Charge! A Story of Briton and Boer

by George Manville Fenn

However, it was only a few minutes before a change took place. The Colonel had made up his mind, and the horses’ heads were turned for the open country, where there was a gap in the hills; and away we went at a steady walk, orders being given for the corps to break up its regular military order and ride scattered in a crowd, after the fashion of our enemies. This served us for a few minutes, during which we covered a mile in the direction we were to go; but the light had grown stronger, and it became evident that a body on our right was moving slowly to cut us off. Before another minute had passed another body was advancing from the left; and, ignorant as I was of military evolutions, it was plain enough to me that, long before we reached them, the two bodies would meet and join in line to impede our advance.

I was right, though I did not feel certain; for the orders were given, “Trot!” and then “Gallop!” and away we went for the closing-up gap in front.

“We shall never do it,” said Denham to me as we galloped on.

“We must,” I cried, and then no more words were spoken. To a man we knew, as we went along at a steady hand-gallop, that every body of Boers within sight was aware of what was going on, and moving forward to take us in a gigantic net whose open meshes were closing in.

There was no cheer, but a savage sound as if every man had suddenly uttered the word “Ha!” in token of his satisfaction; for, as the two bodies of the enemy in front were racing over the veldt to meet and crush us as we tried to get through, our trumpeter sounded a blast which sent us along at full speed; and then another call was blown, and we swept round till, going at right angles to our former course, we were riding exactly in the opposite direction to the detachment of Boers on the right. Our object was, of course, to get round by their rear; and, being an irregular and only partially drilled body, the result of the Colonel’s manoeuvre was that the enemy, in their efforts to reverse their advance, fell into confusion. Some were trying to pull up, others tried to sweep round to right or left and meet us; while, to add to their confusion and turn them into a mob of galloping horsemen, the left body charged full among their own men. The result was that we came upon the struggling rear of the enemy’s right wing, scattering and riding over them; and had the country beyond been clear, we could have made our escape.

Unluckily it was the fortune, of war that, just as we had cleared the scattering mob, with every man riding for his life, there appeared in front another and stronger line, with bodies of the enemy coming in from right and left.

Our chief turned in his saddle to glance backward; but it was only to see the two bodies we had passed struggling to got into something like order, so as to pursue us. For another minute no alteration was made in our course; but the attempt was hopeless, for we should have been outnumbered twenty times over, while the enemy in front now opened fire, their bullets whizzing overhead.

The trumpet rang out, and we wheeled round as upon a pivot, our well-drilled horses never losing their formation; and away we went as soon as we were facing our loosely-formed, mob-like pursuers, straight for their centre.

The trumpet again rang out; and, sword in hand, every man sat well down in his saddle, prepared for the shock of the encounter which in another minute would have taken place.

This, however, was not the style of fighting the Boers liked; and, already upset by the collision of the two bodies resulting in a confused mob, they declined our challenge, and pulled up, tried to ride off to right and left, and again got themselves into a disorderly crowd; but as they opened out we dashed through them, tumbling over men and horses, and with, a cheer galloped to reach an open part of the plain.