Brandwater Basin

The Brandwater Basin was the scene of a massive surrender of Boer troops under the command of General Marthinus Prinsloo in the Anglo-Boer War on 30 July 1900.

After British troops had taken both the Boer state capitals of Bloemfontein (13 March 1900) and Pretoria (5 June 1900), Prinsloo and his men guarded the mountain passes of the Drakensberg at the Brandwater Basin.

[8] Generals Christiaan de Wet, Paul Roux and Jonathan Crowther would each retreat from the Brandwater Basin with their troops northwards and eastwards.

[12] This was the largest number of Boers captured in the war so far, even more than the 4000 at the surrender of general Piet Cronjé at Paardeberg on 27 February 1900.

Christiaan de Wet called it a “a horrible murder of government, country and people” (Afrikaans: ’n gruwelike moord op regering, land en volk).

Map of the historical Orange Free State (orange), with the Brandwater Basin bottom center to the north east of Basutoland ( Lesotho , grey).
The Brandwater Basin in Orange Free State, South Africa, 1900. The position of the blocking British troops before the surrender of Prinsloo is shown.
Marthinus Prinsloo (1838 - 1903)