An interesting and informative account of the Zulus' greatest battles is, unfortunately, not as comprehensive as it could have been. While Knight has, once again, done his homework (his accounts of the battles of Thukela and Blood River are vivid)there are some thrilling battles in earlier Zulu history which have been afforded little attention. For instance, the battle of kwaGqokli hill, which featured the young Shaka leading his men against the powerful Ndwandwe of Zwide kaLanga, lives in many an imagination as the first reckoning of the great Zulu empire. But while there are valid reasons not to include the aforementioned clash, the battle of izinDololwane hills, which saw Shaka, with the help of his white allies, shatter the powerful Ndwandwe kingdom once and for all, surely merits an inclusion. That aside, the book is typical of Knight: colourful, interesting, objective, factual.

A useful and informative introduction to the Zulu wars. Several major battles are covered in depth, and the general trends of the war explained. Overall tactics for the Zulu Nation are discussed in some length, however the same treatment is not given to the British side. The reader is left with the overall impression that the main tactic of the Zulu Nation was to field vastly superior numbers, and without this there was little chance of victory. There is a lack of detail on the weapons and equipment and dress used by each side which would have been an important and interesting addition