Victorian Rifle

The most common gun used in the Anglo-Zulu war was the Martini-Henry rifle. This was a single shot rifle which was loaded through the muzzle. It was around 120cm long and weighed around 4kg. A well-trained soldier could fire this gun at a rate of ten-rounds-per-minute, but five rounds a minute was more common. This gun had a strong recoil and would often leave the soldiers with bruised shoulders. This made them reluctant to fire the weapon or caused them to flinch, making them less accurate. When firing rapidly, the gun would heat up quickly, meaning it would be too hot to hold after about 5-6 rounds. This was a serious drawback for its use in battles.

These rifles were often looted from the bodies of British soldiers by the Zulu warriors and used against the British army in subsequent battles.