Went with General French to Kimberley and Bloemfontein. Practically the whole personnel and five guns were taken by the enemy at Sannah's Post, 31st March 1900 (see Household Cavalry). Took part in the initial stages of the operations for surrounding Prinsloo, July 1900, thereafter in the pursuit of De Wet. Towards the close of 1900 the battery was doing fine work in the north of Orange River Colony under General E C Knox and Colonel Le Gallais. In the action on 27th October two guns and some waggons were captured from De Wet, one of these guns being one which the battery had lost at Sannah's Post. On 5th November 1900 near Bothaville (see Oxford Light Infantry), one of those which Q Battery had lost at Sannah's Post, one which the 14th RFA had lost at Colenso, four Krupps, a pom-pom, a maxim, and many waggons of ammunition, were taken. In his telegram of 8th November Lord Roberts said: "The fighting must at one time have been at close quarters. U Battery RHA, under Major P B Taylor, was in action at a range of 400 yards". One man of the battery was killed, and 1 officer and 7 men wounded. Major Taylor was senior officer unwounded at the close of the day, and his official report on this most brilliant action is printed in 'The Oxfordshire Light Infantry in South Africa': Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1901. The battery was still to suffer another mishap. In his despatch of 8th October 1901 Lord Kitchener says: "On 19th September a small force, consisting of 160 mounted men and two guns of U Battery RHA, which had been detached without any authority or sufficiently important object by the officer commanding at the Bloemfontein Waterworks, was surrounded and captured at Vlakfontein, eighteen miles southwest of Sannah's Post", the scene of the great disaster. One officer and 4 non-commissioned officers and men of the battery were mentioned by Lord Kitchener for very gallant work on 19th September.
Non-searchable PDF of the medal roll for U Battery.
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