Boer War- Black Week and response Flashcards
what towns were sieged by the Boers at the start of the war?
Ladysmith
Kimberley
Mafeking
when was Ladysmith besieged?
November 1899
how many Boers besieged Ladysmith?
35,000 under the command of General Piet Joubert
who was in command of British troops in Ladysmith?
Sir George White
what had George White done to defend against the Boers?
he had set up a defensive perimeter made up of gun positions, guard posts and trenches
FIRST LINE OF DEFENCE
what mistake had White made when setting up the defences?
he had left much of the defences to junior officers
what artillery did the Boers use to siege Ladysmith?
French siege guns
when was the Boer’s only attempt at assaulting Ladysmith?
6 January 1900
the British forces held them back
who led the British response to the sieges?
Sir Redvers Buller
when was Black Week?
10-17 December 1899
what were the defeats suffered by the British during Black Week?
Stomberg and Magersfontein
Colenso
Spion Kop (january)
what was Buller’s plan?
to advance along the railways and attack Boer strongholds
he split his force into three groups:
- Gatacre
- Methuen
- Buller
Gatacre
was to lead 3000 men to recapture Stormberg
Methuen
was to lead 10000 men to relieve Mafeking and Kimberley
Buller
was to lead 20,000 troops to relieve Ladysmith
when was Gatacre’s attack on Stormberg?
10 December 1899
result of Gatacre’s attack
massive failure
British infantry was exposed to Boer rifle fire
AND
their own artillery fire
culminated in British retreat from Stormberg
how many British taken prisoner by the Boers at Stormberg?
500
who blocked Methuen’s advance towards Kimberley and Mafeking?
the Boers led by de la Rey
where were de la Rey’s men positioned to ambush Methuen’s troops?
on the lower slopes of the hill Magersfontein
when was the Battle of Magersfontein?
11 December 1899
what tactics had the Boers used at the Battle of Magersfontein?
placed wire and tin cans to give warnings to hiding Boer troops that British troops were passing
what were the British failures at the Battle of Magersfontein?
they had failed to scout ahead so were unaware of potential threats
their own guns fired upon them
result of the Battle of Magersfontein
Boer victory
Methuen withdraw, which meant that Kimberley and Mafeking remained besieged
200 British men died
what was Buller’s repsonse to the failures of Methuen and Gatacre?
he launched his own attack to reach Ladysmith
when did Buller launch his advance towards Ladysmith?
15 December 1899
who intercepted Buller’s force and where?
the Boers led by Louis Botha
had ambushed the British at the Tugela river
what tactics did the Boers use at the Battle of Colenso?
they had dug trenches along the river which were hidden from the British
what were the British failures at the Battle of Colenso?
were poorly guided
no recon to spot Boer positions
no knowledge about local geography
led to troops being sent across the river in the wrong places, straight into the Boer positions
result of the Battle of Colenso
Boer victory
Bullers retreated
how many British died at Colenso?
143
how many Boers died at Colenso?
8
how many British captured at Colenso?
220
what had Bullers told White to do after the defeat at Colenso?
to surrender
what was White’s response to Buller’s order?
he rejected it
‘I hold Ladysmith for my Queen’
what does Buller’s message show about his attitude?
he was a defeatist
poor military commander
when was the Battle of Spion Kop?
23 January 1900
who led the British at Spion Kop?
Buller
what were the British failures at Spion Kop?
for communication and intel informed British troops to take the wrong hill
led to the Boers holding the higher ground and defeating the British from above
how many British died at Spion Kop?
243
when did Lord Roberts arrive in SA?
January 1900
who was Lord Roberts 2ic?
Kitchener
when did Buller attempt to cross the Tugela River for the final time?
14 February 1900
what tactics did Buller use to successfully cross the Tugela River to get to Ladysmith?
he used pontoon bridges and artillery bombardment
when did the British relieve Ladysmith?
28 February 1900
how many Boers were besieging Kimberley?
7500
when did Roberts set out to relieve Kimberley?
10 February 1900
how many men did Roberts take with him to relieve Kimberley?
40,000
when was Kimberley relieved?
15 February 1900
by Sir John French’s cavalry
who was in charge of the garrison at Mafeking?
Colonel Robert Baden-Powell
how many men was Baden-Powell in charge of?
1200
how many Boers did Baden-Powell defend Mafeking against?
7000
what tactics did Baden-Powell use to defend against the Boers?
fake landmines
dummy guns
use of local population
use of armoured trains to attack Boer camps
how many Africans did Baden-Powell arm?
300
how did Baden-Powell use local teenage boys?
as messengers
when did the Boers try to take Mafeking?
12 May 1900
but defeated by Baden-Powell’s garrison
when was Mafeking relieved?
17 May 1900
why can the sieges be seen as a positive?
they prevented the Boers from carrying out conventional tactics
the static sieges meant the Boer tactics of ambushing and dissapearing was not possible
by February 1900 how many British troops in SA?
180,000
