Episode 259 - After Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift: Ghost Armies and a Unique Truce During a Savage War
Published: January 24, 2026
Duration: 21:53
It’s the 23rd January 1879, one of the most momentous days in South African history has passed, and the ripple effect will be felt across the world.
For missionary Otto Witt it was a time of particular terror. He had fled his mission station, Rorke’s Drift, and now it was smashed to bits, the house which had doubled up as a hospital burned to the ground, the main warehouse which had been his church, broken, bloody.
Witt had fled the day before and sought out his wife and children who he’d sent on to Msinga...
For missionary Otto Witt it was a time of particular terror. He had fled his mission station, Rorke’s Drift, and now it was smashed to bits, the house which had doubled up as a hospital burned to the ground, the main warehouse which had been his church, broken, bloody.
Witt had fled the day before and sought out his wife and children who he’d sent on to Msinga...