Gonville Bromhead Major Gonville Bromhead VC ( 29 August 1845 – 9 February 1891 ) was a British Army officer and recipient of the Victoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to members of the British armed forces . He received the medal for his part in the defence of Rorke ' s Drift in January 1879 where a small British garrison of 139 soldiers successfully repulsed an assault by some 4 , 000 Zulu warriors . Bromhead was portrayed by Michael Caine in the film " Zulu " which depicted the battle . Born into a notable military family , Bromhead was raised in Thurlby , Lincolnshire . He entered the 24th Regiment of Foot as an ensign in 1867 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1871 . Bromhead ' s battalion was deployed to southern Africa in 1878 and subsequently served in the Ninth Cape Frontier War and the Anglo - Zulu War . He spent most of the remainder of his career in South Asia where he was promoted to major in 1883 and saw service in the Third Anglo - Burmese War . He died in 1891 in Allahabad , India , at the age of 45 . Early life . Gonville Bromhead was born on 29 August 1845 in Versailles , France . He was the youngest child born to Major Sir Edmund de Gonville Bromhead , 3rd Baronet and his wife Judith . He came from a notable military family : his great - grandfather , Boardman Bromhead , fought under Major General James Wolfe at Quebec ; his grandfather , Sir Gonville Bromhead , was a lieutenant general who fought in the American Revolutionary War ; his father was a veteran of the Battle of Waterloo ; and his three older brothers were officers in the British Army . His family resided at Thurlby Hall in Thurlby , Lincolnshire and he was educated at Magnus Grammar School in Newark - on - Trent . After purchasing an ensign ' s commission , he entered the 2nd Battalion 24th Regiment of Foot on 20 April 1867 and was promoted to lieutenant on 28 October 1871 . Nicknamed " Gunny " by his colleagues , Bromhead was an accomplished boxer and cricketer for the regimental team , and was popular with the men under his command . During his career he developed hearing problems which became progressively worse . However , according to historian Ian Knight , contrary to popular belief , Bromhead ' s deafness did not affect his ability to command his men . Nevertheless Bromhead was not highly regarded by his commanding officer , Lieutenant Colonel Henry James Degacher , who privately described him as " hopeless " . On 1 February 1878 , Bromhead ' s battalion were dispatched to the British Cape Colony in response to a request for reinforcements to assist in the Ninth Cape Frontier War . Arriving at East London on 9 March Bromhead ' s B Company took part in several offensive operations at the conclusion of the war . During an assault on a Xhosa position in May the company ' s commanding officer , Captain A . G . Godwin - Austen , was wounded by shot accidentally fired by one of his own men . He was consequently sent back to England to recover and command of the company temporarily passed to Bromhead . In August the battalion were sent to Pietermaritzburg , Natal , to prepare for the invasion of Zululand . Rorke ' s Drift . At the outbreak of the Anglo - Zulu War , Bromhead ' s battalion was assigned to Lord Chelmsford ' s main invasion column which entered Zulu territory on 11 January 1879 . The column crossed the border on the Buffalo River near an isolated mission station named Rorke ' s Drift — which was used as a staging post — and advanced to the east where it set up camp at Isandlwana . However , along with a large contingent of Natal Native Contingent ( NNC ) troops , Bromhead ' s company was ordered to stay behind and guard the mission station until they were replaced by a detachment from the 2nd Battalion 4th Regiment en route from the rear . At noon on 22 January the garrison ' s senior officer , Major Henry Spalding ( Chelmsford ' s quartermaster general ) , received news of a Zulu presence in the area and departed Rorke ' s Drift to ascertain the whereabouts of reinforcements due from Helpmekaar . Consequently Lieutenant John Chard , a Royal Engineer who had been tasked with maintaining the cable ferry across the river , was left as the senior officer . At around 15 : 00 a small number of dishevelled horsemen appeared with news that the camp at Isandlwana had been overwhelmed by a Zulu army that was likely on its way to attack Rorke ' s Drift . Acting Assistant Commissary James Dalton , an experienced former sergeant in the 85th Regiment , persuaded Bromhead and Chard that the best option was to remain at the station rather than make a fighting retreat . Rorke ' s Drift comprised two single story buildings approximately apart : the western building was being used as a makeshift hospital and the eastern building had been converted into a storehouse . Moving swiftly , the garrison erected a defensive perimeter between the two buildings using mealie bags from the storehouse while the hospital walls were loopholed . The appearance of some 4 , 000 Zulu warriors approaching the station just after 16 : 00 caused the contingent of NNC troops to panic and flee , reducing the number of defenders to approximately 139 men . Armed primarily with assegai s the Zulus charged at the garrison but were cut down by the British volley fire . Nevertheless , the Zulus pressed on with repeated charges , particularly along a weak point to the north of the hospital where Bromhead and his men became embroiled in fierce hand to hand combat with their opponents . At around 18 : 00 , with the thinly manned perimeter becoming increasingly difficult to defend , Chard ordered the defenders to abandon the perimeter around the hospital and withdraw to a smaller second line of defence by the storehouse . Bromhead took up a position alongside Private Frederick Hitch at the corner of the barricade most exposed to Zulu sniper fire and " [ used ] his rifle and revolver with deadly aim " while encouraging his men " not to waste one round " . At this point Bromhead had a near miss when , unbeknown to him , a Zulu warrior jumped the barrier intending to spear him . However , his attacker threw himself back over the wall when Hitch presented his unloaded rifle . Hitch was later shot through the shoulder and after he was bandaged up Bromhead gave him his revolver which enabled Hitch to continue shooting with one arm . Waves of Zulu attacks continued during the night but , by the early hours of the morning , their enthusiasm for battle waned and they departed the area . British reinforcements arrived later that morning . Aftermath . Bromhead and the other uninjured survivors remained at Rorke ' s Drift for several weeks after the battle . Wary of another Zulu attack , the garrison constructed crude stone walls around the perimeter and named the fortification " Fort Bromhead " . During this time Bromhead became withdrawn and lethargic , possibly suffering psychological trauma from the battle . Major Francis Clery , who was garrisoned at Rorke ' s Drift with Bromhead after the battle wrote , " the height of [ Bromhead ' s ] enjoyment seemed to be to sit all day on a stone on the ground smoking a most uninviting looking pipe . The only thing that seemed equal to moving him in any way was an allusion to the defence of Rorke ' s Drift . This used to have a sort of electrical effect upon him , for he would jump up and off he would go , not a word could be got out of him . When I told him he should send me an official report on the affair it seemed to have a most distressing effect on him . " After news of the disastrous defeat at Isandlwana , the successful defence of Rorke ' s Drift was celebrated by the British press and public . As the officers in command , Chard and Bromhead were singled out for particular praise . However , some of their fellow officers resented the plaudits bestowed on the pair , believing that they merely performed their duty by defending the outpost . Chelmsford ' s successor , Sir Garnet Wolseley , described the praise as " monstrous " . A bemused Clery remarked that " Reputations are being made and lost here in an almost comical fashion . . . [ Bromhead is a ] capital fellow at everything except soldiering " while Lieutenant Henry Curling , who was also at Rorke ' s Drift with Bromhead after the battle wrote , " It is very amusing to read the accounts of Chard and Bromhead . . . Bromhead is a stupid old fellow , as deaf as a post . Is it not curious how some men are forced into notoriety ? " Nevertheless , on 2 May it was announced that as a result of the action Bromhead had been promoted to captain and brevet major , and he had been awarded the Victoria Cross , the highest decoration for gallantry that could be awarded to British troops . The citation for the award was published in the " London Gazette " : Later career and death . On his return to England , the villagers of Thurlby presented Bromhead with an illuminated address and a revolver , and the citizens of Lincoln awarded him a sword in recognition of his services in the Zulu campaign . He and Chard were invited to dine with Queen Victoria at Balmoral but he was fishing in Ireland and did not receive the invitation until the date had passed . The Queen did not invite him again but instead sent Bromhead a photograph of herself . Bromhead was posted to Gibraltar in 1880 and in August was dispatched to India where he remained until March 1881 . He then returned to England where he attended the School of Musketry , Hythe between October and December 1882 , and gained a First Class Extra Certificate . In 1883 he returned to India with his battalion which was based at Secunderabad and was promoted to full major on 4 April 1883 . From 27 October 1886 to 24 May 1888 he served in Burma where the battalion took part in the Third Anglo - Burmese War , being used to pacify the north of the region . The battalion was subsequently posted to Allahabad , India where Bromhead died of typhoid fever on 9 February 1891 . Legacy . Bromhead was buried in the New Cantonment Cemetery in Allahabad . His Victoria Cross medal is owned by his descendants and is displayed at The Regimental Museum of The Royal Welsh in Brecon in Wales . Michael Caine — in his first major film role — portrayed Bromhead in the 1964 film " Zulu " which was based on the battle of Rorke ' s Drift . In the film Bromhead is depicted as a foppish aristocrat . Bromhead is a main character in Peter Ho Davies ' s story " Relief , " which appeared first in " The Paris Review " and was later published in Davies ' s 1997 collection " The Ugliest House in the World " .