British grenadiers

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Saturday, June 15. 2013

From Barry Lyndon. The gals do have a soft spot for a military man, don't they? There are many good reasons for that.

War drums, but the Zulus could have eaten these guys for lunch.

Posted by Bird Dog at 16:50 | Comments (20) | Trackbacks (0)

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Bird Dogs: War drums, but the Zulus could have eaten these guys for lunch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9qum9-_P34&t=56m0s

#1 Zachriel on 2013-06-15 17:42 (Reply)

ZakAss...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anal_retentive

Fishin' in the wrong pond...

Sad...

TC

#1.1 Garry on 2013-06-16 01:35 (Reply)

The guys at Rorke's Drift would probably dispute that.

#2 Randy on 2013-06-15 18:24 (Reply)

AYE, DOUBLE ON THAT!

Once the Brits formed their square the Zulu hoard would have taken casualties at 10-1 and still broken on that formation.

Huge difference between courage and crazy when it comes to success in battle against organized and discipilned troops.

#2.1 earl T on 2013-06-16 17:09 (Reply)

Ulundi too.

#3 Thud (Link) on 2013-06-15 18:37 (Reply)

If as it seems they are a just-raised regiment, and therefore untrained, unskilled. etc., yes, Zulus would cream them.

#4 Sam L. on 2013-06-15 18:41 (Reply)

The battle of Blood River showed that it didn't take trained troops to whip the Zulus. They NEVER asked the Afrikaners for rematch. All it took was somebody with half a brain in charge.

#4.1 Homer on 2013-06-16 22:16 (Reply)

My favorite movie war scene of all is from the version of Robin Hood starring Russell Crowe. Sappy movie, but at the end Robin is waiting on the beach to fight off— the Norman invasion in — Medieval Higgins Boats.

What could they possibly have been thinking? I loved it! Every time I think of it I get the giggles.

#5 The Elephant's Child (Link) on 2013-06-15 19:15 (Reply)

Here's 20 seconds that will explode forever among the synapses of the celluloid windmills of your mined:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsnWOyfMq4I

#5.1 buddy larsen on 2013-06-16 03:02 (Reply)

Mined?

#5.1.1 Tom Francis on 2013-06-16 12:06 (Reply)

"Who minds the land must mine the appproaches"

--Ibid, retired generalissimo of the Engineers & Sappers

#5.1.1.1 buddy larsen on 2013-06-17 21:27 (Reply)

From Scribner's magazine (1889):

QUOTE:

England has lately adopted a small bore-0.303 inch calibre-modified Lee magazine rifle-a Lee with most of the strong points of the mechanism modified out-after making a long series of most amusing steps of development in order to reach the conclusion that this arm was suited to her needs. For some years she has been more than content with her famous 0.45 inch calibre single-loading Martini-Henry rifles and Boxer cartridges-guns almost as bad in principle of breech mechanism as our own Springfields, and cartridges even worse than the United States regulation ones- and in her late "wars with peoples who wear not the trousers," her soldiers have gallantly fired on the enemy when they knew full well what a horrible punishment they were to receive from the brutal recoil of their weapons, and have borne their torture with true English grit. An English officer informed the writer that the practice was a great aid to gallantry in battle in South Africa, for "when a fellow has been so brutally pounded by his own rifle half a hundred times, he don't so much mind having an assegai as big as a shovel stuck through him; it s rather a relief, don't you know."

#6 JKB on 2013-06-15 21:27 (Reply)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODM1RJe4FvQ

Zulu war chants, from the great film. This youtube shows three different points in the all-day-into-the-night battle. These three clips just blend right into each other --kind of jarring at first, until you recall that the title says 'war chants'.

Anyhoo, it's funny how time slips away and then slips back again --but, the film was made in 1964. Rorke's Drift (the battle the subject of the film) was fought in 1879. The fight and the film are 85 years apart.

Warriors from age 15 to 20 fighting in the Anglo-Zulu War would have fathered offspring right on up to the turn of the century and a little beyond, and started becoming grandfathers from say 1920 on. So the grayhaired war song callers in the film learned at father's knee what father sang at the war, and the battalions of mid 20 to mid 30 year olds (Zulu units were organized by age) fighting the re-enactment in the film, learned the songs and steps at grandfather's knee, grandfather who sang them in the war.

So the point is, this youtube is showing the actual artifact songs done in living memory. You hear what the soldiers heard.

Amazing stuff!

#7 buddy larsen on 2013-06-16 02:42 (Reply)

The Zulus independently developed pitched warfare, but much later than Eurasians. That's what made them such fierce warriors.

#8 Zachriel on 2013-06-16 09:36 (Reply)

I think "Barry Lyndon" is one of the great films. I absolutely love it, including the sound track.

See the whole movie.

#9 Whitehall on 2013-06-16 16:27 (Reply)

Agree --wonderful movie --Kubrick may have been a little nutty, but he could sho-nuf make a film!

#9.1 buddy larsen on 2013-06-17 21:31 (Reply)

For those who are interested in learning more about the fighting Zulus, the definitive work, written by Donald Morris, is The Washing Of The Spears: The Rise And Fall Of The Zulu Nation.
Donald Morris used to write a weekly column for the Houston Post. As a former CIA agent, he had a unique perspective. One I recall was his claim that in the USSR, any foreigner could be located within three hours' time- to show the reach of the organs.

#10 Gringo on 2013-06-16 18:54 (Reply)

The days of the original Travelin' Will-Bury, Nikita Khrushchev --

#10.1 buddy larsen on 2013-06-18 01:09 (Reply)

Not bad, not bad.

#10.1.1 Gringo on 2013-06-19 13:06 (Reply)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cIjTodmfk0

King George's army is in the continent and on the march, Lyndon's regiment in the van. The unit makes contact with the French rear guard, a regiment blocking the road down which the main British army will want to pass within few hours.

#11 buddy larsen on 2013-06-18 05:48 (Reply)

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Saturday, June 15. 2013

British grenadiers