THE BATTLE OF SPIONKOP

[jainso31]

Another one day massacre of British troops by the Boers-all down to inept Generals.I can find no mitigating circumstances whatsoever--Can you??

jainso31



http://www.britishbattles.com/great-boer-war/spion-kop.htm

[Brett Hendey]

Hi jainso31

I am one of those people who believe that the Battle of Spioenkop could have been avoided if the British generals had exploited the advance to Acton Homes made by men of the Composite Regiment of the Mounted Brigade. The Composite Regiment was made up of Mounted Infantry, mainly from South Africa (Natal Carbineers, Imperial Light Horse, Natal Police and some men detached from their regiments in Ladysmith), and with one company of MI from the 2nd King's Royal Rifle Corps.

Men from the Natal Carbineers and Imperial Light Horse ambushed and defeated a party of Boers at Acton Homes and, had this success been exploited, a way to Ladysmith from the west, behind (i.e. north of) Spioenkop could have been opened up. In the face of a concerted action by the British, any Boers occupying the high ground at Spioenkop and adjacent hills would have had to retreat or face being cut off.

This advantage was lost because the British generals regarded Mounted Infantry with contempt. They favoured conventional Cavalry, which were in fact to prove almost useless in the Boer War, which turned out to be a war in which Mounted Infantry flourished. Adding to the negative attitude of the Generals, was their contempt for Colonial troops. Lord Roberts, at least, recognised the worth of both the MI and Colonials when he chose the Imperial Light Horse to lead the column that relieved the Siege of Mafeking.

Interestingly, it was men of the Composite Regiment that were the first to ride into Ladysmith on the 28 February 1901 to lift the siege. Their arrival had been delayed by at least a month due to the short-sightedness of the British Generals.

Regards
Brett

[jainso31]

Brett I could not agree more-Warren's contempt of irregular horse units was
notorious and yes the way into Ladysmith was via the West.They were absolutely fixated by hills, so Spioenkop was "fought".
Thank you for your SA knowledge and natural interest.How many more hills to Ladysmith this way Brett??

jainso31

[Brett Hendey]

There is broken ground along the north side of the Tugela River between Spioenkop and Colenso but, importantly, the Boers were not dug in as they were in the immediate vicinity of Colenso, where the high ground was finally taken by the British at heavy cost during the Battle(s) of Tugela Heights.

There is a clear run into Ladysmith from Acton Homes in the west, although the British would have had to secure their flanks as they advanced towards Ladysmith. The superior British force could have threatened to cut off the Boers in this area, where they were weak, since most of the commandos were still guarding the Tugela Heights near Colenso. Instead, after Spioenkop the British tried another direct assault on high ground across the Tugela at Vaalkrans with equally futile results.

British force of numbers eventually prevailed at Tugela Heights, but at terrible cost in casualties. From the disastrous close-order march on the Tugela by the Irish Brigade during the Battle of Colenso to the final assault on the Tugela Heights, the British Generals seemed incapable of grasping the fact that they were fighting an enemy that differed from those they had encountered in India and North Africa and that new tactics, including the use of Mounted Infantry, were required.

Regards
Brett

[jainso31]

I am with you all the way Brett.val Kraantz and neighbouring Green Hill was too much for Buller's nerve and he stalled here,Then back to a position he should have attempted tho months previoysly ie.the Hlangwhane position, which he did successfully by taking Mts Cingolo and Cristo.The Boers abandonded this position shortly after.Then bloody Pieter's Hill and then into
Ladysmith with Gough's ILH.Coming back to Spioenkop-this could have been held -so who was responsiblev for giving it up after such a Butcher's Bill???

jainso31

[berry]

Brett and Jainso,good account of Spion Kop.Can't find much on the action at Acton Homes apart from it's an area 19 miles west of Ladysmisth and occurred on 18th. January 1900 in which Imperial light horse captured party of 40 Boers.Do you have anymore info regarding this action/
Regards
Sid

[Brett Hendey]

Sid

The action at Acton Homes was a small affair but it had a significance that was simply not recognised by General Warren, who lost the opportunity of becoming the general who relieved the Siege of Ladysmith, rather than the one who lost the Battle of Spioenkop.

The first important event in Buller's second plan to end the siege came with the crossing of the Tugela River at Trichardt's Drift in the shadow of Spioenkop on 17 January 1900 by the Mounted Brigade under Lord Dundonald. This crossing highlighted a difference between Cavalry and Mounted Infantry, when the heavily uniformed and heavily armed men of the former came to grief in the Tugela. Rescues were carried out by, amongst others, lightly uniformed and lightly armed Mounted Infantrymen, including two who were later honoured by the Royal Humane Society. They were Trooper D G Sclanders of the Natal Carbineers (Silver Medal) and Trooper D Roddy of the Natal Police (Bronze Medal).

The Mounted Brigade skirted the high ground west of Spioenkop and a forward patrol of the Composite Regiment made up of men from the Natal Carbineers and Imperial Light Horse (i.e. Mounted Infantrymen) intercepted a Boer patrol on a similar exploratory mission. The men of the Composite Regiment won a race to secure high ground from which they ambushed the Boers, killing 12, wounding 10 and capturing 23. The Composite Regiment had only two men wounded. This was a classic example of how Mounted Infantrymen could deploy rapidly, dismount and fight an engagement as infantrymen. By contrast, the Cavalry with their swords and lances remained mounted in action and were therefore not nearly as versatile as their Mounted Infantry comrades.

Dundonald saw the opportunity of exploiting this small victory with his mounted men if he could secure artillery and infantry support from Warren. The latter adamantly refused and in a fit of pique removed Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry (TMI) from his command and sidelined the rest of the Mounted Brigade for the remainder of this part of the campaign. The TMI were to suffer horrendous casualties in the Battle of Spioenkop and its commander was left to carry the stigma of this defeat for the rest of his military career.

Brett

[berry]

Brett,
illuminating unput on Acton Homes.With regard to Alec Thorneycroft at Spion kop. Even though it was considered that he disobeyed Warren's order in deciding to withdraw from the summit he surely is less culpable that Warren or Buller for this sorry affair.Warren sent Churchill seeking clarification of the situation but before Churchill reached him Thorneycroft had met with senior officers and decided to withdraw his shattered forces,convinced he could not hold the summit come daybreak.When Churchill finally arrived Thorneycroft could not be disuadded from his earlier decision to withdraw.Birdwood said that on the following day Thorneycroft told him that because he had not received replies to the messages he sent to Warren "he felt himself left with no alternative to withdraw,which he did". Anyhow he was later given command of a mobile column for for ops agains De Wet in the Orange River Colony,and later hunted Hertzog in the Cape Colony and also the elusive Kritzinger.He also received a CB for his valuable services,so,all in all, he didn't come out of it all too badly.
All the best
Sid.

[Brett Hendey]

Sid
Thanks for the additional information on Thorneycroft. I was under a mistaken impression about his later career.
Brett

[jainso31]

Thank you sid and Brett for your valuable input re.Acton Homes and Thorneycroft et al.All the "battles" fought in 1899/1900 were fought largely by infantry-the rest of the war saw the the prevalence of the MI and rapidly moving columns,which proved the only way of fighting Mr Boer.

jainso31