In this position affairs in Afghanistan must be left, in order to trace the momentous course of events at home, which wrought a remarkable change on the character and object of the war. But before reverting to the fortunes of the Beaconsfield Ministry, it is necessary to make mention of another and more lamentable war which took place in another quarter of the globe simultaneously with the Afghan Campaign. The River Tugela formed the boundary between the British Colony of Natal and the territory of the Zulus, the most powerful nationality in South Africa. Land disputes between the Zulus and the Dutch Boers of the Transvaal Republic had been brewing for many years, and at last hostilities broke out between them. The Boers were badly beaten by a young Zulu chief called Sikukuni, and both sides appealed to the British Government to intervene. Sir Theophilus Shepstone was sent into the Transvaal to adjudicate between them, and sought to solve the problem by annexing the whole territory, not without the consent of the Republican leaders, the disputed land being handed over to the Zulus. This settlement might have proved effective but for the outrageous behaviour of Cetchwayo, King of the Zulus, who suddenly developed a most violent temper, probably arising from a growing taste for British rum. Even then, had matters been left in the hands of Sir Henry Bulwer, the Governor of Natal, matters might have been maintained on a friendly footing. Unfortunately, Sir Bartle Frere, the Queen's High Commissioner in South Africa, saw grounds for apprehension in the immense force maintained by Cetchwayo on the frontier, and began moving troops from Cape Colony into Natal. He endeavoured to exact guarantees from the Zulu king of an extremely onerous nature, fixing January 11, 1879, as the limit for their acceptance. Sir Bartle Frere's action can only be justified by the supposition that war was, sooner or later, inevitable, a belief which neither Sir Henry Bulwer nor the Colonial Office entertained. Cetchwayo allowed the prescribed day to pass without complying with the High Commissioner's demands. On the very next day British troops under Lord Chelmsford invaded Zululand, the force advancing in three columns, under Colonel Glyn, Colonel Pearson, and Colonel Durnford. Colonel Durnford's column occupied a camp at Isandhlana on January 21; and the following day, being attacked by about 20,000 Zulus, were almost annihilated. The 1st Battalion of the 24th Foot was destroyed, thirty officers and 500 men being slain. Colonel Durnford and Colonel Pulleine were killed, and immense quantities of stores fell into the hands of the enemy. It was a terrible retribution for having underrated the resources and numbers of the enemy and for imperfectly reconnoitring his position. A similar disaster very nearly befell Colonel Pearson's column. On the day after the tragedy at Isandhlana he was beleaguered at the mission station of Ekowe.