About Ian

Ian Knight, BA, FRGS is a historian, author, battlefield guide and artifacts specialist internationally regarded as a leading authority on the nineteenth-century history of the Zulu kingdom, and in particular the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879.

He has a degree in Afro-Carribean Studies from the University of Kent  and has been researching and writing for more than thirty years. He has published over forty books and monographs, the majority of them on Zulu history and the rest on other nineteenth-century British colonial campaigns. Details of these can be found on the Books page.

Ian is a 'Life Time's Achievement' winner of the Anglo-Zulu War Historical Society's Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi Award for his work on Zulu history. Ian's book, The National Army Museum Book of the Zulu War was joint winner of the Royal United Services' Institute Award for 'Best Military History Book'. He is an Honorary Research Associate of the KwaZulu-Natal Museum in Pietermaritzburg.

He has appeared on-screen in a number of television documentaries including -

Timewatch - Zulu, The Real Story

Secrets of the Dead: The Mystery of Zulu Dawn

Great Military Disasters

Shaka Zulu (documentary for the US History Channel)

The Zulu Wars (three part documentary writted, co-produced and presented by Ian Knight for UK History Channel)

Zulu Wars

Zulu; The Warriors Return

Ian has also contributed to -

Lost Kingdoms of Africa; The Zulu Kingdom

Warriors (Zulu episode)