At midnight, on 24 May 1842, Dick King left the Durban bay with his Zulu companion Ndongeni to begin an epic 10-day, 950 km trek on horseback. He rode to Grahamstown with the hope of getting help for the Boer-besieged British garrison.
At midnight, on 24 May 1842, Dick King left the Durban bay with his Zulu companion Ndongeni to begin an epic 10-day, 950 km trek on horseback. He rode to Grahamstown with the hope of getting help for the Boer-besieged British garrison.
This trip ultimately led to the annexation of Natal by the British in 1843. On 30 October 2010, Barry Armitage and Joe Dawson, assisted by a support crew and a team of five horses, followed the route of King’s compelling ride while attempting to keep up with the furious pace he set.
The group was followed by a film crew who documented the journey. The horses, Pat, Jack, Paddy, Danny and Flyer shared sections of the journey, while a dedicated team took care of them. The two arrived in Grahamstown with their crew on Tuesday this week.
For King, the landscape was undeveloped and dangerous; teaming with wild animals, populated by the warlike Zulu and Xhosa nations wary of the white man’s inroads into their territory and patrolled by Boer commandos.
For the 2010 reenactors, it was more civilized – much has changed in South Africa in the intervening 168 years, and the riders did not only face the challenges of traversing cityscapes and farmlands, but also rode through the remote and dramatic landscape of the Wild Coast with little changed by the march of time.
However, the 2010 crew were not without challenges, they battled after getting lost for hours in icy and rainy weather conditions, suffering severe leg chafe.
Travelling on tar roads also proved hard on the horses' hooves. “It was about undertaking journeys that shaped history", said Armitage after arriving at the City Hall in Grahamstown where the two rode straight up to the plaque commemorating King's ride. They were greeted by family, friends, as well as Makana Councillor Zamuxolo Peter.
