Ian Knight (born 1956) is a British
historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...
and writer, specialising in
Anglo-Zulu and
Boers wars.
Biography
Ian Knight was born in Shoreham-by-Sea, Sussex, UK. He first studied afro-caribbean history at the
University of Kent
, motto_lang =
, mottoeng = Literal translation: 'Whom to serve is to reign'(Book of Common Prayer translation: 'whose service is perfect freedom')Graham Martin, ''From Vision to Reality: the Making of the University of Kent at Canterbury'' ...
in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, then he majored in the military history of southern Africa and the history of the
Zulu nation and the
Anglo-Zulu war
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, coupl ...
of 1879 in particular. He published many books on the subject (nearly thirty) and took part in the first archaeological excavations of the battlefield of
Isandhlwana
Isandlwana () (older spelling ''Isandhlwana'', also sometimes seen as ''Isandula'') is an isolated hill in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It is located north by northwest of Durban. The name is said to mean abomasum, the second st ...
in 2000. His best known book is the in-depth study of the Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift campaigns, Zulu Rising. He has occasionally written about other British colonial campaigns, including the New Zealand and Sudan wars. He has advised on museum exhibitions in both the UK and South Africa, and has consulted for British and American television channels, including the BBC, in the production of documentaries. He has catalogued sales of Zulu artefacts for auction houses. In 2019 he narrated a re-enactment of the battle of ISandlwana on the battlefield as part of the 140th anniversary commemoration, in the presence of His Majesty King Goodwill Zwelithini and Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi. or for commemorative events.
Bibliography
* ''Great Zulu battles, 1838-1906'', Castle Books, 1988,
* ''Queen Victoria's Enemies (2): Northern Africa'', Bloomsbury USA, 1989
* ''Zulu 1816–1906'', Bloomsbury USA, 1995
* ''The Anatomy of the Zulu Army, from Shaka to Cetshwayo 1818-1879'', Greenhill Books, Londres, 1999,
* with Ian Castle, ''Zulu War, 1879'', Osprey campaign, 2001,
* ''With his face to the foe : the life and death of Louis Napoléon, the prince imperial, Zululand, 1879'', Staplehurst (GB), 2001
* ''Isandlwana 1879'', Osprey campaign, 2002,
* ''The National Army Museum book of the Zulu war'', Pan Books, 2003,
* ''Boer Commando 1876 - 1902'', Osprey publishing, 2004
* ''British fortifications in Zululand, 1879'', Osprey publishing, 2005
* ''Brave Men's Blood - the Anglo-Zulu war of 1879'', Pen & Sword Military Classics, 2005,
* ''Companion to the Anglo-Zulu War'', Pen & Sword Military Classics, 2008
* ''Maori Fortifications'', Bloomsbury USA, 2009
* ''Zulu Rising'', Pan, 2011
* ''The New Zealand Wars 1820–72'', Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013
* ''Boer Guerrilla vs British Mounted Soldiers: South Africa 1880-1902'', Osprey publishing, 2017
Honours and awards
*
Royal United Services Institute
The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI, Rusi), registered as Royal United Service Institute for Defence and Security Studies and formerly the Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies, is a British defence and security think tank. ...
's Prize for Best Military History in 2003.
* Awarded the Anglo-Zulu Historical Society's Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi Award for lifetime's achievement in the field of Zulu history.
Further reading
* Adrian Greaves, ''The Tribe That Washed Its Spears: The Zulus at War'', Pen & Sword Military, 2013
* Desmond Bowen, Heroic Option: The Irish in the British Army, Pen & Sword Military, 2005
*
John Laband
John Paul Clow Laband (born 18 March 1947 in Johannesburg) is a South African historian and writer, specialising in Anglo-Zulu and Boers wars. He has taught at universities in South Africa, England and Canada. In particular he has been Professo ...
, ''Kingdom in Crisis: The Zulu Response to the British Invasion of 1879'', Manchester University Press, 1992
* John Laband, ''Historical Dictionary of the Zulu Wars'', The Scarecrow press, 2009
References
External links
Osprey Publishing
British military historians
1956 births
British male non-fiction writers
20th-century British non-fiction writers
21st-century British non-fiction writers
Living people
{{UK-historian-stub