Battle of Schuinshoogte

Last updated
Battle of Schuinshoogte
Part of First Boer War
IY188 pg477 MONUMENT, ERRECTET TO THE MEMORY OF THE FALLEN BRITISH AT SCHUIN'S HOOGHTE.jpg
Monument erected to the memory of the fallen (British) at Schuin's Hooghte, Majuba
Date8 February 1881
Location
Result Decisive Boer victory
Belligerents
Flag of Transvaal.svg  South African Republic Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Commanders and leaders
Flag of Transvaal.svg Nicolaas Smit
Flag of Transvaal.svg J D Weilbach
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Maj-Gen. George Pomeroy Colley
Strength
300–500 infantry 240 infantry
38 cavalry
2 cannon
Casualties and losses
8 killed
10 wounded
69 killed
77 wounded

Battle of Schuinshoogte, also known as Battle of Ingogo, was fought north of Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal, on 8 February 1881 during the First Boer War. General Sir George Pomeroy Colley's communications with Newcastle were under constant harassment by mounted Boer patrols under Commander J D Weilbach after the Battle of Laing's Nek (another British defeat) and as a result he planned to clear a path along the Newcastle-Mount Prospect road to better protect the British supply line, and receive fresh reinforcements he needed to bolster his ranks.

Contents

The Battle

At roughly 9:00am he left the Mount Prospect camp with a force consisting mostly of infantrymen. A company of the 60th Rifles (King's Royal Rifle Corps) and two artillery pieces were left at a ridge overlooking the Ingogo River, while a handful of mounted men and infantry covered the drift.

As Colley advanced up the slope of the Ingogo he received word from his scouting party that a mainly mounted Boer force under Gen. Nicolaas Smit and Comdt. J D Weilbach was approaching nearby. The British formed circular/squared defensive positions on the crest of the ridge with 240 infantry, 38 cavalry and two pieces of artillery while the roughly 300 Boers attempted to surround them and cut them off from escape.

From noon until about 5:00 that evening a series of close range engagements was fought and the British suffered heavily from the accurate and concentrated Boer fire. Although the 60th Rifles wore dark green (in fact, almost black) uniforms, these were still in contrast to the light-coloured South African veldt, the only concession to camouflage being the white foreign service helmet stained khaki with tea. The gunners and mounted troops also wore dark uniforms, but the gunners in particular were exposed when working their guns. In contrast the Boers wore khaki coloured clothing, and were also expert at fieldcraft, thus being able to blend into the environment. [1]

Afterward heavy rain began to fall and the battle came to an abrupt end. Rainfall swelled the Ingogo river, making it very difficult to ford. Boer forces, imagining that the British would be unable to cross, especially with artillery, waited during the night to resume the battle the next day. Colley's men, meanwhile, made a desperate night march, and managed to escape, horses, guns and all, although several men drowned in the river crossing. The Boer failure to assault and capture the guns during the rainstorm, allowing the British column to escape, probably represents their only major error during the war.

Aftermath

It has been speculated had Colley received his reinforcements before the onslaught of the rain, he would probably have been able to defeat the Boers for the first time and give the British better bargaining power during the peace negotiations.

When the British returned with a burial party the next day, they found the Boers had returned to take care of their own dead and wounded. No engagement occurred. The eight Boer dead were buried on the farm "Geelhoutboom" some 5 km west of the battle site. The British lost seven officers and 69 men killed and 68 wounded. The men were buried on the battlefield while the officers' bodies were exhumed four days later and taken to Fort Amiel for reburial.

Colley was plagued by defeat throughout the war, and although he would receive his reinforcements, his men were seriously demoralized by the string of defeats. Eventually he would be killed in action at the Battle of Majuba Hill.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second Boer War</span> 1899–1902 war in South Africa

The Second Boer War, also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics over the Empire's influence in Southern Africa from 1899 to 1902.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Boer War</span> Military conflict in present-day South Africa (1880–1881)

The First Boer War, was fought from 16 December 1880 until 23 March 1881 between the United Kingdom and Boers of the Transvaal. The war resulted in a Boer victory and eventual independence of the South African Republic. The war is also known as the First Anglo–Boer War, the Transvaal War or the Transvaal Rebellion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ANZAC Mounted Division</span> Military unit

The Australian and New Zealand Mounted Division was a mounted infantry division of the British Empire during the First World War. The division was raised in March 1916 and was assigned to the I ANZAC Corps. On establishment, it consisted of four brigades comprising three Australian Light Horse and one New Zealand mounted rifles, supported by British horse artillery. In 1917, one of the Australian brigades was replaced by a British yeomanry brigade. After April 1917, the standard order of battle was reduced to two Australian brigades and one New Zealand brigade, although the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade and other British mounted brigades were temporarily attached several times during operations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Majuba Hill</span> 1881 final battle of the First Boer War

The Battle of Majuba Hill on 27 February 1881 was the final and decisive battle of the First Boer War that was a resounding victory for the Boers. The British Major General Sir George Pomeroy Colley occupied the summit of the hill on the night of 26–27 February 1881. Colley's motive for occupying Majuba Hill, near Volksrust, now in South Africa, may have been anxiety that the Boers would soon occupy it themselves, since he had witnessed their trenches being dug in the direction of the hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Spion Kop</span> 1900 battle of the Second Boer War

The Battle of Spioen Kop was a military engagement between British forces and two Boer Republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, during the campaign by the British to relieve the besieged city Ladysmith during the initial months of the Second Boer War. The battle was fought 23–24 January 1900 on the hilltop of Spioen Kop(1), about 38 km (24 mi) west-southwest of Ladysmith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Laing's Nek</span> Major battle fought at Laings Nek during the First Boer War on 28 January 1881

The Battle of Laing's Nek was a major battle fought at Laing's Nek during the First Boer War on 28 January 1881.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Colenso</span> 1899 battle of the Second Boer War

The Battle of Colenso was the third and final battle fought during the Black Week of the Second Boer War. It was fought between British and Boer forces from the independent South African Republic and Orange Free State in and around Colenso, Natal, South Africa on 15 December 1899.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Leliefontein</span> 1900 battle of the Second Boer War

The Battle of Leliefontein was an engagement between British-Canadian and Boer forces during the Second Boer War on 7 November 1900, at the Komati River 30 kilometres (19 mi) south of Belfast at the present day Nooitgedacht Dam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Magersfontein</span> 1899 battle of the Second Boer War

The Battle of Magersfontein was fought on 11 December 1899, at Magersfontein, near Kimberley, South Africa, on the borders of the Cape Colony and the independent republic of the Orange Free State. British forces under Lieutenant General Lord Methuen were advancing north along the railway line from the Cape to relieve the siege of Kimberley, but their path was blocked at Magersfontein by a Boer force that was entrenched in the surrounding hills. The British had already fought a series of battles with the Boers, most recently at Modder River, where the advance was temporarily halted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Stormberg</span> 1899 battle of the Second Boer War

The Battle of Stormberg was the first British defeat of Black Week, in which three successive British forces were defeated by Boer irregulars in the Second Boer War.

The Battle of Sanna's Post was an engagement fought during the Second Boer War (1899–1902) between the British Empire and the Boers of the two independent republics of the Orange Free State and the South African Republic.

The Battle of Rooiwal was an engagement of the Second Boer War. It took place on 11 April 1902 and resulted in a victory by a British force commanded by Colonel Robert Kekewich over a Boer commando led by Generals Ferdinandus Jacobus Potgieter and Jan Kemp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment</span> Military unit

The Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment from New Zealand raised, in August 1914, for service during the First World War. It was assigned to the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade, part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Elands River (1901)</span> 1901 battle of the Second Boer War

The Battle of Elands River took place near the Elands River Poort mountain pass on 17 September 1901 during the Second Boer War. During the battle a Boer raiding force under Jan Smuts destroyed a British cavalry squadron led by Captain Sandeman, a cousin of Winston Churchill, on the Modderfontein farm. This battle is therefore also known as the Battle of Modderfontein.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Military history of Australia during the Second Boer War</span>

The military history of Australia during the Boer War is complex, and includes a period of history in which the six formerly autonomous British Australian colonies federated to become the Commonwealth of Australia. At the outbreak of the Second Boer War, each of these separate colonies maintained their own, independent military forces, but by the cessation of hostilities, these six armies had come under a centralised command to form the Australian Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artillery Memorial, Cape Town</span> Memorial to the gunners who fought for South Africa during World War I

Artillery Memorial, Cape Town was erected in memory of the gunners who fought for South Africa during World War I. The memorial, which forms part of the Delville Wood Memorial, is located in the Company's Garden, Cape Town, and was strategically established to commemorate South Africa's artillery soldiers who fell in battle. Of those who volunteered to fight during the war, 5800 were white South African, amongst whom 15% were Dutch and 85% English. An estimated 2536 of these men were killed in the Deville Wood battle in Europe. The Artillery Memorial, an authentic cannon facing east towards the National Gallery, proudly honors South Africa's heavy artillerymen. Inscribed on it are the names of the officers, N.C.O.'s and men of the South African artillery who fell in the Great War (1914–1918).

The Natal Field Force (NFF) was a multi-battalion field force originally formed by Major-General Sir George Pomeroy Colley in Natal for the First Boer War. It was later re-established for the Second Boer War (1899–1902) and commanded by Major-General Sir Redvers Buller VC GCB GCMG.

The Durham Artillery Militia was a part-time reserve unit of Britain's Royal Artillery based in County Durham from 1853 to 1909. Volunteers from the unit served in the Second Boer War where they distinguished themselves fighting as infantry in the defence of Fort Prospect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Elandsfontein</span> Military action during the first Anglo-Boer War

The Battle of Elandsfontein on 11 January 1881 was a military engagement during the First Boer War which took place at Elandsfontein ridge just west of Pretoria. During the war horses proved to be the main means of transport across the South African plains. Because of this, much effort was put in grass mowers by the British for the production of hay. It was during one such expedition to collect the necessary horse fodder on 11 January 1881 in a valley near Elandsfontein, that the British were spotted and attacked by a party of Boers. This resulted in the Boers capturing the mowing machine, a wagon and some mules while the British escaped the encounter. With the belief that their attackers had originated from a laager at Elandsfontein, an escorted expedition force was sent to the laager’s believed location on 16 January 1881 to either assert dominance in the area or to destroy the camp outright.

The Battle of Hart's River, also known as the Battle of Boschbult, was a battle fought near the end of the Second Boer War on March 31, 1902.

References

  1. Knight, Ian (2004). Boer Commando 1876–1902. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN   1-84176-648-8.

Further reading

27°36′59.30″S29°52′40.9″E / 27.6164722°S 29.878028°E / -27.6164722; 29.878028