Zulu is a 1964 British epic adventure action war film depicting the Battle of Rorke's Drift between a detachment of the British Army and the Zulu in 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War, in which 150 British soldiers, 30 of whom were sick and wounded, at a remote outpost, held off a force of 4,000 Zulu warriors.
UK cinema release poster
Caine as he appears in the trailer
Historical picture of Zulu warriors from about the same time as the events depicted in Zulu
The Battle of Rorke's Drift, also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was an engagement in the Anglo-Zulu War. The successful British defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenants John Chard of the Royal Engineers and Gonville Bromhead, of the 24th Regiment of Foot began once a large contingent of Zulu warriors broke off from the main force during the final hour of the British defeat at the day-long Battle of Isandlwana on 22 January 1879, diverting 6 miles (9.7 km) to attack Rorke's Drift later that day and continuing into the following day.
The Defence of Rorke's Drift, by Alphonse de Neuville (1880)
Prince Dabulamanzi kaMpande
Historical picture of Zulu warriors from about the same time as the events at Rorke's Drift
Contemporary drawing of Rorke's Drift Post, from The History of the Corps of Royal Engineers.