The other ShedCon, 10th November 2018

[World2dave]

I don't have so much as a Zulu grandma, or any other type of old sandbag. I'll focus on chockie biccies.

[garyp]

Ok, let's do Rorke's Drift. I think I have all the terrain required, but some extra biscuit box/mealie bag barricades would be good, as would wagons because they're probably better than mine. The scenario I've run before is definitely influenced by the film so get your singing voices warmed up - Zulus as well as Welshmen. There'll be no historically accurate Warwickshire Lad here, Men of Harlech all the way!

[BaronVonWreckedoften]

Just to say there were actually more Irishmen at Rorke's Drift than there were Welshmen. So start practising your harmonies for a few choruses of "Cockles and Mussels".

[Etranger]

Just to say there were actually more Irishmen at Rorke's Drift than there were Welshmen. So start practising your harmonies for a few choruses of "Cockles and Mussels".

Baron, you're forgetting that this is the British Army & nothing is as straightforward as it looks. A lot of the 'English' men were from Monmouthshire, which in those days was classed as an English, not Welsh county. (18, according to http://www.rorkesdriftvc.com/myths/myths.htm, which actually outnumbers the 16 Irishmen, along with 14 Welshmen...)

In the late 17th century, under Charles II, Monmouthshire was added to the Oxford circuit of the English Assizes following which, according to the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, it gradually "came to be regarded as an English county".[13] The Modern Universal British Traveller of 1779 stated: "Monmouthshire was formerly a part of Wales, and continued so till the reign of Charles II, when it was reckoned an English county (as it has been ever since) because the judges then began to keep the assizes here in the Oxford circuit."[15] A later traveller, George Borrow in 1862, wrote: "Monmouthshire is at present considered an English county, though certainly with little reason, for it not only stands on the western side of the Wye, but the names of almost all its parishes are Welsh, and many thousands of its population still speak the Welsh language."

(wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monmouthshire_(historic))

Also from wiki:

While most of the men of the 1st Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot (1/24) were recruited from the industrial towns and agricultural classes of England, principally from Birmingham and adjacent southwest counties, only 10 soldiers of the 1/24 that fought in the battle were Welsh. Many of the soldiers of the junior battalion, the 2/24, were Welshmen.[54] Of the 122 soldiers of the 24th Regiment present at the Battle of Rorke's Drift, 49 are known to have been of English nationality, 32 were Welsh, 16 were Irish, one was a Scot, and three were born overseas. The nationalities of the remaining 21 are unknown.[55](citation in article)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of ... te_note-55 (They've put the Monmouthshire lads into the Welsh count.)

[grizzlymc]

Pay no attention Gary - Men of Harlech it must be and Taffy accents they must use. No historical misdirection.

Pot that chap!

[BaronVonWreckedoften]

.....which actually outnumbers the 16 Irishmen...

I had 19, but that was including the officers (Surgeon Reynolds, for example - who was 10 years younger than the actor who portrayed him in Zulu).

So, given that Monmouth didn't officially become part of Wales until 1972, then legally the Irish DID outnumber the Welsh.

[Tim Hall]

.....which actually outnumbers the 16 Irishmen...

I had 19, but that was including the officers (Surgeon Reynolds, for example - who was 10 years younger than the actor who portrayed him in Zulu).

So, given that Monmouth didn't officially become part of Wales until 1972, then legally the Irish DID outnumber the Welsh.

All good points, but we are doing Zulu baby, who cares.

[Jeremy]

The rivers will run red with the blood of the white man

[valleyboy]

Doesn't matter how many English or Irish were there
One Welshman with a voice would have been enough and by the way the Welsh Version of Gwyr Harlech is better....

Wele Goelcerth Wen yn fflamio
A thafodau tan yn bloeddio
A'r i'r ddewrion dod i daro'n
Unwaith eto'n un

Gan fanllefau tywysogion
Llais gelynion trwsg arfogion
A charlamiad ein marchogion
Graig o graig o gryn


I'll sing it to you sometime

[Jeremy]

I bet VB had to wipe the spit off his screen after that!