Boer War - Second Boer War - Military - British

THE 1st Battalion sailed in the Nubia on 20th October 1899, and arrived at the Cape about 13th November. Along with the 3rd Grenadier Guards and 1st and 2nd Coldstream Guards they formed the Guards Brigade under Sir H. E. Colvile. The work of the brigade has been sketched under the 3rd Grenadiers.

The battalion had very heavy fighting at Belmont on 23rd November. Lord Methuen said, “The Scots Guards carried out their instructions to the letter, and gained the heights at the point of the bayonet.” ¹ Colonel Paget and three other officers were highly praised by Lord Methuen and General Colvile. The battalion's losses were severe, being approximately 10 men killed, 3 officers and 34 men wounded.

At Modder River the battalion was on the right of the Guards Brigade, the 1st Coldstreams afterwards prolonging the line to the right. The battalion suffered very seriously when, as they were advancing to the river, the enemy's fire suddenly burst forth. In a few minutes many casualties occurred, their “maxim detachment were completely wiped out.”² The battalion's losses were 11 men killed, 2 officers and 37 men wounded. When Lord Methuen was wounded in the afternoon Major-General Colvile took over his command and Colonel Paget acted as brigadier of the Guards.

At Magersfontein the Scots Guards were in support and had trifling losses.

After the brigade came back from Koomati Poort to Pretoria the battalion, now under Colonel Pulteney, was employed for a time in the Krugersdorp district. On 7th November 1900 they were railed³ to Springfontein to assist in keeping De Wet out of the colony. When the pressure was over in the south they were sent in December back to the Transvaal, and in 1901 in the column under Colonel Pulteney they did endless hard marching, taking part, inter alia, in General French's operations against the commandos who had defeated General Clements on 13th December. In General French's great drive through the Eastern Transvaal in the first quarter of 1901, when he captured 7 guns, a maxim, and many prisoners, and in Sir Bindon Blood's operations between the Delagoa and Natal Railways.⁴ In July 1901 the battalion was railed to Bloemfontein, where they remained a long time. In February 1902 they furnished two companies as infantry for Colonel Lawley's column, which did much hard trekking in the north of the Orange River Colony and afterwards in the Transvaal. When the battalion was at Vryheid in April 1901 General French addressed them in a speech deservedly printed in the Brigade Magazine. No regiment ever received greater praise from a general.

In Lord Roberts' final despatches 29 officers and 27 non-commissioned officers and men of the Scots Guards were mentioned: these embraced both 1st and 2nd Battalions. One major and 4 non-commissioned officers and men of the Scots Guards gained mention in Lord Kitchener's despatches during the war, and in his final despatch 9 officers and 8 non-commissioned officers and men of the regiment were mentioned.

The 2nd Battalion sailed on the Britannic on 15th March 1900, and arrived at the Cape on 5th April. Along with the 2nd Grenadiers, 2nd East Yorkshire, and 1st Leinster Regiment, they formed the 16th Brigade under Major-General Barrington Campbell, and part of the VIIIth Division under General Sir Leslie Rundle. The work of the brigade and of the division has been briefly sketched under the 2nd Grenadier Guards.

The 2nd Scots Guards were present at Biddulphsberg on 29th May 1900, but were not so hotly engaged as the Grenadiers. The battalion's losses were approximately 5 men killed, 1 officer and 20 men wounded.

In September 1900 the battalion formed part of a column based on Harrismith under Campbell.⁵ In October 1900, along with the 2nd Grenadiers and some Imperial Yeomanry, they were trekking with General Rundle in the Bethlehem district, and on 26th October, when marching back to Harrismith, a strong force of Boers were found posted on hills commanding the road. The positions were cleared “in spite of a very stubborn resistance.”⁶ Rundle's casualties were 3 killed and 17 wounded. Four weeks later Campbell again found the enemy in a strong position at Tiger's Kloof. “After sharp fighting their main position was taken by the Scots Guards.”⁷ The casualties included Lieutenant Southey, shot through the head while gallantly leading his men, and Major E. E. Hanbury, hit in three places. Strangely enough, the other casualties were only 1 killed and 2 wounded.

The battalion took part in many other operations in the north-east of the Orange River Colony during the remainder of the campaign. In August they had a welcome break, being ordered to Pietermaritzburg in connection with the visit of the Prince of Wales to Natal. In September 1901 they were, along with the 1st Oxfordshire Light Infantry, employed in the erection of a line of blockhouses running from Kopjes Station, near Kroonstadt, to Potchefstroom, in the Western Transvaal: ⁸ thereafter they were taken east to Wakkerstroom, and were employed along with the 2nd West Yorkshire Regiment in building another line of blockhouses from that town to Piet Retief, near the Swazi border.⁹

¹ Lord Methuen's despatch of 26th November 1899.

² Lord Methuen's despatch, let December 1899.

³ Lord Roberts' despatch of 15th November 1900, para. 17.

⁴ Lord Kitchener's despatch of 8th July 1901.

⁵ Lord Roberts' despatch of 10th October 1900, para. 39. 1

⁶ Ibid., 15th November 1900, para. 31. 2

⁷ Lord Roberts' telegram of 28th November 1900. 3

⁸ Lord Kitchener's despatch of 8th October 1901, para. 6. 4

⁹ Ibid., para. 2. 5

SCOTS GUARDS