Lord Roberts moved, viâ Wonderfontein, to Belfast, which had been previously occupied by General Pole-Carew. The Chief arrived on the 25th of August, and immediately proceeded to order a reconnaissance of the Boer position between Belfast and Dalmanutha, south-west of which place, about six miles off, were the forces of Generals Buller and French. The Boers were ensconced in a perfect chain of ridges—a frowning rampart of menace, thirty miles in extent—some 8000 yards east of the station, where they evidently intended to dispute possession of every inch of the ground to Machadodorp, and whence it was the intention of the Commander-in-Chief to sweep them.
The Field-Marshal called together his generals—Sir Redvers Buller, and Generals French and Pole-Carew—and their several rôles in the forthcoming operations were discussed. General Buller was to advance on the right flank, General Pole-Carew as usual to maintain a central position, while General French’s Cavalry Brigades would fly well to left, scouring again the terrible country towards Machadodorp and beyond it.
Almost immediately General Buller’s force was shelled by the Boers, and so also was General Stephenson’s Brigade on the extreme left, the General himself having a narrow escape from a hostile pom-pom. The town was also liberally attacked, and the enemy, with long-range guns from Dalmanutha, made a stubborn defence of their ground, even trying to squeeze a small force to the rear of General French, a manœuvre which was quickly frustrated. General Buller continued to push steadily forward, with General French on his flank, driving back Boers as he went, and bivouacking on the ground he had gained.
The whole of the 26th was spent in furious fighting over the whole thirty-mile radius, the bellowing of guns multifarious continuing from dawn till sunset. Lyttelton’s Division (General Buller directing), with two brigades of cavalry, operated south-west of Dalmanutha; while French’s cavalry, moving north by the west of Belfast, crumpled back the foe towards a place on the Belfast-Lydenburg road, called Lekenvlei. General Buller was supported by the Guards Brigade, who advanced steadily from Belfast in spite of an enfilading fire, contesting their way against a clamorous tornado of Dutch artillery—Long Toms, pom-poms, and many other formidable weapons, accompanied by Mausers, which persistently continued their flute-like concert—till both belligerents were enveloped in the eerie shadows of night. The cavalry operated over uncongenial ground, well suited to the tactics of the Boers and consequently hazardous to themselves; but only one officer, Captain Harrison (Scots Greys), was seriously wounded.
A Capital on Wheels: Mr. Kruger’s Seat of Government at Machadodorp
On the 27th came the grand attack which may be said to have broken the back of the Boer army. General Buller, having found it impossible on the previous day to find an artillery position whence the infantry could be assisted in an attack, sent forward on the morning of the 27th the 2nd Cavalry Brigade (General Brocklehurst), “A” Battery R.H.A. (Major Burrows), 53rd Battery R.F.A. (Major Gordon), two pom-poms, and the 4th Division Mounted Infantry (Major Stewart), towards a commanding ridge which ran from Belfast on the south side of the railway towards Dalmanutha. Here the Boers occupied about a mile or two of frontage, the centre being a picturesque homestead called Bergandal Farm, the kopjes on the left being thickly peopled with the enemy. Having obtained excellent artillery positions, the General directed the fire of all the British guns on this farm. Quickly the gunners got to work, and a fierce bombardment commenced and continued to grow heavier and heavier as the moments wore on, till at last the roar and rampage sounded as though Vulcan were holding festival in the bosom of the hills.
The place was described by General Buller as a “natural fortress surrounded by a glacis of about 1500 yards absolutely without cover.” Others who saw it looked upon it in the light of another Spion Kop, yet this the infantry were ordered to assault. General Kitchener directed Colonel Metcalfe to move the 1st Battalion Rifle Brigade under cover of the ridge from which the guns were firing, and place his battalion across the main east and west ridge, on which the farm stood, and assault it frontally from the west. Colonel Payne was at the same time to move the Inniskilling Fusiliers down the face of the gun ridge, and assault the flank of the position from the south, the 1st Devons supporting the left centre, the 2nd Gordons the right attack. At the moment of starting the leading companies of Inniskillings were assailed by an accurate and deadly fire from the Boer pom-pom, which was somewhat staggering, but nevertheless without loss of time they reformed themselves, and, “admirably led by their commanding officers,” pressed on and on against the stubborn foe. These only gave way when the troops were absolutely in among them, many continuing to fire till actually made prisoners.
General Buller described the attack made without the assistance of any cover as a most gallant one. “The moment the kopje was carried the Rifle Brigade, although they lost their Colonel (who, to our great regret, was wounded while gallantly leading the advance), at once reformed, and swept on their own initiative up the plateau, carrying all before them, supported by the Devons, who had got up on the left, and the Gordons and Inniskillings who joined in on the right.” He went on to say, “The honours of the assault belong to the Rifle Brigade, as they had to attack that part of the kopje which had been most protected from our artillery fire, but all the troops did splendidly, and the carrying of such a position, held as it was by resolute men, will always remain present to the minds of those who witnessed it as a most gallant feat of arms.”
The gunners had a terrific day’s work, but on this occasion they seemed to have surpassed themselves, for though the Dutchmen had stubbornly decided to contest the principal heights, by noon the whole of the Johannesburg police, by whom this vantage-point was defended, had fallen victims to the excellence of their execution. A noticeable incident in the attack was the great tactical skill with which the Maxims of the Gordons, Inniskillings, Rifle Brigade, and Devons were handled by their respective detachments. The fire of these guns contributed materially to the successful result of the assault. An eye-witness describing the operations said: “It was a sight never to be forgotten. It was truly grand—the shells from some sixty guns or more all bursting within a circle of 200 yards diameter, shrapnel with its white puff of smoke in the air, lyddite raising a dirty brown cloud as it struck. It was awful. I must say one could not but admire the courage of the defenders. They were the Zarps, Johannesburg Police, 130 of them, and 113 were killed or wounded in that one spot. Then Buller advanced his infantry across the open, the Rifle Brigade bearing the brunt of it. It was splendid, and the Boers gave way all along the line. Lord Roberts rode out to meet Buller on the kopje, and on his way back told our men the news, and they cheered him.”