History - The first war of independence
Britain under the leadership of Sir Theophilus Shepstone annexed the ZAR on April 12, 1877. On December 16, 1880 the Transvaal Boer Forces began an armed struggle against Britain. The result was war.
The largest portion of the Lydenburg garrison, under the leadership of Lt.Col. Phillip Anstruther, was checked by the Boer forces under leadership of Comdt. Frans Joubert, in December 1880 at Bronkhorstspruit on the way to Pretoria. The remaining British soldiers created a fort out of a number of huts under the orders of second Lt. Walter Long and named it after his wife, Mary. The Boer forces besieged Fort Mary until March 1881, but never succeeded in capturing it.
British moral remained high throughout the siege and the following song was sung frequently: “We don’t want to fight, but by Jingo if we do We’ve got the pluck, we’ve got the Men and ammunition too We’ve fought the Zulu king and Sekhukune too, and the Boers shall never get into Fort Mary”
| Posted: 2004/10/19 | |
