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Battle of Blood River
The Battle of Blood River (Slag van Bloedrivier in Afrikaans) was fought on 16th December 1838 on the banks of the Blood River (which was then called the Ncome), in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. A group of approximately 475 Voortrekkers, led by Andries Pretorius, defended a laager (circle of ox wagons) against Zulu impis, ruled by King Dingane and led by Dambuza (Nzobo) and Ndlela kaSompisi, who numbered anything from 10,000 to 20,000 in total.
The Voortrekkers were motivated by the fact that King Dingane had killed one of their leaders, Piet Retief, after negotiating a treaty with him. King Dingane's impis had subsequently embarked on a slaughtering campaign, raping and killing defenceless Voortrekker women and, allegedly, smashing their babies against rocks, most notably at Bloukrans.
On 15th December 1838 the Voortrekkers received word that a large Zulu force was approaching the area where they were located, and Pretorius decided it was wise to take precautions. He chose what turned out to be an excellent site next to the Blood River, where their ox wagons were arranged into a laager.
On 16th December, the Zulus repeatedly, but unsuccessfully, attacked the laager. A group of Voortrekker horse riders eventually left the encampment and engaged the Zulus. In the fighting, Pretorius was wounded in the hand by a Zulu spear.
The fact that the Voortrekkers used rifles and at least one light cannon against the Zulus' spears, as well as the defensive location and motivation of the Voortrekkers, resulted in only three Voortrekkers being wounded, with no fatalities. More than 3,000 Zulu impis were killed.
Before the advent of the representative democracy in South Africa, it was celebrated each year on 16th December. In 1978, a prominent academic, Floors van Jaarsveld, questioned the motivation, jingoism and the main objectives of those behind the continuing commemoration of the victory and was subsequently tarred and feathered during a public lecture by members of the hard-line Afrikaner Resistance Movement.
The date of 16th December is now celebrated as Reconciliation Day in South Africa.
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