Private Robert Adams was in the 150-strong British garrison that defied all odds to thwart an attack by 4,000 Zulu warriors in 1879. Pictured: The medal.
Even after 141 years and two World Wars, it remains one of the most celebrated actions in British military history.
Thanks in no small part to the 1964 classic film, Zulu starring Stanley Baker and a young, plummy-toned Michael Caine the Battle of Rorke’s Drift has become a byword for standing firm in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.
Military cadets still study the day, in January 1879, when a small South African mission station turned supply depot, manned by 135 British soldiers a quarter of them sick and bedridden came under attack from 4,000 Zulu warriors.
Just hours before, King Cetshwayo’s regiments, or impis, had wiped out an entire British column of 1,500 men at nearby Isandlwana. Now, with dusk approaching, the Zulus were heading for Rorke’s Drift.