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Despite what's shown in the movie, I don't think it proper to say the RD attackers were defeated. The idea that the Zulus saluted the Brits as being brave fighters and then withdrew as whupped is flapdoodle. The Zs saw that reinforcements from Isandlawana were on the way and made a "strategic withdrawal". Two key things to keep in mind:

•The Zs had no previous experience attacking fortified positions. That wasn't a style of warfare they had ever encountered. (How would the US Marines fare if they were attacked from UFOs with ray guns? Would you call that a "defeat" for them?)

•The RD attackers were there against the chief's orders. (They were ordered to remain available as reinforcements, if needed.) So they knew they were out on a limb, and would have had a hard time explaining their actions.

Of course, there are many, many ins/outs to all this. But to my mind this question turns purely on a matter of semantics and partisanship. It was important to the Brits that the Zs be called "defeated" there (RD) so as to offset the ignominious slaughter at Isandlawana. Singling out RD from the rest of the attendant events was pure spin by the government, as were many of the many VCs conferred (Read: Propaganda for the folks back home.) You have to admit that, overall, if anyone was "defeated" that day, he wore a red coat. RD was peanuts compared to Isandlawana.

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