Fort Napier

This book traces the social history of the imperial garrison in the Colony of Natal in order to elucidate the reproduction, adaptation, and modification of Victorian British society on southern African soil. More specifically, it examines the divisions in colonial society and the influence of the garrison in shaping those divisions. The book considers a number of interrelated themes: class and gender, hierarchy and discipline, race and labor, pageantry and government, and the economic impact of garrisons and their costs. These themes are contextualized in relation to the distinctive role of Fort Napier as a garrison center. This chapter compares Fort Napier with other garrisons worldwide, including those in Gibraltar, Halifax, and Montreal; the jailer garrisons in Australia; and the garrison in New Zealand. It argues that Fort Napier and its garrison are unique because they influenced not only a settler society but also a major African society.