1900 - Battle of Alleman's Nek. Lord Roberts engages Boers at Diamond Hill. Mahon captures Potchefstroom.
From the diary of Lt Burne, RN:
Off at 5 a.m., and got our Naval guns in position to attack, but found that the Boers had evacuated the ground in front of us. Up and on at a great rate over the grassy veldt, the guns now marching in four columns and keeping a broad front. At about 1 p.m. sudden firing in front and the familiar whirr of Boer shells made us come into action at 4,500 yards on Almond's Nek Pass, through which our road lay. The Boers were evidently in possession, judging by the warm greeting of Pom-poms and the Creusot 5", which played on us without much damage. The troops were now all halted, and formed up for attack which was to commence in an hour's time. The Commander-in-Chief (Buller) directed the operations, carried out at 2 p.m. by the Infantry advancing in long extended lines, the 10th Brigade in the centre, the 11th on the right, and the 2nd on the left, the field batteries and Naval guns covering the advance with lyddite. The 10th Brigade, which had 3,000 yards of plain to cross and a small kop to take, dislodged the Boers and their Pom-poms quietly and steadily under a heavy rifle and gun fire, the noise being terrific, as the (p. 071) hills and ravines were smothered by shrapnel and lyddite; in half-an-hour the Boers were on the run again and their fire was silenced, after treating us with Pom-pom and 45-lb. shrapnel, one piece of which narrowly escaped my left foot—a detail interesting to myself to recall. The attack of the Queen's, East Surreys, and Devons, on the left of the pass, and especially of the Dorsets on the conical hill, was most gallant and irresistible. Thus, about 5 p.m., at dusk we were in possession of the ridges 5,000 feet high on the left and right of the pass, which we thought a great achievement, while the Cavalry and Horse Artillery were pushed on to complete the Boer rout, but darkness coming on prevented this. General Buller and his Staff rode along our guns evidently very pleased, and indeed the force had won a brilliant little victory which cleared our way effectually and turned Laing's Nek besides. The Boers lost, as we thought, about 140 killed, of whom we buried a good many, while our casualties in killed and wounded were 137; but we afterwards learnt from an official Boer list found in Volksrust that their losses on this occasion reached 500, chiefly from our shrapnel fire. General Talbot Coke who directed the centre attack congratulated Captain Jones on the fine shooting of the Naval guns, as did also General Buller who said it had enabled them to take the position in front of us with such small loss. Again bitterly cold, and we bivouacked for the night on the battlefield.
