| Battle of Hart's River | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Second Boer War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United Kingdom  Canada |  South African Republic | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Walter Kitchener Colonel Cookson Bruce Carruthers | Jan Kemp  Koos de la Rey | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1,800+ | 2,500+ | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 33 killed 126 wounded 70 missing | No definitive numbers | ||||||
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. [1]
By the end of March 1902, the British had gained the upper hand in the war. They had enclosed in barbed wire more than 23,000 square kilometres of the Transvaal and 27,000 square kilometres of the Orange Free State. More than 50,000 troops patrolled the wire and manned the 8,000 blockhouses studding the line. Over 80,000 mounted troops were prepared to meet the Boers in battle. [2]
On March 31, a British column under Colonel Cookson, dispatched by General Walter Kitchener to pursue a force of 2,500 Boers under the command of generals Kemp and De La Rey, who were believed to be operating in the western Transvaal, came into contact with an advance party of Boers. The main force of the column took off after the Boers, but around 1:30 in the afternoon ran into the full force, 2,500 strong, and became encircled by the larger numbers. The Boers had brought up pieces of artillery and began shelling the British positions, using the artillery as a screen to push forward mounted troops and drive in British defenses. [3]
The 2nd Canadian Mounted Rifles, who had been guarding the baggage train, spurred forward towards the fight and made a series of determined charges on the Boer positions to relieve pressure on the main force. Twenty-one Canadians from 3 and 4 Troops, 'E' Squadron, under the command of Lt Bruce Carruthers became cut off from the main force during a charge, but rather than surrender they determined to fight to the last, eventually running out of ammunition and being overrun. Around 5 pm, the Boers called off the attack and withdrew, having inflicted great damage on the British force and escaping with minor losses. [4]
The Canadian Mounted Rifles suffered the most casualties during the battle, losing 13 men killed and over 40 men wounded, the second largest loss of life in battle for Canada after Paardeberg. A telegraph to the Minister of Militia of Canada stated: "The regiment and field hospital have undergone [a severe] test, and have acquitted themselves most creditably. I regret the heavy losses". Lord Roberts telegraphed his congratulations to the Governor-General of Canada as well as to the men in the field. [5]
Hart's River was one of the last significant battles of the Boer War, and although it was a British defeat, the Boers could not fight on much longer, and were forced to come to the negotiating table, with peace finally being signed in May.
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.
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.
Jacobus Herculaas de la Rey, better known as Koos de la Rey, was a South African military officer who served as a Boer general during the Second Boer War. De la Rey also had a political career and was one of the leading advocates of Boer independence.
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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 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.
The Battle of Laing's Nek was a major battle fought at Laing's Nek during the First Boer War on 28 January 1881.
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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.
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