The Zulus Beat in the Door by Sidney Paget. The Strand (January–June 1891), 549. Photogravure of a watercolour and pen and ink drawing. [Click on the image to enlarge it.]
This illustration accompanies the narrative of Henry Hook in the article ‘Stories of the Victoria Cross: told by those who have won it’. Hook recounts his heroic fight with the Zulus who have broken into the hospital; the illustration by Paget shows the moment when Hook fires directly into a Zulu’s face. As usual, the Briton is shown at a moment of stillness, while the enemy is moving. The artist stresses the dynamic action by representing the smoke accompanying the firing of the shot.
Scanned image and text by Simon Cooke, Ph.D. This image may be used without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose without prior permission as long as you credit the person who scanned it and link to this page in a web document or cite it in a print one.
Created 27 February 2025