The Colonel withdrew with his staff to Ibeka, as the conflict escalated. Initially, the Gcaleka made it clear that they were only at war with the Fengu; however, as the Fengu were Cape citizens, escalation followed as the Cape Government was drawn in. On 26 September a Gcaleka force of several thousand crossed the border and attacked a Cape Colony police station which was manned predominantly by police of Fengu origin. The 9th Frontier War commenced. In the aftermath of the war, he briefly moved back to the region to work on resettling several of the affected tribes and drawing boundaries.