User blog:Battlefan237/From A to Z:Aboriginal Australian Warriors vs. Zulu Warriors

Aboriginal Australian Warriors and Zulu Warriors are all fierce tribal warriors who unflinchingly battled against colonists.And they just happen to be among the first and the last groups of warriors in Real Life Warrior Category.

Aboriginal Australian Warriors


"Being Aboriginal is not the color of your skin or how broad your nose is. It is a spiritual feeling, an identity you know in your heart. … It is a unique feeling that is difficult for non-Aboriginal to fully understand."

- Aboriginal Australian saying

Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoplesof the Australian mainland, Tasmania, and often the TiwiIslands. This group contains many distinct peoples that have developed across the continent for over 50,000 years. Dispersing on the continent of Australia, over time the ancient peoples expanded and developed over 200 distinct languages and differing cultures. 400 and more distinct Australian Aboriginal peoples have been identified across the continent, each distinguished by unique names for groups of people's ancestral languages, dialects, or distinctive speech mannerisms. Of all the groups, there are three main cultural areas that these peoples lived in. The Northern, Central, and Southern, with the Northern and Southern cultural areas being most dense population wise with resources from the ocean and woodlands, and the Central being least dense because of the lack of resources.During their long history, many tribes and factions were formed and destroyed on a regular basis, as they clashed with each others and the environment they lived in. Eventually they would come into conflicts with the British colonists.

Spear & Shield= Aboriginal hunting spears refer to spears of various sizes used by the Aboriginals for hunting and tribal warfare.They're usually made from Tecoma vines (because these vines are curly, the spear makers usually dire out the moisture by heating them in order to straighten the branches).A wooden or fish bone barb (sometimes the lower edges of the barb is sharpened to form several hook-shaped tips that enhance the damage) is attached to the spearhead by using emu sniew.On completion the spear is usually around 9 feet long. (only spearheads are shown in the pic)

Aboriginal shields are usually made from the bloodwood of Mulga trees.Most of the shields have traditional totems or fluting on them.They're designed for the sole purpose of protecting the spear-wielder in combat.However,in rare cases,due to its hard nature,the shield can be used as an improvised blunt killing tool.Its weight usually varies a lot between 3.5 to 4 lbs, while it is usually 3 to 4 feet long. Woomera is an iconic weapon used by the aboriginals.It is usually made from mulga wood and has a multi-function purpose.Primarily,it is intended to be used as a spearthrower.The thrower grips the end of the tool (which is covered with Spinifex resin) and places the end of the hunting spear into the small peg on the opposite end of woomera.The spear can then be launched with substantial power at enemy or prey.Apart from its core function,woomera can also be used as a fire-making saw due to its sharp end. A Waddy or a Nulla Nulla refers to hunting club used by Aboriginals.It is made from mulga wood as well.It is usually one meter in length and it tends to have a stone head attached with bees wax and string.It also has razor-sharp quartz set into the end of its handle with spinifex resin.A skilled wielder can easily destroy aboriginal shields and smash a guy's skull with it. Boomerangs,made from mulga wood and come in different designs,are hunting tools of the aboriginals.When thrown correctly it can reach distances of 175 yards.Sometimes their ends are sharpened to increase damage.
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Zulu Warriors


"Up! Children of Zulu, your day has come. Up! And destroy them all."

- Shaka Zulu

The Zulu warriors at the time of Rorke's Drift were not a professional soldiers, but was a formidable foes nonetheless. The Zulus were a citizen army called up in times of war although all Zulu men were required to do military service when they reached the age of 19 until the age of 40 when they were allowed to marry and went on the Zulu reserve list. The Zulu military organisation was far from primitive, with an army, or Impi, made up of regiments called amabutho made up of men of similar age from all over the kingdom. Their most well-known leader, King Shaka (also known as Shaka Zulu) led them to battlefield success as a military superpower across South Africa.

Spear & Shield= The Iklwa is a relatively short spear(2.5 ft) with a long, dagger-like blade that was about half the length of the overall spear. The weapon was designed as a primarily thrusting weapon although it could be used for slashing an enemy.It is a short variant of the traditional Zulu spear, the assegai.

The Ishlangu was an oval-shaped shield made from a single piece of oxhide attached to a wooden spine. It was prepared by scraping, cleaning, and several days burial in soil or manure. The colors of an Ishlangu determined the rank of the Zulu. Black shields were for young and unmarried men, red were for married men, and white markings would be added to the shields to confirm a higher rank and experience.It weights 3 lb and it's 4 feet in length. The Assegai is a longer spear used by the Zulu for throwing. The weapon was had a shaft about five to six feet in length, with a leaf-shaped head. Shaka Zulu pioneered the tactic of throwing a barrage of assegai before moving in close with the ikwla. Zulu axe had a straight handle about 2.5 feet long, with an iron head. The Axe head had a narrow crescent-shaped blade connected the the head by a thin iron bar. This lightweight blade design made the axe easy to swing rapidly. The Iwisa is a long handled wooden club, about two feet long, ending in a thick knob. Sometimes, the knob or head is ornately carved with faces or shapes that have symbollic meanings. It is usually used as swagger stick,ceremonial object or snuff container.However,occasionally it can be used as a blunt weapon or a throwing projectile.
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Training & Experience (The Only X-factor I deem important in this battle)
According to John Connor's The Australian Frontier Wars,while small conflicts between tribes and individuals were common,the aboriginals rarely participated in conflicts whose scale were large enough to determine the survival of a tribe,due to the fact that,as a result of their primitive lifestyle and insufficient living material,the fighting of a war to conquer enemy territory was beyond the resources of a tribe,and thus contrary to the tribal spirits of most tribes.Therefore,aboriginal warriors were usually trained to be hunters instead of killing machine.However,large conflicts between tribes did exist,and whenever that happened,the entire population of the tribe,including children,women and the elderly,would take part in the conflict.After the British Empire set foot on the continent,conflicts between the colonists and the aboriginals soon arose.Initially the conflicts were between small groups,while larger resistance movements happened later in both New South Wales,Tasmania and South Australia - but almost every resistance movement got crushed by British forces easily due to unequal weaponary and out-dated aboriginal tactics.In general,it's safe to say that the aboriginals didn't play well against British forces.