The Battle of Tweefontein, which was a farm 35 km east of Bethlehem in the Free State, is also known as the battle of Groenkop and Christmas Kop. Late in 1901 Boer General de Wet had based himself in the northeastern part of the Orange Free State. At the same time Lord Kitchener was in the process of constructing lines of blockhouses and barbed wire across the veld. To protect the construction, Major Williams with 550 men, mostly of the 11th Battalion, Imperial Yeomanry, a 15-pounder gun and a pom-pom held a position on a hill, Groenkop, on the farm Tweefontein.
De Wet had carefully scouted the Groenkop position for three days and believed that the British sentries were not positioned strategically. At 2 am on Christmas morning, de Wet’s commando climbed the north west steep slope of Groenkop with their boots removed so as to minimise any noise. The Boers managed to get close to the summit before being challenged by a sentry.
The Boers began firing downhill into the British tents, inflicting a near massacre, before the British surrendered after an hours ‘fighting’.
British casualties were 59 killed (including Williams), 87 wounded, and 250 taken prisoner. De Wet’s haul was 20 wagons with supplies and ammunition, 500 horses and mules, and two guns.