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40 Violent Realities in the Making of the British Empire

Boxer Rebellion - Country

20. The Anglo-Zulu War destroyed Zulu culture and divided the territory into 13 separate kingdoms.

Henry Bartle Frere issued an impossible ultimatum to the Zulu people in order to justify attacking them. Wikimedia

In 1878, Sir Henry Frere created a crisis in the African Kingdom of Zululand by delivering a demand that the native Zulu army disband and that certain aspects of Zulu culture be abandoned in favor of British customs. Unable to comply, the Zulu people rebelled against the British and the Anglo-Zulu War began in January 1879. By the end of July, the war was over and the Kingdom of Zululand was divided into 13 separate kingdoms, each ruled by a leader compliant with British demands. The former Kingdom of Zululand became a part of the British territory in Africa, another addition to the British Empire.

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