TOPIC:

The death of Serjeant Charles Spearman was captured in this contemporary sketch by Private Jackson of the 7th Mounted Infantry. Charles can be seen lying in front of the guns, mortally wounded with a hat over his head; whilst a severely wounded Major Taylor of U Battery looks on from behind the kraal.



This medal only recently arrived in my collection; all I had was a name, rank and regimental number with the brief description from the catalogue:

"C. Spearman was captured and taken Prisoner of War at Sannah’s Post on 31 March 1900. Although released, he was subsequently killed in action on 20 June 1901."

My heartful thanks goes out to everyone who provided input, both past and present, that helped to map out the life story relating to this soldier prior to his death almost 123 years ago.

I have tried my best to tell his story and some of the engagements that he was involved in have been told many times before; I have tried to be brief but they are included for completeness.

I will tell his story in a number of parts; starting with his early life and the fighting leading up to the capture of Bloemfontein in March 1900.

Part 1: Early Life & 2nd Anglo Boer War (to Bloemfontein)

BIRTH: July 1876
Paddington, London, Middlesex, England

DEATH: 20 June 1901 (Killed in Action)
Oranjepan (Orange Pan) Farm, Orange River Colony, South Africa

Early Life:

Father: Thomas Spearmen (1838 - 1886)
Mother: Euphrosine Rosalie Atrell (1841 - 1922)

Charles was born to an English father and French mother in 1876; the 3rd eldest of five children.

In 1881 the family was living in Paddington where his father was employed as a Butler and his mother a Dressmaker; the young children were all attending school; a typical Victorian family of the time.

Unfortunately everything changed with the death of his father in 1886 when Charles was only 10 years old.

In 1891 the family was still living in Paddington; however, Euphrosine now a single mother was alone in raising her young family; the two eldest sons (Charles and Arthur) were now employed as Clerks at the ages of 14 and 12 respectively.

Military Service:

In 1896, a month before his 20th birthday, Charles attested with the Royal Artillery; he had been previously employed as a Clerk, was 5ft 11”, weighed 143 pounds (65kgs) with blue eyes and brown hair.

Whilst at home with the Royal Artillery he was posted to U Battery Royal Horse Artillery and in May 1898 appointed as Acting Bombardier. He passed his Corporal course in September 1899 and shortly thereafter promoted Bombardier.

In October 1899 the Second Anglo Boer War was declared and Charles left England with U Battery RHA on the 21st December 1899 to join the war in South Africa.



Relief of Kimberley

Arriving in South Africa U Battery RHA was attached to General French whose main task was to relieve Kimberley; the first engagement was captured in Frank Broadley's diary of U Battery*:

Date: 15th February 1900

Reveille at 3 o’clock. Moved off at 4am. The men were all in good cheer this morning, this being the first day fixed for relieving Kimberley. We marched about 3 miles then came in contact with the enemy, who fought with great courage. They dropped two shells right in the midst of our calvary. The Col. Rochford wheeled the first brigade’s artillery up into action.

The battery in the first company’s brigade were U, Q and P. As we came up they didn’t half let us have it, every shell bursting with great effect. After about 2 hours’ action, we limbered up and galloped on for about 4 miles. Then we bolted and counted up the casualties. The battery had lost 2. Killed included Lieutenant Corbet and Gunner Holman, and 9 wounded. Q battery had about 6 wounded and R battery 5, and 32 horses in the 3 batteries were hit. After that, we continued our march to Kimberley, and we had another rush at them just the other side of Kimberley. Then we marched back and camped close beside De Burs Mines.

*Courtesy of this forum

Battle of Paardenberg

With the Relief of Kimberley being completed, the first of General French’s objectives had been achieved, but the second and more difficult task lay ahead; namely the capturing of General Cronje’s army.

On the 15/16th February 1900 General Cronje’s army withdrew from Maggesfontein and headed towards Bloemfontein. By the 17th February 1900 the large convoy of Boer wagons reached the crossing of the Modder at Paardeberg Drift. They were starting to cross the river when a force of 1,500 British mounted troops, almost all of French's fit horses and men who had covered the 40 miles (64 km) from Kimberley in another desperately tiring march, opened fire on them unexpectedly from the north, causing confusion.

General Cronje then decided to form a laager and dig in on the banks of the Modder river which allowed the British to assemble a force of 15,000 men that significantly outnumbered Cronje and that enjoyed overwhelming superiority in artillery.

The following Royal Horse Artillery Batteries were present at the Battle: G, P, O, R, Q, T and U.

The battle began in the early hours of Sunday 18th February 1900. The British artillery opened fire with the Boer positions becoming increasingly untenable as numbers of wagons and oxen were destroyed.

The Boers were temporarily reprieved by the arrival of Lord Kitchener with orders putting him in overall command. With his military experience entirely in wars where the emphasis was on speed and aggression, Kitchener ordered a series of attacks against the Boer positions of the sort that had proved so costly for the British in almost every major battle of the war.

Following numerous attacks and engagements the battle ended with the surrender of General Cronje and his army on the 27th February 1900.

British casualties are recorded as 348 killed and 942 wounded; the Boers reported approximately 350 killed and 4,019 prisoners. It proved to be a costly battle for both sides.




Battle of Poplar Grove:

Following the surrender of General Cronje; Christiaan de Wet was appointed as commander-in-chief of the Orange Free State. He gathered his commandos at Poplar Grove, about ten miles upstream of Paardeberg and on the way to Bloemfontein, the capital of the Orange Free State.

De Wet hastily assembled his burghers in sangars which straddled the Modder River along a line of hillocks, about ten miles wide. On the 7th March 1900 President Kruger arrived at Poplar Grove to visit his remaining burghers. No sooner had he arrived than it was reported that Lord Roberts had commenced his advance on Bloemfontein and Kruger was sent on his way.

French's plan was to make a wide sweep around the six thousand Boers' left flank, without making contact, and then attack them from the rear. The infantry and the artillery would then attack them from the right. French, the cavalry division, some mounted infantry units and the Royal Horse Artillery with 42 guns, carried out their order.

A panic had seized the Boers. When they saw the cavalry at a distance, they all fled. De Wet and his officers tried in vain to stop them. They eventually stopped at Abraham's Kraal, some 18 miles from Poplar Grove. There they resisted the advance quite bravely the next day, but that night they fled to Bloemfontein.  Once again the commandos were placed in defensive positions, ready to prevent Roberts from taking the capital. That night De Wet visited all the commandos. "An excellent spirit prevailed among them", De Wet was to write later. When he reached the southern positions, it was a different matter; one of the commandos had simply abandoned their position. 

When the fighting started the next day, the Boers once again abandoned their positions and fled northwards.

 
Battle of Driefontein & Capture of Bloemfontein:

The battle of Driefontein was the last attempt to prevent the British under Lord Roberts from occupying Bloemfontein.

In the aftermath of the rout at Poplar Grove, President Kruger had made valiant attempts to rally the fleeing burghers, but only 1,500 of the 6,000 men from Poplar Grove could be convinced to stay. Under the command of Christiaan De Wet, with assistance from De La Rey, the Boers organised a new defensive line at Dreifontein.

On the 10th March 1900 the burghers fought, and fought well. Lord Roberts organised his men into three columns and attacked along the entire Boer line. Despite being heavily outnumbered, the Boers managed to hold on all day, but as darkness fell the British had seized the northern end of the Boer line and were threatening the southern flanks. The burghers retreated; De Wet described it as a panic and the battle was over.

Three days later the British captured Bloemfontein without facing any more significant resistance.

British losses at Driefontein had been 82 dead and 342 wounded. Boer losses were at least 102 dead and 22 captured.

Part 2 deals with Charles capture shortly after the fall of Bloemfontein.

Part 2: A Prisoner of War (Sannah’s Post)

Following the occupation of Bloemfontein U Battery was assigned to Brigadier General R G Broadwood.

Broadwood’s force consisted of Q and U Batteries of the Royal Horse Artillery, a composite regiment of the Household Cavalry which included the Mounted Infantry of the 1st Battalion, Rifle Brigade, the 10th Hussars, the New Zealand and Burma Mounted Infantry and the local South African units Roberts’ Horse and Rimington’s Guides.

Broadwood attacked Boer positions at Thaba’Nchu and was withdrawing to a small garrison of British troops at Sanna’s Post 23 miles east of Bloemfontein.

Sanna’s Post – 31 March 1900:

On the 30th March 1900 a 2000 strong Boer force led by Christian De Wet advanced in the direction of Bloemfontein. Reconnaissance indicated the presence of a small garrison of British forces at Sanna’s Post.

De Wet sent 1600 men under his brother Piet to attack Broadwood from the north, while he himself occupied Sannah’s Post to intercept their retreat. This action would become the first full scale use of guerrilla tactics used by the Boers during the war, tactics which would so typify the Boer War at a later date.

During the darkness De Wet infiltrated a force of riflemen into the ravine created by the Modder River, setting the kill zone of the ambush. At first light on 31st March, Piet De Wet’s artillery opened fire from a small set of hills to the north as the British troops were striking camp for the morning. Tactical surprise was complete, and all were sent into a state of confusion.

The British force began to retreat as expected, in the direction of the ravine where the blocking force awaited with orders from De Wet to hold their fire. The civilian wagon drivers preceding the soldiers were seized by the Boers and told if they warned the British, they would be shot. Therefore, the British soldiers suspected nothing and approached the river in small groups. As they did so De Wet’s troops ordered them to surrender, and approximately 200 were captured, along with the six guns of U Battery.

According to the South African Field Force Casualty Roll; it was during this incident that Charles became a Prisoner of War and after almost 3 months of continuous fighting his war was over (for now at least).

The remaining battle, and the exploits of Q battery, has been well documented and is not repeated here.

In the action, the British suffered 155 men killed or wounded; 428 men, seven field artillery pieces, 96 loaded wagons, 21 other vehicles and a substantial amount of arms and ammunition including 2 wagon loads of artillery shells captured. U Battery alone had 122 men missing.

The Boer force suffered 5 killed and 11 wounded.

A Prisoner of War

The Flag to Pretoria, Vol II, states that the POW’s from Sanna’s were sent North to Winburg and then onto Pretoria.

Pictures of the POW Camp in Pretoria (courtesy of this Forum, reference below):










Charles remained a POW until he was liberated when Lord Roberts took Pretoria on the 6th June 1900 and was listed as one of those prisoners released as reported by The Times on the 7th July 1900:


The following information, including the pictures above, was provided by Ians1900 on this Forum:

Ref: www.angloboerwar.com/forum/prisoners-of-...om-watervaal?start=0

There were 3,187 prisoners released that day. A train was sent to collect them and take them back to Pretoria, but the train was not able to carry all of the men and most, thousands of them, walked the thirteen miles into Pretoria. The men were so weak and exhausted, that it was almost three weeks before all had been accounted for. Most were accommodated for the while in Pretoria in a ‘Prisoner’s Camp’. They were issued rations of Bully Beef, biscuits and vegetables. The next morning Kitchener himself visited the camp and assured the men of proper clothing and as much food as possible as soon as practicable. In the afternoon Lord Roberts came and inspected the men.

Three Courts of Enquiry were held at Pretoria Artillery Barracks over three days, where prisoners were interviewed and held on account for their capture. Where an officer was captured, he answered for his men as well as himself. On their release, most rejoined their regiments in due course.


Underwood and Underwood stereoview image of British Prisoners of War walking down the 13 miles of railway line to Pretoria after their release from Watervaal Camp on 6 June 1900.

According to his military records Charles was promoted to Corporal on the 6th April 1900 (1 week after been captured) and then to Serjeant 5th May 1900 (1 month later); as shown below:


There is the potential that this is an error in his file and the promotions took place in 1901 and not 1900; either that or he was promoted whilst a POW.

Following his release Charles re-joined U Battery and continued to fight during the guerilla campaign phase of the War.

Part 3: The Skirmish at Oranjepan (Orange Pan)

Following his release from prison Charles returned to service with U Battery RHA; after 3 months of continuous fighting and 3 months in a POW camp he now found himself in the midst of a Guerrilla War where the British forces found themselves chasing Boer Commando’s all-over South Africa.

In an attempt to capture the Commando's operating in the Orange River Colony it was decided in April 1901 to divide the area into 3 districts with General Knox in the Central District commanding Col's Pilcher & Thorneycroft.

Col Pilcher led the 7th mounted Infantry, a battalion of Yeomanry, four guns of U Battery and a "pom-pom" totalling a force of approximately 1,300 combatants; including Charles.

In June 1901 General Knox arranged for an extensive drive and it was during one of these movements that the column found itself in Bultfontein on the morning of the 20th June 1901.

The accounts of the skirmish, including the death of Charles Spearman, were fortuitously recorded in “A soldier's diary, 1899 - 1901, the diary of Murray Cosby Jackson of the 7th Mounted Infantry."^[1]

The story is taken up by Private Jackson:

We made a fortified sort of camp at Bultfontein, and half the column stayed there, while the remainder of us, about a regiment and half of M.I., and half the Yeomanry, with about three guns and transport to correspond, set off north towards our old happy hunting grounds round Bothaville. There had been a smash up somewhere on the Vaal, some camp or column having been cut up a bit, and we thought we were going to trek up to the Vaal to take part in a punitive move. We had a mid-day halt the first day out, in a little hollow with a farm and a dam in it, called Orange Pan.

The movements of Col Pilcher’s column on the 20th June 1901 can be traced on the following contemporary map:



The local Boer Commandos had been watching Col Pilchers every move and that morning noticed dust trails leaving the town; local reports indicated that the main force was still in Bultfontein and that it was simply a small British patrol.

A Boer Commando force decided to attack and headed towards them with intent; on the way they passed by a farm and made the following comment:

"There's a khaki patrol just gone over there; we'll fetch it back presently…have some food ready in a few hours or so!

On the day of the march to Oranjepan several veld fires were observed; in exposed areas it was a Boer tactic to using smoke to screen their movements.

The Oranjepan farm was located in a hollow area, flanked by two ridges, with a small river running through it as shown below:



Private Jackson continues the events of the day:

There had been a tremendous lot of Veldt fires about during the morning's trek. Just before we came to camp we had passed a small iron building, so that when after we had got off-saddled, etc., we heard a lot of hammering, tapping sort of noises behind the ridge, we thought it was some of the fellows breaking up the iron building for wood.

Every now and then someone would say, "I believe that's firing," but the remainder kept saying, " No, only the iron house," so that it had been going on for some time when Pilcher came flying over from the farm-where an orderly had found him, I suppose-shouting, " Get out on the ridge at once, we're heavily engaged ! " Then there was a scramble. Some started to run up to the ridge, others going for their horses, and galloping up bare-backed (I got my horse, never being fond of running), gunners hooking in two horses and flogging up to the rise, no orders being given except to " get out there," so that very soon the ridge was lined and a very sharp little engagement taking place.



There was a hut on the rise, and seeing the first gun going for that I went with them, and as soon as we got to the top could see the whole situation at a glance. The Yeomanry had been rear-guard, and they had done very well, sending in their horses and retiring on foot themselves. One of them passed through by me shot through the nose!

The veldt fires were the cause of the trouble, Britz, if it were he, having taken a leaf out of Kemp's book and attacked the rear under cover of the smoke. In the sketch below the black patch represents burnt ground, with Boers dodging in and out of the smoke. We had scarcely got up when the Major* in charge of the gun was shot through the groin, and we put him behind the hut, from where he kept giving orders, which the young lieutenant left in charge took no notice of, evidently thinking the old man was out of action. Then a gunner was shot dead, and someone threw a helmet over his face.**"

* This is an account of the wounding of Major Taylor of U Battery.
** Since there was no other gunner killed on the day this account is that of Sgt Charles Spearman.



With regard to Private Jacksons sketch; a fallen soldier can be seen in front of the guns with a helmet over his face, this is Sgt Spearman with a wounded Major Taylor looking on from behind the Hut.

Private Jackson continues the story of the skirmish:

Altogether it was pretty warm ; there was a continual whiz of bullets coming over the rise ; but there were a lot of us, and the Boers were getting it warm, too, loose horses careering all over the place.

This was the second place I saw case shot used, Bothaville being the other. At first the youngster at
the gun was going on shrapnel. I could hear him, " 'With shrapnel, load-at 150 " etc., then at one hundred, and the shrapnel seemed to burst almost simultaneously with the report of the gun. At last he said, " D—n it, give em case ! " and then you could see it plough up great furrows of dust on the black background of burnt grass. By the time the other two guns got well into action, the Boers had had enough, and drew off, leaving some of their dead and a lot of loose horses.

He [A Civilian Guide] brought in word that a man who looked like a commandant, was still alive, though badly burnt by the veldt fire; so they sent an ambulance round and brought in all the dead and wounded. The only one alive was this commandant, and he was badly mauled with shrapnel in the head and burnt afterwards; he died that night without recovering consciousness.

We only had two or three killed and a few wounded, and next morning, after burying the dead, we trekked back the way we had come. At nearly every farm we found Boer dead and wounded, collecting altogether sixteen dead, I don't know how many wounded, and a woman told us how it came about. The day before a big commando had passed her farm, travelling hard (her farm was a bit off our previous track) after us, and the commandant, who pulled up to speak to her, said, "There's a khaki patrol just gone over there; we'll fetch it back presently," and told her to have some food ready for him in a few hours or so ! Evidently they had seen our dust leaving Bultfontein, and noticing the camp still there thought we were only a small patrol ! which accounted for the determined way they had come on.

With all the guerilla fighting going on at the time this is what was recorded of the events:

“Pilcher proceeded to Hoopstad, where he was attacked under the cover of a veld fire.”

Thanks to Private Jackson we were able to reconstruct the events leading up to and including the death of Serjeant Charles Alexander Spearman on the 20th June 1901.

We know that Charles together with a number of Boer burghers, including their commandant, were buried at Oranjepan in the Orange River Colony; where they rest today like so many others of the war.

^[1] www.angloboerwar.com/books/198-jackson-a...africa-1899-1901-pdf

Part 4: The Aftermath

The Local Farmers (Boers)

The farmer (Boer) at Oranjepan at the time of the skirmish was Nicolaas Johannes Saaiman born 4th June 1852 to Izaak and Amerentia.

He married Johanna Isabella Lombard on the 30th September 1878 in the Orange Free State and they had six children together; he would later pass away in 1939 at Vryburg at the age of 86.

On the 27th June 1901, a week after the skirmish, the family entered the Brandford Concentration Camp; the family members interned at the camp were:

Mr Nicolaas Johannes Saaiman, Mrs Johanna Izabella Saaiman, Miss Johanna Izabella Saaiman, Miss Emerensie Petronella Saaiman, Mr Daniel Benjamin Saaiman and Stephanus Bastianas

Unfortunately Emerensie Petronella Saaiman (21) passed away 6 months later from enteric fever.

The family remained in the camp until the 22nd July 1902 following which they retuned to their farm.

Family’s on nearby farms were also interned following the skirmish at Oranjepan; these included the Nel family from the Vogelstruisbult farm. They were also taken to the Brandfort concentration camp a few weeks later on the 15th July 1901.

This suggests that the area was being scorched at the time.

Unfortunately of the five Nel family members interned at the camp four of them passed away at the Brandfort concentration camp.

The Spearman Family

Charles mother Euphrosine never re-married following her husbands death and together with her elder daughter continued to work as dressmakers in Paddington area until she passed away in 1922.

 
Part 5: Modern day Oranjepan

By overlaying contemporary farm maps on modern day satellite imagery it is possible to locate the farm Oranjepan where the skirmish took place:



Fortuitously the R700 road cuts through the original farm and Google Street view provides a modern view of where the fighting took place:



Looking at Streetview in the direction of the red arrow (North East) provides the following view:



It is possible to see the hollow of the farm and the ridge on the far side. It is also possible to see the very tops of the trees rising from the bottom of the hollow itself.

So completes the research that was started in the following thread:

www.angloboerwar.com/forum/11-research/3...ge-pan-o-r-c?start=0

Thanks again to everyone who contributed to the research post above who supported in discovering and understanding the history behind the medal to Charles Spearman; many thanks!

A fantastic series of posts, Sturgy. Fascinating and really well researched and illustrated.