Atlas of Battles

battle, notable, nineteenth century

Battle of Blood River

Battle of Blood River was a battle fought on 16 December 1838 in what is now South Africa. It was part of Great Trek. The recorded result: Voortrekker victory. Recorded strength: 664 men; 464 Voortrekkers; 200 servants; 2 artillery pieces against 25,000–30,000 men.

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Bataille de Blood River. Gravure du XIXème siècle.
Bataille de Blood River. Gravure du XIXème siècle.. Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought16 December 1838
WhereSouth Africa28.105S, 30.542E
OutcomeVoortrekker victory
Belligerentsborder|23px VoortrekkersagainstZulu Kingdom
Casualties and losses3 woundedand3,000+ killed
Part ofGreat Trek

Where it sits in Great Trek

Battle of Vegkop, 1836Battle of Mosega, 1837Battle of Italeni, 1838Battle of Blood River, 1838Battle of Boomplaats, 184818361848Battle of Blood River, 1838
5 placed engagements of Great Trek in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date16 December 1838
PlaceSouth Africa
28.105S, 30.542E
KindBattle, nineteenth century
Strength664 men; 464 Voortrekkers; 200 servants; 2 artillery pieces25,000–30,000 men
Casualties and losses3 wounded3,000+ killed
Commanders
  • Ndlela kaSompisi
  • Dingane kaSenzangakhona
Battle of Blood RiverBattle of Blood RiverBattle of Talana HillBattle of Rorke's DriftBattle of IsandlwanaBattle of Blood River PoortZungeni Mountain skirmishBattle of Talana HillBattle of Rorke's DriftBattle of IsandlwanaBattle of Blood River PoortStandertonLadysmithVolksrustUlundiGolelaUbombaMokhotlongHlatikulu100 km28.105S, 30.542E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1838

Battle of Blood River is one of 3,507 engagements of the 19th century in the atlas and one of 92 in present-day South Africa.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1392699, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Blood River, revision 1384030805, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.