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Actually the only reminders of the battle at Colenso are markers showing the sites of the gun positions, the original monument to Freddie Roberts and the pyramid monument which are both now at Clouston along with other memorials. Otherwise there's nothiing to see. There is a small museum in the village, access to which is gained, quaintly, by asking for the key from the police station next door.



David

David

Thank you for that very well done memory of the guns at Colenso.

Coincidentally, I have a memory that Ken Gillings, an artilleryman himself, was involved in identifying the positions of the guns. Ken died tragically yesterday, and I posted an obituary to him earlier.

It is impossible at this stage to know what effect the planned development will have on the site of the guns, but since it is a flat open area it may well be seen as more useful economically than historically.

At the time of my last visit to Colenso, the key to the museum was kept at the municipal offices, which are not as conveniently located as the police station. Perhaps the police were no longer trusted as custodians. There had been at least one, and perhaps more thefts from the museum, which is not surprising. The hotel was a shadow of its former self, as was the town, which had been depopulated when the power station closed down

Regards
Brett

Anyone that does not have a sense of history, in a then and now context would certainly struggle, but, quite frankly, those who do, would have no problems whatsoever, despite the lack of care in official quarters, you can still, quite literally, touch history in South Africa, in a way that is much harder to do in many other countries, sadly, with the passage of time, it will, of course, become somewhat more difficult.

davidh wrote: Actually the only reminders of the battle at Colenso are markers showing the sites of the gun positions, the original monument to Freddie Roberts and the pyramid monument which are both now at Clouston along with other memorials. Otherwise there's nothiing to see. There is a small museum in the village, access to which is gained, quaintly, by asking for the key from the police station next door.

David

Botha at Colenso


Boer outpost


Boer artillery

Source: Rompel

How the press viewed the engagement at Colenso

Boer trench at Colenso