Daniel Theron
Daniel Theron | |
---|---|
Captain | |
Unit | Scout |
Commands held | Theron se Verkenningskorps (Theron Reconnaissance Corps), South African Republic |
Battles/wars | Malaboch War Second Boer War: -- Battle of Paardeberg -- Spioen kop |
Other work | School teacher, lawyer |
Daniël Johannes Stephanus "Danie" Theron (9 May 1872 – 5 September 1900) was a
Early life
Theron was the ninth of fifteen children of Charlise Helena Margaretha (née Krige) and Willem Wouter Theron.[3] He began his career as a school teacher but later earned a law degree and started his own practice. Before the Second Anglo-Boer War, Theron was a commando in the 1894 Malaboch War, and he trained scouts for reconnaissance until 1899. By his contemporaries, Theron was said to be slight, wiry, with a dark complexion, and short-tempered.[4] He was a South African Freemason.[5]
Second Anglo-Boer War
Theron became a Boer commandant and was put in charge of organizing and leading the Boer reconnaissance scouts, the Therons Verkenningskorps (TVK) (Theron's Reconnaissance Corps).[6] To save horses for combat, he developed the use of bicycles for despatch and reconnaissance. His 105 recruits were equipped with various items including revolvers, binoculars and sometimes light carbines. The TVK would watch British movements and study their tactics during battles.
Reconnaissance missions became Theron's speciality. He was able to move through terrain without being detected. As the war progressed, Theron and his men were moved closer to the Western front. Boer forces, under the command of
Theron's most notable single action was at the
He was, without doubt, one of the finest scouts the Boer nation produced. He repeatedly entered our lines and obtained most valuable information. Again and again he cut off our scouts and patrols, raided our stock, and did all manner of splendid military service for his people.
— Frederick Russell Burnham, Chief of Scouts for the British Army in the Second Boer War (1900).[7]
After the British occupied parts of the Orange Free State in March 1900, Theron and the TVK became well-known for the
In July 1900, the British dispatched a unit of 4,000 soldiers to find and eliminate the TVK. After one skirmish with this force on 19 July, Theron managed to evade his pursuers and continue raiding, but the TVK was always on the run.
Death
While scouting alone on a koppie at Gatsrand, about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) north of present-day Fochville, he encountered seven members of Marshall's Horse and was killed in action. According to the source, Daniel almost ran into the cavalry platoon, but he reacted and opened fire so swiftly that he nearly eliminated the entire squad of seven, killing three and maiming four. However, his gunfire drew attention to the escorting artillery, and the field guns opened a barrage on the koppie that killed him.[2][8] General de Wet remarked "Men as lovable or as valiant there might be, but where shall I find a man who combined so many virtues and good qualities in one person?"[9]
On 15 September 1900, the men of the TVK exhumed the body of their Commandant and reburied him in the family cemetery of the Pienaar family near
Legacy
On 28 December 1907, Generals Louis Botha and Jan Smuts unveiled the Danie Theron Monument near Potchefstroom.
On 9 September 1950, a monument was unveiled at the location where Danie Theron died (near the N12 road between
- the main body consists of 50 concrete rings, which represents the 50 years since September 1900 when Danie Theron died; and
- a copper flame at the top of the structure represents the flame which burned in the hearts of Theron and his nation, in search of their freedom and independence.
The monument was built by L. Fokkens (Pty) Ltd. according to plans of the architect Mr. Hillebrands (from
A new Danie Theron Monument was erected near the Union Building in
One of the primary schools in Carletonville was named in honour of this Boer hero, i.e. Laer Gedenkskool Danie Theron. A smaller replica of the monument (found on the hill near Fochville) was also erected on the school grounds, near the main entrance.
A Commando Combat School was established at
The Danie Theron Medal was instituted by South Africa in 1970. It is awarded for diligent service in the Territorial Reserve (officers only until 1975). The ribbon is green with 3 yellow stripes.[12]
During the Boer War, Danie Theron used the alias of Captain James Bond. This is probably where Ian Fleming, the writer of the British spy series got the idea. Fleming stated in an interview that James Bond was named after American ornithologist and author James Bond - the name being selected because it struck Fleming as "ordinary, but masculine".[13]
His great-great-niece, Charlize Theron, is an Academy Award-winning actress.[14]
References
- OCLC 1691717.
- ^ a b c d e "Danie Theron". Archived from the original on 8 February 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2007.
- ^ "Charlize: Life's One Helluva Ride | PDF".
- OCLC 1820988.
- ^ "(Afrikaans) Vrymesselary ten tye van die Suid afrikaanse oorlog (Translated: Freemasonry during the South African war)". Litnet. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
- OCLC 9638088.
- ^ a b c West, James E.; James O. Lamb (1932). He-who-sees-in-the-dark. New York: Brewer, Warren and Putman. p. 28.
- ISBN 978-0-521-03367-1.
- ^ Marais, p.414
- SAPA. 6 March 2002. Retrieved 16 December 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Boer Commandant Danie Theron". Goldi Productions. Archived from the original on 22 October 2007. Retrieved 7 October 2007.
- ^ "ODM of South Africa". Medals.org. 17 March 2002. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
- ISBN 9780191578762.
Further reading
- Beinart, William (2001). Twentieth-Century South Africa. New York: Oxford University Press.
- Belfield, Eversley (1975). The Boer War. Leo Cooper, Ltd.
- Caldwell, Theodore C. (1965). The Anglo-Boer War: Why was it fought? Who was responsible?. Boston: Heath and Company.
- De Wet, Christian Rudolf (1902). Three Years War. London: Archibald Constable and Co.