The Washing of the Spears : The Rise and Fall of the Zulu Nation

New York, New York, U.S.A.: Simon & Schuster, 1965. 655pp, 76 b&w photos & illus., maps, notes on Zulu orthography, sources, bibliography, index, Stated - 1st Printing. "The Washing of the Spears" is the definitive account of the bloody and tragic story of the rise of the Zulu nation under the great ruler Shaka, and its fall under Cetshwayo in the Zulu War of 1879. For over a century after the European landing at Capetown in the 17th century, the Boers advanced unopposed into the vast interior of Africa. It was not until 1824 that Europeans came face to face with another expanding and imperial power, the Zulus -- the most formidable nation in black Africa. That confrontation ignited a prolonged struggle, which culminated in a bitter war, the last despairing effort of Africans to stem the tide of white civilization. The result was a dramatic, legendary, and bloody defeat at Isandhlwana for the British; the aftermath was the defeat and fall of the remarkable Zulu nation.~ The Zulus challenged the might of Victorian England, and armed only with their spears, their rawhide shields and their incredible courage, they inflicted upon the British the worst defeat a modern army has ever suffered at the hands of savages. The record of that war is studded with tales of unparalleled drama. Stated First Printing. Clean . 1st Printing. Cloth. Very Good+/No Jacket. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.