1900 1901 1902 The Battle of Spion Kop (Dutch: Slag bij Spionkop; Afrikaans: Slag van Spioenkop) was a military engagement between British forces and two Boer Republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, during the campaign by the British to relieve the besieged city Ladysmith during the initial months of the Second Boer War.

The battle was fought 23–24 January 1900 on the hilltop of Spioen Kop(a), about 38 km (24 mi) west-southwest of Ladysmith and resulted in a Boer victory.

Although Botha's men were outnumbered, they were mostly equipped with modern Mauser rifles and up-to-date field guns, and had carefully entrenched their positions.

His army was to launch a two-pronged offensive designed to cross the Tugela River at two points and create a bridgehead.

Buller delegated control of his main force to General Sir Charles Warren, to cross at Trichardt's Drift.

Once across the Tugela, the British would attack the Boer defensive positions and then cross the open plains to relieve Ladysmith.

On the 18th, British mounted troops under the Earl of Dundonald enterprisingly reached the extreme Boer right flank, from where there was little to stop them riding to Ladysmith, but Warren recalled them to guard the force's baggage.

[7] Once all his force had crossed the river, Warren sent part of the 2nd Division under Lieutenant-General Francis Clery against the Boer right flank positions on a plateau named Tabanyama.

(Thorneycroft was one of six "special service" officers, among who were also Robert Baden-Powell and Herbert Plumer, despatched to South Africa shortly before the war to recruit local irregular corps.

A half-company of British sappers began to entrench the position with a mere 20 picks and 20 shovels (while almost 1,000 soldiers stood around idle) and Woodgate notified Warren of the successful capture of the hilltop.

More importantly, there was a risk that the British would storm Trinity Peaks (Drielingkoppe) to the eastern end of Spion Kop.

The Boer artillery began to bombard the British position, dropping shells from the adjacent plateau of Tabanyama at a rate of ten rounds per minute.

It was very unusual for the Boers to launch a daytime massed attack quickly resulting in vicious, close-quarters combat.

After suffering serious losses, the Boer assault carried the crest line after several minutes of brutal hand-to-hand combat, but could advance no further.

[14] Officers and men from different units were intermingled, and the British were now leaderless, confused and pinned down by the heavy Boer artillery and rifle fire.

The British artillery, positioned lower down the slopes of Spion Kop, were unable to hit back at the Boer guns.

[1] The British artillery was also missing their marks, causing one soldier to remark in his diary of the events "our gunners, by the inaccuracy of their fire did far more damage to our front line of infantry than to the Boers!

Warren had already dispatched Major-General John Talbot Coke's brigade of two regular battalions and the Imperial Light Infantry (raised in Durban) to reinforce the summit.

However, he refused to launch an attack on Tabanyama and barred his guns from firing on Aloe Knoll, believing this to be part of the British position.

Churchill acted as a courier to and from Spion Kop and Buller's headquarters and made a statement about the scene: "Corpses lay here and there.

Thorneycroft personally intervened and shouted at the Boers who advanced to round up prisoners, "I'm the commandant here; take your men back to hell sir.

The Middlesex Regiment and the Imperial Light Infantry, under Colonel Augustus Hill, who was senior to Thorneycroft in the army list and who also believed he was overall commander on the kop, held the British right for two and a half hours until a second crisis occurred when they too began to give way.

After losing Lieutenant Colonel Riddell killed and 100 other casualties, the Rifles cracked the thin Boer line and carried the double summit at 17:00.

[1] Shattered by the loss of Twin Peaks, General Schalk Willem Burger took his commando out of the battle line that night.

When morning came, the Boer generals were astonished to see two burghers on the top of Spion Kop, waving their slouch-hats in triumph.

[20][21] Penning's story concerns the very real Commandant Louis Wessels,[22][23] who leads the Boer commando to defeat the British at the battle.

Then, to compound all these blunders, at 9:00 pm Warren had ordered Coke to return to the HQ for consultation, leaving Thorneycroft alone among the horrors on the summit.

To dink, ten better Limey officers, at least, I shoot clean in the mittle of forehead at Spion Kop, and you I miss!