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Primary sourceArtifact1880

South Africa Medal

1880

A British campaign medal of 1880 given to troops who fought in southern African wars, including the Anglo-Zulu War against Cetshwayo's kingdom.

Awarded to British troops who fought against Cetshwayo's Zulu Kingdom, showing how the victors commemorated the war.

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Two views of a silver military medal on a yellow ribbon with dark blue stripes. Left: obverse with a profile of Queen Victoria and the words VICTORIA REGINA, with a clasp inscribed 1879. Right: reverse with the words SOUTH AFRICA above a lion lying beneath a tree, with a small crossed-branch motif below.
South Africa Medal, 1880. British campaign medal for the Anglo-Zulu War and related conflicts.

About this source

What it is

This is a silver campaign medal instituted by the British government in 1880. It was awarded to soldiers, sailors and colonial volunteers who fought in a series of conflicts in southern Africa between 1877 and 1879, including the Anglo-Zulu War. The front shows a profile of Queen Victoria; the back shows a lion beneath a tree, with a clasp marking the year 1879.

Why it matters

The medal was given to the British side of the war against King Cetshwayo's Zulu Kingdom. It shows how the British state honoured and remembered its own soldiers, while the Zulu side of the conflict, led by Cetshwayo, is absent from the object itself. Thousands of these medals were awarded, making the war a shared memory for many British veterans.

Look closer

  • Whose side of the war does this medal tell the story of?
  • What does the choice of a lion and Queen Victoria's image suggest about who the medal was meant to honour?
  • What is left out of this object's version of the war?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Cetshwayo kaMpande on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Sepia-toned studio portrait of a man in profile facing right, wearing a dark double-breasted coat, white collar, dark tie, and a white pocket square, with a close-cropped hairstyle and a stiff band-like headdress. Plain gradient backdrop.Photograph

Primary source

Portrait of Cetshwayo kaMpande, London 1882

Alexander Bassano · 1882

Black-and-white photograph of a seated man with a band across his head, a beaded necklace, and a fur or skin cloth over his lap. He is bare-chested and bare-legged, holding a long thin stick across his knees, against a pale draped backdrop.Photograph

Primary source

Photograph of Cetshwayo kaMpande, c. 1875

c. 1875

Oil painting of a bearded man wearing a dark headring and a necklace of large white animal teeth or claws over bare shoulders and a dark fur or hide cloak, against a pale yellow and green sky. Signature and date at lower right.Painting

Primary source

Cetshwayo, King of the Zulus

Carl Rudolph Sohn · 1882

Black and white engraved print titled 'Peace Messengers from Cetewayo'. Dark silhouetted figures crowd a grassy foreground; several wear wide-brimmed hats and carry long staffs. Behind them, a large white curved shield and tall figures with feathered headdresses stand against a hatched sky.Painting

Primary source

Peace Messengers from Cetawayo

1879

Book

Secondary source

History of the Zulu War and Its Origin

Frances Ellen Colenso and Edward Durnford · 1880

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