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The Van Rensburg's of Rensburg Siding, Colesberg, Cape part 1
The Anglo-Boer War Introduction part 2
The Anglo-Boer War around Rensburg Siding: Boer Leaders part 3
The Anglo-Boer War around Rensburg Siding Nov 1899 part 4
The Anglo-Boer War around Rensburg Siding Dec 1899 part 5
The Anglo-Boer War around Rensburg Siding Jan 1900 part 6
The Anglo-Boer War around Rensburg Siding Feb 1900 part 7
The Anglo-Boer War in retrospect part 8
Australian units, persons and casualties part 9
MAIN MAP source http://www.mjvn.co.za/anglo-boer/mainmap1.jpg

The Anglo-Boer War: Australians capture De Wet's artillery gun at Rensburgdrift part 10

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The Anglo-Boer War around Rensburg Siding
December 1899
CONTINUED

NEW ZEALAND'S FIRST OVERSEAS CASUALTY
Source: http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-conflicts-periods/other/nz-1st-kia.htm

The death of trooper G.R. Bradford by Richard Stowers.
Taken from the Journal of the NZ Military Historical Society June 1984


GR Bradford

G.R. Bradford, Killed in Action, 19-12-1901
Jasfontein farm, located in northern Cape Colony, South Africa, probably has no significance to New Zealanders at large, yet it was the scene of the first serious overseas engagement in which our troops fought against an enemy. It was also the place where the first New Zealand soldier was shot while on active service.

The first New Zealand Mounted Rifles landed at Cape Town about the middle of November 1899, and were immediately entrained to join General French's troops operating in the Colesburg district of northern Cape Colony.

It was not long before some members of the contingent came under Boer rifle fire, but it was all at long range and little more than intermittent sniping.

On the 18th December 1899, General French wished to ascertain the Boer position at Taaiboschlaagte, and early in the morning a number of troops, including the New Zealanders, rode to Jasfontein farm. The terrain consisted of the farm house (becoming French's command post), and a large shed on a plain, which extended for some distance towards a range of kopjes. At the foot of the first kopje there was a large dry watercourse (donga), which separated the level plain from the hilly country. Lieutenant Lindsay's Division of No. I Company was detailed to ascertain whether these kopjes were occupied by the enemy.

They rode across the plain, crossed the donga, and rode up the lower slopes of the kopje until the ground became too rough for the horses. Once they had dismounted, these were left in charge of the number threes of each section while the men scrambled to the top. The first kopje was not occupied by the Boers, but the higher ones at the rear certainly were and they directed a heavy fire of Mauser bullets on the New Zealanders who were extended below.

One trooper, No. 46 John (Jack) Tetley was at this time lying close to trooper No. 44 George Bradford. John stated later that George was getting his shots in pretty rapidly (from his issued Martini Enfield .303 rifle), when he stopped, laid down his carbine, and keeping his head a little from the ground, looked straight at the Boer position for several minutes without moving, as if having some premonition that this was to be his last day. After looking for a while he laid his head on the ground, and as he did not move, Jack Tetley called to him, thinking he had been shot. However, after replying to Jack's enquiry, George continued his firing until the order came to retire.

The horses of Lindsay's Division were down under cover in the donga, but they were easily picked up by the Boer gunners with their Long Tom on Taaiboschlaagte. It was not long before their 15 pound shells were landing in the vicinity of the donga. The first round burst ten yards beyond the horses, making the position of the holders nearly impossible.

General French gave orders for the troopers to withdraw, so Colonel Robin (The New Zealanders' commanding officer) sent Bugler Fred Fox with orders for Lindsay's Division to retire. This was the third time that Fred had been up to Lieutenant Lindsay's position. On his first mission he noticed No. 7 Sergeant William Mahood endeavouring to break down a strong wire fence near the donga. He rode straight back to the farmhouse, obtained a pair of wire cutters and returned. Fred rode up the third time with Colonel Robin's order, safely delivered it, and returned under a heavy rain of fire.

When the order reached Lieutenant Lindsay, the men came down singly off the kopje. They mounted their horses and galloped through the cut fence and across the broken ground to the farmhouse, a distance of about 800 yards, under heavy rifle fire. It was at the broken ground, just past the donga, that George Bradford received a bullet wound, above the hip on his left side, and in failing [falling] from his horse, landed on his head. He came to rest lying doubled up and face downwards, to all appearances dead.

Bradford's horse, which was wounded in six places, galloped off past the farmhouse, pursued by No. 15 Bugler Thomas Brown, but rescued by No.28 Trooper William Parkes (who had his horse shot dead). The latter mounted Bradford's horse and galloped to the rear.

There was little said on the march through the long rows of kopjes to Arundel, which was reached at midday. Every man present had noticed the ambulance, containing six men under the Red Cross, which left camp that afternoon to bury poor Bradford.

It was later stated by Veld-Cornet K. Van Wijk that he, with other Boers, found two badly wounded men, one a Tenth Hussar, and the other a New Zealander. He sent back to camp for some rugs, for as he was a 'Horse Commando' the ambulance was some distance away, and the wounded men were placed therein and carried into the camp. The Hussar conversed freely, but the New Zealander was in great agony, having been shot in the groin, and did not speak. The wounded men were carried to a building some two miles away, at a place called Rensburg Siding which served as a field hospital.

The Hussar, named Scott, died that same night but the New Zealander lived for about a week. The Veld-Cornet indicated that he spoke with Bradford, who told him that he was suffering great agony. This is in conflict with the official New Zealand report which states that Bradford never recovered consciousness. Mortification set in, and when asked whether he had any special request to make, Bradford shook his head. He was buried at Rensburg Siding on the Naauwpoort-Colesburg line.

It was not until 30th December 1899 that the New Zealanders learned of the death, when his grave was discovered by the Carabinier patrols. One of Colonel Porter's orderlies brought the news to Colonel Robin that afternoon.

No. 44 Trooper George Roland Bradford was the son of Mr. F. Bradford, of The Red Lion Inn, Brede, Sussex, England. Having been a private in the Grenadier Guards, he traveled to New Zealand in 1895, and joined the Ohinemuri Rifles as Battalion Sergeant Major. His occupation was listed as labourer. Wounded at Jasfontein farm 18th December 1899 and dying on 28th December 1899, he was buried close to a stone wall. The grave was marked by a wooden cross, engraved:

Gone, but not forgotten,
Never will his memory fade
Noble thoughts will always linger
Where our comrade brave is laid

He was aged 29 years at his death, and his comrades thought him to be under-ranked. The body was disinterred and reburied at Colesberg, being marked to this day by an iron cross.

A memorial was erected on Primrose Hill, Paeroa at a cost of 63 pound 8 shillings and 2 pence. It was unveiled by the Premier on 4th May 1903. His bandolier was used as the Badge of Office of the Dominion President of the South Africa War Veterans Association of New Zealand. Each silvered bullet was engraved with a President's name.

Bradford received the Queen's South African medal with the 'Cape Colony' bar.

--ooOoo--

Journalist AB Banjo spent Christmas at Arundel an in the morning Dowling and Osborne arrived and the two men went with Cox and Banjo to shoot a springbok (small antelope). Captain Kenna (VC) joined the men in the hunt. At the time there were 2,000 men in and around Arundel.

On Boxing day Banjo accompanied Cox to a Boer farm. He gives a lovely description of what Boer farms are like: "The homestead is of brick, plastered, one storey high, and without verandah about it. I have never seen a verandah here. This gives the house a remarkably barn-like appearance. Alongside the house there is usually an outbuilding of five or six rooms - diary, storeroom, servant's quarters, etc - but this is barn like and bare. These two buildings always stand away from the garden. I have never seen a garden round a house, and as the gardens are very fine, while the houses are shabby, it gives the idea that the owner of the farm has built his stables and storehouse, and made his garden, but forgot to build the residence". From the Front: A.B. (Banjo) Paterson's Dispatches from the Boer War, pp. 70, 71. The family could not speak English, making it difficult for Banjo and Cox to interact about the fact that they were going to commandeer their horses. That day about 1,000 infantry under Septimus Osborne arrived back from Modder River.

According to Banjo: "On the 31st December the Boers seemed to be digging trenches and throwing earth works at Rensburg Siding. That day they went to another farm to commandeer more horses, but there too the farmer could not speak English. After the mustering they went into the house and had some boer bread [home made bread] and eggs and milk. Banjo then describes: "In a Boer farmhouse the rooms are always large and scrupulously clean [not what British propaganda later said], the floor of the earth trodden hard, the walls whitewashed or painted, and the ceiling made of reeds of plaster. They have very little furniture - a big table in the centre, half-a-dozen chairs seated with strips of greenhide, a big safe, and always a long sofa made of carved wood. .... They have no newspapers and very few books, and what books they have are always of a religious character. It would be a great mistake to call them uncivilised; they are very busy industrious, very frugal, and they make their own soap, and use it freely on all their belongings, but not on themselves. They [the British] say that when a Dutch farmer takes his clothes off it is a sure sign he is going to die. ..... They have no bank accounts, nor overdrafts, these people, and they grow nearly all the supplies they want, so they don't appreciate any innovations. That is the true Boer standpoint - leave well all alone". From the Front: A.B. (Banjo) Paterson's Dispatches from the Boer War, p. 74.

[The Boers were well know for their tasty home made boerbrood (boer bread) and boerbeskuit (rusks with or without aniseed) and their dried biltong (jerky). The "big safe" could be the huge wooden trunk or wa-kis (wagon-box from and ox-wagon). The soap they made were called boerseep (literally meaning farmer soap). This soap was used to wash clothes and linnen. Soap used to bath with had to be bought in the towns. The Boers made less use of money transactions, since for obvious reasons they rather utilised the barter-system. Skins, hides, soap and candles were exchanged for sugar, coffee, flour and other goods. Cattle were exchanged for sheep and vica versa. These farmers would only seldom go to the towns, like at nagmaal (Communion service) which took place quarterly. The question about the hygiene of the Boers is a debatable point. The British propogandist tried to portray the Boers in the worst light. The well known Emily Hobhouse and many others rejected the notion of "filthy Boers" being pedaled by the British propoganda machine. Emily Hobhouse who exposed the falsehood about the Boers and the great suffering and deaths taking place by the Boers being placed in concentration camps can be read in her book, "The brunt of the war and where it fell". This English lady revealed the evils and horror that the women, children and old men endured in the Concentration camps, she was Mother Theresa for the Boers and still honoured by their descendants].

Rensburg Siding was the headquarters of the Boers until 28 December 1899 when they retreated to Colesberg. At the end of December French made Rensburg Siding the main HQ for his soldiers and his home. The Boer and English contested Rensburg Siding, occupied alternately by the two opposing sides. . Rensburg Siding featured prominently until 5th February 1900 when General French left for Kimberley and General Clements took over command.

When the English got to Rensburg Siding, Banjo provides a description: "The hillside was burrowed with little shelters under the rocks where the Boers had slept. Their defences were of the poorest description, and we felt rather small to see what primitive defences had kept us in check for so long." From the Front: A.B. (Banjo) Paterson's Dispatches from the Boer War, p. 75.

On the 29th December the English encountered a severe hail storms. Two days later Banjo saw two big explosions when the Boers blew up the railway line with explosives.

Dust storm at Rensburg

Most likely Arundel Station

English cavalry keeping the Boers at the centre in check

The 1st Australian Horse arrived at Arundel on 24 December under Dowling and Osborne. They were wearing English helmets and not the usual slouch hats. Previously the Aussies were mistaken for Boers by the English. Towards the end of the month, 29th December, General Schoeman abandoned Rensburg Siding and retreated to Colesberg. The next day General French made Rensburg Siding his headquarters. This gave the English a lot of confidence and on the 31 December they attacked the Boers at Colesberg but were repulsed.

English Forces 31 December 1899 near Colesberg

andre@rensburg.com