Battle of Talana Hill

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Talana Hill
partof=Second Boer War


caption=
date=20 October 1899
place=Dundee, Natal, South Africa
casus=
territory=
result=British victory
combatant1=Great Britain
combatant2=flagicon|Transvaal Transvaal Republic
commander1=Major General Penn Symons †
commander2=General Erasmus
Lukas Meyer
strength1=4000 [http://britishbattles.com/great-boer-war/talana-hill.htm britishbattles.com] ]
strength2=3000
casualties1=250
casualties2=500

The Battle of Talana Hill was the first major clash of the Second Boer War. A hasty frontal attack by British infantry drove Boers from a hilltop position, but they suffered heavy casualties including their commanding general in the process.

Prelude

Reinforcements sent to Natal by Britain immediately before the outbreak of war had moved into the northern path of the province, but not far enough forward to occupy the passes of the Drakensberg mountains. As a result, the Boers could invade Natal from three sides, and the British were spread in isolated and vulnerable positions.

Major General Penn Symons commanded a brigade (four infantry battalions, part of a cavalry regiment and some mounted infantry, three field artillery batteries) which occupied the coal mining town of Dundee. He disdained to fall back on the major British force at Ladysmith. On the evening of October 19, two Boer forces each of 4000 men under General Erasmus and Lukas Meyer were closing in on Dundee.

The battle

Before dawn on October 20, Erasmus's force occupied Impati Mountain north of Dundee at coord|28|6|49|S|30|12|18|E|type:mountain|name=Impati Mountain. Meyer's men occupied the low Talana Hill east of the town at coord|28|9|50|S|30|16|4|E|type:mountain|name=Talana Hill|display=inline,title, and dragged several Krupp field guns to the top. As dawn broke and the British spotted the Boers on Talana Hill, these guns opened fire, ineffectually.

The British field batteries galloped to within range and opened fire, causing about 1000 Boers to run away. The British infantry rushed forward to make a frontal attack, and reached the foot of the hill, but were pinned down in a eucalyptus plantation by heavy rifle fire. Symons went forward to urge them on, and was mortally wounded. Under Symon's successor, Colonel Yule, the British infantry charged up the hill with the bayonet, suffering casualties from their own artillery as they reached the top.

Lukas Meyer's forces mounted their ponies and made off. The British mounted troops tried to cut off their retreat, but most of the British horsemen strayed onto the slopes of Impati. Erasmus had so far played no part in the battle (partly because Impati was still shrouded in fog), but his men surrounded the British mounted detachment and forced them to surrender.

Aftermath

The British had won a tactical victory at high cost. They could have suffered a disastrous defeat had Meyer and Erasmus in particular not been cautious and indecisive commanders.

Yule's men were unable to contemplate attacking Impati Mountain, which held Dundee's water supply. They marched and countermarched beneath the hill for two days under intermittent shellfire. Other Boer forces had cut the British line of supply and retreat. Finally, despairing of help, the British force retreated across country at night. After a four-day march of 64 miles, they reached the temporary safety of Ladysmith.

ee also

*Military history of South Africa

Notes

ources

*"Goodby Dolly Gray", Rayne Kruger, New English Library, 1964

External links

* [http://www.free-ebooks-uk.netfirms.com/great-boer-war/05-talana-hill.html free-ebooks-uk The Great Boer War]