Battle of Magersfontein

Battle of Magersfontein
Part of Second Boer War
The Commanders: Lord Methuen, General Cronjé, General Wauchope†, General De La Rey
Date 11 December 1899 Location Magersfontein, Cape Colony, South Africa Coordinates: 28°58′S 24°42′E / 28.967°S 24.700°E / -28.967; 24.700 Result Boer victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom	South African Republic  Orange Free State
Commanders and leaders
Lord Methuen Andrew Gilbert Wauchope †	Piet Cronje Koos de la Rey
Strength
14,964 men and 27 guns	8,500 men, five guns and three machine guns
Casualties and losses
948 killed and wounded	236 killed and wounded
Location of Magersfontein within South Africa

The Battle of Magersfontein (/ˈmɑːxərsfɒnteɪn/ MAH-khərs-fon-tayn) was fought on 11 December 1899, at Magersfontein near Kimberley on the borders of the Cape Colony and the independent republic of the Orange Free State. British forces under Lieutenant General Lord Methuen were advancing north along the railway line from the Cape in order to relieve the Siege of Kimberley, but their path was blocked at Magersfontein by a Boer force that was entrenched in the surrounding hills. The British had already fought a series of battles with the Boers, most recently at Modder River, where the advance was temporarily halted.

Lord Methuen failed to perform adequate reconnaissance in preparation for the impending battle, and was unaware that Boer Veggeneraal (Combat General) De la Rey had entrenched his forces at the foot of the hills rather than the forward slopes as was the accepted practice. This allowed the Boers to survive the initial British artillery bombardment; when the British troops failed to deploy from a compact formation during their advance, the defenders were able to inflict heavy casualties. The Highland Brigade suffered the worst casualties, while on the Boer side, the Scandinavian Corps was destroyed. The Boers attained a tactical victory and succeeded in holding the British in their advance on Kimberley. The battle was the second of three battles during what became known as the Black Week of the Second Boer War.