The Battle of Magersfontein[Note 1] (/ˈmɑːxərsfɒnteɪn/MAH-khərss-fon-tayn) was fought on 11 December 1899, at Magersfontein, near Kimberley, South Africa, on the borders of the Cape Colony and the independent republic of the Orange Free State (now in Sol Plaatje Local Municipality, Northern Cape). British forces under Lieutenant General Lord Methuen were advancing north along the railway line from the Cape to relieve the siege of Kimberley, but their path was blocked at Magersfontein by a Boer force that was entrenched in the surrounding hills. The British had already fought a series of battles with the Boers, most recently at Modder River, where the advance was temporarily halted.
Lord Methuen failed to perform adequate reconnaissance in preparation for the impending battle and was unaware that Boer Vecht-generaal (Combat General) De la Rey had entrenched his forces at the foot of the hills, rather than the forward slopes, as was the accepted practice. That allowed the Boers to survive the initial British artillery bombardment, and when the British troops failed to deploy from a compact formation during their advance, the defenders inflicted heavy casualties. The Highland Brigade suffered the worst casualties, and on the Boer side, the Scandinavian Corps was destroyed. The Boers attained a tactical victory and succeeded in holding the British in their advance on Kimberley. The battle was the second of three battles during what became known as the Black Week of the Second Boer War: Stormberg on Sunday 10 December, Magersfontein on Monday 11 December and Colenso on Friday 15 December 1899.
Following their defeat, the British delayed at the Modder River for another two months while reinforcements were brought forward. General Lord Roberts was appointed Commander in Chief of the British forces in South Africa and moved to take personal command of the front. He subsequently lifted the siege of Kimberley and forced Cronje to surrender at the Battle of Paardeberg.
^ abMaurice, (1998b), Vol. 6
^Cite error: The named reference Kruger130 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference PAK20610 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
Cite error: There are <ref group=Note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=Note}} template (see the help page).
and 24 Related for: Battle of Magersfontein information
The BattleofMagersfontein (/ˈmɑːxərsfɒnteɪn/ MAH-khərss-fon-tayn) was fought on 11 December 1899, at Magersfontein, near Kimberley, South Africa, on...
The Magersfontein (/ˈmɑːxərsfɒnteɪn/ MAHKH-ərs-fon-tayn) battlefield is a site of the BattleofMagersfontein (11 December 1899), part of the Second Boer...
the British defeat at the BattleofMagersfontein. In February 1900, Field Marshal Lord Roberts assumed personal command of a significantly reinforced...
Boer War saw attempted application of bombardment as an alternative to the use of ground forces. In most battles fought during the conflict this was...
Battle of Modder River – The Boer War at www.britishbattles.com BattleofMagersfontein – The Boer War at www.britishbattles.com Jacobus Herculaas de la...
attempting to relieve the besieged town of Kimberley, forced Boers under General Piet Cronjé to retreat to Magersfontein, but suffered heavy casualties altogether...
the outbreak of the Second Boer War. The battalion suffered heavy losses at the BattleofMagersfontein in December 1899. After the end of the war, about...
defeat at the BattleofMagersfontein. A memorial would be constructed in 1903, and dedicated to the Royal Marines, named after this battle. "RMA HIGHLANDS"...
Campaign of World War I. The Boer trench at the BattleofMagersfontein contributed to the surprise defeat of the Highland Brigade on 11 December 1899 during...
Mafeking under siege, and won victories at Colenso, Magersfontein and Stormberg. Increased numbers of British Army soldiers were brought to Southern Africa...
Magersfontein Lugg is a fictional character in the Albert Campion detective novels, written by Margery Allingham. Servant and factotum to Mr Campion,...
February 1900. General Cronje reported after the victory in the battle at Magersfontein: "Next to God the (Boer) Republics have the Scandinavian Corps...
Lieutenant of Hampshire. His son, the fifteenth marquess, was a major in the Coldstream Guards and was killed in action at the BattleofMagersfontein in 1899...
place at the Battle of Magersfontein for which he was awarded the VC. On the 11th December, 1899, during the BattleofMagersfontein, Corporal Shaul was...
relief of Kimberley under Lord Methuen was stopped at the battlesof Modder River and Magersfontein. The 124-day siege was finally relieved on 15 February...
aftermath of the BattleofMagersfontein (11 December 1899) in the Second Boer War. The entrance to the castle, viewed through the main gate A close-up of the...
Benson (a veteran of the BattleofMagersfontein, 11 December 1899) was to die the next morning from wounds received on the field ofbattle. This rear-guard...
28 November 1899) and the Battle ofMagersfontein (Slag van Magersfontein, 11 December 1899) and joined in the Siege of Mafeking (Beleg van Mafikeng, October...
where they were used in artillery observation at the BattleofMagersfontein and during the Siege of Ladysmith. In South America, a reconnaissance balloon...
1st Battalion, which arrived a little later, saw action at the BattleofMagersfontein in December 1899 and was again in action at Doornkop, where they...
such as BattleofMagersfontein (11 December 1899) and the Siege of Kimberley on 11 November 1899, ultimately being promoted to the rank of a fighting...
forces, met heavy resistance in the BattleofMagersfontein on 11 December 1899. Wauchope was severely wounded in the battle, and was later mentioned in despatches...
Global Information
United Kingdom
South African Republic
Orange Free State
