The 1st Battalion sailed on the Orcana about 27th October 1899, and
arrived at the Cape about 18th November. Along with the 2nd Black
Watch, 1st Highland Light Infantry, and 2nd Seaforths, they formed the 3rd
or Highland Brigade under Major General Wauchope, and after his death, under
Brigadier General Macdonald.
When Lord Methuen started on his way to Kimberley he took with him the
Guards Brigade and the 9th Brigade, made up of troops then in South Africa.
At Belmont and Enslin or Graspan these brigades had stiff work; he
accordingly called up the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders when he was
moving from Graspan, and they were with him on the day of Modder River, 28th
November. The battalion was placed under the commander of the 9th
Brigade, Major General Pole-Carew. A short account of the work of that
brigade, including an excerpt from the despatch as to Modder River, is given
under the 1st Northumberland Fusiliers. At 6.30 am the battalion was
in reserve, but before 7.30 am they were in the firing line. They
extended on both sides of the railway, and those on the right of it, having
little cover, suffered very severely. It will be remembered that
notwithstanding every effort the Guards Brigade on the right of Lord
Methuen's line could not effect a crossing of the river. Lord Methuen
then directed his attention to the left and left centre. In the
afternoon Colonel Barter with two companies of his men, the Yorkshire Light
Infantry, assisted by men of the other regiments, carried a house and some
rising ground which the Boers held on the near or left side of the river.
Lieutenant Thorpe of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, acting directly
under the orders of General Pole-Carew, boldly took his company into, and
across, the river. The battalions in the firing line were mixed, and
some of the Yorkshire Light Infantry and the Northumberlands accompanied
Lieutenant Thorpe. The Boers still offered fierce opposition, but a
battery galloping up helped to keep down the enemy's fire; it is said,
however, to have unwittingly put some shells among our own people.
Soon more men got over, and General Pole-Carew was then able to advance up
the north bank with some 400 men.
The losses of the battalion at Modder River were nearly double those of
any other battalion engaged, being about 20 men killed, 2 officers and 93
men wounded, yet, strange enough, Lord Methuen gave the battalion no
mentions. Several unofficial accounts of the battle, including those
of Mr Julian Ralph, who was present, gave special praise to the conduct of
the battalion.
At Magersfontein (see 2nd Black Watch) the Argyll and Sutherland
Highlanders were the third battalion in the advance to the kopjes.
General Wauchope had intended that they should deploy to the left of the
Black Watch, but immediately before fire broke out he ordered them to deploy
to the right of the two leading battalions. One company was in the act
of doing this when the Boers started firing. The front companies
merged in the firing line of the Black Watch and Seaforths, and the rear
companies remained all day about the right rear of the Black Watch. A
portion of a company on the right under Sergeant Hynch succeeded in wiping
out, either killing or capturing, a party of about 40, chiefly
Scandinavians, who had been pushed forward by the Boers. Lieutenant
Neilson with some men of the battalion was able to help Sergeant Hynch.
These names are mentioned because the credit for this affair has in some
quarters been given to another regiment. Although not suffering so
seriously in the first outburst as the Black Watch and Seaforths, the Argyll
and Sutherland Highlanders were fully exposed all day to the terrible fire
from the Boer trenches. Their casualties were about 26, killed and 67
wounded. Colonel Goff was killed and Major Robinson mortally wounded.
None of the critics seem to have had any shafts to level at the battalion
for its work or conduct on that memorable day. One officer and 3 men
were mentioned in Lord Methuen's despatch of 15th February 1900.
At Paardeberg the battalion was on the right of the brigade and merged
into the men of the Vlth Division. Again it was, as regards
casualties, rather more lucky than the sister regiments. Its losses,
however, were heavy enough: 13 non-commissioned officers and men with the
battalion were killed, and 7 officers and 78 men wounded. Colonel
Hannay, who had commanded the battalion until June 1899, and who was in
command of a force of Mounted Infantry, was killed, and Lieutenant Courtenay
of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Mounted Infantry company was also
killed. One officer and 4 non-commissioned officers and men were
mentioned in Lord Roberts' despatch of 31st March 1900.
The fighting on the way to Heilbron has been dealt with under the
2nd
Black Watch. At Roodepoort on 28th May 1900 the services of the
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders as rear-guard were very valuable.
The least unsteadiness would have been disastrous.
On 12th July the battalion left their Highland brethren, going from
Heilbron to the Transvaal, where they formed, along with the 1st King's Own
Scottish Borderers, 1st Border Regiment, and the 2nd Berkshire Regiment, a
new brigade under Brigadier General Cunningham, and part of a force under
Lieutenant General Ian Hamilton. Hamilton's force was the left wing of
Lord Roberts' army in the advance towards Balmoral, 16th to 25th July 1900.
Thereafter Hamilton was sent north-west of Pretoria (see 1st KOSB), and
after some stiff fighting this column again went east to Balmoral and
thence to Nelspruit, arriving there on 4th September. At the end of
September the battalion was withdrawn from the Delagoa line and again sent
west of Pretoria under Cunningham, and for some months they assisted in
guarding Rustenburg, Oliphant, and Megato Neks, and escorted convoys from
Commando Nek to Rustenburg. Six companies were for a time with General
Broadwood.
Thirteen officers and 22 non-commissioned officers and men were mentioned in
Lord Roberts' final despatches.
In April 1901 the battalion was taken to the Eastern Transvaal, where one
half-battalion was placed under Colonel Beatson and the other half under
Colonel Benson, both columns operating north of Middelburg. About June
the battalion was brought together and acted as Colonel Benson's infantry,
operating from Lydenburg on the north to Ermelo on the south. During
the months June to October Benson's column did wonderfully fine work,
capturing very many prisoners; and no little credit was due to the
extraordinary marching of his infantry escort. About a fortnight
before Baakenlaagte (see 2nd East Kent), the Argyll and Sutherlands took
over the railway between Erstefabriken and Balmoral. In March 1902,
after Lord Methuen's reverse, they were hurriedly railed to Klerksdorp, and
operated under General Walter Kitchener, and were also in the big drives of
General Ian Hamilton, to the Vryburg line and back, getting into Klerksdorp
about ten days before peace was declared.
One officer was mentioned in Lord Kitchener's despatch of 8th March 1901,
and 4 officers and 5 non-commissioned officers in the final despatch.
The battalion along with the 2nd Black Watch provided a detachment as
escort to Captain Bearcroft's naval 47 guns in Lord Robert's advance to
Pretoria (see 2nd Black Watch).
It is very difficult to give an account of the very valuable work done by
the Mounted Infantry. The following sketch of the work of a section —1
officer and 34 non-commissioned officers and men— of the Argyll and
Sutherland Regiment has been furnished by Lieutenant K
M Laird of that regiment, and it is printed here as an excellent example of
the work of the Mounted Infantry generally. The section was part of
the 2nd Battalion Mounted Infantry, which was composed of four companies,
each company containing four sections from four different regiments.
Sixteen regiments were thus represented. Two machine-gun detachments,
with two maxims each, were attached. The 2nd Battalion mobilised at
Aldershot on 8th October 1899, and one-half sailed on the Orient on 22nd
October. On arrival at the Cape, 13th November, the battalion
proceeded by train to De Aar, and were soon sent over to Naauwpoort and
Arundel. In that district there was constant work, one of the most
striking bits being the seizure of M'Kracken's hill by part of the Mounted
Infantry and four companies of the Berkshire Regiment. On 6th February
the battalion left for Modder River to take part in Lord Roberts' advance.
The Argyll and Sutherland section was present in the fighting at Klip Drift,
Paardeberg, where Lieutenant Courtenay commanding the section was killed, at
Poplar Grove, Driefontein, the occupation of Bloemfontein. Then was
with Ian Hamilton at Houtnek, Zand River, Doornkop, Diamond Hill.
Under Sir A Hunter at Wittebergen (the surrounding of Prinsloo), the pursuit
of De Wet. With Lord Kitchener at the relief of Hore and his gallant
Australians at Elands River. Put into Clements' column operating in
the Megaliesberg; present at Nooitgedacht 13th December, where Lieutenant
Reid commanding the section was killed. Lieutenant Laird got the
section, and they were shortly put under Sir Henry Rawlinson, and with him
operated in the Western Transvaal, the Orange River Colony, and then in the
Eastern Transvaal as part of Bruce Hamilton's force. Marched back to
the Orange River Colony and took part in many drives in the
Harrismith-Lindley-Heilbron triangle. After Lord Methuen had met with
his disaster marched to the Western Transvaal to finish with the driving
work there.
The other sections in the company whose doings are here described were
provided by the Royal Scots, the Scottish Rifles, and the Dorsetshire
Regiment.
The Argyll and Sutherland Regiment had other two sections in the 12th
Battalion Mounted Infantry raised about December 1900.
