Boer
War Notes
Imperial
Yeomanry
Black Week
fell into December 1899 when the British Army in South Africa suffered
successive defeats. Many other disastrous events occurred during that
week but from it a new 'national' feeling arose. A new Yeomanry was raised
to generate volunteers to serve in South Africa, the newspapers called
it the 'Imperial Yeomanry' and so it remained. The Imperial Yeomanry were
to be mounted infantry and this appealed in sporting circles. Soon there
was a rush to abandon the like of fox hunting to 'go hunting the Boer'.
Large crowds formed outside the recruiting office in London, the City
of London itself offered and paid for one thousand volunteers. Thirty-four
MPs and peers rallied to join the new Yeomanry. The spirit caught the
publics imagination and the war was now talked of as a 'national' war.
The ranks of the private soldier contained several thousand 'gentlemen
rankers' in the form of stockbrokers, journalists, dons and even one MP.
South
African Constabulary
Baden-Powell
was charged with organising the South African Constabulary (SAC) to form
both a permanent British Garrison and to also spearhead the injection
of British settlers to South Africa. Ten thousand new policemen were to
be raised in Britain for deployment in South Africa.
Thorneycroft's
Mounted Infantry
Lieutenant-Colonel
Alec Thorneycroft raised a Mounted Infantry regiment of five hundred irregulars,
mainly Uitlander refugees, in Natal, where they had been employed as scouts,
paid for out of Thorneycroft's own pocket.At Spion Kop two hundred of
Thorneycroft's men headed the column in a night attack. The column the
2nd Lancaster's and the old 'King's Own' were weary and tired from seven
days fighting previously. The hill was taken with the cost of ten men
wounded to one Boer killed. Under cover of the early morning mist preparations
were made to secure and hold the hill. General Warren was supposed to
supply the manpower, supplies and resources to install the naval guns
allotted to the hill and to dig the necessary trenches. This he failed
to do in time and for 12 hours the hill was pounded by Boer guns killing
243 men until eventually Thorneycroft and his men had to abandon it. Thorneycroft
was a broken man.
14 November
2000
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