In the 1870s settler and colonial determination to bring Blacks under firm political control had undermined the hard-won security that many African societies had achieved. This was due to changes in economic conditions in South Africa's hinterland, and the consequent need to secure sufficient political authority over Africans- which would ensure security and access to labour. These societies attempted to resist the extension of colonial control over them, one of which was the Zulu kingdom.
Sir Bartle Frere was appointed British high commissioner to South Africa in 1879 to realise the Policy of Confederation. This policy was set to bring the various British colonies, Boer republics and independent African groups under common control- with a view to implementing a policy of economic development. Sir Bartle Frere saw the self-reliant Zulu kingdom as a threat to this policy, a belief which was supported by Shepstone, the Secretary for Native Affairs. Shepstone averred that the Zulu people had revived their military power under Cetshwayo, which made them more of a threat to peace and prosperity in South Africa. On 11 December 1878, under the flimsy pretext of a few minor border incursions into Natal by Cetshwayo's followers, the Zulu were given an impossible ultimatum- that they should disarm and Cetshwayo should forsake his sovereignty.
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