THE 2nd Battalion sailed on the Assaye on 4th January 1900, and arrived
at the Cape on the 23rd. Along with the 2nd Lincolnshire, 1st King's
Own Scottish Borderers, and 2nd Hampshire, they formed the 14th Brigade
under Brigadier General Chermside, and part of the VIIth Division under
Lieutenant General Tucker.
The VIIth Division took part in the advance from Modder River to
Bloemfontein. On 11th February 1900 the division moved from Enslin and
Graspan to Ramdan; on 12th to Dekiel Drift on the Riet River. The 13th
was occupied in getting waggons across. On the 14th the division moved
from Dekiel Drift to Waterval Drift, where Lord Roberts had on that day his
headquarters. On the evening of the 14th the division moved to Wegdraai Drift, still on the
Riet. On the 15th part of the division occupied Jacobsdal, to which
place Lord Roberts moved his headquarters on the 16th. On the 18th,
the day of the battle of Paardeberg, the 14th Brigade, under Chermside, was
ordered to march from Jacobsdal to Paardeberg, where it arrived on the
evening of the 19th. Thereafter the 14th Brigade sat down at
Paardeberg till Cronje came out, but it also did very important work in
assisting to repel and defeat the Boer reinforcements coming to his
assistance. The 15th Brigade, under Wavell, was ordered to bring up
the last convoy from the Modder River camp, and to be at Osfontein, east of
Paardeberg, on 7th March; no easy matter, as the drifts were swollen with
heavy rains.
On the 7th was fought the battle of Poplars Grove. In his despatch
of 15th March Lord Roberts says: "The 14th Brigade of the VIIth Division,
with its Brigade Division of Field Artillery, Nesbitt's Horse, and the New
South Wales and Queensland Mounted Infantry, was ordered to march eastward
along the south bank of the river for the purpose of threatening the enemy,
distracting attention from the main attack on Table Mountain (entrusted to
the VIth Division), and assisting the cavalry in preventing the Boers from
crossing the river at the Poplar Grove Drift". On the 8th and 9th
March the army halted at Poplars Grove, but on the latter date Lord Roberts
issued his instructions for his next advance in three columns on
Bloemfontein. Lieutenant General Tucker commanded the right or
southmost column, consisting of the VIIth Division, the 3rd Cavalry Brigade,
and Ridley's brigade of Mounted Infantry, and he was instructed to march via
Petrusburg, Driekop, Panfontein, to Venter's Vlei, eighteen miles from
Bloemfontein, in four marches; but on the 10th, after the battle of
Driefontein or Abraham's Kraal had been fought by the left and centre
columns, Lord Roberts asked Lieutenant General Tucker to halt his force at
Driekop. The division did not reach Bloemfontein till the 14th, Lord
Roberts having entered the town on the 13th.
The division had no very serious fighting in the course of the eastern
advance. One captain and one corporal of the Norfolk Regiment were
mentioned in Lord Roberts' despatch of 31st March 1900 for good work on the
way to Bloemfontein. After passing through Bloemfontein the division
was posted north of the town, General Maxwell succeeding to the command of
the 14th Brigade when General Chermside was given the IIIrd Division.
On 29th March Lieutenant General Tucker, with the VIIth Division, 1st and
3rd Cavalry Brigades, and Le Gallais' Mounted Infantry, fought the action of
Karee Siding to drive the Boers off a line of kopjes from which they had
been doing some mischief. The operations were successfully carried
out. The enemy held several strong positions in the line of hills.
Le Gallais on the right and French on the left found their projected turning
movements very difficult, the enemy retaining their positions and even
taking the offensive at parts until the infantry closed in in the afternoon.
The Norfolks were the first in the infantry advance and seized the position
allotted to them. Our total casualties were about 170. The
battalion lost 1 man killed and 2 officers and 20 men wounded. After
the action the VIIth Division retained the hills they had won, thus keeping
open the door for the subsequent advance on Brandfort.
When Lord Roberts moved north from Bloemfontein to Pretoria the VIIth and
Xlth Divisions formed the centre of the army, the Xlth, on the left centre,
being under Pole-Carew, and consisting of the 1st or Guards Brigade, and the
18th Brigade under Stephenson, composed of the 1st Yorks, 1st Essex, 1st
Welsh, and 2nd Warwicks. The VIIth Division was on the right of the
Xlth in the advance. Brandfort was occupied on 3rd May, Smalldeel on
the 6th, Kroonstad on the 12th, Pretoria on 5th June. On the way some
fighting had to be done, but the centre was never so seriously engaged as
the right and left wings of the army. On 10th May at the crossing of
the Zand River the enemy had a strong position and was inclined to make a
stand, and the 15th Brigade had some fairly stiff work.
After Johannesburg had surrendered on 31st May 1900 the VIIth and Xlth
Divisions marched past the Commander-in-Chief in the town, and when Lord
Roberts moved on to Pretoria the 15th Brigade, Waveil's, was left as
garrison at Johannesburg. The VIIth Division did not act together
again. After Pretoria was occupied on 5th June the 14th Brigade,
Maxwell's, was detailed to garrison that city, Major General Maxwell being
appointed governor.
The Norfolks were present at the ceremony of proclaiming the annexation
of the Transvaal on 25th October 1900. During the later stages of the
war the battalion was employed mainly in the Central Transvaal, being for a
considerable time the garrison of Rustenburg.
Twelve officers and 14 non-commissioned officers and men were mentioned
in Lord Roberts' final despatches, and 4 officers and 5 non-commissioned
officers in Lord Kitchener's final despatch.
