Ben Viljoen

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Benjamin Johannes Viljoen
General Ben Viljoen (seated) and his Secretary Mr. J. Visser
Born(1869-09-07)7 September 1869
Varkiesdraai, Wodehouse district, Cape Colony
Died14 January 1917(1917-01-14) (aged 47)
La Mesa, New Mexico, US
Allegiance South African Republic

 United States

Mexico
Years of service1896–1902
RankAssistant Commandant-General Major
UnitKrugersdorpse Vrywilligerskorps
Transvaal Burgher Force
Johannesburg Commando 1st Infantry Regiment, New Mexico National Guard
Battles/warsFirst Boer War (1880–1881)
Jameson Raid (1895–1896)
Second Boer War (1899–1902)
Mexican Revolution
Other work
  • Member of the Volksraad (Transvaal Parliament)
  • In 1902 published his autobiography My Reminiscences of the Anglo-Boer War[1]
  • In 1904 participated in the Louisiana Purchase Exposition (St. Louis World's Fair)
  • Civic life in New Mexico
  • Consul in Germany.

Benjamin Johannes "Ben" Viljoen (7 September 1869 – 14 January 1917)

Volksraad. He was a South African Freemason.[4]

Krugersdorpse Vrywilligerskorps and the Volksraad

In 1890 he moved to Johannesburg and in 1896 he founded the Krugersdorpse Vrywilligerskorps experiencing combat with the Jameson Raiders. On the Uitlander issue, Viljoen was an ally of Paul Kruger. He is famously attributed to saying in the Volksraad that it was time to put trust in "God and the Mauser".[5]

First phase of the war

With the outbreak of the

De la Rey and the Lichtenburg Commando.[7] Viljoen was withdrawn to help with the defense of Johannesburg. After the fall of Johannesburg on 31 May 1900 he fought in the Battle of Diamond Hill (Afrikaans: Slag van Donkerhoek) on 11 and 12 June 1900 in central Transvaal. Viljoen was promoted to general and was ordered by General Louis Botha to defend the approaches of Middelburg at Bronkhorstspruit. After the lost Battle of Bergendal on 21–27 August 1900 Viljoen fought a guerilla war in Eastern and North-Eastern Transvaal.[6]

Guerrilla war

With the end of the conventional phase of the war, he formed a powerful

guerrilla commando consisting of men from Johannesburg, Krugersdorp, Boksburg and the North and East Transvaal. His success resulted in him attaining the high rank of Assistant Commandant-General (November 1900). Viljoen's exploits included surprising a garrison at Helvetia in the Eastern Transvaal on 29 December 1900 and temporarily capturing 235 men and a 4.7-inch gun.[8][9] In April 1901 Viljoen narrowly escaped capture by Lieutenant-General Sir Bindon-Blood and in August 1900 he protested to the same Blood about the use of blacks in the war.[6]

Capture, imprisonment and war memoirs

He was eventually captured at

St. Helena. It was there that he wrote his autobiography My Reminiscences of the Anglo-Boer War.[1]
The book is a realistic description of the war from a Boer perspective. Unlike other Boer generals he was not a property owner and thus hesitated to return to South Africa. He returned to South Africa as a pauper but refused to take British citizenship, thus greatly reducing his chances of resuming a public career. He was also disillusioned by rumours claiming that he had collaborated with the British, and he felt that his contribution to the struggle was not recognised.

  • His eldest son Wynand, his first wife "Lenie" Helena Beatrix Els and Viljoen, before 1900.
    His eldest son Wynand, his first wife "Lenie" Helena Beatrix Els and Viljoen, before 1900.
  • Viljoen and his Commando, Pelgrimsrus district (Pilgrim's Rest, South Africa). A baboon with a rifle, 1901.
    Viljoen and his Commando, Pelgrimsrus district (Pilgrim's Rest, South Africa). A baboon with a rifle, 1901.
  • Viljoen and his secretary after their capture by the British, January 1902.
    Viljoen and his secretary after their capture by the British, January 1902.
  • Commander Boshoff, Generals Cronjé and Viljoen at the Boer War spectacle, St. Louis World's Fair 1904.
    Commander Boshoff, Generals Cronjé and Viljoen at the Boer War spectacle, St. Louis World's Fair 1904.

Boer Colony in Mexico

Ben Viljoen was one of the South African refugee officers who formed a farm colony in Mexico with the assistance of

Julimes, Chihuahua.[10]

United States and the Boer War Circus

He left for the United States in 1904 along with General Piet Cronjé (of Battle of Paardeberg fame) to take part in the Louisiana Purchase Exposition (St. Louis, Missouri) and the so-called "Boer War Circus" – portrayals of scenes from the Boer War. After leaving the fair, he settled down in the US. He divorced his wife, Lenie (née Els), who did not really want to leave South Africa, when the news reported he was engaged to May Belfort. He later married a US woman, Myrtle Dickerson. Attempts to establish a Boer settlement in the north of Mexico ended in failure.[11]

Civic life in New Mexico

He returned from Mexico to the US and was instrumental in organising Boer colonies in

Battle of Ciudad Juarez.[12]

Viljoen was also influential in agriculture. He introduced new crops and farming practices to the Mesilla Valley. Viljoen was interested in the creation of the Elephant Butte Dam and developed irrigation systems for the valley.

For a short while, he was US Consul in Germany, and also acted as military advisor to Francisco Madero until

Madero's assassination
in 1913. He died in 1917, at his farm in La Mesa and is buried at the Masonic Cemetery in La Mesa, New Mexico.

Publications

Source:[13]

by Viljoen

  • Mijne herinneringen uit den Anglo-Boeren-Oorlog, W. Versluys, Amsterdam, 1902. In Dutch.
    • with P. van Breda (cartographer), My Reminiscences of the Anglo-Boer War, Hood, Douglas, & Howard, London, 1903. First author's name here "Benjamin Johannis Viljoen".[1]
    • with A. Schowalter and H. A. Cremer (translators), Die Transvaaler im Krieg mit England, J.F. Lehmann's Verlag, München 1902, Series: Im Kampf um Südafrika. In German.
  • Onder de Vierkleur, Zuid-Afrikaansche roman door Generaal Ben Viljoen, Em. Querido, Amsterdam, [1916]. In Dutch.
    • Under the Vierkleur. A Romance of a Lost Cause, Boston Small, Maynard & Company 1904.
      • Under the Vierkleur. A Romance of a Lost Cause, Special edition Louisiana Purchase Exhibition. South African Boer War Exhibition Company 1904.[14]
  • Danie : roman (translated title: Danie: novel), Amsterdam : Querido, [1916]. In Dutch.

by others

  • Jan W. Meijer, Generaal Ben Viljoen, 1868-1917, Protea Boekhuis, Pretoria, 2000. Biography in Afrikaans.
  • Carel van der Merwe, Kansvatter – Die rustelose lewe van Ben Viljoen (translated title: Chance taker - The restless life of Ben Viljoen), Protea Boekhuis, Pretoria, 2019. ISBN 9781485310563. Biography in Afrikaans.[15]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Viljoen, Ben J. (11 April 2008). My Reminiscences of the Anglo-Boer War by Ben J. Viljoen. Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  2. ^ "Generaal Ben Viljoen, Benjamin Johannes Viljoen". geni.com. Geni. A MyHeritage Company. 28 September 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
  3. ^ "Ben Viljoen, The Forgotten Boer War Hero", BHA News Number 139, Boksburg Historical Association, August 2006.
  4. ^ "Prominent persons in history who were Freemasons". www.englishlodgesofs.co.za. District Grand Lodge Orange Free State. 2018. Archived from the original on 27 January 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  5. ^ Thomas Pakenham, "The Boer War", Abacus, Little Brown & Co., (UK), London, 1997, page 101.
  6. ^ a b c Hall 1999, p. 32.
  7. ^ Thomas Pakenham, "The Boer War", Abacus, Little Brown & Co., (UK), London, 1997, page 425.
  8. ^ Thomas Pakenham, "The Boer War", Abacus, Little Brown & Co., (UK), London, 1997, page 493.
  9. ^ Hall 1999, p. 151
  10. ^ Mexifiles: The Boer Colony in Mexico http://mexfiles.net/2010/03/30/out-of-africa-via-teddy-roosevelt-a-circus-and-francisco-i-madero/
  11. JSTOR 44071886
    .
  12. ^ Frank McLynn, "Villa and Zapata. A History of Mexican Revolution", Basic Books, 2000, pg. 95
  13. ^ "Ben Viljoen". worldcat.org. OCLC WorldCat. 2023. Retrieved 22 April 2023. International bibliographic database.
  14. ^ Viljoen, Ben J. (1904). "Under the Vierkleur. A Romance of a Lost Cause". archive.org. South African Boer War Exhibition Company. Retrieved 22 April 2023. Full text.
  15. ^ Van der Merwe, Carel (2019). "Kansvatter : die rustelose lewe van Ben Viljoen". worldcat.org. Worldcat. Retrieved 22 April 2023.
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Further reading

  • Darrell Hall, The Hall Handbook of the Anglo Boer War. 1999. Pages 32, 135, 151, and 153.
    ISBN 0-86980-943-1
    .

External links
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