AngloBoerWar.com CHAPTER II. When Lord Roberts occupied Bloemfontein, on March 13th, 1900, MARCH I4TH TO MAY 2ND, I9OO. The army which marched into

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1 27 CHAPTER II. THE REORGANISATION AT BLOEMFONTEIN. MARCH I4TH TO MAY 2ND, I9OO. When Lord Roberts occupied Bloemfontein, on March 13th, 1900, his available strength was 34,000, of which 8,619 ^^^^ with 7,760 horses belonged to the mounted arms, exclusive of artillery. But neither cavalry nor artillery can be reckoned as fighting units in the field if their horses are unfit for work, and Lord Roberts had now no cavalry, no mounted infantry, and no artillery with horses in effective condition. For the next stage of the campaign the defeat of the forces which were being gathered for the defence of Johannesburg and Pretoria Lord Roberts estimated that he would require 50,000 men in all, of whom 15,000 must be properly mounted, exclusive of Imperial Yeomanry, whom he expected to be from 2,000 to 3,000 strong. This was to be the actual striking army ; but it was essential also to guard the long and exposed line of communications, and to restore order and establish confidence throughout the broad territory of the Free State. As early as March 24th he announced that he did not expect to be able to move till April 15th ; the march did not actually begin till May 3rd. There was more to be done than there is space here to record, though enough will be said, perhaps, to enlighten those who continually wonder at the pauses which occur in the midst of the most successful operations. The army which marched into Bloemfontein had expended every military requisite except its own spirit and physical fitness. Those remained unimpaired until the arrival at Bloemfontein

2 28 THE WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. The needs of the Army. The sick and wounded. relaxed the healthy tension of fighting, and allowed the privations ^ ^^^ p^^ march and the poisonous water of Paardeberg to tell their tale. Then the ranks of the sick were recruited with alarming rapidity, and quite out of proportion to the available means for deaung with so sudden an outbreak, whilst there were many wounded to be nursed. The capture of the convoy at Waterval Drift* had meant the loss of 180,000 rations of bread-stuffs and groceries, 70,200 of preserved meats, 38,792 grain rations and eight wagon loads of medical comforts ; and so rapid had been Lord Roberts' advance, and so difficult the roads behind him, that the Army Service Corps, in spite of extraordinary efforts, had never been able to make good the losses. Fortunately ample suppues were found in Bloemfontein. These were requisitioned on payment, and men and animals at last received full rations. The local manager of the Bank of Africa placed 60,000 in specie at the disposal of Major-General W. F. Kelly, Deputy-Adjutant-General, on his note of hand. The disbursement of this money to the troops on March 26th enabled the men to purchase necessaries to which they had long been strangers. This relief, however, could only be temporary; only a steady flow of stores from the coatst would meet the pressing needs. The cver-iucrcasing number of sick, the difficulty in providing accommodation and care for them, and the deficiency of medical comforts in consequence of the loss of the convoy, rendered urgent the speedy arrival of general hospitals, and with them suitable food. On the first occupation of the town, the only means of providing for the sick and wounded were the Field hospitals, and such buildings in the town as could be equipped. The former had never been intended for the accommodation of patients for more than a few days ; and in them, overcrowded as they were, proper treatment was impossible. More buildings could have been utihsed, but neither equipment nor staff was available. f Everything possible was done. All material in the town suitable for the treatment of sick and wounded was bought up, and the Sisters of the Church of England and Roman Catholic convents placed * Volume II., pages ^i' 8. t Report oi koj:,! (..mmission on the care and treatment of the sick and wounded.

3 THE REORGANISATION AT BLOEMFONTEIN. 29 their buildings and resources at the disposal of the army authorities. Even more necessary for success in the field was a fresh supply of remounts. The value, and, indeed, the necessity, of mounted troops able to move at full pace had been amply demonstrated by French's successes. But these had been costly in the matter of horseflesh. On February 23rd French had reported " that the cavalry and artillery horses were unequal to a great effort, and that rest and forage were a necessity." Writing to Mr. Rhodes, Lord Roberts said : " Even if I were not detained here by Cronje, I should be unable to move, on account of the crippled state of the horses. For several days they were hard worked, with no grain and very little else to eat. Several of them are too weak for a prolonged effort, and I have sent for all available remounts to get the cavalry division in working order."* Again, Lord Roberts informed Sir Redvers Buller that he would probably be unable to leave Bloemfontein for three weeks or a month, " as I must wait until remounts for the cavalry and artillery arrive. "f Supplies, hospital equipment and necessaries, and remounts were, therefore, the immediate wants ; and, except for what could be obtained by slow moving convoys from the Kimberley line, everything depended on the opening up of the newlyacquired railway. The re-establishment of through railway com- Railway communication between the Orange Free State and the coast had munications. been always the primary condition of the success of the campaign, and was from the first assumed to be vital to it. On February 20th Lord Roberts informed the Director of Railways of the intended change of the line of communication to the Naauwpoort Junction Bloemfontein route, adding " : It is of immense importance to the existence of this force that there should be no delay in repairing the railway the moment the enemy is driven north of the river. ' ' The advance of Maj or-general Clements from Arundel and of Sir W. Gatacre through Stormberg on Bethulief * Letter to Mr. Rhodes, February 27th, t Telegram from Venter's Vallei, March 12th, X See Volume II., Chapter XV.

4 30 THE WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. had been pressed mainly for this purpose. As soon as the Boers had been driven back, the Midland Field Railway section made good the railway between Arundel and Norval's Pont, and laid a bridge across the river at this point ; the 12th Field company R.E. repaired the line from Stormberg to Bethulie ; and the Railway Pioneer regiment, after mending the line between Rosmead and Stormberg, undertook the permanent repairs to the bridges at Norval's Pont and Bethulie. The railway bridges had been badly damaged ; and although the line southwards from Bloemfontein was intact, no truck could cross the Orange river until the deviations and makeshift bridges had been finished. Through traffic was opened at Norval's Pont on March 27th, and railway communication was established at Bethulie on the same date, but only by means of shunting trucks by hand across the road bridge. Change of On March i8th, Lord Roberts changed his base from Cape ^*^- Town to Port Elizabeth and East London. This measure much shortened the railway journey, Bloemfontein being by rail 450 and 402 miles from these two ports respectively, as against 750 miles from Cape Town. Moreover, the use of three ports and three lines of railway much relieved the pressure on the western line, which continued to serve that side of the country, and to forward such troops and requisites for Lord Roberts' force as could not be shipped to the new bases without serious delay. There was still great congestion, not only at the ports, into which troops, remounts, and stores of all kinds had been pouring, but at various stations south of the Orange.river, where loaded trucks lay in hundreds. There was also a scarcity of engines ; there were blocks at the river crossings, and only a single line ran between Springfontein Junction and Bloemfontein ; all of which made it at first difficult to do much more than forward enough food for each day. The affairs of Sannah's Post and Reddersburg made it necessary to use the railway for the transport of troops instead of stores, and so hampered the proper working of the Une that it was not until April 27th that thirty days' supplies had been collected at Bloemfontein. At the base the officials were puzzled to know in what order and proportion

5 THE REORGANISATION AT BLOEMFONTEIN. 31 to comply with the multitudinous demands from the front. As the war needs grew more urgent, the sick and wounded in Bloemfontein suffered the more.* Some of the doctors and nurses asked for had been despatched from Cape Town on March 19th and soon afterwards, but in wholly insufficient numbers. Ammunition was a pressing necessity. As early as February 2ist, Lord Roberts had found it necessary to impress on all artillery officers at Paardebergf the importance of economising ammunition, and the bombardment there had been seriously weakened on that account. Now the cavalry, infantry and artillery all needed replenishment. The demands for remounts since the later days of February had been incessant. Between March ist and March 13th, 254 Remounts, artillery horses, 500 cavalry horses, 728 mounted infantry cobs, 369 Indian ponies, and 572 mules, all to replace casualties, had been issued to Lord Roberts* force. Yet on March 13th there were needed 1,000 cavalry and 500 artillery horses, 1,000 mounted infantry cobs, and 1,000 mules. { There was here no miscalculation of supply. The numbers of animals landed in South Africa always exceeded the demand ; but the strain on the railway did not allow the consignments to reach the front as fast as they were called for. Finally, there was a pressing demand for drafts to fill the gaps in the ranks, for reinforcements for the more extensive operations yet to come, and for boots and clothing to enable the army to march. Thanks in a great measure to the excellent work done by the railway staffs, both in construction and in the administration of the lines, the supply in all these matters gradually overtook the enormous requisitions ; and Lord Roberts began to build up the reserves which were necessary before he could move forward. In the meanwhile every effort was being made to re-establish * The condition of the hospitals in Bloemfontein led to the constitution of a Royal Commission in July, 1900, to consider and report upon the care and treatment of the sick and wounded in the campaign then proceeding. t See Volume 11,, page 163. X Telegram, March 13th, G.O.C. L. of C, to Secretary of State.

6 32 THE WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. Adminis- order in the country, and to restore the ordinary conditions trationof Qf ^{q i^ the Capital itself. On the entry of the troops into Bloemfontein, Major-General G. Pretyman had been appointed Military Governor ; and for deahng with the civil population, Mr. J. A. CoUins occupied the post of Landrost. With the assistance of Mr. J. G. Fraser, whose defeat by Mr. Steyn in the last presidential election had thrown the Orange Free State into war, steps were at once taken to open a market for supplies, and to collect the arms of burghers who were induced to surrender by the proclamation of March 15th.* The branch of the National Bank was re-opened for business, and postal service was resumed, the telegraphs being kept still in the hands of the Army. A newspaper^ was also started, both as an official organ and in order to publish among the inhabitants true accounts of the situation. Schools were gradually re-opened, and generally a semblance of peace given to the fallen capital. The Cape Police, who had played so prominent a part in the defence of Kimberley, were ordered to return to their regular duties ; and a proposal to raise a body of Mihtary Police for service in the Orange Free State was submitted to the High Commissioner. J It was decided also that Colonial Volunteer corps should not be employed outside their own colony. In au matters connected with the administration of the conquered territory, Lord Roberts acted in concert with the High Commissioner. Organisation Lord Roberts had further to consider the organisation of of mounted ^jg force for the next move, the disposition of troops for the protection of his line of communications, and garrisons for points of importance. Opposition to the advance was expected on the Zand river, where Joubert was reported to have already collected 25,000 men, and to be drawing more commandos to him. The necessity for mobility in flying columns had given little rest to the mounted troops, and still caused loss of horses, which had to be made good. Besides the various drafts the Sec Volume II., page 260. t "The Friend." Produced on March 15th under the joint editorship of Messrs. Rudyard Kipling, Perceval Landon, Julian Ralph, and H. A. Gwynne. X Telegram Lord Roberts to High Commissioner, March 19th.

7 L THP: reorganisation at BLOEMFONTEIN. 33 cavalry received, the 4th brigade, which, in compliance with Lord Roberts' request of January 28th*, had begun to reach the Colony by March ist ; the arrival of small units completed the cavalry division, which by April 14th was organised as follows : ist brigade (Porter) 6th Dragoon Guards, 2nd Dragoons, 6th Dragoons, New South Wales Lancers, Australian Horse, T. battery R.H.A., D. section Vickers-Maxims. 2nd brigade (Broadwood) Household Cavalry, loth Hussars, 12th Lancers, Q. battery R.H.A., E. section Vickers- Maxims. 3rd brigade (Gordon) 9th, i6th and 17th Lancers, R. battery R.H.A., L section Vickers-Maxims. 4th brigade (Dickson) 7th Dragoon Guards, 8th and 14th Hussars, O. battery R.H.A., J. section Vickers-Maxims. Such respites as the hard-worked cavalry enjoyed were devoted to re-fitting and re-mounting. The mounted infantry, in or near Bloemfontein, on March 13th, consisted of AldersQn's, Le Gallais', Martyr's and Ridley's commands. Lord Roberts wished to increase their numbers ; and as far back as February 24th he had telegraphed from Paardeberg to the G.O.C. at Cape Town to forward without delay all available mounted infantry men who had horses. Telegraphing to Lord Kitchener on February 25th, he alluded to the dwindling numbers, and directed that the Burma mounted infantry, and all companies from the base should be sent on to him. He complained that the mounted troops with him were being wasted for want of proper administration. To check this, various units were amalgamated ; and on April 3rd a new organisation, the fourth since the start, was approved for the mounted infantry. It was formed under Maj or-general L S. M. Hamilton into a division composed of two brigades, commanded by Maj or-general E. T. H. Hutton and Colonel C. P. Ridley respectively. Each brigade consisted of four corps, each really * Telegram, January 28th, Lord Roberts to Secretary of State. VOL. II 3

8 34 THE WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. a brigade of from three to five regiments. To each brigade was allotted a battery of Royal Horse artillery and two sections Vickers-Maxims. From February 20th onwards considerable numbers of Imperial Yeomanry arrived in South Africa. Most of them were quite raw, especially in musketry ; and all required organising, training, and carefully selected commanders. All this was handed over to Major-General J. P. Brabazon, who sent every unit at once to Maitland camp, near Cape Town, for training before they took their place in the line. By the middle of April 'about 4,200 Imperial Yeomanry were available ; and these, with many still on the sea, were formed into twenty battalions. Six* battalions under Brabazon were ordered to join the main army on April 29th. Exclusive of one thousand Imperial Yeomanry for the Rhodesian Field Force, the total sent out from home was nine thousand. It was at this time that the Secretary of State decided to stop recruiting, his reasons being Lord Roberts' successes, the despatch of the Vlllth division, and the exhaustion of the best material. Lord Roberts agreed that no more Imperial Yeomanry need be sent ; for he believed that with the troops then in transit the force in South Africa would be sufficient to finish the war, provided the several corps were fairly maintained by drafts.f Organisation As SO many Horse and Field batteries of Royal artillery had ^^^^ already sent out to South Africa, it was ArtiUeo'. decided, J with Lord Roberts' consent, that none should sail with the Vlllth division. The loss of the seven R.H.A. guns at Sannah's Post * These were the ist, 4th, 6th, 9th, nth and 13th battalions. The 7th, 12th, 14th and igih, under Lord Erroll, were assigned to the Orange Free State ; the 3rd, 5th, loth and 15th, under Lord Chesham, to Kimberley ; the 2nd to Sir C. Warren, in Griqualand ; the 17th and i8th to Beira ; while the 8th, i6th and 20th remained in Cape Colony. t Telegram, March isth, 1900, Lord Roberts to Secretary of State. I Telegram, February 26th, 1900, Secretary of State to Lord Roberts. At this date only eighteen Field batteries, of which five were newly raised, were left in Great Britain. $ Telegram, February 28th, 1900, Lord Roberts to SecreUry of State. I See Volume IL, Cliapter XVII

9 THE REORGANISATION AT BLOEMFONTEIN. 35 was no impediment. Q. battery was supplied with a 12-pr. gun from Cape Town ; to replace the other battery, J. battery, which had previously been armed with 15-pr. guns, received a 12-pr. outfit as soon as it could be sent up from the base. This gave two R.H.A. batteries to each of the four brigades of cavalry. Two Howitzer batteries and a City Imperial Volunteer battery also arrived. On April 14th a corps artillery was formed of J. and M. batteries R.H.A., 43rd, 65th and 87th Howitzer Field batteries, C.I.V. I2i-pr. battery, and the New Zealand Hotchkiss battery. At the beginning of April, eleven infantry divisions, includ- Organisation ing the VHIth (not all landed), were under Lord Roberts' fj^^^ command. Of these, four were in Natal.* De Wet's success in the south-eastern part of the Orange Free State obliged Lord Roberts to call at last for a division from the army of Natal. The recently formed Xth division under Sir A. Hunter was, under orders of April 9th, sent to Cape Colony ; with it went the Imperial Light Horse. At first the units of the VIIIth division (Lieut. -General Sir L. Rundle) disembarked at Cape Town ; afterwards the ships, as they arrived, were ordered round to Port EHzabeth and East London. Lord Roberts had originally intended to place this division under Lord Methuen at Kimberley. Finding, however, that his own advance might be delayed by the Boer movements after Sannah's Post, he brought Sir L. Rundle with the fresh division to the Orange Free State. Of the Xth division from Natal, the 6th brigade (Barton) and Headquarters landed at Cape Town, the 5th (Hart) at East London, whence it moved to the relief of Wepener ; both ultimately joined at Kimberley. The addition of these two divisions gave Lord Roberts eight divisions altogether within his immediate sphere of operations. All were brought fairly up to strength by utilising drafts of regulars, some 9,000 of all ranks, twelve battahons of miutia numbering about 6,900, and thirty-one companies of volunteers numbering about 3,500. The ranks of the officers had become seriously depleted, and Officers. * For composition and commands of Natal Army, see Appendix i. VOL. III. 3*

10 36 THE WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. Lord Roberts asked for more, especially for mounted infantry. Fifty commissions were placed at the Commander-in-Chief's disposal for appointment amongst all the troops under his command. For mounted infantry, no officers could be sent from home ; and it was suggested that, to meet the difficulty, all Imperial officers should be withdrawn from the Colonial forces and revert to regular duties, so as to be available for the purpose. As this could not be carried out, the deficiency of officers continued to be most serious. The relief of Ladysmith had set free certain officers whom Lord Roberts wished to employ on his staff. During the stay at Bloemfontein the staff was, therefore, remodelled and completed. On April i8th special orders were issued regulating the railway traffic for conveyance of supplies to Bloemfontein. All trains from Springfontein, with the exception of hospital, mail, and specially authorised trains, were to be exclusively used for the conveyance of supplies. Stores now fast accumulated at Bloemfontein ; by May 2nd there was a reserve of forty-five days' food and sufficient equipment to allow the army to advance. Transport. In order to improve the transport Lord Roberts had at Jacobsdal on February i8th divided the departmental duties, giving Major-General Sir W. Nicholson charge of the transport department, and leaving Colonel W. Richardson to look after the supphes only. On March 23rd Colonel E. W. D. Ward arrived from Ladysmith and took over the duties of Director of Supplies at Headquarters. Colonel Richardson then resumed the post he had previously held of Director of SuppUes on the lines of communication and at the base. When the army arrived at Bloemfontein, certain preparations for the next phase of the campaign were already forward. Whilst the march had been in progress, a reserve of mules, oxen and wagons had been collected. Profiting by experience gained during the march. Lord Roberts utilised the surplus in increasing the transport of the cavalry, the Bearer companies, and the Field hospitals.

11 THE REORGANISATION AT BLOEMFONTEIN. 37 The mobility of the cavalry had on several occasions been dangerously impaired by lack of forage. It was now enabled to take the field with four, instead of two days' rations and forage, as heretofore. Owing to the insufficient number of trained Army Service Corps officers, orders were issued on April 17th for the transport with ammunition columns to be taken on charge by the Royal artillery ; and for the Army Service Corps personnel attached to those columns to revert to their Transport companies. Moreover, an order of May 19th sanctioned the re- appointment of regimental officers, to take charge of the transport attached to their units. The disturbed state of the country made it necessary that the troops to be left behind in the Orange Free State should be fully equipped with transport. This and the provision of transport for the force about to march northwards placed a heavy strain on the department. To quote the Commander-in-Chief's ** own statement of his difficulties, To carry the authorised amount of baggage, two days' supplies of food and forage for the infantry and four days' supplies for the mounted corps, as well as to equip the ambulances and the technical vehicles belonging to the Artillery and Engineers, over 22,000 mules, with a corresponding number of wagons, were required. Besides this, 2,500 ox-wagons, with 40,000 oxen, had to be provided for the ammunition and supply columns to carry the reserve ammunition and an average of seven days' reserve supplies." "During the halt at Bloemfontein, steps had also to be taken to re-mobilise Lord Methuen's division, which had been denuded of most of its mule transport when Lord Roberts moved from the Modder river early in February ; to equip with mule and ox transport Sir A. Hunter's division, which had been transferred from Natal to Kimberley ; to provide fifty mule-wagons for the flying column which was being organised for the relief of Mafeking ; and to replace the sixty-seven mulewagons which were captured by the Boers at Sannah's Post. To satisfy the above demands nearly six thousand mules and four

12 38 THE WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. Strength of the Anny. Preparations completed. thousand oxen were needed, as well as wagons, harness and establishment,"* By the time that the Commander-in-Chief was prepared to start all this had been collected, except the transport for two days' supplies for the cavalry, which caught up the division at Kroonstad on the way to Pretoria. The army about to march was composed of three-and-a-half infantry divisions, four cavalry brigades, one division mounted infantry, with forty-two Horse artillery guns, sixty-six Field artillery guns,f ten Naval and siege guns, fourteen Vickers- Maxims, and seventy-three machine guns ; with a proportion of Engineer and Medical units, making approximately a total of some 44,000 officers and men and 203 guns.j By the ist May all the important points in the south-eastern districts of the Orange Free State were securely held. The protection arranged for the railway was satisfactory. With a sufficiency of troops equipped and supplied, and his transport practically complete, Lord Roberts felt justified in ordering a forward movement towards Kroonstad. He would have preferred to postpone active operations for a few days longer, in order to perfect his arrangements ; but the march from Bloemfontein would have the effect of reducing the opposition to Hunter's advance across the Vaal, and assist Mahon to the relief of Mafeking, about which he was anxious. Orders regulating the general conduct of the movement were issued on April 30th, and the first step forward was made by Ian Hamilton's column moving on Winburg. The Commanderin-Chief with Headquarters left Bloemfontein early on May 3rd. Just before Lord Roberts left Bloemfontein he had verbally told Lieut.-General Kelly-Kenny that his division (the Vlth), would for the present remain in the town ; but, as the intention * Lord Roberts' report on Transport to the Royal Commission, dated March 25th t Major-General Ian Hamilton in addition borrowed one Field battery from the Vlllth division. X For composition and commands of this, the Natal, and other forces, see Appendix i.

13 ; THE REORGANISATION AT BLOEMFONTEIN. 39 then was that Sir H. Chermside with the IlIrd division should soon relieve the VIth division, no arrangements were made for Kelly-Kenny to exercise any wider command than that over his own division. As the senior officer on the spot he necessarily assumed general command over all the troops present but Major-General Kelly remained to give orders for the line of communications and Kelly-Kenny was left without other special instructions. In order to make intelligible the sequence of events at a later date it is necessary to emphasise this point.