Battle of Driefontein

Battle of Driefontein
Part of Second Boer War
Date 10 March 1900 Location near Bloemfontein, Orange Free State Result British victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom	South African Republic  Orange Free State
Commanders and leaders
Lord Roberts Robert George Broadwood Thomas Kelly-Kenny[1]	Christiaan de Wet
Strength
Unknown	~6,000 men 2 Vickers guns[1]
Casualties and losses
82 killed 342 wounded[2]	102 killed 22 POW[2]

The Battle of Driefontein on 10 March 1900 followed on the Battle of Poplar Grove in the Second Boer War between the British Empire and the Boer republics, in what is now South Africa. In the first half of 1900, the British made an offensive towards the two Boer republic capitals of Bloemfontein and Pretoria.^{[citation needed]}

Battle

Original lithograph caption: A Gallant Feat. Private Martin Hanlon, C.I.V.

The Boer forces under the command of Christiaan de Wet were holding a 7-mile (11 km) line covering the approach to Bloemfontein. Lord Roberts subsequently ordered a division under Lieutenant General Thomas Kelly-Kenny to attack the position from the front, while Lieutenant General Charles Tucker's division moved against its left flank.^[3] The Boers were subsequently forced to withdraw losing 124 men killed and captured, while the British lost 82 killed and 342 wounded.^[2][4][5]

British Order of Battle

Infantry Units	Mounted Units
1st Battalion Coldstream Guards	2nd Dragoons
1st Battalion Essex Regiment	6th Dragoons
1st Battalion Gordon Highlanders	14th Hussars
2nd Battalion East Kent Regiment	12th Lancers
1st Battalion Oxfordshire Light Infantry Regiment	16th Lancers
1st Battalion Welch Regiment	Royal Horse Guards
1st Battalion Yorkshire Regiment	1st Battalion Life Guards
	2nd Battalion Life Guards

Order of Battle^[6]

References

1. "THE BOER WAR". The Barrier Miner. 13 March 1900.
2. Micheal Clodfelter (9 May 2017). Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Encyclopedia of Casualty and Other Figures, 1492-2015, 4th ed. McFarland. p. 212. ISBN 978-0-7864-7470-7.
3. Laffin, John (1986). Brassey's Battles: 3,500 Years of Conflict, Campaigns and Wars from A-Z. London: Brassey's Defence Publishers. p. 150. ISBN 0080311857.
4. Conan Doyle, A.C. (1902). "The Great Boer War, London, Smith, Elder & Co., 1902. CHAPTER XX Roberts' Advance on Bloemfontein". pinetreeweb.com. Smith, Elder & Co. Archived from the original on 10 February 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
5. Rickard, John (2 March 2007). "Battle of Driefontein, 10 March 1900". historyofwar.org. Military History Encyclopedia on the Web. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
6. Army, The British (5 May 1903), English: A description of all units, casualties, and battles of the Second Boer War (PDF), retrieved 28 August 2024

External links

• "BRITISH VICTORY AT DRIEFONTEIN. Clutha Leader, Volume XXVI, Issue 1384, 16 March 1900, Page 5". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 16 March 1900. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
• Stirling, John. "The Boer Wars 1880-1881 & 1899-1902. THE NORFOLK REGIMENT. Extract taken from 'Our Regiments in South Africa' by John Stirling published by Naval and Military Press Ltd". boer-war.com. Retrieved 7 November 2023.

28°59′37″S 25°39′50″E