Frances E Colenso

The History of the Zulu War Frances E Colenso

The great work of Colenso and Durnford which is exceptional among contemporary histories in that it attempted to view the conflict from both sides. Frances Colenso was the daughter of Bishop Colenso, whose Bishopric included Zululand at the time of the war. She understood the Zulu nation was a sympathetic observer. This excellent study written by an author who was close to the events, was originally published very shortly after the war. Frances Colenso had a close personal relationship with Colonel Anthony Durnford, who was killed at Isandlwhana and who posthumously became one of the scapegoats for the disaster. Frances was therefore able to call upon the assistance of Durnford's brother, Edward who was also a soldier and who was therefore in a position to provide this excellent work with the vital military knowledge, authority and precision. This great work which resulted from their collaboration was the first, and remains the most significant survey of the Zulu War and the events that led up to it. It endures today and forms as an essential addition to any library encompassing the history of the Zulu Wars. The engravings and illustrations are contemporary and are reproduced exactly as they appeared in 1879 in the pages of the Illustrated London News and the Graphic. These wonderful engravings provide a direct link with the past and together with the Colenso and Durnford text to produce an absorbing account of the Zulu War through Victorian eyes.