After exploring Blo
em the next thing I had to do was start my serious battlefield touring. I had come to Bloemfontein because it seemed central to the battles leading to Paardeberg, but as I spent many hours driving between Bloem and Kimberly, the latter town would be a better base for touring. My first day on the battlefields would be to look at British battles in early attempts to relieve Kimberly - which was besieged by the Boers. The early battles were almost all disasters for the Brits - three defeats in seven days earning the moniker "Black Week." One of those Black Week battles was Magersfontein. It is a large hill that blocks the approaches to Kimberly and the British attempted to seize it after forcing a crossing of the Modder River. A monument on the top of 
the hill is to the dead of the Highland Brigade and its commander General Wauchope, who died leading it. Near to the battlefield is a large Burghers Memorial that united many smaller cemeteries into one larger plot. It is an impressive sight designed to look like a cross when viewed from the air. In the 1960's the apartheid government of South Africa built many monuments to the Boer war dead.
em the next thing I had to do was start my serious battlefield touring. I had come to Bloemfontein because it seemed central to the battles leading to Paardeberg, but as I spent many hours driving between Bloem and Kimberly, the latter town would be a better base for touring. My first day on the battlefields would be to look at British battles in early attempts to relieve Kimberly - which was besieged by the Boers. The early battles were almost all disasters for the Brits - three defeats in seven days earning the moniker "Black Week." One of those Black Week battles was Magersfontein. It is a large hill that blocks the approaches to Kimberly and the British attempted to seize it after forcing a crossing of the Modder River. A monument on the top of 
the hill is to the dead of the Highland Brigade and its commander General Wauchope, who died leading it. Near to the battlefield is a large Burghers Memorial that united many smaller cemeteries into one larger plot. It is an impressive sight designed to look like a cross when viewed from the air. In the 1960's the apartheid government of South Africa built many monuments to the Boer war dead.After touring the two battlefields, and driving down some very muddy roads, I returned to Kimberly. The besieged British were led by Cecil Rho
des of scholarship and -esia fame. His HQ is now a museum that I toured before turning to the other reason to visit Kimberly - diamonds. The mines there are now underground but the original "Big Hole" is still there, and has been turned into a museum. The hole is the largest hand dug one in the world; the walk out along the gantry to view it is very vertigo-y. I did not buy any diamonds while there, sorry to disappoint my legions of female readers. But did buy a golf shirt.
des of scholarship and -esia fame. His HQ is now a museum that I toured before turning to the other reason to visit Kimberly - diamonds. The mines there are now underground but the original "Big Hole" is still there, and has been turned into a museum. The hole is the largest hand dug one in the world; the walk out along the gantry to view it is very vertigo-y. I did not buy any diamonds while there, sorry to disappoint my legions of female readers. But did buy a golf shirt.My last day in Bloem was spent looking at the the Canadian battlefield at Paardeberg.
I had timed my visit so as to be there on the anniversary of Bloody Sunday - the Royal Canadian Regiment's first battle in South Africa. Their charge of the Boer firing line was repulsed with many casualties. Once again there was a Burgher memorial, but this time there was also a Canadian cemetery. The headstones, funded by the Imperial Order, Daughters of the Empire, are elegant and very Canadian. The smaller cemeteries that used to dot the battlefield have been concentrated at one site. It is not as well maintained as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission sites of the First and Second World Wars, but it is cared for. The South African government maintains the cemeteries, i am not sure if Canada contributes anything.
I had timed my visit so as to be there on the anniversary of Bloody Sunday - the Royal Canadian Regiment's first battle in South Africa. Their charge of the Boer firing line was repulsed with many casualties. Once again there was a Burgher memorial, but this time there was also a Canadian cemetery. The headstones, funded by the Imperial Order, Daughters of the Empire, are elegant and very Canadian. The smaller cemeteries that used to dot the battlefield have been concentrated at one site. It is not as well maintained as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission sites of the First and Second World Wars, but it is cared for. The South African government maintains the cemeteries, i am not sure if Canada contributes anything.My last night in Bloem was spent in a very nice Italian restaurant where I once again marvelled at how inexpensive it is in South Africa. Tomorrow I set out for Ladysmith.
2 comments:
Well Dave, I'm already looking forward to your first Battlefield Tour to South Africa!!
WestJeff
So am I.
Bob E
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