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Anglo-Boer War (South African War)
"I have had, in the last four years, the advantage, if it be an advantage, of many strange and varied experiences. But nothing was so thrilling as this: to wait and struggle among these clanging, rending iron boxes, with the repeated explosions of the shells and the artillery, the grunting and puffing of the engine – poor, tortured thing, harassed by at least a dozen shells, any one of which, by penetrating the boiler, might have made an end to it all". W.L.S. Churchill.
A short history of the Siege of Elands River Post
In August 2020, a Blue Plaque was unveiled at Swartruggens on the 120th anniversary of the siege of the Elands River Post. It commemorates the remarkable resilience of a small garrison of Australians and Rhodesians during the South African War. General Jan Smuts, who took part on the Boer side, described it thus:
The General Hendrik Schoeman Enigma - Visionary, Villain or Victim?
As you approach Hartbeespoort Dam on the R511, the road rises steeply over Saartjie's Nek to reveal a spectacular view of the dam with the cliffs of the Magaliesberg behind. On a koppie to the right, a massive granite cross commemorates General Hendrik Schoeman and overlooks the grand panorama that he envisioned but never lived to see.
The Fall of Pretoria, June 1900
In May 1900, Lord Roberts of Kandahar, Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces, was poised to culminate his illustrious military career by marching triumphantly into his enemy's capital city and concluding the South African War. But it was a charade. There could be no victory without a vanquished foe and the Boer leaders were still at large with a fighting remnant of their army. Another two bitter years of warfare lay ahead.
A short history of the Battle of Diamond Hill, 11-12 June 1900
The Battle of Diamond Hill took place on the 11 and 12 June 1900. Sir Ian Hamilton, one of the generals who took part in the battle, described it as the turning point in the South African War, so in this Memoir we look at what happened and why it was so important.
A recent invitation to spend a weekend in the Western Free State provided an opportunity to visit the cemetery at the small town of Bultfontein. Situated approximately 90 kilometres north of Bloemfontein, I had passed through this town at least fifteen years ago, when I cursorily traipsed the cemetery. This time I undertook to explore it in more detail.
The 'Smoking Concert' prior to the Battle of Elandslaagte
When the Boer raiding party rode into Elandslaagte on 19 October 1899 they first made a turn at David Harris' imposing red-brick residence. Harris, the General Manager of the Elandslaagte Colliery, was having dinner with Simpson Mitchell-Innes of the farm "Blanerne", who was also one of the Directors of the Colliery. The ten minutes spent in conversation there gave the acting Station Master, G.P. Atkinson and his clerk, D. Christie, an opportunity to warn Ladysmith of the Boer's arrival via the telegraph.
The Long Tom Gun at Dundee
Known as "Long Toms", the four 155mm siege guns installed in the forts to protect Pretoria, were supposed to be far too big and cumbersome to move, yet one of them (nicknamed Schanskop Tom), which had originally been installed at Fort Schanskop, was used to drive the British out of Dundee. It was manoeuvred up Impati Mountain and shelled the British camp on Ryley's Hill. Unable to retaliate, the British were forced to withdraw from Dundee and make a hazardous, but mostly uncomfortable (in the pelting rain) retirement to Ladysmith.
Looking back on the restoration of Johannesburg's Old Fort
In the article below, journalist Lucille Davie reveals the rich history of the Old Fort and describes the restoration efforts of 2007/8. The article was first published on the City of Joburg's website on 24 January 2008. She also explores the old tunnels which will fascinate many a reader. Click here to view more of Davie's writing.
Latent South African Visual History - Magic lantern slides
During mid-2019, an exceptional Anglo-Boer War (1899 – 1902) collection of artefacts went up on auction at a Johannesburg based auction house. Photographic images in this collection fetched high prices. However, images that high-end bidders did not pursue with the same vigour were magic lantern slides in the collection. Why would this be?
The Caney Legacy - Early Durban based family of photographers
With reference to the early Durban based photographers Caney, one author recently confirmed the challenge in "disentangling" the relationship between the various Caney individuals.
The number of Caney photographs identified in the Hardijzer Photographic Research Collection also confirms that closer scrutiny was required as to who these photographers were. The photographs in this research collection, all dating from prior to 1905, include studio-based images as well as images captured during the Anglo-Boer war.
The Doctor and the Artilleryman
Dawn. Dundee, Natal. 20 October 1899. It was bitterly cold. Indeed, it had uncharacteristically snowed the previous week. Huge banks of fog covered the town and surrounding high ground. Intermittent drizzle made everything clammy and miserable. Breath puffed out like a steam train. All in all, a time for any sensible person to be indoors, in bed.
Another Blood Soaked Hill in Zululand - Gunner Frederick Henry Bradley V.C.
Although suffering from the worst drought in decades, one hopes that the rainy season is going to hit Zululand with a vengeance this year. From mid October onwards the heavens open up and the countryside transforms itself from harsh, barren, rock strewn tawny hillsides into rolling slopes covered with emerald green grass, rushing rivers and sparkling air. Looming massively on the skyline, and lit most afternoons by truly spectacular forked lightning streaking across the pitch black sky, Itala Mountain has a particularly eerie feel to it.
Dr Prideaux Selby - A Scot adopts Africa
A Northumbrian by birth, Dr Prideaux Selby was already a middle aged bachelor when he sailed with the Byrnes' settlers to South Africa in 1850. He became the first doctor and Justice of the Peace to the Boer families in the Biggarsberg and lived at "Mooiplaas" for 25 years. He was held in high regard and loved by the Boer families – so much so that the names "Prideaux" and "Selby" were used extensively by the Boer families to name their children.
Battles in the Magaliesberg
In the article below, journalist Lucille Davie traces the fascinating history of various South African War battles in the Magaliesberg. The piece was originally published on the City of Joburg's website on 10 December 2009. Click here to view more of Davie's work.
The War of 1812 - A needless war perhaps?
The year of 1812 is mainly remembered for Napoleon Bonaparte's ruinous retreat from Moscow, when his "Grande Armee" was forced to evacuate the city or face starvation with the Russian winter impending. It was the beginning of the end for "Boney" and his defeat would eventually lead him to abdicate as emperor of France in 1814. Napoleon's failed "Russian Campaign" would be known as the "Patriotic War of 1812" by the Russians and seventy years later would be celebrated by the first performance of Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture" in Moscow.
Raw material for the study of the transition from Boer administration to colonial British management
Ordinances of the Transvaal 1903, 1904 and Statutes of the Transvaal 1907. Whoever wants to look at old, dry, dusty, obsolete law books? Law books date, they take up space on shelves and laws are repealed. Legal language is precise and unemotional. The Transvaal ceased to exist in 1994 and today a completely different provincial government structure has replaced the pre 1994 arrangement of four all white driven apartheid provinces and the 10 bantustans.
A journey into the rich history of the vandalised Scottish Horse Memorial Kensington
Last weekend (Sunday 3rd February 2019) I joined ten heritage stalwarts of Kensington who came together to acknowledge history and pay homage to a remarkable war memorial and the men whose names once appeared on it. We gathered because during January 2019 the memorial had been extensively and probably irreparably damaged. Erica Lűttich had together with her students created an art installation by wrapping the memorial in cloth.
Visiting the Historic Williston Cemetery
When you read the book 'Letters of Stone' by South African author Steven Robins, which tracks the lives and fates of the Robinsky family in Southern Africa, Berlin, Riga and ultimately Auschwitz, you may be tempted to visit Williston to experience first-hand where one of the principal figures of this poignant story lived. Here you will find Robinsky Street, commemorating Robins' great uncle Eugen Robinski who fled Konigsberg, East Prussia to become a successful businessman, hotel owner and one-time mayor of this small Karoo town.
The Indian War Memorial: National Memory and Selective Forgetting
Forgotten men of the Indian Army left their imprint in Observatory, Johannesburg during the early 1900s. Although their story has been largely forgotten and lost to public memory, a monument at the summit of Observatory Ridge honours their memory. This Indian Monument stands as a memorial to Indians who fell in the Anglo-Boer War / South African War of 1899-1902, overlooking the valley where Indians served at a remount camp during the War. Erected soon after the end of hostilities, the Indian War Memorial was launched in the first flush of peace amidst a wave of