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Our Sailors; Gallant Deeds of the British Navy during Victoria's Reign, a non-fiction book by William H. G. Kingston |
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Chapter 29. The Boer War In 1900 |
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_ CHAPTER TWENTY NINE. THE BOER WAR IN 1900 THE SIEGE OF LADYSMITH. Early in the year 1899 the differences between Mr Kruger, President of the South African Republic, and the British Government, upon the position of the foreign population in his territory, began to assume an acute phase. A petition to Her Majesty, setting out their grievances and asking for protection for her subjects in the Transvaal, was very largely signed, and the British High Commissioner stated his opinion that the position of the non-burgher population was intolerable, and that this was an overwhelming case for intervention. For many weeks negotiations were carried on between London and Pretoria, the British Government making very little preparation for a war which it hoped to avoid; while Mr Kruger, on the other land, proceeded to arm his burghers and make every preparation for a war which, if he made no concessions, he knew to be inevitable if the British Government did not retire from the position they had taken. At length, everything being ready on his side, on 9th October President Kruger issued an ultimatum, demanding the withdrawal of Great Britain's troops within forty-eight hours. This was a declaration of war. War immediately followed, and armed Boers, previously assembled on the frontier, poured in thousands into Natal, crossing the frontier both on the north and on the west on the 12th of October, and gradually overran the north of the colony, converging upon Ladysmith. The British force in that part was small, and though in the various actions at Talana Hill--in which the situation of Majuba Hill may be said to have been reversed--Elandslaagte, and Rietfontein, portions of the Boer forces had been met and defeated, it became evident that their numbers and their mobility had been absurdly underestimated, and that when once concentrated they far outnumbered the forces at the disposal of Sir George White, who therefore decided to entrench and await reinforcements at Ladysmith,--not a strong position, for it was commanded by hills on all sides, but it had been a great depot of military stores which could not be removed. By 2nd November the railway and telegraph connecting Ladysmith with the south was cut, and the strict siege began. The Boers brought into position on the neighbouring hills guns of far greater calibre than any of those possessed by the garrison and its defences, and kept up a heavy bombardment out of range of their guns. Most fortunately HMS _Powerful_, then at Durban, was armed with 4.7-inch guns of as great range as any of the "Long Toms" of the assailants. A land carriage for these had been designed by Captain Percy Scott, and rapidly constructed by the ship's engineers, and the guns sent up by rail just before the line was cut, together with a Naval Brigade of bluejackets from the ship under the command of Captain Hon. H. Lambton. These guns, the two 4.7-inch and four 12-pounders, were of the greatest value to the defence, for they were the only guns capable of equalling the big guns of the Boers, and the firing was so accurate that during the whole of the siege they succeeded in keeping the enemy's siege guns at a distance, with so little waste of ammunition, the supply of which was of course limited, that when the siege was raised on 20th February 1900 it was not yet exhausted. On the 30th of October Lieutenant Egerton, RN, of the _Powerful_, was struck by a shell and died of his wounds a few days after; he had been at once promoted to commander for his services, and received intelligence of this before his death. The most serious fight during the siege took place on 6th January, when the enemy made a most determined and as it proved final attempt to carry Ladysmith by storm. Every part of the position was attacked, but the chief assault was upon Cassar's Camp and Wagon Hill. On the former was a detachment of the Naval Brigade with a 12-pounder gun and some Natal Naval Volunteers, as well as the 1st Battalion Manchesters and 42 Battery, RA; and on Wagon Hill, in addition to its usual garrison, a 12-pounder gun and a 4.7-inch had arrived the day before. The fighting was very severe and at close quarters, and the Boers were only finally driven off after 15 hours' battle, our losses being 14 officers and 135 men killed, 31 officers and 244 wounded. The Boers lost much more heavily, and made no further attempt. The sufferings of the garrison and inhabitants during this memorable siege were very severe, and the losses by disease amounted to 12 officers and 529 men. In addition to those engaged in the defence of Ladysmith, naval brigades with guns from various ships of war on the South African station accompanied the various columns engaged in the movement through the Orange Free State and the Transvaal, which republics have since become the Orange River Colony and the Transvaal Colony. _ |
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