stupid. Also, the battlefield was really very small. Much smaller than portrayed here. The oskaberg terrace was only about 100m from the mission station.
Paul Gimson Actually, the majority of the men there were English. It was the 24th Warkshire regiment. As Hackney Bacon has said, it was just renamed the Southern Welsh regiment in 1881, but still mostly consisted of Englishmen, though Welsh, Scottish and Irish troops were also present. Nevertheless, regardless of their nationalities, all those men who fought that day had some really big balls and together we rag tag bunch ran the world. One thing about us Brits, be us English, Welsh or Scottish, or Irish/Northern Irish, we never give in and we fight to the end!
The bravest men ever existed just over a few 100 men from b company 1 battalion the royal welsh stood their ground against thousands of Zulu no one ran stood side by side
Under Shaka and Dingane, the Zulus were the terror of southern Africa. Mpande had been made king by the Boers, and he wasn't interested in picking fights with enemies he knew he couldn't beat. It is hardly bizarre. The British East India Company had been so successful that the captains of industry sought to do the same thing in Rhodesia, east Africa and the Niger river. Didn't turn out to be as profitable.
*+Simon Dover* It is quite historically inaccurate though. In the movie, the regiment is portrayed as a Welsh regiment but, irl, it was an English regiment. Its designation was the 24th (The 2nd Warwickshire) Regiment of Foot. The 24th didn't become the South Wales Borderers until several years after this battle. This scene has Chard getting the men to sing Men of Harlech to help inspire them before the last charge. In reality they never sang it at all during the battle. That was just something the director wanted in the movie. The regimental song was ‘The Warwickshire Lad’, like I said it was the 2nd Warwickshire regiment, so if they sang anything it would be that.
The original lyrics to Men of Harlech encourage Welshmen to fight the English. They created new lyrics for the movie so they could claim copyright protection on the song
One of the inaccuracies of the movie is it’s Welshness. At the time 24th regiment of foot was English. The 24th did not become the South Wales Boarders until a few years after the battle.
Its Welshness is due to Stanley Baker coming from Ferndale, in the Rhondda. It was his pet project, and overlooks not only the numbers of English troops involved, but also the fact that they won 7 of the 11 VCs. (2 Welsh).
the version of the song was written for the film. older versions talk about different chieftains rallying together to face the English: Can't you see, the beacons flaming, with their tongues of fire proclaiming, chieftains sundered to your shaming, strongly now unite.
One of the most decorated actions ever by the British Armed Forces with no less than 11 Victoria Crosses awarded which is the worlds highest award for valour in the face of the enemy
I don't think that the CMofH is equal to the VC as for Operation Overlord gthe US agreed that a set amount of MoH's would be awarded and that amount had to be awarded. The VC wasn't and never has been subject to such conditions
The square was a standard military tactic across all of Europe. Tactically it was redundant in Europe from about 1850, but it still had its uses when fighting tribals. Its only known as British because we used it so much fighting chaps with spears. We didnt invent it.
No the fighting square was invented by the roman army a lot of whom settled in Britan Scotland and wales after the fall of rome and became part of uk fighting law.
These aren't the Welsh guards... They're the South-Wales Borderers (known as the 24th regiment of foot, during the battle). At the battle less than a handful were Welsh, and the rest were from the West midlands. A large part of the Garrison however, was made up of the Royal Engineers.
The royal engineers didn't exist as a corp untill ww2 they formed from rasc i served in royal engineers for 15 years and have the chard wore in the battle its in the royal engineers museum at Chatham in kent it still had the blood on the collor ware he was wounded
I love everything about this movie! The rich characters, the deeply moving music and all of the nice little details were superb! One thing though, that truly stands out is the noe portrayal of the Zulus themselves! These two opposing forces were comprised of warriors defending their respective positions! The British (Welsh) defenders were not an invading force but engineers caught in a bad place. The Zulus saw them (I would say rightly) as part of a greater threat and so attacked them. It is a story of valor, the tricky nature of heroics and martial respect on both sides!
@Cheetah Panther I think you will find that the rorkes drift deaths are in SA. The vast majority are English and i the majority of English know the difference between the Welsh and English. I even saw a Rugby game based on those differences today.
Maybe one of the top 3 Military Movies ever made. Couldn't be made today. Pray it doesn't fade into obscurity. The book "ZULU With Some Guts Behind It" by Sheldon Hall; about the making of the film, is a great read about the making of this Epic and the thoughts of the Actors etc behind it. Recommended Reading.
To be fair they only killed about 5000. The other 20 000 died of various diseases, accidents. Though if the Boers hadn't started the war, invaded and attempted to create a Boer superstate then you could say that so many wouldnt have died.
I'm sure that Victoria's army ever produced any type of Elite forces. These were a small company of line infantry B company 24 regiment South Wales Borders. They found themselves in the teeth of a storm after 1,500 British soldiers were massacred only hours before at the mountain slopes of islandwana. It was then that an impi of 4.000 Zulu warriors decided to crush the tiny garrison at Rourkes Drift. The British soldiers were fighting for their very existence. 11 victoria crosses awarded for bravery.
can we just be happy it was a British victory and not argue if it was a welsh or English win, im pretty sure the armed forces at the time didn't give a shit what regiment it was who defended Rorke's Drift but they were happy that it was a British victory instead
The amount of lead that one of those British infantry companies could throw down range is horrendous! I wouldn't want to even think about trying to stand against that
That might be true, but Wales at the time was still technically part of England. Wales was not considered its own country during this time period but only a large English Province. So in all technicality they were still English but offcourse, people from Wales always thought of themselves as Welsh and not English even though they were annexed by England.
January January You might consider going back to school, Wales is not now, nor has it ever been part of England. At the time of the movie and indeed for hundreds of years before, Wales was a principality within the United Kingdom of Great Britain. Its people are either considered Welsh or British NEVER, not while their collective ass'e point downwards english.
Richard Lavis Your wrong....Wales has indeed been part of England in the past, and your right about Wales being a Principality within the United Kingdom of Great Britain, but you do realize Great Britain as a nation hasn't always existed, do you?.... Before a United Kingdom even came about, don't you know the original countries that formed it?... If you don't then let me tell you. It was the (Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland) that formed the 'Kingdom of Great Britain' Wales was annexed territory and part of England during the time. Hence, why a Welsh flag was never incorporated into the Union Flag designs and a simple search of the Kingdom of England will let you know, that indeed Wales was part of England in the past. Look up (Law in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542) A Law that annexed Wales into becoming a Principality of England. Wales becoming a SEPERATE NATION legally is relativley recent, during the (Welsh Language Act of 1967) which REPEALED THE LAW in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 that incorporated Wales into England as a Principality. Wales was originially a Principality of England. Hence why in the PAST would English monarchs first in line children, before the Union as Well were referred to as Prince or Princess of Wales. You are the one who might just need to go back to school and learn the formation of the United Kingdom, unless your just denying the facts.
January January You have a very complete explanation of the United Kingdom.The Union Jack has three crosses: St Andrew (Scotland) , St George (England) , St Patrick (Ireland . Correct me if I am wrong please ) and the blue background representing the sea.I think coming from the ex-British colony of Hong Kong and with English as a Second Language I am doing alright I hope.
>disembowling them They believed that your spirit lived in your stomach. Unless your gut was opened, you would become a ghost. So I've heard. I don't know if they did this to their own dead, or just enemies. >And I'm actually curious as to whether they saw us as Honorable at all? Both sides held contempt for each other at the beginning of the war. Isandlwana changed all that, making both sides reevaluate the other. Chelmsford was forced to call in reinforcements from the Empire.
What the Zulus needed to do was copy the North Vietnam Army and Viet Cong (NVA) tactic of "grab the enemy by their belts." Once they were close in to hand to hand combat, the advantage of those rifles was negated; and in hand to hand combat the Zulu were, in fact, far superior with their short stabbing spears to the British with their bayonets. The assegai was also called "iklwa", which was supposedly an onomatopoeic approximation of the sound it made when withdrawn from a stab wound. This was a new weapon which the great Zulu king Shaka had introduced to replace the traditional long spear, and helped him gain his kingship.
Not sure how to burst this bubble but the regiment in question was an English regiment the Warwickshires which may of had Welsh Scots and Irish also in it. Indeed there was no second day of action at all. There fore no Welsh singing men of harlech on the second morning. Also the command "fire" was not included by the army until a few years after this action anyway. But still a great action and a fantastic film. Full of inaccuracies though.
Cetshweyo was a very different man from his uncle Shaka. While imprisoned on Robben Island after the war, he managed to win over just about everyone who met with him. He finally traveled to England and petitioned Queen Victoria in person and was returned to his kingdom.
If they'd sung, it would most likely be "Warwickshire Lad", the regimental song. As pointed out, 24th Regt of Foot (about 80 men) wasn't named the South Wales Borderers until two years after RD. Tho' based in Brecon, most of them had never been there. Check the RD website, 'popular myths'. The breakdown; English 49, Irish 16, Scottish 1, other nationalities 38. 16 defenders were found to have any Welsh connections tho' it also states 32 to be Welsh(!). BTW, I Love this movie, ever a classic!.
@cobcool1 ever been to harlech castle?..one of the best times i've had looking around a castle as you can pretty much go anywhere in it (at your own risk mostly) dam good fun.
I read an interview with one of the Zulu survivors of Rorkes Drift and he made the point of saying that if the Zulus had ripped open the sandbags with their spears they could have nullified the British defenses. Unfortunately it never occurred to the Zulus to do that at the time.
I must’ve been between the age of 4 and 5 when my dad introduced me to this masterpiece. 34 years later and I’m still obsessed with this piece of our history.
probably one of the best ever movies of all time well its mine any way
I remember watching it at the cinema with my dad who passed soon after. Maybe the best day of my
Iife.
It is the best film of all time for guys of a certain age!
I agree.
Yeah sure then why do you join 7 years ago
One of the best films ever
Contrary to popular belief most of the SWB were English. My father was WO2 B Coy 1(24th) is 1969. I saw the film every year on the anniversary.
Colour Sgt. Major Bourne lived till the age of 91 . He fought in the trenches of the first world war in the rank of colonel and died in his house on VE Day, 1945 at 16 Kings Hall Road, Beckenham, Kent.. On google earth street view you can see the blue disc on the front wall above the front door. If he had lived another 18 years to the age of 109 he could have gone to the cinema to watch "Zulu"
That's just remarkable. Good Lord, he was in his 60s during the First War. I'll bet he was sorely ticked off at not being able to fight in the Second.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Bourne
Henry Hook's daughters walked out of the premiere due to the horrific portrayal of their father.
my fav movie off all time,,it moves me even after the 40th time ive watched it,,,classic
Is it ever shown on tv these days, I remember when I was a kid it being on quite often. Likely would be considered too un-PC today.
@@charleswood7001 it's actually pretty PC.
Jenny..you have taste in fims!😏
A mixture of the movies Zulu Dawn and Zulu.....both great movies of British History.....
Them turning over the carts was our way of saying "we're standing our ground mate" we die or win
I love Men of Harlech being sung in Zulu, it's just beautiful and I always wonder if this actually happened for real. 11 VC's were won in one single battle which will never be beaten and most of them by B Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot, The South Wales Borderers and fair play to all of them Welsh, English or Otherwise.
My favourite part of the film is at the end of the movie when Colour Sergeant Bourne is reading The Roll Call after the battle and Bourne says "Hitch I saw you, youre alive" to which the reply was " I am, oh thanks very much". This bit always makes me laugh about a battle which was vicious, hard and costly to both sides. This bit is my favourite line in a movie ever.
+leedscab123 They weren't Welsh. It was an English regiment: the 24th Regiment of Foot (aka the 2nd Warwickshire Regiment). And the regimental song was "The Warwickshire Lad". They never sang Men of Harlech. There were some Welsh there, but most of them were English. It didn't become a Welsh regiment until several years after this battle.
One of the best war movies ever.
"The Zulus, in overwhelming numbers, launched a highly disciplined attack on the slopes of the mountain of Isandhlwana, and in spite of gallant resistance......."
the South Wales Borderers Museum in Brecon, Powys displays artifacts from the Royal Regiment of Wales (24th/41st Foot). One of the rooms is devoted to the collection from Rorke's Drift but there is much more to see. The Borderer's chapel at Brecon Cathedral contains the original wreath given to the regiment by Queen Victoria. Stunning.
Probably the greatest defensive battle victory in history.
+CaliPatriot88 Not quite but close. I think Thermopalye has it (I consider it effectively a victory, taken in perspective of the war) and several battles in ww1 and 2 have more of a numerical difference than Rorkes drift. Still absolutely up there and no knock on Rorkes drift.
+Tancread of Galilee True but Thermopalye was a phyric victory seeing as how all the Spartans died and only stalled the Persians to give the Greeks more time to organize.
CaliPatriot88 Hey now, Hannibal(Not lector) himself called Phyrrus the second greatest general in history.
+CaliPatriot88 What about david IV of Georgia or (can't remember exactly) nobunagas ride out in a last ditch effort or that other Japanese defence that I can't quite recall (but I don't quite remember who but I think it had 3 men against an army although they had hattori hanzo)
LIVERPOOLSCOTTISH
you could also make the argument that the defense of the foreign emissariates in the boxer Rebbellion was ultimately more impressive.
I remember hearing an radio interview from 1930s with an aged survivor of routes drift ..... interestingly he said if the zulu put holes in the bags used as barricades then there was nothing to the contents draining away leaving the British exposed.....and they would have easily been over run .
Where is routes drift?
The Glosters had their moments too!!
Right the "glorious glosters"
From another series of famous movies, "I know you can fire three rounds a minute, but CAN YOU STAND!?" The amount of lead these guys are throwing is terrifying!
South Essex!
"Oi, stop chucking those bloody spears!"
Kahraman zuluları vahşı gõstermek ne kadar insanidir !!
11 Victoria Crosses awarded to defenders of the mission station at Rourkes Drift 🇬🇧
War is not decided by who is right, it is decided by who is left.
"They've got a good bass section, but no top tenors, that's for sure."
Four-part harmony would have been so much more powerful.
Rick Rescorla of Hayle, Cornwall, was heard singing Men of Harlech in the South Tower on 9-11 while getting as many people out of there as he could before it collapsed killing him. RIP Soldier.
Makes one extremely proud to be both Welsh, and be able to sing!
God Save Queen Victoria and her Army.
Classic film , classic clip , well put together wifh the singing .
my great great grandad fought at rorkes drift
Thats a pretty proud bit of ancestral history right there. What was his name.
Cplcash you must be so proud! It was an amazing battle with incredible bravery.
i fought at jerusalem
The Zulu were my the bad people. The British were. For the people who did not know this. The British got what they totally deserved
Anthony Desroches Depends on wich side u are on
Hi Folks - From an South African old timer, the British left their mark on South African history after the Boer War . White against white, black against black and of course black against white folks.
They stood their ground . Fight like brave men only 150 men over 3,000 Zulu men who was no jock . Respect to them The queens men .
The Zulu recognized fellow warriors. Thye were impressed.
Such an amazing film! We own 2 Zulu shields perserved. Before i learnt about them i didnt no there significance.
Awesome movie
What ever your political beliefs the men who fought at Rourkes drift didnt start it they werejust there at the hospital
They fought not for glory but to save themselves
I saw this when i was about 10 years old
My dad let me stay up late to watch it with him
We are a welsh born family who moved to Australia when i was a young fella about 6 years old
Still proud of my heritage
Respect. For The British Army Welsh Guards and. The Zulu. Warriors. For their respect of their culture. And Dignity and honestly. Now that does deserve a Victorian Cross. 🙌🏻🥰👍🏼✌🏻🏴🏴🇨🇮🏴🇬🇧😉🇦🇺🇺🇸😘💪👊. We will fight you on the Beaches. Winston Churchill. Sounds like my Dad.🗽🍷
The thin red line.
god save the Queen!
A great movie. One that could diffidently not be made today.
Director to Zulu extras....: "This is not a real war"
My Regiment was at Rorke's Drift one of the best films of its time and still is thank you very good
MARK YOUR TARGET!! AT ONE HUNDRED YARDS....VOLLEY FIRE. Only the Brits could make a movie like this. Love it to this day.
Both movies are very good
In the real world, the battle ended at sunrise when the Zulus saw Lord Chelmsford approaching with what was left of his command. The Zulus had been fighting all night long, were low on ammunition and hadn't eaten in days. The British weren't in much better shape, so neither side wanted to continue the fight. So the two armies passed each other at shouting distance. Only one Zulu warrior charged, and was shot down.
The defenders had expended over 90% of their ammunition at the end. They could have held off maybe one more charge, after which it would have been assagi vs. bayonet. And my money would be on the Zulus at that point.
That would have made for and interesting end to the movie.
Isandlwana was a surprise attack by the Zulus. After this defeat, the queen of England is reported to have asked: "who are these Zulus, and why are we fighting them?".
Zulu was a great film but it did great injustice to the missionary who was not an alcoholic and to Hook, who was not a thief, and to Bromhead, who was deaf but not stupid.
Also, the battlefield was really very small. Much smaller than portrayed here. The oskaberg terrace was only about 100m from the mission station.
See that right there those people are welsh welsh and proud like this if u agree that Welshmen will never yield
it was the Warwickshire regiment, just later on in 1881 the name got changed to the southern welsh regiment.
Aye Paul and the welsh guards shot Connolly in his chair,the welsh bowman fighting for longshanks and ultimately routing the scots army..
Paul Gimson Actually, the majority of the men there were English. It was the 24th Warkshire regiment. As Hackney Bacon has said, it was just renamed the Southern Welsh regiment in 1881, but still mostly consisted of Englishmen, though Welsh, Scottish and Irish troops were also present. Nevertheless, regardless of their nationalities, all those men who fought that day had some really big balls and together we rag tag bunch ran the world. One thing about us Brits, be us English, Welsh or Scottish, or Irish/Northern Irish, we never give in and we fight to the end!
I believe that some of the soldiers were welsh. The others were brave too. Wasn’t Chard English? That’s what I read.
The welsh never yield while part of their conquerors kingdom
A truly great movie.
disiplined controlled fire = devastating
The bravest men ever existed just over a few 100 men from b company 1 battalion the royal welsh stood their ground against thousands of Zulu no one ran stood side by side
Great Men's of Harlech !
GREAT MOVIE!!! Share this.
Brilliant film I like men of Harlech song
classic. God save the Queen.
Under Shaka and Dingane, the Zulus were the terror of southern Africa. Mpande had been made king by the Boers, and he wasn't interested in picking fights with enemies he knew he couldn't beat.
It is hardly bizarre. The British East India Company had been so successful that the captains of industry sought to do the same thing in Rhodesia, east Africa and the Niger river. Didn't turn out to be as profitable.
To the glory of the Infantry, British and Zulu...
I was addicted to this movie about 8 years ago...
Terrific edit! As a huge fan of the movie I thank you.
Welsh regiment. Men of Harlech
Both very good.
Well sung, good movie.
*+Simon Dover* It is quite historically inaccurate though.
In the movie, the regiment is portrayed as a Welsh regiment but, irl, it was an English regiment. Its designation was the 24th (The 2nd Warwickshire) Regiment of Foot. The 24th didn't become the South Wales Borderers until several years after this battle.
This scene has Chard getting the men to sing Men of Harlech to help inspire them before the last charge. In reality they never sang it at all during the battle. That was just something the director wanted in the movie. The regimental song was ‘The Warwickshire Lad’, like I said it was the 2nd Warwickshire regiment, so if they sang anything it would be that.
I dont think a sassenach song would defeat the zulu-it would take a celtic song,maybe wev lifted you out of germanic apathy.
Redshank They didn't sing Men of Harlech irl. That was something made up in the movie.
The original lyrics to Men of Harlech encourage Welshmen to fight the English. They created new lyrics for the movie so they could claim copyright protection on the song
One of the inaccuracies of the movie is it’s Welshness. At the time 24th regiment of foot was English. The 24th did not become the South Wales Boarders until a few years after the battle.
Its Welshness is due to Stanley Baker coming from Ferndale, in the Rhondda. It was his pet project, and overlooks not only the numbers of English troops involved, but also the fact that they won 7 of the 11 VCs. (2 Welsh).
Good movie!
America needs these men now
harlech..north wales...i went there with my ex wife some 22 years ago...enough said....21 years old and cryed for her mum at night
the most amazing thing about history is it
Saxon A Thin Red Line.
JUST LIKE ZULUS, THIS IS HOW WE SHOULD BE...BEFORE THE MARSHALLS COME OUT TO PLAY.....ANYONE AGREE....😊...BUT A NEW KING AND QUEEN...😮
the version of the song was written for the film. older versions talk about different chieftains rallying together to face the English: Can't you see, the beacons flaming, with their tongues of fire proclaiming, chieftains sundered to your shaming, strongly now unite.
One of the most decorated actions ever by the British Armed Forces with no less than 11 Victoria Crosses awarded which is the worlds highest award for valour in the face of the enemy
I don't think that the CMofH is equal to the VC as for Operation Overlord gthe US agreed that a set amount of MoH's would be awarded and that amount had to be awarded. The VC wasn't and never has been subject to such conditions
Err? just explained surely. at D day there was an allocation!
Awards for the slaughter of a primitive people, musta felt proud
@@jafarsolorio7634 A death dealing primitive people, self defense will always take part.
@@vincentbugalia3858 Exactly. The Zulu unit that attacked Roarks. Drift was violating orders to not cross the border.
The square was a standard military tactic across all of Europe.
Tactically it was redundant in Europe from about 1850, but it still had its uses when fighting tribals.
Its only known as British because we used it so much fighting chaps with spears. We didnt invent it.
No the fighting square was invented by the roman army a lot of whom settled in Britan Scotland and wales after the fall of rome and became part of uk fighting law.
The British decided to "annex" Zululand so they invaded without cause
The English can fight. The Scots and Irish will always fight.
chitina Kennicott And the Welsh. ;)
The English can fight
The Irish are likely to fight.
The welsh are going to fight
The Scottish are fighting already
+Brantley Pike and the american is at MacDonalds
Steve Spencer that's after bailing your asses out ;P
chitina................the irish got their republic by fighting the brits.
These aren't the Welsh guards... They're the South-Wales Borderers (known as the 24th regiment of foot, during the battle). At the battle less than a handful were Welsh, and the rest were from the West midlands. A large part of the Garrison however, was made up of the Royal Engineers.
The royal engineers didn't exist as a corp untill ww2 they formed from rasc i served in royal engineers for 15 years and have the chard wore in the battle its in the royal engineers museum at Chatham in kent it still had the blood on the collor ware he was wounded
@@petew5289 mad too think that you guys don't get likes. Cos its all bullshit in what you're saying
Their is a royal engerners museum bromton barracksbrilliant Chatham kent
I love everything about this movie! The rich characters, the deeply moving music and all of the nice little details were superb! One thing though, that truly stands out is the noe portrayal of the Zulus themselves! These two opposing forces were comprised of warriors defending their respective positions! The British (Welsh) defenders were not an invading force but engineers caught in a bad place. The Zulus saw them (I would say rightly) as part of a greater threat and so attacked them. It is a story of valor, the tricky nature of heroics and martial respect on both sides!
bullshit
Redcoats ftw
AsboJunior j
You have a very romantic view of warfare.
All the zulus wanted was a British passport, a council flat, benefits and a white slapper. 150 years too early.
LOL.
LOL Yep they got it and they brought their iklwa's with them.
I'd rather be the guy on the top level.
After the battle of the Drift the Zulu's honoured us, as fellow braves. We honoured them too.
Very nicely edited. God bless the Welsh.
It was an English regiment of whom the majority were English.
@Cheetah Panther I think you will find that the rorkes drift deaths are in SA. The vast majority are English and i the majority of English know the difference between the Welsh and English. I even saw a Rugby game based on those differences today.
@Kitty B Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th (2nd Warwickshire) Regiment of Foot
@Kitty SA means South Africa.
The Zulu can run 20 miles and go straight into battle without resting before hand.
Maybe one of the top 3 Military Movies ever made. Couldn't be made today. Pray it doesn't fade into obscurity. The book "ZULU With Some Guts Behind It" by Sheldon Hall; about the making of the film, is a great read about the making of this Epic and the thoughts of the Actors etc behind it. Recommended Reading.
A reconstruction of what may have happened no movie units at the actual battle only reports written
Afterwards
To be fair they only killed about 5000. The other 20 000 died of various diseases, accidents. Though if the Boers hadn't started the war, invaded and attempted to create a Boer superstate then you could say that so many wouldnt have died.
ONE OF THREE WAR MOVIES THAT HAVE TRUE COMBAT EMOTIONAL EFFECTS. YES TRUE STORY BUT NOT ALL OF FACTS ARE TRUE.
Who knew the British Square could be so much fun ?
The zulus did fairly well against a invading army that were very well equiped . Considering the Zulu warrior was armed with spears and clubs.
And against intruders that came 2 take their land
@@allinsondixon8224 They were two imperialist armies facing each other.
Great movie. One could say these soldiers were the SAS of their time.
I'm sure that Victoria's army ever produced any type of Elite forces. These were a small company of line infantry B company 24 regiment South Wales Borders. They found themselves in the teeth of a storm after 1,500 British soldiers were massacred only hours before at the mountain slopes of islandwana. It was then that an impi of 4.000 Zulu warriors decided to crush the tiny garrison at Rourkes Drift. The British soldiers were fighting for their very existence. 11 victoria crosses awarded for bravery.
Proud to be Welsh
Aswell as this, the song is about men from Leicestershire defending Harlech Castle from Yorkshire forces.
can we just be happy it was a British victory and not argue if it was a welsh or English win, im pretty sure the armed forces at the time didn't give a shit what regiment it was who defended Rorke's Drift but they were happy that it was a British victory instead
The amount of lead that one of those British infantry companies could throw down range is horrendous! I wouldn't want to even think about trying to stand against that
Most of these British soldiers were in fact Welshmen.This is why the Men of Harlech was sung in the movie.
That might be true, but Wales at the time was still technically part of England. Wales was not considered its own country during this time period but only a large English Province. So in all technicality they were still English but offcourse, people from Wales always thought of themselves as Welsh and not English even though they were annexed by England.
January January You might consider going back to school, Wales is not now, nor has it ever been part of England. At the time of the movie and indeed for hundreds of years before, Wales was a principality within the United Kingdom of Great Britain. Its people are either considered Welsh or British NEVER, not while their collective ass'e point downwards english.
Joshua Hayden Thanks for the clarification.
Richard Lavis Your wrong....Wales has indeed been part of England in the past, and your right about Wales being a Principality within the United Kingdom of Great Britain, but you do realize Great Britain as a nation hasn't always existed, do you?.... Before a United Kingdom even came about, don't you know the original countries that formed it?... If you don't then let me tell you. It was the (Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland) that formed the 'Kingdom of Great Britain' Wales was annexed territory and part of England during the time. Hence, why a Welsh flag was never incorporated into the Union Flag designs and a simple search of the Kingdom of England will let you know, that indeed Wales was part of England in the past. Look up (Law in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542) A Law that annexed Wales into becoming a Principality of England. Wales becoming a SEPERATE NATION legally is relativley recent, during the (Welsh Language Act of 1967) which REPEALED THE LAW in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 that incorporated Wales into England as a Principality. Wales was originially a Principality of England. Hence why in the PAST would English monarchs first in line children, before the Union as Well were referred to as Prince or Princess of Wales. You are the one who might just need to go back to school and learn the formation of the United Kingdom, unless your just denying the facts.
January January You have a very complete explanation of the United Kingdom.The Union Jack has three crosses: St Andrew (Scotland) , St George (England) , St Patrick (Ireland . Correct me if I am wrong please ) and the blue background representing the sea.I think coming from the ex-British colony of Hong Kong and with English as a Second Language I am doing alright I hope.
>disembowling them
They believed that your spirit lived in your stomach. Unless your gut was opened, you would become a ghost. So I've heard. I don't know if they did this to their own dead, or just enemies.
>And I'm actually curious as to whether they saw us as Honorable at all?
Both sides held contempt for each other at the beginning of the war. Isandlwana changed all that, making both sides reevaluate the other. Chelmsford was forced to call in reinforcements from the Empire.
What the Zulus needed to do was copy the North Vietnam Army and Viet Cong (NVA) tactic of "grab the enemy by their belts." Once they were close in to hand to hand combat, the advantage of those rifles was negated; and in hand to hand combat the Zulu were, in fact, far superior with their short stabbing spears to the British with their bayonets. The assegai was also called "iklwa", which was supposedly an onomatopoeic approximation of the sound it made when withdrawn from a stab wound. This was a new weapon which the great Zulu king Shaka had introduced to replace the traditional long spear, and helped him gain his kingship.
The british were there stealing someone esles land ,they were not hero's
The Zulus didn't have guns to fight with. Not fair! PNG
inspiring
Not sure how to burst this bubble but the regiment in question was an English regiment the Warwickshires which may of had Welsh Scots and Irish also in it. Indeed there was no second day of action at all. There fore no Welsh singing men of harlech on the second morning. Also the command "fire" was not included by the army until a few years after this action anyway. But still a great action and a fantastic film. Full of inaccuracies though.
Such a remarkable group of ordinary men. Remembered for their feat not their rank. Brian 81
Oh, Faith of our Fathers. Eternal glory.
I agree whole hardedly
Go ahead Taff I'm right behind you.
those Pith helmets are so cool
glad you finally see not only the disgusting nature, but also Stupid nature, of racism. Thank you for being a voice of reason on the Internet.
Cetshweyo was a very different man from his uncle Shaka. While imprisoned on Robben Island after the war, he managed to win over just about everyone who met with him. He finally traveled to England and petitioned Queen Victoria in person and was returned to his kingdom.
Do you know the story of what happened to Victoria when she looked straight into the eyes of the King?
@@sduduzozulu2229 I would like to hear your story.
If they'd sung, it would most likely be "Warwickshire Lad", the regimental song. As pointed out, 24th Regt of Foot (about 80 men) wasn't named the South Wales Borderers until two years after RD. Tho' based in Brecon, most of them had never been there. Check the RD website, 'popular myths'. The breakdown; English 49, Irish 16, Scottish 1, other nationalities 38. 16 defenders were found to have any Welsh connections tho' it also states 32 to be Welsh(!). BTW, I Love this movie, ever a classic!.
@cobcool1 ever been to harlech castle?..one of the best times i've had looking around a castle as you can pretty much go anywhere in it (at your own risk mostly) dam good fun.
One of the few comments that I hold true. Thank ya sirrah.
I read an interview with one of the Zulu survivors of Rorkes Drift and he made the point of saying that if the Zulus had ripped open the sandbags with their spears they could have nullified the British defenses. Unfortunately it never occurred to the Zulus to do that at the time.
How many sandbags did they have? First anyone has ever heard of this modern phenomenon. Was Gandalf the consultant?