The SALH
was raised in Cape Colony in November 1899
(Colonel Adye's evidence before the War Commission)
and the
command was given to Major (local Lieutenant Colonel) the Honourable J H G
Byng (10th Hussars). No corps was more fortunate in its leader. Eight
complete squadrons were raised by an early date in December. A portion was
employed for a short time on the De Aar line, but three squadrons of the
regiment were, on formation, taken round to Natal and, with other mounted
troops, were employed under Lord Dundonald on the right flank at Colenso on
15th December 1899 (General
Butter's despatch of 17th December 1899 and list of troops
annexed.). Three further
squadrons were got ready at Cape Town and sent to Natal, but the other men
who had been enrolled were retained in Cape Colony and went to form the
nucleus of Roberts' Horse and Kitchener's Horse.
In
the orders issued by General Buller on 14th December it was stated,
paragraph 7, "The Officer Commanding mounted brigade will move at 4
am with a force of 1000 men
and one battery of No 1 Brigade Division in the direction of Hlangwane Hill;
he will cover the right flank of the general movement, and will endeavour to
take up a position on Hlangwane Hill, whence he will enfilade the kopje
north of the iron bridge. The Officer
Commanding mounted troops will also detail two forces of 300 men and
500 men to cover the right and left flanks respectively and protect the
baggage”. Lord Dundonald and the
mounted
irregulars did attack Hlangwane and made good progress towards its capture.
If the General had been able to send adequate infantry support the
capture would have been almost
certainly assured and the bloodshed of Spion Kop saved, but the
entanglement of the guns rendered such support impossible. (Evidence of
General Buller and Major General Barton before War
Commission). In his despatch,
General Buller said: "I cannot speak
too highly of the manner in which the mounted Volunteers behaved”.
The SALH lost 4 men killed, 2 officers—Lieutenants B Barhurst and J W Cock—
and 19 men wounded, while 2 officers and
11 men were returned as missing.
When the
move to turn the Boer right on the Tugela was commenced, four squadrons of the regiment
accompanied Lord
Dundonald, marching on the 11th January via Springfield and Potgieter's, but a portion remained at Chieveley
with General Barton to watch the Boer position at Colenso. In order to keep
the enemy engaged there, frequent
reconnaissances and demonstrations were made in which the detachment
several times had sharp casualties
(Reports by General Barton in White Book 'Spion Kop despatches').
Captain de Rougemont
being killed on 23rd January. On the
11th
Lord
Dundonald seized the bridge at Springfield over the Little Tugela, and
pushing on had, before dusk, secured heights on the right bank of the main
river which commanded Potgieter's
Drift. Some volunteers from the SALH on the 11th swam the Tugela,
got into the ferry-boat, and brought it to the right bank (See
'London to Ladysmith’, by W S Churchill, and ' The Natal Campaign’, by
Bennet Burleigh, and ' Times History’, vol iii).
Mr Bennet Burleigh mentions that the party of volunteers
were Lieutenant Carlisle, Sergeant Turner, Corporals
Cox and Barkley, and Troopers Howell, Godden,
and
Collingwood. For five days the mounted troops did reconnoitring and outpost
work. On the 16th they were ordered to march that night to Trichard's
Drift. On the 17th they and Warren's troops crossed the river, and on the
18th Lord Dundonald was sent off to the
left flank. The Composite Regiment, 1 squadron Imperial Light Horse, 1
company of Mounted Infantry, regulars, and 1 squadron Natal
Carbineers, managed to cut off about 40 Boers near Acton Homes, and before
dusk these surrendered after the SALH had come up in support. On the 20th Lord Dundonald ordered Colonel Byng to
seize Bastion Hill. Two squadrons of the regiment were dismounted and
ascended the steep ascent, the two others supporting. The Boers fled
from the crest, and it was taken with little loss, but the hill, like Spion
Kop, was exposed to the enemy's fire, and Major Childe was killed by a shell
fragment after the crest had been occupied, and 4 men were wounded.
Corporal Tobin was first man up; he stood on the top and waved his hat to
let the troops see the hill-top was free of Boers. Next day he was killed.
At nightfall 2 companies of the Queen's relieved the regiment. During the
following days, until the evacuation of Spion Kop, the regiment held posts
on the British line. Between the 19th and 27th the regiment had about 60
casualties.
During
the Vaal Krantz combat, 5th to 8th February, the mounted troops
were mainly on the flanks; but in the earlier part of the fighting which
took place between 13th and 27th
February, the mounted
irregulars, including the SALH, which had been strengthened by
further squadrons from Cape Colony, the
whole brigade being under Lord Dundonald,
took a most important share of the work. The regular cavalry had now
been put into a separate brigade under Colonel Burn-Murdoch, and were left
in the Springfield neighbourhood to
secure General Buller's left rear. Between 9th and 11th February
the army marched back to Chieveley,
Lord Dundonald covering the left flank. On the 12th, with the South
African Light Horse, the Composite Regiment,
Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry, and the
Royal Welsh Fusiliers, he thoroughly reconnoitred and examined Hussar
Hill with the view to its being used as a
stepping-stone in an attack on the Boer
left. The force was ordered to retire in the afternoon, and had a
few casualties in the retirement. Lieutenant John Churchill and 7 men of
the SALH were wounded. On the 14th General Buller decided to occupy Hussar
Hill, and the regiment, being the advanced screen, successfully seized the
Hill with but slight loss. On the 15th and 16th the fighting was chiefly
confined to the artillery. On the 17th the attack on Mount Cingolo was
developed. Dundonald's Brigade struck away to the east, through very broken
and wooded country, and ascending an
almost precipitous face seized the summit, the 2nd Infantry Brigade
assisting on their inner flank. The work of the SALH was specially
commended by some of the correspondents present. The casualties were not
serious considering the formidable nature of the task. On the 18th the 2nd
Infantry Brigade attacked the summit of Monte Cristo, making a fine advance
along the Nek between that mountain and Cingolo. Dundonald's men were again
out on the right, and worried the enemy by a flanking fire at long ranges.
“The steep crags of Monte Cristo were brilliantly carried after
considerable resistance by the West Yorkshire and Queen's Regiments”.
On the same day the Fusilier Brigade carried another hill. On the
19th heavy guns were got into position on Monte Cristo, and on the 20th it
was found that the enemy had left all their positions on the south side of
the Tugela. Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry swam the river, but were driven
back. From the 21st to the 27th, when the very strongly fortified positions
on Pieter's Hill, Railway Hill, and Terrace Hill were, carried, the fighting
was mainly done by the infantry and guns. On the 28th Lord Dundonald's
Brigade had the honour of being chosen for the direct advance on Ladysmith,
and in the evening he galloped into the town with a squadron of the Imperial
Light Horse, and one of the Natal
Carbineers, and some representatives of his other irregulars.
After the
relief, the Natal Field Force had a comparatively easy time until General
Buller started on his next great movement with the object of clearing
Natal,—a movement admirably conceived, and carried out in a way deserving of
the highest praise. On the 2nd of May General Buller received Lord Roberts'
instructions to occupy the enemy's
attention on the Biggarsberg. On the 7th he set out first towards
Elandslaagte to deceive the enemy as to his real direction. General Buller
then swept away to the south-east.
Lord Dundonald's Brigade, now called the 3rd Mounted
Brigade, was
chosen to accompany the turning force. On the 13th General Buller arrived
at the Helpmakaar road at a point near Uithoek on the left flank of the
enemy's position. Here he joined hands
with Colonel Bethune, who had
been occupying Greytown. The mounted men seized the hill commanding
the Pass, and the enemy retired. From this point to Newcastle it was an
almost ceaseless pursuit in which the mounted irregulars did splendid work, for which
General Buller warmly
praised them. The Boers lit grass fires, but Dundonald's men dashed through
the smoke, and at times over the burning vegetation, and unweariedly drove
the enemy before them. On the 15th the whole force was at Dundee, on the
18th at Newcastle, and the enemy had been driven from his carefully
entrenched position on the Biggarsberg at a cost of 7 wounded.
After the
occupation of Newcastle General Buller sent a portion of his troops to the
Utrecht district, where there was some skirmishing towards the end of May,
in which the SALH had Lieutenant T H Thompson and several men wounded.
The
railway having been repaired and supplies got up, General Buller prepared to
turn Laing's Nek, and on the 6th June the SALH and other troops seized
and occupied Van Wyk Mountain. The
regiment lost 6 killed and 4 wounded. General Buller said “the
occupation was well carried out”, although a resolute attack was made on the
force under cover of a grass fire. On
the 7th an advance was made on Yellowboom. On the 8th the regiment
occupied another hill, Spitz Kop, near Botha's Pass. On the same day the
Pass was carried. "The SALH got up the Berg to the
left of Botha's Pass and pursued for
some miles, though they were not able to come up with, a party of the
enemy who retired to the westward”. On the 10th
the advance continued. The regiment
was in front and “cleared the
enemy off a mountain without difficulty”. They found the enemy moving
in strength from east to north, and the regiment pushed forward two
miles to some kopjes. Three squadrons
were closely engaged with the
enemy until dusk. Our casualties were 6 killed and 7 wounded, all of
the SALH. Twenty-two of the enemy
were found killed. On the 11th
the enemy made a stand in
a very strong position at Alleman's Nek, but after severe fighting was
driven out by the 2nd and 10th Infantry Brigades, Lord Dundonald's men ably
assisting against the enemy's left flank.
In his
despatch General Buller said "the SALH acted as an independent unit, and
performed its duties exceedingly well
throughout. Lieutenant Colonel Byng proved himself as usual a
valuable commander”.
During
the remainder of June and the month of July the Natal Army was employed in
occupying and fortifying posts on the Pretoria-Natal railway and the
south-east portion of the Transvaal. In his telegram of 13th July, Lord
Roberts mentions that on the night of the
11th the SALH by good scouting
had prevented the Boers from destroying the railway near Vlaklaagte, and
that Lord Dundonald had captured a Boer
camp. On 7th August General Buller commenced his advance from the
railway to meet Lord Roberts' army near Belfast. On several occasions there
was sharp fighting, in which the SALH
had a most
prominent share. On the 23rd August Captain Savory
was
killed. On the 27th General Buller attacked the immensely strong position
held by the Boers stretching across the Delagoa Railway. Bergendal was the
point selected for the chief attack, and the 2nd Rifle Brigade deservedly
earned the highest praise for their advance and final assault under a very
heavy fire. The enemy was thoroughly defeated. On the 29th
the SALH drove the enemy out of Waterval
Boven and captured
five waggons. Buller's force now moved north of the railway and
after some fighting occupied Lydenburg.
Frequently the SALH did particularly good service, as near Lydenburg
on the 8th and 9th September, and they were often mentioned in the
telegrams, as in Lord Roberts' telegram
of 3rd October, when he said:
“On the 28th Colonel Byng, by a well-managed
night-march up the Groodenonein Berg, seized
the top of Pilgrim's Hill with the SALH,
forcing the enemy to retire
hurriedly”. The corps had 3 killed and
6 wounded.
In his final despatch of 9th November 1900, General
Buller said in his ‘mentions’: "Lieutenant Colonel J H G
Byng, 10th Hussars, has commanded the SALH
from its formation in November last. A cavalry officer
of the
highest qualifications, he has shown singular
ability in the command of irregulars.
His regiment has done splendid service, and I attribute this in a
great measure to Colonel Byng's
personal influence. I strongly recommend him for reward and advancement”.
Many other officers were
mentioned. In October the SALH were taken to Pretoria, and on the
15th were there inspected and
complimented by Lord Roberts.
In the
second phase of the war the regiment was
mainly employed in the Orange River Colony. In his
despatch
of 8th March 1901, Lord Kitchener said that in the beginning of December 1900 Thorneycroft's
Mounted
Infantry and the SALH were railed from Standerton and Volksrust respectively to Bloemfontein,
and were sent
to occupy a line of posts between Thabanchu and Ladybrand, east of the
capital. De Wet was then trying to get into Cape Colony, but was headed by
Charles Knox and driven north again. The bulk of the Boers broke through
the line above-mentioned and got away to the Senekal district, but in his
telegram of 15th December Lord Kitchener was able to say that the SALH and
Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry captured one 15-pounder taken at
Dewetsdorp, one pom-pom, several waggons
of ammunition, 22 prisoners,
and some horses and mules. Soon after this the SALH and
Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry were,
with other troops, railed to Cape Colony
to operate against Kritzinger and other
leaders. Both regiments took part in many a memorable pursuit. In
January 1901 the SALH was constantly in touch with the enemy, and on the
16th, in the Murraysburg district of
Cape Colony, a detachment acting as advance
guard became engaged with a strong
force of the enemy. Captain
Fitzherbert and 5 men were killed, and Lieutenants H C Fleming and
Venables and 13 men were wounded. In February De Wet himself with a
considerable force got into Cape Colony, but being hotly
and constantly pressed by numerous
columns, including Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry and the SALH, he
was driven out again on the 28th February minus 200
prisoners, all his guns, waggons, and
ammunition. The SALH remained in Cape Colony during March
and April and did much hard work.
Lieutenant E H
Barker was killed at Kaliesfontein on 6th March.
Both
regiments were brought back to the Orange River Colony, and in May four
squadrons of the Light Horse, under
Major Gogarty, captured 31 armed burghers with their horses at
Luckhoff. On the 21st Lieutenant J
Alexander and 2 men were killed. In his despatch of 8th October Lord
Kitchener said that the column of Colonel Byng was brought from the south to
the north of the Orange River Colony, and in the Vredefort Road, Reitzburg
district, his column and that of Colonel Dawkins captured 81 prisoners in
the last fortnight of September 1901. After three days' rest Colonel Byng
and his men left Kroonstad on 6th October, and in the next three weeks took
other 50 prisoners on the west of the railway. He then moved to the
Heilbron district to take part in the great combined movements and drives in
the north-east of the Orange River Colony, and until the close of the war
the SALH and their leader were constantly at the very hardest of work, often
trekking for thirty-six hours with
scarcely a break.
On
14th November 1901 Byng and Wilson were
nearing
Heilbron when they were suddenly attacked. The despatch of 8th December
says: “The attack, delivered in a resolute manner, was, after two hours'
hard fighting, successfully repulsed on all sides by Lieutenant Colonel
Byng's rear-guard, which was well and skilfully handled by Lieutenant
Colonel Wilson of Kitchener's Fighting Scouts [see that corps]. The enemy
retired, leaving 8 dead on the field”.
In the despatch of 8th February 1902 Lord Kitchener
gives
details of certain driving operations, and says:
"On
the night of 2nd February Colonel Byng, who had remained on
Liebenberg's Vlei, to the west of Reitz, learned that a Boer force was
rapidly marching north and at no great distance from him. He promptly
started in pursuit, and fifteen miles to the east came
upon a convoy which was guarded, but
not strongly, by a portion of De
Wet's commando. The New Zealanders and Queensland Imperial Bushmen
at once charged the enemy's rear-guard with the greatest dash and gallantry,
whilst the South African Light Horse, rushing the centre with equal bravery,
got well home and completed a very gratifying success. The enemy fled in a
westerly direction, leaving in our
hands one 15-pr gun, two pom-poms, three waggon-loads of ammunition,
26 prisoners".
Down to
the close of the campaign the regiment continued to show the splendid spirit
which it had exhibited at Colenso and other hard-fought actions in Natal;
and when peace came, the SALH left the field with a reputation second to
that of no corps, regular or irregular, in South Africa.
The Mentions gained by the corps were as follows:—
Sir
C Warren's despatch: 1st February 1900. — SALH—On 20th
January a
detachment under Major Childe (since killed) did gallant service
in capture of Sugar-Loaf Hill. Corporal
Tobin was first man up and was subsequently
killed by a shell.
Sir
R Buller's despatches: 30th March 1900. — Recommends Corporal
Tobin for
DCM Major (local Lieutenant Colonel) Hon J Byng, 10th Hussars, has commanded
SALH with marked ability and success and done very good service with them.
Captain H K Stewart; Lieutenants E Marshall, W F Barker, C Walker-Leigh, R S
Thorold, G Marsden, W P Pearse, T H Carlisle; Sergeant Major Mudford (got DCM), East Kent Yeomanry (attached);
Sergeant R Turner; Corporals. W
Cox, G Barkley; Troopers J Collingwood, C Godden
(since dead), R Howell.
19th June 1900.—Lieutenant Colonel Byng. The regiment acted as an independent
unit and performed its duties exceedingly well throughout. Lieutenant
Colonel
Byng proved himself as usual a valuable commander. Captain R Brooke, 7th
Hussars, specially recommended for manner in which he commanded left of line
on June 6.
13th September 1900.— Major (local Lieutenant Colonel) Honourable J Byng,
10th Hussars, in the terms already mentioned in the text. Captain W H L
Allgood,
King's
Royal Rifles, an admirable squadron commander. Captain A Solly
Flood, South Lancashire Regiment, has
rendered excellent service, and been of great value as adjutant.
Captain (local Major) R G Brooke, 7th Hussars,
has proved himself an excellent second
in command. Of the Colonial officers, Captains S Tucker,
S Chapin,
Grant-Thorold, and Lieutenant G Marsden have done invaluable service
throughout the campaign. Non-commissioned
officers and men who have rendered
continuous good and valuable service: Lee.-Sergeant J Burrows, ASC
Trumpet-Major; Corporal F Filling, 5th Dragoon
Guards (acting Sergeant Major, Colt Gun
detachment); Lance Corporal P Melia, Royal Dublin Fusiliers; Squadron
Sergeant Major C T Mudford, East Kent Yeomanry (attached); Squadron Sergeant
Majors J Hopper, G Mitchell; Sergeants F Battershill, A Sanson, J Liddell;
Privates D Cochrane, T Dow. A list is added of those officers and men who,
during the twelve months' work, have performed special acts of bravery, or
have been selected for, and successfully carried
out, arduous reconnaissances or
dangerous duties: Lieutenants R Turner, W F Barker, P H Goodair, J S
Churchill, W L Edmunds, J M O'Brien, R Johnstone, T S Wickham, O M Dansey, E
M Garrard (Colt Gun Detachment); Sergeants J M'Sorley, H H Clarke, D Bennet,
C Green, J C White, E Prowse, C O Taylor, C Baker, W H Wesley, H Tobin, R C
Alexander, W J Cox, T Marriott, R
Holroyd, J W Weekes, J Dudgeon; Corporals. F P Erdmer, W M'Arthur, C H
Wallis, H Moore, R Gifford, C H, Cotterill, J M'Ewen, J R Arrowsmith,
W Hudson; Lance Corporals. F Murray, J Kelleher, H Crane, D Stewart, J
Howard, T Braund, E Constable, C Flick, J Banks, G Earle, W Desfountain, H
Campbell, F Stringer, W Bruyn, V O'Connor, W H Slidolph; Privates F Crowle,
R Dobson, P Siegfield, J Turner, A Galloway, W Haylett, W Heeley, D M'Coll,
C Van Schade, G Warren, B Sinks, H Bickley, D Blurton, G Dumsden, W Gibbon,
A Grant, F Holmes, T Kidd, J Morrison, G Murgatroyd, P Murgatroyd, W
Collins, G Lively, J Pinch, J Purkiss, J M Brown, E Brophy, W Meadows, A,
Pirie, W Thomas, H T Smith, S M Barnes, H H Carroll, O F Fielding, J Gibson,
T V Hansen, E H Campbell, R M Smith, R St John, F Vallecarde, R Cook
(Bethune's Mounted Infantry, attached with Colt Gun Detachment).
Lord
Roberts' despatches:
2nd April 1901.—Major Childe; Captains S
Chapin, S N Tucker; Lieutenants
W F Barker,
G Marsden,
R Turner,
T S Wickham; Squadron
Sergeant Major Hopper; Sergeants F L Battershill,
J Dudgeon, H Tobin2 (killed); Corporals. F H Vallecarde
(Colt Gun Detachment),
F P Erdmer; Lance Corporals. A J Miller, F J Murray;
Privates D Cochrane, T Dow.
4th
September 1901.—Captain Allgood (KRR), Captain H R Stewart (late
Gordon Highlanders), Corporal Melia
(Dublin Fusiliers).
Lord Kitchener's despatches:
8th July 1901.—Captain T S Wickham,
DSO, good
leading in night surprise, Metz Farm, Orange River Colony.
May 14.
Sergeant C M'Millan, great gallantry, same occasion, reforming and
leading men into buildings after officer
fell. Corporal F H Secombe (wounded, promoted Sergeant), first man
in. Sergeant A J Miller,2 Bastard's Drift, Orange River Colony,
April 15, in command of patrol, coolness in presence of
superior forces and skill in
extricating men, reported as "constantly brought to my notice for
gallantry in action". Mentioned in Army Orders: Trooper T
Dow, Corporal J W Kendall, at Winter's
Kraal, Cape Colony, April 22, under heavy fire at 600 yards, went
back to assist a wounded man and brought him out.
8th March 1902.—Captain and Adjutant W F Barker, DSO, and
Lieutenant J Steele, good service in
Colonel Byng's capture of laager at Fanny's Home, 2nd
February. Trooper F Stringer, single-handed capture of a Boer under circumstances
of gallantry, 5th February.
23rd June
1902. — Captain J M'Sorley; Lieutenants C Green, C M F Lilly;
Squadron Sergeant Majors Holroyd,
G Carpenter, E H Tompkins; Quartermaster Sergeant H G Gilding; Sergeant M
Farrell; Corporal W Dye; Privates H H Bowers, A Van
Schalwyk.
