Battle of Elands River (1901)
Battle of Elands River | |
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Part of Tarkastad, South Africa 31°51′3″S 26°10′4″E / 31.85083°S 26.16778°E | |
Result | Boer victory |
The Battle of Elands River took place near the
Background
After a year of
Earlier Boer raids into the Cape Colony proved unsuccessful. All had been eventually hounded out by British mounted columns and had suffered painful losses. Smuts believed he could do better.[1]
The raid
During the trek south to the Orange River, Smuts' commando lost 36 men. He finally crossed into the eastern Cape at Kiba Drift on 3 September.
The cold spring rains tormented both men and horses as British pursuing columns under the overall command of Major General
Battle
On 17 September, as Smuts' commando threaded through a gorge that opened out into the Elands River valley, a 17-year-old farmer named Jan Coetzer informed them that a British force held the pass at Elands River Poort in the next valley. Smuts commented, "If we don't get those horses and a supply of ammunition, we're done for".[6] The British were C Squadron of the 17th Lancers. The Boers took advantage of a mist to encircle the British camp. When Smuts' vanguard ran head on into a Lancer patrol, the British hesitated to fire because many of the Boers wore captured British uniforms. The Boers immediately opened fire and attacked in front while Smuts led the remainder of his force to attack the British camp from the rear. The British party suffered further casualties at a closed gate that slowed them down. All six British officers were hit and four were killed, only Captain Sandeman, the commander, and Lieutenant Lord George Vivian surviving. The 17th Lancers lost 29 killed and 41 wounded before surrendering. Boer losses were only one killed and six wounded.
One Boer noted, "We all had fresh horses, fresh rifles, clothing, saddlery, boots and more ammunition than we could carry away, as well as supplies for every man".
The Boers destroyed a
Aftermath
Smuts and some 250 men of his commando were able to operate for many months in the Cape Colony, but could not win the war. By this time, the Dutch in the Cape Colony were mostly convinced that the Boer republics were losing the war.[12] Though the commando received generous help from Dutch civilians, and indeed commandeered their requirements from people of every background,[8] the British refrained from burning Dutch farms in the Cape Colony as a matter of policy.
While Boers captured in the republics were well-treated as prisoners of war,[8] Boer fighters native to the Cape Colony and captured there were sometimes treated as rebellious subjects and executed by the British.[13][14] During the campaign, Smuts' commando, replaced worn out clothes with pieces of British khaki uniforms, and Lord Kitchener gave orders that all Boer fighters taken in British uniform were to be executed. Several members of the commando were shot on this basis,[a] others for being treasonous subjects of the Cape Colony.[13] When the remaining members found out about this order, they dressed themselves in civilian clothes as soon as they could.[b]
See also
Notes
- ^ "Neither then, nor for weeks later, did we know that the death penalty attached to the wearing of khaki, and although after a while rumours reached us through the country people that our men were being executed, these stories left us doubting and perplexed. We could not believe that the English were resorting to the shooting of prisoners, and it was only after many had been executed that we learned of Kitchener's proclamation ordering the death of all Boers caught in khaki. As far as I know no steps were ever taken by the military to acquaint us with its contents".[13]
- ^ "From what I could make out, the executions had been kept quiet, but now, for some reason or other, perhaps the killing of Captain Watson, the military authorities were giving them publicity. ... so I lost no time in changing the [British officer's] tunic I wore for a coat which I borrowed from our host, who also supplied such of my companions as were in khaki with whatever he had in the way of civilian dress".[15]
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 551.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 550.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 557.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 553.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 554.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 555.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 556.
- ^ a b c d Reitz, Chapter XXI – Horses And Men.
- ^ Shearing & Shearing 2000, p. [page needed].
- ^ Smith 2004, p. [page needed].
- ^ Smith 2004.
- ^ Pakenham 1979, p. 565.
- ^ a b c Reitz, Chapter XXII – Moss-Trooping.
- ^ Jooste & Webster 2002, p. [page needed].
- ^ Reitz, Chapter XXIII – A Long Trail.
References
- Reitz, Deneys (2005). Commando: A Boer Journal of the Boer War (Introduction by J.C. Smuts ed.). London: Kessinger. ", first published in Great Britain 1929)
- Jooste, Graham; Webster, Roger (2002). Innocent Blood. South Africa: Spearhead. ISBN 978-0-86486-532-8. Archived from the originalon 2008-05-27. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
- Pakenham, Thomas (1979). The Boer War. New York: Avon Books. ISBN 0-380-72001-9.
- Shearing, Taffy; Shearing, David (2000). General Smuts and his long ride. Sedgefield: Anglo-Boer War Commemoration Cape Commando Series No 3. ISBN 0-620-26750-X.
- Smith, R.W. (June 2004). "Modderfontein 17 September 1901". South African Military History Journal. 13 (1). Johannesburg. SA.