The First Phase of War (Oct. 1899- Sept. 1900) Flashcards
Boers march on Durban
- The Boers march on Durban – the capital of British-held Natal
- Sir George White arrived from India with 10,000 men on the 7th October, just before the declaration of war
- Durban was an important port for trade with India, and defending this port was vital as to not disrupt this
- But at this stage, the Boers outnumbered the British
- The British First Army Cops did not even set sail from Britain until 12th October and arrived on 18th November
- But at this stage, the Boers outnumbered the British
Strategic mistakes of the Boers
- However, the Boers made the strategic mistake of getting bogged down in long siege warfare, unlike in the first war, which allowed the British to gather their forces. Therefore they lost their numerical advantage by tying down many troops
- The sieges of Ladysmith, Mafeking and Kimberley tied up a significant amount of troops. Their initial numerical advantage was not utilised. when reinforcements did arrive, they would be vulnerable.
Siege of Ladysmith
- Sir George White’s base at Ladysmith
- After sending General Penn-Symons to Dundee, to commence the first battle on 20th October, he drove the Boers from Talana Hill, but took 446 casualties and was killed himself.
- In November 1899, 35,000 Boers under General Piet Joubert surrounded Ladysmith, and White set up a defensive perimeter around his base and settled for a siege.
- The Boers were armed with French Creusot siege guns
Siege of Mafeking
- Mafeking was under the command of Colonel Robert Baden-Powell, who commanded the smallest garrison of 1,200 local men, and Piet Cronje led 7,000 Boers against them.
- Baden-Powell’s innovative tactics included using fake landmines, dummy guns and moving real cannons around his base to look like he had more guns. He also sent African teenagers in armoured trains to send messages
- The Boers wanted to starve them into submission, but on the 17th May 1900, the relief force under Colonel Mahon lifted the siege and was greeted with mass jubilation at home
- The siege lasted 217 days
Sir Redvers Buller
- Decorated leader, won the Victoria Cross in 1879 in the Zulu Wars and fought in the First Boer War. Experience with the land
- Served in Egypt as army intelligence.
- Arrived in the Cape town on the 31st October 1899. The sieges had already started. Had to abandon his intention to attack the Boers in the Transvaal directly and relieve the sieges instead
- Believed that the war would be short and that they would defeat the ‘amateur’ Boer army.
Lack of good intelligence
Despite Buller knowing the importance of scouting as a former head of army intelligence in Egypt, in November 1899, they failed to collect any good intelligence. They had a lack of good maps, and a lack of horses and cavalry soldiers contributed to the poor scouting.
Buller’s indecisiveness
Buller wasted time deciding whether to attack or not. Days after he called certain offensives pointless, he ordered frontal attacks.
He had performed better after being replaced by Lord Roberts. Buller had led a campaign in Natal, and he demonstrated better intelligence and scouting, better supply organisation by sea and rail in the second phase of war.
What did the public think of Buller?
When he returned home in 1900, he was honoured as a war hero, but was used as a scapegoat by the new minister for war, St. John Broderick and Lord Roberts. Critics saw Buller as the epitome of military incompetence and overcautiousness. For example, he refused to use colonial horsemen as scouts. His signal to White to surrender Ladysmith was an error of judgement for which he criticised by the press.
However, you could argue that this overcautiousness was to reduce casualties, and he was also an innovator. For example, he urged his men to make better use of natural cover and using ‘creeping’ artillery barrage rushes to counter Boer tactics of firing from concealed positions and trenches. He had also done well in Natal during the second stage of war.
