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In December 1901, when news reached Kitchener that the ZAR Government had crossed the railway into the Roos Senekal district, he sent Col Urmston from Belfast to co-operate with Col Parkin an attempt to capture the Government party. The British hoped to surprise the enemy at Windhoek, west of Dullstroom, but Gen Chris Muller interposed at the right moment and attacked Col Park on the 19th at Elandspruit. The Boers were repulsed after several hours fighting, in which the British had 37 casualties and the Boers 25. The ZAR Government escaped under cover of the action. According to “Oorlogsherinneringe”, the Memoirs of General Muller, p154-56, it was a night attack with the sole purpose to kill the maximum number of troops, horses and oxen. Storming the British Camp was ruled out as being much too dangerous. Muller’s Commandant Groenewald and his men were positioned on the high ground on the east, Trichard and his men from Middelburg Commando on the high ground on the west (looking down into the British camp) while the Boer Vickers-Maxim was positioned to the south. However, when Muller/Groenewald started firing, Trichard’s men charged the camp. Being dark, Muller/Groenewald did not realise it and they kept on firing. The next morning, they found out that 9 Middelburg men were killed, the majority probably through “friendly fire”.

On this date De Wet, with a force of some 700 men, made an uncharacteristic major mistake. At Tiger Kloof Spruit, some 30km from Bethlehem on the road to Harrismith, he laid an ambush for a British force that he believed to be between 600 and 700 strong, accompanying a convoy with provisions. The British column (1st and 2nd Imperial Light Horse and some Yeomanry) under command of Gen Dartnell left Bethlehem at 08:00 on 18 December: some 1200 men, unencumbered by transport but with two field guns (79 Bty, RFA) and two pom-poms. Dartnell, furthermore, had been fore warned about De Wet’s plans by a traitor from his commando. De Wet had posted half of his men on a spur overlooking the Tigerkloof Spruit, while the remainder were concealed in the ravines at the eastern end of the Langberg. The men on the spur were to make a frontal attack on the British as they neared the spruit while the rest were to attack the rear. The signal for the simultaneous attack was to be a shot from De Wet’s only pom-pom. De Wet fired his signal shot at 11:00 but only the 2ndILH, forming the advance guard, were charged from the spur by 200 men. The attack was repulsed by the ILH, who promptly occupied the spur only 3 men wounded. The Boers then turned their attention to the rest of the column, in the middle of which were the Yeomanry and artillery and to the 1st ILH, the latter having occupied a rise to the rear, three kilometres distant. The Boers were beaten off, retired to the Langberg, and then were seen retiring south-eastwards towards the hills and ravines 10km away. The British casualties totalled 19, of whom, according to the Times History of the War in South Africa, Dartnell’s losses were one man killed and 14 men wounded. The Boer losses, according to Three Years’ War, were four killed and five wounded. For gallantry on this occasion Surgeon Captain T J Crean of the 1st ILH was later awarded the Victoria Cross. At 15:00 Dartnell moved on, reaching Elands River Bridge 25 kms away the following day.

General Kritzinger invaded the Cape Colony for a third time on 15 December 1901 by crossing the Orange River at Sand Drift. At 6 am on 16 December Doran surprised him and his small commando at breakfast and chased them westwards with Bentick’s Column joining Doran’s Column in a day long operation of pursuit with firing from the saddle. At 6pm Kritzinger’s progress was halted by the railway line between Franschman’s Kop and Hanover Road Sidings. Kritzinger’s men managed to keep up a heavy fire on the adjoining blockhouses and their pursuers while the wires were being cut with the majority of the men succeeding in forcing a crossing. Kritzinger himself was foremost in the action, exposing himself recklessly and returning three times to rescue wounded men. On the last occasion he himself was severely wounded through the left arm and lungs. He managed to cross the line on his horse but when he reached his men it was realised that the severity of his wounds necessitated medical treatment, help from a British ambulance was requested and Kritzinger surrendered

Cpl Dawson and Tpr Meyer of the Carnarvon DMT rode out to Zeekoegat in the district, unaware that 40 Boer Rebels under Comdt J C Naude had off-saddled there. Shots were exchanged, Dawson was mortally wounded, and Meyer was captured. Both men were stripped, although Meyer was allowed to keep his boots. The farm-owner, Mr van Heerden, arrived and was asked by Dawson to pray for him as he was dying. Dawson’s ring was given to Meyer to hand over to a friend. After the Boers left, Van Heerden took Dawson’s body to Carnarvon for burial.

“Covering the egregious siege of Tontelboschkolk was Louw, Maritz’s former confederate, and Doran, surprising him on his last day’s march towards the post, scattered the commando and took nine prisoners.” “Official History”, Vol V, Grant p363. Eben Nel in “Die Kaapse Rebelle van die Hantam-Karoo” covers the incident in great detail. The Boers were blissfully unaware of the proximity of Doran’s column. Some 30 horses were grazing in the wheat fields with a number of youngsters, the majority unarmed, were looking after them. At approximately 10 am, when Louw and his mounted men were about to leave on patrol, the British charged. The Boers managed to charge through the British line and escaped but had to leave the horse guards and some 30 horses behind. Vice, the Intelligence Agent at Calvinia, reported on 18 December 1901: “…At Leeuwendrift Johannes Loubser of Wilgenbosch, a Calvinia Rebel, was dangerously wounded on 9th by Col Doran’s Column. He will probably not recover. 7 prisoners were also captured….” The 14-year-old Loubser did not survive and died on 17 December. However, he managed to make a declaration under oath on 16 December, detailing what happened when the 8 horse guards, riding bareback, tried to evade capture. He was forced off his horse by an “Engilsman” and stood unarmed with raised hands. His captor robbed him of his knife and other items and then shot him. As he lay on the ground, he heard the man re-loading, but was not shot again. The next afternoon he managed to start walking, looking for help. He reached De Puts on 12 December and on 14 December managed to send a messenger to Mr van der Merwe of Brandwacht who was the member of the Legislative Assembly for Calvinia. Van der Merwe sent a carriage to bring Loubser to Brandwacht and took his declaration, which is still in the Calvinia Museum.

Towards the end of November 1901 Rimington received information that a Boer Council of War was convened by De Wet and he decided to move with all troops within reach to the scene of the “Krygsraad”. The fighting force moved rapidly but two convoys under Major Bennett of the NSWMR lagged behind. At dawn on the 30th November the convoys were attacked on 3 sides by some 500 men under De Wet. A hot fight raged round a commanding hill which was charged by a troop of the Inniskillings under Lieut Oliver. Oliver was killed and the troop driven off, but a squadron of New South Wales MR retook the position. At this point Rimington and the main body arrived and easily dispersed the Boer force.

The farm Tontelboschkolk, some 80 km north-east of Calvinia, was used by the British as a remount- and grain depot. It was garrisoned by 90 men of the Western Province Mounted Rifles and more than 100 Bushmanland Borderers (a coloured unit), dispersed in six small forts, with the British officers quartered in the four farmhouses on the property. It was surrounded on 28 November 1901 by Cape Rebels under Malan, Maritz, Van Deventer and Lategan. Vice, the Intelligence Officer at Calvinia reported to Col du Cane at Clanwilliam on 1 Dec 1901: “TBK was heavily attacked on morning of 28th at 2 am by a force of enemy estimated 600 strong. They have succeeded in getting possession of the houses & outbuildings & have consequently cut off the water. They kept up a heavy fire all that day & during the night again attempted to take our position, but were easily driven back, & our men succeeded in getting a limited supply of water from the dam. Friday the firing continued throughout the whole day, but not so heavy as on the previous day, water was also got into the forts that evening. Yesterday ‘Saturday’ continuous fire was heard till about 11 am when runner was too far off to hear…” Although the Boers captured some 400 horses and mules, the main object of the attack, they could not take the depot. They retreated on 5 December and the British withdrew the garrison shortly afterwards.

Early on the morning of 20 November 1901 Veldkornet Wynand Bezuidenhout and some 50 Cape Rebels moved along the lower slopes of Gatberg through the O’Dairn farm near Ugie, a town in the Eastern Cape at the southern foot of the Drakensberg. Capt Herbert Elliot with a number of white officers and 300 black soldiers of the East Griqualand Field Force (Native Contingent) and Qumbu Native Reserves were positioned in a defensive position at Gatberg Nek, alerted of the Rebels’ movements by Elliot’s black spies. Bezuidenhout’s Commando walked into the ambush at about 7h00 when they were met with a sharp barrage of Martini Henry and Snider rifle fire. After a short but intense skirmish the Rebels withdrew in a disorderly fashion, being driven up the mountainside. In the process they had to abandon 40 of their horses and pack animals and left behind the bodies of four young men (2 aged 19, one aged 17 and one only 15 years old). On the British side, Captain H W D Elliot and 6 black soldiers were killed. Captains Baxter and Everett were severely wounded and Captain Burmeister received a slight wound. The number of wounded black soldiers was not recorded. Captain Elliott’s father was Major Sir H G Elliott, Chief Magistrate of Tembuland and a former Crimean War officer.

In November 1901 Lt-Col Callwell with a column of 350 was given the task of trying to mop up the Boer commandos that were causing problems in the Sutherland district. On 14 November he was on the track of Commandant Japie Neser, driving him northwards. Neser was joined by Commandant Jaap van Deventer and 20 men and on the 15th they decided to attack Callwell’s encampment from a hill overlooking the homestead at the farm Brandekraal. Callwell’s force, mainly 5th Lancers, who thought they only had to flush out a few rebels, were completely overwhelmed and got out of the situation with difficulty. Van Deventer chased them along the road to Sutherland and Neser unsuccessfully tried to cut them off. British losses were 2 killed and 4 wounded.

At the conclusion of the November “drive” in the central Orange River Colony, the columns under Lt-Col Byng (SA Light Horse) and Lt-Col Wilson (2nd Kithchener’s FS) were boldly attacked in the rear on Tweefontein, a few miles south of Heilbron, by some 400 Boers under the personal command of Genl de Wet. Although the British were hampered by an unwieldy mass of captured cattle and vehicles, the rearguard (KFS) succeeded after two hours in repulsing the Boer Commando. The British losses, all KFS, were 2 killed and 12 wounded. The Boers reputedly left 8 dead on the field.

Towards the end of 1901 Lt-Col W B Hickie, with a force of mounted troops and infantry totalling about 870 men, was engaged in covering the construction of blockhouses on the Schoonspruit. On 13 November 1901, Hickie lost heavily at the farm, Brakspruit, 32km north-east of Klerksdorp, when two squadrons of Imperial Yeomanry (drawn from the 103rd and 107th Coys, 2nd Bn, and the 107th Coy, 6th Bn, IY), whom he had sent forward to reconnoitre, were destroyed. Ten men were killed or mortally wounded, eleven were wounded, and 64 were taken prisoner. In this action, the Boers lost four men killed and eight wounded.

During the first week of November 1901 the Rebel General Manie Maritz steadily advanced along the West Coast in the direction of Malmesbury while the British columns in the area were disorganised. “In short, the road to Cape Town was practically open and a blow which, successful or not, might have roused all rebel Cape Colony, seemed about to fall. But at this critical moment Maritz, instead of rushing across Malmesbury, lingered on the Great Berg River to attend to a side issue.” Official History, Vol IV, p360. Because he was in urgent need of arms and horses to equip a number of his new Cape Rebel recruits, he sent Commandant Jan Theron with some 300 men to attack Piquetberg at 4:20 am on 8 November 1901. The town was defended by Major A F Pilson with 86 officers of the Town Guard & District Mounted Troops as well as the Western Province Mounted Rifles behind well-planned and well-constructed fortifications and wire entanglements. After maintaining fire for the whole day, Theron fell back southwards to Moorreesburg. Conflicting numbers of casualties were reported: the SAFF Casualty Roll records 2 killed and 4 wounded on the British side whereas one Boer source mentions 7 Boers wounded and another source adds 3 Boers killed.

MBE (2nd Type) Civil; DCM (Victoria): 104 Sergt: R. Rowland. Bechuanaland Rifles; QSA, 3 clasps OFS, DoM, Tvl: 104 Serjt: R. Rowland. Bechuanaland R.; KSA, 2 clasps SA’01, SA’02: 104 Sjt: R. Rowland. Bech’ld Rifles; Coronation Medal 1902 (Bronze): Unnamed Jubilee Medal 1935: Privately named Richard Rowland, Esq. D.C.M., J.P. Richard Rowland’s first recognition for Gallantry was during the Defence of Mafeking when he commanded the Barolongs during the Boer attack of 12 May 1900. He was mentioned by Col. Baden-Powell in the Mafeking Garrison General Orders, as published in the Mafeking Mail of 22 May 1900: “Corporal R. Rowland (30 men), Bechuanaland Rifles (wounded), in charge of Natives. Assisted the Barolongs materially in the defence of their Stadt, especially at the Western end in the evening, when, with a small party, he successfully contested the exit of the Boers till ordered to retire being wounded himself, and losing one killed and one wounded of his party.” Following the Relief of Mafeking the Bechuanaland Rifles saw service in the Cape Colony and the Western Transvaal. In early 1901 a squadron was in Lord Methuen’s column and they were in action in a running fight of almost 24 hours duration south of Wolmaransstad against the local Commando. Rowland was slightly wounded on this occasion, and it is quite possible that the MiD (London Gazette, 16 April 1901, p2609) for Rowland and his C/O, Captain Cowan, was for this event. After the Kleinfontein action, Rowland was mentioned by Col von Donop (LG 17 Jan 1902, p379): “For marked gallantry in collecting men and carrying messages under heavy fire. Has been twice previously mentioned.” The award of the DCM to Sgt Rowland was published in the LG of 28 Jan. 1902, p582. In 1902 Rowland was one of the 5 NCO’s and men of the Bechuanaland Rifles chosen to form part of the Coronation Contingent. In the official motivation for his inclusion it was stated that he had enrolled in the unit on 18 July 1899, that he had rendered good service since the outbreak of hostilities and that he had earned a DCM. After the war, Rowland settled in Kanye, Bechuanaland. An entry in the “Historical Dictionary of Botswana” p296 covers his later life: “ROWLAND, RICHARD MONTSHIWA (1879-1945). Early trader and confidant of BaNgwaketse diKgosi. From Mafikeng, Rowland was of mixed (“coloured”) descent but could pass for white. He moved to Kanye in 1912 as a trader. Alongside his many trading ventures, he acquired a mining concession and ran the Moshaneng asbestos mine until his death. Kgosi Seepapitso II used Rowland to reorganize local commerce and to increase local cattle prices. Rowland was also crucial to Seepapitso’s road and dam building schemes. Always close to local diKgosi, he became an adviser and aide to Bathoen II, and also hired Johnny Masire (father of future president Quett Masire) as his store manager. During the 1930s depression, he raised much money for poor relief. Rowland was very popular among the BaNgwaketse, and upon his death they demanded that he be buried locally.” By 1935 he was a Justice of the Peace and awarded a 1935 Jubilee Medal, with him noted on the roll as Trader of Kanye-Bangwaketsi Reserve, Bechuanaland Protectorate. His final award was in the 1938 New Year’s Honours (Suppl LG 1 January 1938, p13) when he was appointed MBE (Civil) as follows: Richard Rowland, Esq., J.P., of Kanye, Bechuanaland Protectorate. For public services.

On October 30th, 1901, the Boers overwhelmed the rear-guard of Colonel Benson’s column near Bakenlaagte, killing Colonel Benson himself. The heroic stand of the rear-guard places Bakenlaagte among the glorious memories of British arms. The orders were “to stop and hold the ridge or else they’d lose the guns,” in the forlorn hope of checking the Boers until the guns could be taken away by reinforcements. The defenders of the hill were almost annihilated. All the officers present were killed or wounded. Of 40 Yorkshiremen only 5 were unhurt, 79 Scottish Horse only six, 32 gunners only 3 and of 20 60th Rifles only 3. “In spite of the gallant efforts of the Mounted Infantry Company & a squadron of the Scottish Horse, which promptly formed up on the flanks of the guns, the ridge fell into the enemy’s hands, with the exception of a portion which a party of the Mounted Infantry held till dark. The company’s losses were 4 Officers & nine men killed, 1 Officer & 9 men wounded, testimony to the severity of the fighting & the splendid tenacity of the men of the M.I. Battalion”. Our Regiments in South Africa’ by J. Stirling.

Towards the end of October 1901 Colonel Kekewich decided to deal with a number of Boer laagers within the confluences of the Hex, Elands and Crocodile Rivers. His Intelligence Service reported that the largest laager was at Beestekraal, some 25 miles north-east of Rustenburg, and at 8pm on the 29th he despatched Lt-Col C E Duff with all his mounted men with orders to surprise Beestekraal at dawn, he himself following shortly after with the infantry and baggage. Duff reached his objective at daylight on the 30th. A Boer piquet posted on a kopje on the west of the Crocodile River sighted Duff and fired on him. Duff sent a squadron to the kopje and with the rest of his men captured the drifts over the Crocodile, thereby enabling him to take the farmhouse on the eastern bank of the Crocodile with ease. Meanwhile the squadron on the left had surrounded the kopje, where a commando of 70 men, in spite of the vigilance of its piquet, was completely surprised while cooking breakfast and captured! Duff took 78 prisoners (with the loss of only 2 men, both Scottish Horse, severely wounded) and burned the farm buildings and contents.

Two British columns under Methuen and Von Donop had left Zeerust on 17 October 1901 in order to sweep the surrounding country, the one working in the direction of Elands River and the other towards Rustenburg. On 24 October, during the march back to Zeerust, the column under Colonel von Donop, was surprised by De la Rey at Kleinfontein, 6km west of Groot Marico. The column, accompanied by a procession of 100 wagons, was marching along a bad road. Patrols were working on either flank; but Yeomanry scouts were powerless. At 7 am, some Boers having showed themselves on high ground to the front, the advance-guard guns halted and opened fire. Then, without a moment’s warning, some 500 Boers under Kemp, Steenekamp, Oosthuizen and other leaders charged down from the heights on the left in three ordered lines, struck the centre of the mule-convoy, shot down numbers of the native drivers and threw the whole into confusion. While some Boers endeavoured to drive off the wagons, the rest whirled away to their right and fell upon the rear-guard, consisting of two guns of the 4th Battery, a company of the 1st Northumberland Fusiliers and acompany of the 5th Yeomanry. The troops, resisting with bravery, received severe punishment. Both gun detachments were cut, the Fusiliers lost half their number in killed and wounded; the Yeomanry a quarter of their number and half their horses, and the guns for a considerable time were in Boer hands; but, the teams having been shot down, there was no means of removing them. Meanwhile the column was cut in two, and fully two hours elapsed before von Donop was able to get back to the relief of the rear-guard. Then the Boers, who had succeeded in driving away 12 wagons with supplies and in burning one limber, were beaten off. The British losses were 38 killed or died of wounds, 46 wounded and six missing in action. The Boers lost 20 men killed and 31 wounded.

“After Pretoria: The Guerrilla War” p844: “Colonel Dawkins about the same time was busy carrying out a series of raids on the Boer laagers, clearing the country immediately to the west of the railway and near Nylstroom. On his expeditions in the space of a fortnight he secured 97 prisoners and 237 rifles. Among the prisoners were three field cornets, a Boer captain, an adjutant and the former landdrost of Pretoria. He returned to Nylstroom on October 25.” On a genealogical site for C E Schutte, the Landdrost mentioned above, it is noted: He was captured at Poerseplaat on 21 October 1901 with 55 Boers who were fleeing from the British with their cattle.

Scott’s Railway Guards were involved in protecting the Orange River-Kimberley railway line and assisted the Royal Engineers in repairing damaged bridges, culverts and lines. That section of the railway was prone to attacks by roving bands of Boers, bent on disrupting rail traffic, and SRG had much dangerous patrol work to undertake. They often had skirmishes involving loss, such as on 18 October 1901 at Leliefontein, south-east of Vryburg, when Trooper Gunther and Tpr Morrison was severely wounded.

On this date Major Capper’s column (12th Lancers and Colonial Light Horse) had a short but sharp engagement with Commandant J J Smith’s Rebel Commando at Wilgebosch Drift near Hopefield. The dense high shrubs and trees as well as the difficult terrain on the riverbank gave excellent cover to the Rebels who suffered no casualties. British losses were 3 men killed and 4 wounded. Four men were taken prisoner, but after being relieved of their horses, rifles and ammunition they were released.

According to WO 108-372 (SA Surrenders) Vet Surgeon Anderson and 42 Cattle Rangers were on the farm Pruizen with 2 forts north and south of the farmhouse. At daylight Capt Anderson and some Government Inspectors in the house heard horses galloping and immediately the house was surrounded. The enemy worked round the hills and eventually rushed the fort on north of farm. Section Leader Barnes in fort south of farm had heard that Boers were approaching Pruizen but omitted to warn other posts. 2 rangers were killed and 8 wounded before surrendering to the Boers. An Afrikaans publication by S J Lee records that Gen Beyers attacked a British camp on the farm Pruizen, south of Potgietersrus and forced 51men to surrender. The burghers also carried off thousands of cattle, sheep and goats as well as 63 horses. However, the cattle and other livestock were found to be diseased and were set free. Of Beyers’ men the courageous Lt du Toit of the Soutpansberg Police and 2 other men were killed. Some sources mention 2 other men as killed and 3 wounded.

On the afternoon of 29 September 1901, Col R G Kekewich halted on Moedwil Farm, 25km west of Rustenburg, near a drift across the Selons River. There he made preparations for a bivouac site. The column of 930 men was composed mostly of infantry, mounted infantry, artillery and Yeomanry (the 27th and 48th Coys, 7th Bn, Imperial Yeomanry). De la Rey ordered his subordinate, Gen J Kemp, to attack the bivouac site. A patrol of Yeomanry alerted the British troops about a party of burghers advancing towards their camp. General Kemp, with 280 men, had sent out two outflanking wings to surround the British camp, while the main thrust, in the centre, attacked from Selons River. With a group of orderlies, cooks and batmen, Maj C N Watts soon realised that his own quarter was in little danger and swung around to attack the Boer left along the banks of the river, with support from the infantry, mounted infantry and the Yeomanry. The Boer line along this flank was enfiladed and the burghers were forced to retire after sustaining losses amounting to eleven killed, 35 wounded, and ten taken prisoner. The British lost 61 killed or mortally wounded – there were twelve Imperial Yeomanry fatalities amongst them – and 158 wounded, including Kekewich himself. Having lost 327 horses and hundreds of draught animals, Kekewich moved to Magatos Nek near Rustenburg to be refitted.

DSO (VR); MC (Geo V); QSA, 5 clasps TugH, OFS, RoL, Tvl, L Nek: Lieut. R.C. Trousdale. S. Lanc. Regt.; KSA, 2 clasps SA’01, SA’02: Lieut R.C. Trousdale D.S.O. S. Lan. Rgt. (engraved); 1914-15 Star: Capt. R.C. Trousdale. D.S.O. S. Lan. R.; BWM & AVM (with MiD Oakleaf): Major R.C. Trousdale Major Robert Cecil Trousdale, D.S.O., was born in 1876 and educated at Clifton College. He entered the South Lancashire Regiment as a Second Lieutenant in March 1897 and advanced to Lieutenant in 1899. During the Boer War he served with the Mounted Infantry, was present at most of the early actions in Natal and was Mentioned in Lord Roberts’ despatch under those ‘who have rendered special and meritorious service’. LG 10 September 1901, p5953 In September 1901 he took part in the operations on the Zululand Frontier and was mentioned in Lord Kitchener’s despatch among those involved with the Defence of Itala, 26 September 1901: ‘South Lancashire Regt. (1st Battn), Lieutenant R.C. Trousdale; for the plucky way he worked the machine gun after both the men with him had been killed.’ LG 17 January 1902, p374 As a result of his bravery he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. He retired from the service as Captain in 1912 and re joined the army on the outbreak of the Great War. His subsequent distinguished service in France and Belgium from January 1915 to November 1918 was recognized by being Mentioned in Despatches twice and the award of the Military Cross. LG 1 January 1919

DCM (Edw VII): 2196 C. Serjt.-Maj. W. Young. Dorset Regt. M.I.; QSA, 6 clasps CC, TugH, OFS, RoL, Tvl, L Nek: 2196 Pte. W. Young. Dorset Rgt.; KSA, 2 clasps SA’01, SA’02: 2196 Serjt. W. Young. Dorset Regt. When William Young enlisted in February 1886 he was noted as standing 5 ft 3½ ins tall: “Under standard height but likely to grow”. His stature did not prevent him from being an excellent soldier: heading the list of four men of the Dorset Mounted Infantry specially mentioned in Captain Rowley’s report was 2196 Company Serjeant-Major W. Young, who ‘greatly aided me in the defence.’ When he was discharged as “medically unfit” in March 1903 he stood 2¼ inches taller…

“The post at Fort Itala is defended by about 300 mounted infantrymen commanded by Major Chapman. Its defences consist of trenches between 50 and 100 metres apart, commanding a clear field of fire up to a range of about 600 metres, with a detached post, defended by about 80 men, on the summit of the steep Mount Itala, about two kilometres away. Just after midnight General Chris Botha starts his attack, but the defenders, forewarned by Zulu scouts, are alert and opens a heavy fusillade. The Boers soon surround and overwhelm the small party on the mountain. The main assault on the British camp at the fort starts at about 02:00, with Chris Botha attacking from the side of the mountain, Opperman from the south-east and Potgieter and Scholtz from the north. In bright moonlight, the defenders are able to use their guns to good effect and at 04:00 the attack peters out. At dawn the Boers renew their attack and as the light improves, life becomes impossible for the gun crews and they cease firing. Firing continues all day long, but Chris Botha is unable to persuade his men to charge across the open ground dominated by the defenders’ rifles. At 19:00, with ammunition running out on both sides, the Boers retire. Botha reports that he has suffered a loss of 18 killed, including both Potgieter and Scholtz, and 40 wounded, including Opperman. The British have lost about 81 killed and wounded, including Chapman and his second in command Captain Butler who are both wounded. Chapman, almost out of ammunition and with no prospect of being reinforced, quietly evacuates his post and retires to Nkandhla.” “The Anglo-Boer War: A Chronology” by Pieter G Cloete.

On 26 September 1901, Fort Prospect, which was garrisoned by 35 men of the Dorset Mounted Infantry and 51 of the Durham Artillery Militia under Captain Rowley of the Dorsets, was attacked by 500 of Botha’s Boers, at 4.30am, under cover of a mist in the donga. “The Boers’ made a very severe attack on the north and west of my position, the brunt of the attack fell on two sangars held by the Durham Company of Artillery; the Boers broke through the wire and got to within 20 yards of these sangars, but they both gallantly held their own and I, with the aid of the Maxim, was able to repulse this attack. By 6.30am the Boers drew off from this flank. They then commenced a very severe attack on the rear of my post, but by 10am it was repulsed. About this time a party of Zululand Native Police, gallantly led by Serjeant Gumbi, broke through and reinforced me; he brought with him 13 men and had marched 4 miles from his own post to reinforce me. The Boers now had completely surrounded the camp but contented themselves by keeping up a heavy fire chiefly directed on the Maxim Fort. This fire was kept up all day, gradually lessening towards evening, when the Boers drew off about 6pm.” “My casualties were one killed and eight wounded, which, considering the severity of the fire, is very little. I consider it was owing to the excellent cover afforded by the forts pand trenches, as we were subjected to very heavy firing for 13 hours. I estimate the strength of the Boers at from 500 to 600 men, and they belonged to the Ermelo or Carolina commandos. The casualties of the Boers are unknown, but two dead were buried at Polgeiter’s Farm. The prisoners who were taken at Itala say that the Boers own to having 60 killed and wounded in the attack on Fort Prospect. I picked up 30 dead horses next morning, also 2 rifles and 20 saddles. I cannot close the report without mentioning the gallantry l displayed by all ranks, especially by the Durham Company of Militia Artillery.” Captain Rowley’s Report on the Defence of Fort Prospect: LG 3 December 1901, p8557.