Battle of Laing's Nek (1900)

Overview

The Battle of Laing's Nek from 2–10 June 1900 was a series of actions in the Second Boer War between forces under Redvers Buller and the Boers of the Transvaal. At the time, Redvers Buller was advancing from Ladysmith to the Buffalo River, in an effort to cross into Volskrust, where he could then aid Lord Roberts in the Advance on Pretoria. The Boers had fortified themselves at Laing's Nek, as they had done previously 18 years prior. Over the course of eight days, Buller was able to repulse the Boers, and cross the Buffalo River into Transvaal on 12 June.

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

Significance

The Battle of Laing's Nek formed part of Buller's advance from Ladysmith toward the Buffalo River with the aim of crossing into Volksrust and linking his operations with Lord Roberts's Advance on Pretoria. The Boers had chosen to fortify Laing's Nek, a position they had also defended eighteen years earlier, making it a natural chokepoint on Buller's axis of advance. Over eight days of action, Buller succeeded in repulsing the Boer forces, allowing his column to cross the Buffalo River into the Transvaal on 12 June 1900. The clearing of this passage removed a significant obstacle on the British line of advance and brought Buller's force into position to contribute to the broader converging pressure on the Boer republics during the campaign's critical mid-1900 phase.

Commanders (2)