Isandlwana, in Zulu, means "something like a little house." The spur sits on a gradually rising plain approximately 10 mi (16 km) from Rorke's Drift. Because of poor roads and the unwieldy wagons, it took Lord Chelmsford 10 days to make the passage from Rorke's Drift to the foot of Isandlwana, where he arrived on 20 January 1879. Since Chelmsford's plan was for a quick strike toward the Zulu Royal Kraal at Ulundi, he considered his camp temporary, and did …
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…native forces. In the end, about 1300 British (800 Imperial troops and 500 irregulars) and between 1500 and 2000 Zulus lay dead. The British dead were buried on the field several weeks later, and the cairns marking their graves are visible today. What Zulu dead who were not carried off, remained unburied on the field. After the battle, the Zulu impi disbanded and returned to their home kraals, awaiting another call by King Cetshwayo kaMpande to sortie against the invaders.