Visits to Isandlwana after the Battle by whom.

Exactly how many visits were made to Isandlwana after the battle, and who was in command of these visits. 

Black, I think made two trips. 

The 24th wanted to bury their own men, I think Bromhead was involved it that. 

Who else if any !

Hi John,
There were many.
However, two that  I  have knowledge of occurred on about 02/02/1879, and again in June 1880.
The details are that on 02/02  Maj Black and 9 NMP troopers under Cpl Groescke (sp?) visited the battleground to look for the missing colours. They checked the  site of the torn-down  1/24th guard tent finding nothing of the colours, but they did find evidence of heavy looting, wanton damage of property and equipment and a lot of money scattered about on the ground.
They found much unspent  MH ammo lying scattered on the ground "up on the hill" . When they then passed over the battleground, they found a number of rounds of unused RML ammo there, and then they went down the Fugitives trail to  the Buffalo.  On  the  trail they found two dead pack mules, both having being assegaied, with the loads of  undelivered MH ammunition still intact in the panniers on their backs.
At the Buffalo river they found the missing colours  and returned  with  them to Helpmekaar that evening.  
In June 1880, Gen Wood, with a party of 19 NMP troopers ( under Cpl Faddy), took the visiting French Princess Eugenie and her entourage to Isandlwana for a battlefield tour. Whilst there they took statements  from Mehlogozulu, who told them much  about the Isandlwana battle, and this included making a categorical statement before scribes and witnesses, that Col Durnford did not meet his demise at the point of a Zulu assegai...
General Wood also interviewed Zabanga who made a statement about how he gave the Prince Imperial the  coup de gras . Both Mehlogozulu and Zabanga had been specialy brought in by Fynn's Police to  be questioned by the General. Interestingly, Princess Eugenie bore no malice towards Zabanga and did not want him punished.
 Whilst overnighting at the battleground the  French Princess requested a visit to the Buffalo river. There her escort of NMP found the unburied rider and horse dead at the foot of one of the rock faces at the rivers edge . The two had apparently jumped to their death while fleeing Zulu pursuers.  The NMP party buried these remains where they had fallen.


regards

barry

John

These are the visits that come to mind (so may not be complete):

1. Melton Prior with 17th Lancers on 21 May 1879 (famous illustration in ILN dated 12 July 1879).

2. Lt William Whitelocke Lloyd's sketches of the battlefield are dated 25 July 1879 (1/24th return to Natal after the Zulu defeat at Ulundi).

3. There is a diary by Cpl C Bassage, Company Clerk/Storeman C Company 2/24th who documents a visit by his company under command of Major Wilsone Black to bury the dead on 20 June 1879 prior to its advance further into Zululand.

Of course there was the brief stay at Isandlwana during the night of 22 January 1879 by Lord Chelmsford's Column.

The Daily Telegraph special correspondent, writing from Rorke's Drift on June 24th, gives the following interesting particulars of the burial of those men killed in the battle of Isandula. He says on the morning of the 20th a tolerably large party left Rorke's Drift for the purpose of burying their comrades who were killed on January 22 at Isandula. It consisted of thirty mounted dragoons under Captain Willan, K.D.G., and Lieut. Taffe, 16th Lancers fifty dismounted Dragoons under Lieu Burney, 1st Royal Dragoons; sixty of Major Dartnell's Natal Mounted Police 140 men of the 2nd Battalion 24th Regiment under Captain Williams 100 of Tatalaka's Mounted Natives, and about 1,000 of the native levies, the whole under the command of Colonel Black, 2nd 24th Regiment. At about 10.30 the men commenced to work, beginning at the neck and keeping firstly to the right of the road. They soon came on the remains of many of their gallant Comrades who had fallen on the fatal day. Owing to the long grass, which in many places far overtopped the men's heads, it was difficult to see the bodies till quite close to them. It was evident a great stand had been made just in the rear of the I-24th camp. In one place over fifty bodies, including those of three officers, were found close together; and not far from these was another group, consisting of from sixty to seventy. Both of these groups consisted of 24th men, many of whom were identified by the names or numbers on their clothing. Amongst the officers identified were Captain Wardell, I-24th; Lieutenant Anstey, l-24th Lieutenant Dyer, 2-24th and Major White, paymaster of l-24th Regiment. A little to the left of the groups above mentioned, but to the right of the road, was a group of Natal Carbineers, nearly all of whom were recognized, and close to them was Colonel Durnford's body, which had been covered by stones on May 21st. Lieutenant Scott, of the Natal Carbineers, was here buried by his brother, who had obtained permission to accompany the party for that purpose. Not very far from the Carbineers, on the left of the road, were found over twenty men of the Natal Mounted Police. These men were nearly all identified, and were buried by their own comrades. In the 2-24th camp there were also many bodies, but on this occasion there were found to be more than enough work to be done on the right of the road. The men labored very hard till about one o'clock, when the assembly sounded, and they were marched to the stream that runs about a mile to the rear of the camp, where they halted for about half an hour to dine, and then marched home, where they arrived at dusk. About 200 bodies were buried on this day. The greater part was found lying on their backs with their arms stretched oat. This is easily accounted for, as the Zulus invariably disembowel their dead enemies. On June 22nd a second visit was made to Isandula, for the purpose of continuing the task of burying. The same force, with the exception of Dartnell's police and Knight's natives, started at 5 a.m., and reached the camp about eight, where they at once commenced working. On the right of the Isandula itself, some distance up, was found a large group of bodies, one of which was an officer. This was evidently a company which had taken up a position here and held it till they were surrounded and killed. This body of men had not been discovered by any of the parties that had previously visited the ground. Some Zulu bodies were found here too, amongst them a chief, whom they had evidently endeavored to bury, as he was covered by shields, canvas, and some stones. A great number of bodies were buried down the fugitives' path, where they were principally in small groups. Round one large tree, nearly a mile from the camp, many bodies were found, and a determined stand seemly to have been made here. Nine bodies close to this tree were discovered round a horse wagon, the horses lying assegai in the traces. Many were identified, amongst others Sergeant Giles, mess-sergeant of the l-24th, on whom was a watch Bandmaster Builard, 2-24th Regiment in his pocket a watch, two rings, and his will, dated January 18th, 1879, and were found. Several of the regimental police, servants, and bandsmen were identified along the path, showing that many of those who dropped along the road to the Fugitives' Drift were men who would not have to fall in with their companies. The force at Rorke's Drift, under Colonel Black, 2-24th Regiment, completed the burial of the slain at Isandula on the 26tb. On the two previous days that they had worked there-on the 21st and 22nd-they had buried over 500, and succeeded in identifying many of the bodies by the names on their clothing, or by articles found in the pockets. The burying party left Rorke's Drift at five a. m., and reached Isandula, a distance of eleven miles, by eight a.m. The force was at once divided into four different burying parties, and was sent under Second-Lieutenant Armitage to the camp, to finish the interment of the large numbers that had been found there on the first day. Another party, under Lieutenant Lloyd, proceeded to the Isandula hill to continue burying the brave men who had made their Stand under the mountain a third party of dragoons, under Lieutenant Barney, 1st Royals, were sent to search right round the mountain and the main body, under Captain Williams, 2-24th Regiment, thoroughly examined the camps of the Mounted Infantry, Artillery, 2nd-24th, and Native Contingent. On the bill a much greater number of bodies were found than was expected. Captain Yonnghusband and three other officers (unidentified) were buried there, and more than one company must have made a final stand here. There were many evidences of fierce hand-to-hand struggles.

To give instances: One 24th man, with a Zulu in front of him, had a Zulu knife buried to the haft in the small of his back. He had evidently been attacked in rear while engaged with the man killed. Close by was a Carbineer lying on the top of a Zulu? He was also stabbed in the back, and there were many other signs of terrible struggles; but nearly all the Zulu dead had been removed. The party under Captain Williams buried all the bodies found in the camps they searched, and altogether they did not find more than thirty or forty, most of whom seemed to have been killed conniving on the places were the stands had been made. A portion of this party proceeded as far as the Ingutu Mountains, and discovered traces of large numbers of Zulus, many of them partially buried in the dongas. The Zulus themselves say that they lost as many men at Isandula as they did at Kambula and Ginghilovo together.
Welshman  22nd August 1879

LH
Any chance of you posting the original newspaper article? Or a link even. Theres a lot of interesting points in there.

Cheers

Springbok I will send you a link, once I have found it again! The artical gives some great detail regarding the locations of bodies.

Here is the link to the original.

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Steve

Not the same, but just as interesting!

LH. Could you send me the link.