Bloody Mary gun position Greylingstad

Greylingstad Kopjie towers over this tiny sleepy town, which is situated next to the railway line between Heidelberg  and Standerton in southern Mapumalanga. If you trouble to climb the steep kopjie you will enter a unique portal into the past: the ruins of a British Army fortified campsite that was built and occupied between July 1900 and June 1902. The fortifications, gun pits, tent lines, stables, and even the parade ground are in pristine condition - only the tents, equipment and soldiers are missing. However we do have a resident ghost who regularly appears in my photographs. However he is not a soldier as you will see - he is from the far northern hemisphere, with his heavy black fur-lined cloak. But he never bothers us, he just sits peacefully on his rock staring eastwards into space!

What follows are some current photographs of the campsite, together with a unique collection of  contemporary photographs. Lieutenant G.R.W. Wilmer of the Scottish Rifles left an album of his photographs which he took in and around Greylingstad Kopjie from 1900 to 1901. I have also selected some photos from my collection of Anglo-Boer War stereoscopic  photographs to give you a better idea of the activities that took place in similar encampments.

 

Lieutenant G.R.W. Wilmer of the Scottish Rifles

The Cameronians, also known as the Scottish Rifles, was the only regiment of rifles amongst the Scottish infantry regiments. Formed in July 1881, it was disbanded in May 1968 as part of the British army reforms initiated in 1966. Known by its nickname "The Poison Dwarves", its motto was 'Nemo Me Impune Lacessit' (Nobody Attacks Me With Impunity). As a rifle regiment the Scottish Rifles did not carry colours - its battle honours were worn on its drums.

The 2nd Scottish Rifles served in South Africa from November 1899 until the end of the war in 1902, and fought in four major battles in Natal: Colenso, Spionkop, Vaalkrans, and Thukela Heights.

 

British campsite at Greylingstad

Gun no 1 Piquet Greylingstad

British campsite at Slingersfontein

Boer Prisoners Greylingstad Kopjie

After the Heidelberg commando had surrendered its arms on 5th June 1902, General Alberts ended his speech by quoting from Matthew chapter 25, verse 23: "His Lord said unto him, well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord".  (Uys, 227).

Although this pre-dates the Anglo Boer War, I cannot resist including this reference to Matthew chapter 25, verse 23, which is a common inscription on many British War Graves. The grave of Captain Butler in the military cemetery at Calcutta has this inscription: "In memory of Captain James Butler, Royal Dublin Fusiliers, who was accidentally shot by his batman. ' Well done good and faithful servant.'"

British soldiers manning a fort

Building defensive walls Greylingstad Kopjie

Mess Greylingstad Kopjie

Signallers on Greylingstad Kopjie

The signalers on Greylingstad Kopjie are using a heliograph. Heliographs played an important role in communications throughout the Anglo Boer War. These are instruments which use two round mirrors to reflect the sun's rays in any required direction, and a key is used to tilt the one mirror in order to send messages by Morse code. One of the Boer heliographs was captured from the Jameson Raiders in 1896, and this was later found buried with other equipment at the end of the Anglo Boer War. This heliograph can be seen in the Royal Signals Museum and is marked "Jameson 1896" on its upper edge. The instrument reached its peak efficiency during the Anglo Boer War, with speeds of up to 16 words per minute. Depending on the size of the mirror (there were 3-inch, 5-inch and 10-inch mirror heliographs in service with the British Army), the heliograph had a range of nearly 100 miles. In 1935 a South African record was obtained by a South African Artillery unit when, using a 5-inch heliograph, they sent a signal 96 miles, from Massamnekop in Botswana to Pilansberg in the Transvaal. Heliographs were used during the First and Second World Wars, and the last recorded use of the heliograph under active service conditions was in 1941, at the siege of Sollum Hayata in the Western Desert.

 

Train on Fire Greylingstad

When Commandant Buys blew up the goods train 6 km east of Greylingstad on 13th February 1901, he found that it was closely followed by an armoured train, which started firing its cannon at his Commando. The goods train had its carriages in front, so that if a charge blew up the tracks, the crew could uncouple the derailed trucks and steam off to safety. Buys' men raced to the train, uncoupled the engine, and engaged reverse gear, sending it racing at full steam towards the armoured train. "The armoured train was forced to steam backwards in order to avoid a collision. It was a race as far as we could see. I never discovered how far they travelled".

Two Boers are thought to have stolen the British paymaster's gold from the guard's van of this train. One was killed, and the other hid the gold in an antbear hole. When he returned to fetch the gold he could not find it and, in spite of many treasure hunts for nearly a hundred years, it probably still remained undisturbed. However about 8 years ago a poor farmer in the area suddenly became unaccountably wealthy, and it was rumored that he had found the gold. My efforts to obtain further details drew a reaction of "no names, no pack drill". The Greylingstad community is small but close!

 

Train wreck Greylingstad

Jack van den Heever and his brother, Gert, lay exposed for many hours in the hot sun near Val station, waiting to blow up a goods train. Their expectations were not in vain, as the train which was disabled contained "fat plunder", and was afterwards known as the "whisky train". Jack was so thirsty from exposure that he drained many bottles of different types of alcohol, and afterwards had to be taken back to camp on the back of a mule cart.

 

Train wrecked by Boers Greylingstad

The morning after the Heidelbergers' looting of the wrecked goods train near Greylingstad, they opened a large chest labelled "Handle with Care." There was much amusement when they found that it contained wax dolls and dolls' prams.

 

British soldiers firing on Boer patrol

Many of the major set-piece battles of the war had taken place by mid-December 1899 (Talana, Elandslaagte, Rietfontein, Nicholson's Nek, Belmont, Graspan, Modder River, Stormberg, Magersfontein, and Colenso) before the British discovered that their new Lee Enfield rifles were shooting 18 inches to the right at 500 yards. No wonder that the unfortunate soldiers couldn't shoot straight! This was discovered by recruits of the Imperial Yeomanry during musketry practice, and was due to a problem with the rifles' sighting.  25,000 rifles had to be re-sighted.

 

British soldiers manning a trench

Building defensive walls Greylingstad Kopjie

British Troops manning a sangar

Gun in position Greylingstad Kopjie

This is a 4.7 inch naval gun, a number of which were taken off British warships in Durban harbor shortly after the outbreak of war. They played a crucial role in the defence of Ladysmith during its siege however, when the sailors ran out of ammunition for their guns during the siege, they were put on temporary latrine duty. They appropriately named their two latrine carts after their ships, "The Powerful" and "The Terrible."

 

Chisholm in tent lines Greylingstad Kopjie

Greylingstad Ghost

 

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