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A report was quite in awe of the ability of balloons: "The art and science of military ballooning has made wonderful progress within the last dozen years [to 1900], and although balloon depicted has been of the utmost service to Sir George White, it is quite possible that it represents a type destined to disappear. New forms of balloons, mostly cylindrical and seemingly fantastic in shape, have already been introduced and tested. The balloon section at Ladysmith enabled the defenders to observe very closely what the assailants were doing, to discover their laagers, and sometimes to divine their purposes, and it is very credibly asserted that the Boers were greatly vexed by the balloon ascents. It is a notable fact that a balloon is a very difficult object indeed to destroy by gun or rifle fire, owing to elevated position and uncertainty of range. The ballooning section which accompanied Sir Redvers Buller also proved extremely valuable, and it played a particularly useful part during Sir Charles Warren's flanking movement, when the positions of the enemy were discovered and signalled to him. The headquarters of the Balloon Section of Royal Engineers is at Aidershot."

This is the balloon to which the report refers:


The shape seems very familiar - even today!

Here is a balloon that was used at Modder River.