Battle of Bakenlaagte

Overview

The Battle of Bakenlaagte in Eastern Transvaal, South Africa, occurred on 30 October 1901 during the guerrilla phase of Anglo-Boer war of 1899–1902. The battle saw the Eastern Transvaal Boer commandos of Generals Johan Grobler, Coen Brits, Piet Viljoen and Louis Botha attack the rearguard of Colonel Benson's much feared No. 3 Flying Column while it was in marching formation to its base camp. On the Boer side general Daniel Opperman was killed in the engagement. The Bakenlaagte battlefield is located on the Kriel-Kinross road at the intersection of the R547 and R580 roads in Mpumalanga Province, just south of Matla Power Station.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Bakenlaagte took place during the guerrilla phase of the Second Boer War, a period in which Boer commandos prosecuted a war of mobility and harassment against British columns operating across the Transvaal. The engagement saw a numerically superior Boer force under several generals, including Louis Botha, strike the rearguard of Colonel Benson's No. 3 Flying Column — described as much feared — while it was in marching formation. British casualties of 134 from a force of 210 represent a severe rate of loss, indicating the attack effectively neutralized the column's rearguard. The Boers, though sustaining around 100 casualties themselves — including the death of General Daniel Opperman — demonstrated that British mobile columns operating in the Eastern Transvaal remained vulnerable to coordinated commando action even in the war's late guerrilla stage.

Tactics

Forces & casualties

Commanders (1)