伊散德爾瓦納戰役

伊散德爾瓦納戰役（）發生於1879年1月22日－1月23日，為祖魯戰爭先期戰爭中，極為重要的戰役。在英國入侵南部非洲的祖魯蘭十一天后，一支由約20,000名祖魯戰士組成的祖魯軍隊襲擊了英國主力縱隊的一部分，該縱隊由約1,800名英國、殖民地和土著軍隊以及約350名平民組成。Knight (2002), p. 49, Knight gives a total of 1,768 combat troops, not including wagon drivers and other civilians, of which there were some 350, Colenso, p. 263祖魯人主要裝備傳統的（assegai）鐵矛和牛皮盾牌，Christon I. Archer World History of Warfare, Univ of Nebraska Pr, 2008, , p. 462 "They had a national army of twenty-five thousand men equipped with cowhide shields, assegais and clubs."但也擁有一些毛瑟枪和老式步槍。Smith-Dorrien, Chapter 1B "It was a marvellous sight, line upon line of men in slightly extended order, one behind the other, firing as they came along, for a few of them had firearms, bearing all before them." eyewitness account, emphasis addedIan Knight, Angus McBride Zulu 1816–1906, Osprey Publishing, 1995, , p. 25

英國和殖民地軍隊配備了現代馬蒂尼-亨利後膛裝填式步槍和兩門7磅山炮作為野戰炮部署，以及海爾火箭炮。祖魯人在武器技術方面處於巨大劣勢，Doyle, p. 118: "It was here ... the British Army suffered its worst ever defeat at the hands of a technologically inferior indigenous force." (emphasis added)但他們在數量上遠遠超過英國人，並最終壓倒了英國人，Morris, pp. 366–67殺死了1,300多名士兵，其中包括所有在前線的士兵。祖魯軍隊有1,000至3,000人陣亡。Ian Knight Rorke's Drift 1879 Osprey Publishing, 1996, .

該戰役中，20,000名南非祖魯人成功伏擊了英國遠征軍進攻至伊散德爾瓦納的約1,700人前鋒。儘管面對著軍事裝備的巨大劣勢，但祖魯人最後仍以約1千至4千人的代價擊敗英軍，並令英軍戰死超過1,300人，幾乎全軍覆沒。祖魯人並趁此機會收復羅克渡口的原本失土。

這場戰鬥對祖魯人來說是決定性的勝利，並導致英國第一次入侵祖魯蘭的失敗。Thompson, p. 75 "Thus ended the first British invasion of Zululand." Knight (2003), p. 27 Map titled: "First invasion of Zululand".英國陸軍在軍事技術落後的本土土著敵人面前遭受了最慘重的失敗。伊散德爾瓦納戰役導致英國在盎格魯-祖魯戰爭中採取更激進的做法，導致第二次大規模入侵，Morris, pp. 498–511, Chapter 'The Second Invasion'並摧毀了开芝瓦约國王透過談判和平的希望。Spiers, p. 42, "... reports of the annihilation ... prompted the Cabinet to send reinforcements and galvanized interest in the war." Ian Knight, Zulu War, Osprey, 2004, p. 11, "The home government, embarrassed by Isandlwana, sought to restore British honour by despatching more reinforcements ..."

 註解 

 外部連結 

 Zulu: The True Story By Dr. Saul David
 Isandlwana battlefields 
 Personal account of the battle by Horace Smith-Dorrien
 Zulunet description of the battle
 Secrets of the Dead – Day of the Zulu 
 Travellers Impressions
 The Battle of Isandlwana 
 The Battle of Isandlwana 22 January 1879, Ian Knight video 
 Forgotten Heroes Zulu & Basuto Wars, Roy Dutton,/ [https://www.roydutton.co.uk/my-books/forgotten-heroes-zulu-basuto-wars/

Category:1879年
Category:南非战役
Category:祖魯戰爭
Category:南非军事史
Category:英国战役