by Allan Gordon | Jan 21, 2020 | Deaths, On This Day
Lieutenant-General Charles Warren was a very interesting man in that he was one of the earliest European archaeologists of the Biblical Holy Land, and particularly of the Temple Mount. As a soldier, much of his military service was spent in South Africa. In 1884,...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 20, 2020 | Birthday, On This Day
Commandant-General Piet Joubert was born on 20 January 1834. In addition to being a fine soldier, he was a ‘self-taught’ lawyer and gained a reputation as an excellent attorney. When the First Boer War broke out, he was put in charge of the Boer forces and achieved...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 19, 2020 | Birthday, On This Day
Lieutenant-Colonel A.W. Thorneycroft was born on 19 January 1859 and served in the Anglo-Zulu War and in the First Boer War of 1881, where he took part in the defence of Pretoria. Thorneycroft was one of several officers sent to South Africa in 1899 to raise volunteer...
by Patrick Armstrong | Jan 16, 2020 | Battles, On This Day
South African War: Skirmish at Acton Homes, Natal – Northern Tugela Prior to the Battle of Spioen Kop (23 / 24 January 1900) General Buller inexplicably delegated to General Warren the responsibility for the main British attack on the Boer positions in the hills...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 16, 2020 | Birthday, On This Day
Sir Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton, GCB, GCMG, DSO, TD was born on 16 January 1853. He was a Scottish British Army General who saw action in the 1st Anglo-Boer War, the South African War of 1899-1902, and commanded the Mediterranean Expeditionary...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 15, 2020 | Anniversaries, On This Day
Johannes Cornelius Jacobus ‘Hans’ Lötter, who was born on 15 January 1875, was a Boer commander during the Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902. Along with Gideon Scheepers, Lötter was one of the most brutal guerrilla commandos in the Cape Colony. Lötter’s...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 14, 2020 | Anniversaries, On This Day
Veg-Generaal Benjamin Johannes “Ben” Viljoen, a Boer War General died on this day in 1917. He was born in Wodehouse (Cape Colony) and was a South African Freemason. He was involved with the Krugersdorp Commando during the Jameson Raid. When the Boers...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 6, 2020 | Battles, On This Day
The battle of the Platrand was the only serious Boer attack on the British lines during the siege of Ladysmith. The Platrand is a two-and-a-half-mile long ridge that dominated the south side of Ladysmith. It had been occupied by the British from the start of the...
by Allan Gordon | Jan 6, 2020 | Birthday, Events, On This Day
6 January 1856 – Birth of Lieutenant-General Sir H. M. L. Rundle who fought in the Anglo-Zulu War (1879), the 1st Anglo-Boer War (1881) and the South African War (1899-1902).
by Allan Gordon | Jan 6, 2020 | Events, On This Day
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour ‘in the presence of the enemy’ to members of the British Armed Forces. On this day in 1900, five Victoria Crosses were awarded at the...
