At this time, a battle for the succession broke out between two of Mpande's sons, Cetshwayo and Mbuyazi.

The boundary was beaconed in 1864, but when in 1865 Umtonga fled from Zululand to Natal, Cetshwayo, seeing that he had lost his part of the bargain ( for he feared that Umtonga might be used to supplant him, as Mpande had been used to supplant Dingane ), caused the beacon to be removed, and also claimed the land ceded by the Swazis to Lydenburg.

While numerous Zulus of rival factions fled into Natal and some of the surrounding areas, Cetshwayo continued and maintained the peaceful relations with the Natal colonists that had prevailed for decades.

Three incidents occurred in late July, August and September which Frere seized upon as his causus belli and were the basis for the ultimatum to which Frere knew Cetshwayo could not comply, giving Frere a pretext to attack the Zulu kingdom.

Bulwer did not initially hold Cetshwayo responsible for what was clearly not a political act in the seizure and murder of the two women.

The original complaint carried to Cetshwayo from the lieutenant-governor was in the form of a request for the surrender of the culprits.

# Payment of a fine of five hundred head of cattle for the outrages committed by the above and for Cetshwayo ’ s delay in complying with the request of the Natal Government for the surrender of the offenders.

Frere ’ s dissolving of the newly-elected Cape Parliament removed any constitutional obstructions to the colonial office's confederation plan, but was overshadowed by the increasingly support of discontented South Africans for the Zulu leader Cetshwayo.

Cetshwayo won, and though Mpande did not relinquish power for over a year, Cetshwayo was effectively in control.

Sir Bartle Frere, High Commissioner of southern Africa for the British Empire, on his own initiative, without the approval of the British government and with the intent of instigating a war with the Zulu, had presented an ultimatum on 11 December 1878, to the Zulu king Cetshwayo with which the Zulu king could not comply.

In 1856 a major battle, the Battle of Ndondakusuka was fought nearby, and 23, 000 died, when Mpande's sons Mbuyazwe and Cetshwayo vied for supremacy.

The British High Commissioner for South Africa who provokes the war by issuing King Cetshwayo with an impossible ultimatum.

Cetshwayo is concerned that mobilising his armies will leave a chronic labour shortage, and is eager to defeat the British army in time for his soldiers to return and gather the harvest.

A Zulu regarded as a traitor by Cetshwayo because of his support for a rival claimant to the Zulu throne, Mantshonga delivered the British ultimatum to Cetshwayo and returned his response.

Cetshwayo responded to pleas from the abaQulasi for aid against the raids of Wood's troops by ordering the main Zulu army to help them.

* The Battle of Ndondakusuka: Mpande's sons Mbuyazwe and Cetshwayo battle for kingship of Zululand.

The distance of these Zulus from the capital of Ulundi gave them a degree of independence from Cetshwayo ’ s rule, enabling the chiefs to withhold their warriors for local defence, rather than contributing to the main Zulu Army.

By the time King Cetshwayo was allowed to return home, there was no longer an independent Zulu kingdom.

Frere, on his own initiative, without the approval of the British government and with the intent of instigating a war with the Zulu, had presented an ultimatum on 11 December 1878, to the Zulu king Cetshwayo with which the Zulu king could not comply.

Cetshwayo did not comply and Bartle Frere sent Lord Chelmsford to invade Zululand.

In December 1878, notwithstanding the reluctance of the British government to start yet another colonial war, Frere presented Cetshwayo with an ultimatum that the Zulu army be disbanded and the Zulus accept a British resident.

Frere impressed upon the Colonial Office his belief that Cetshwayo's army had to be eliminated, an idea that was generally accepted until Frere sent Cetshwayo a provocative and impossible ultimatum in December 1878 and the home government began to realize the problems inherent in a native war.

Cetshwayo was unable to comply with Frere's ultimatum-even if he had wanted to ; Frere ordered Lord Chelmsford to invade Zululand, and so the Anglo-Zulu War began.

In December 1878, notwithstanding the reluctance of the British government to start yet another colonial war, Frere presented Cetshwayo with an ultimatum that the Zulu army be disbanded and the Zulus accept a British resident.

Cetshwayo did not comply and Bartle Frere sent Lord Chelmsford to invade Zululand.

Bartle Frere issues an impossible ultimatum to the Zulu king, Cetshwayo, demanding that he dissolve the Zulu Empire.

However, an important consideration, which King Cetshwayo appreciated, was that there was a clear difference between defending one's territory, and encroaching on another, regardless of the fact that they are at war with the holder of that land.

Indeed, the Zulu attacks on the British strongpoints at Rorke's Drift and at Kambula, ( both bloody defeats ) seemed to have been carried out by over-enthusiastic leaders and warriors despite contrary orders of the Zulu King, Cetshwayo.

Undoubtedly, Cetshwayo and his war leaders faced a tough and extremely daunting task-overcoming the challenge of concentrated rifled, machine gun ( Gatling gun ), and artillery fire on the battlefield.

There were incidents involving Zulu paramilitary actions on either side of the Transvaal / Natal border, and Shepstone increasingly began to regard King Cetshwayo, who now found no defender in Natal save Bishop Colenso, as having permitted such " outrages ," and to be in a " defiant mood.

In 1861, Umtonga, a brother of Cetshwayo, and another son of Zulu king Mpande, fled to the Utrecht district, and Cetshwayo assembled an army on that frontier.

The terms which were included in the ultimatum delivered to the representatives of King Cetshwayo on the banks of the Thukela river on 11 December 1878.

There were incidents involving Zulu paramilitary actions on either side of the Transvaal / Natal border, and Sir Shepstone increasingly began to regard King Cetshwayo ( who now found no defender in Natal save Bishop Colenso ) as having permitted such " outrages ," and to be in a " defiant mood.

The New Republic ( comprising the town of Vryheid ) was established in 1884 on land given to the local Boers by the Zulu King Dinuzulu the son of Cetshwayo after he recruited local Boers to fight on his side.

Succession was eventually settled by the Battle of Ndondakusuka between rivals Cetshwayo and Mbulazi, who was supported by John Dunn, on the banks of the Tugela River.

Cetshwayo sent the 24, 000 strong main Zulu impi from near present-day Ulundi, on 17 January, across the White Umfolozi River with the following command to his warriors: " March slowly, attack at dawn and eat up the red soldiers.

Unknown to the inhabitants of Natal, Cetshwayo, still hoping to avoid a total war, had prohibited any crossing of the border in retaliation and was incensed over the violation of the border by the attack on Rorke's Drift.

Though Mpande and Cetshwayo had successfully resisted attempts by the Boers and the British to encroach on their territory, the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 forced John Dunn to pick sides, and he sided with the British.

* The attack on the mission station was not ordered by King Cetshwayo, as the audience is led to believe in the film.

On top of this a report in The Witness, based on Usuthu sources describing an alleged attack launched by John Shepstone of the Natal Native Affairs Department on the “ defenceless ” supporters of Cetshwayo at a meeting in Eshowe, led to Statham facing a libel suit brought against him by Shepstone.

The Siege of Eshowe was part of a three-pronged attack on the Zulu Impis of king Cetshwayo at Ulundi during the Anglo-Zulu War.

Wood had hoped to capitalise on the near-autonomy of the Zulus surrounding him, by trying to wean them from any allegiance they felt to Cetshwayo, centring hopes on one Uhamu, Cetshwayo ’ s half-brother who had always been friendly towards the British and at odds with the Zulu King.