Late in 1900 the British Major-General moved his headquarters in the Central Cape District from De Aar to Beaufort West due to the Boer activity in the area. In January 1902 the town of Fraserburg became the objective of the Boer Generals Smuts and Malan. To combat this attention, the British ordered Lieutenant-Colonel Capper and Lieutenant-Colonel Crabbe to Fraserburg. On his way to Fraserburg the latter, with his convoy, came into contact with around 800 Boers under the command of General Kemp.
Crabbe found it difficult to progress, so he bivouacked on the farm Waterval, about 35km east of Fraserburg, and entrenched his defences. The following morning, expecting Boer reinforcements to arrive, and realising his weakness, he decided to withdraw and await support from Lieutenant-Colonel Capper. Support duly arrived and the joint columns entered the town of Fraserburg on 4 February. This show of strength forced the Boers to withdraw from the area.
