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Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:32 pm

I was just having a look Jamie's Isandlwana site.
Was there any recorded deaths to British Soldiers during the zulu wars from snake bites or anyother wild animals.

Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:16 am

Hi Harman,
I believe several soldiers experienced snake bite during the Anglo Zulu War. I don't have my books with me at the moment but I seem to recall that "Eshowe was infested with Puff Adders" and these highly venomous snakes tend to be sluggish and hide themselves away. They can easily be trodden upon and then of course they strike. I also understand that at least three venomous snakes inhabit certain regions of the Fugitives trail and that the Spitting Cobra is one of them. I have not validated this yet but it seems to me that with all the activity involved in warfare plus ground clearance for the Eshowe defences, it is inevitable that sooner or later, someone will be bitten. Hope this helps.
David

Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 10:07 am

Thanks David it dawn on me because a lot of time the soldiers slept in the open.

Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 12:27 pm

Harman
Very true, and a cosy bedroll makes an inviting place to coil up for a snake.
David

Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 10:57 am

David fould this little extract.

The more serious medical cases which involved hospitalisation included
scarlet fever, measles, diphtheria, typhus, pneumonia, dysentery, polio and
syphilis. The hospital at Gingindlovu recorded that in April they treated, out of
76 officers; fever1; sunstroke 1; diarrhoea 4; dysentery 4, other diseases 4.
Out of 2,000 other ranks, fevers 180; rheumatism 29; diarrhoea 40; dysentery
29; bronchitis 2; boils 11; other diseases and accidental wounds 44. 'Other
diseases' included venereal cases. The records reveal the medical treatment
for snakebite was copious alcohol (to be drunk).* 5 History records that the
senior medical officer during the campaign, Surgeon General Woolfryes,
blamed the atmosphere for the fevers and dysentery while the soldiers knew
little or nothing about protecting their food and water from the bacteriacarrying
flies. Personal hygiene was still in its infancy, Col. Clarke wrote,
"Latrines and urine pits were dug near the tents, and filled in every morning.
The natives would not use them".* 6 Maj. MacGregor also lamented the
natives' unfamiliarity with latrines and added "A principal difficulty was the
constant death of oxen, often near water, which had to be dragged away and
buried".*

Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:03 am

Harman

Regarding snakes, according to the 'blurb' on the AZWHS site, Ian Knight's new book, "A Companion to the Anglo-Zulu War" includes something about the troops' experience with snakes.

H

Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:07 am

Thanks Haydn I'll have a look.

Posted: Sun Jun 22, 2008 11:36 am

Hi all,
Probably more serious than snake bite was the soldiers own Oliver pattern water bottle. Heaven knows what went into those when being filled at various watercourses etc. They are probably responsible for more troop deaths in Africa than either the spears of the Zulus or the bullets of the Boers.
Regards
David

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 7:53 pm

Snakes notwithstanding, I recall the first British casualty of the AZW was that of a private who fell off a pont crossing the Tugela and was taken by a Nile crocodile. Pearson's column perhaps? I imagine it was an eye-opening experience to his mates.

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 7:58 pm

David,
I can vouch for the presence of Spitting Cobra as I saw a rather flat (but still identifiable) one at Rorke's Drift. Large as they are, they're no match for a Toyota and the middle of the road is a lousy place to sun oneself were one an ectomorph! Don't the mamba possess the most toxic venom of all terrestrial snakes and isn't the green mamba the worst of the lot?

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 8:17 pm

Just back from some research on the Web. The Black Mamba is the deadliest snake in the world i.e.: accounting for the most deaths. It's the largest snake in Africa and the longest snake anywhere. And I would have guessed King Cobra for both records. It's bite can inject enough venom to kill 120 to 140 normal adult humans and it's 100% fatal in the absence of antitoxin within 20 minutes. To top it off, the black mamba has a miserable attitude and it's the fastest snake in the entire World (capable of 12 miles an hour (or was it kilometers?)). OUCH!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 8:28 pm

In reply to the query about Mambas, the Black Mamba is the most dangerous of our South African snakes. The Green Mamba is very seldom seen and I can't remember having read an account of someone being bitten by one. In fact, I have never seen one in the wild. On the other hand, the Black Mamba tends to attack someone if you cross its path. I have been attacked by one near Fort Pearson - its head was the height of the middle of the driver's window, which it hit as it struck at me. Interestingly, there are only a few AZW mentions that I have come across. During the Civil War (1883-1888) that followed the Anglo-Zulu War, Lt Col W G Montgomery of the Royal Welsh Regiment was bitten on the leg by a Black Mamba and died on the 25th September 1883. He is buried above Fort Tenedos near the mouth of the uThukela (Tugela) River (photo available for anyone who would like to see it). I have edited the diary of Commandant Ludwig Krause of the Soutpansberg Commando (published by the van Riebeeck Society in 1996) and he describes the trials and tribulations of the Boers with regard to scorpions, spiders and snakes. I have no doubt that these problems were experienced by the British soldiers as well.
Ken

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2008 9:57 pm

Ken

No such thing as the Royal Welsh Regiment then or now. Your choices, then, are The Royal Welsh Fusiliers (23rd) [which used a 'c' in Welsh at one point - can't remember exact dates off the top of my head, but around the time of the Boer War] or The Welch Regiment (41st).

And in passing....

Today, tempting though it is to stick 'Regiment' after the name of the newly formed Royal Welsh (amalgamation of RWF and RRW), it isn't actually there. Hence the old RRW is now 2nd Bn The Royal Welsh (RRW) and not 2nd Bn The Royal Welsh Regiment (RRW). The omission is to make the 23rd old and bold, who always called themselves 'The Royal Welsh' for short, feel better about being amalgamated. In the opinion of many the omission of the word Regiment is silly, as the press and general public will always feel inclined to slip it in, thus presenting the regiment with a never-ending and unwinnable struggle to have the name correctly rendered in the media and other public places. A good soldier should pick only fights he can win of course.

Almost makes one want to be a gunner....almost. Wink

As ever

Mike

PS. Good luck with the 130th Anniversary. I wish I could be there, [and had intended to be] but sadly the 'exigencies of the service' no longer make this possible.

Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 5:39 am

Good point - it should have read The Welch Regiment.
Good to hear from you.
UBIQUE,
Ken

Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2008 9:09 am

Not in the Commando's phrase book but,
Semper ubi sub ubi.
Cheers
JK