The troopship HMS "Birkenhead" was wrecked off Danger Point in 1852. A barely visible rock from Danger Point (now aptly called "Birkenhead Rock") was fatal for the troopship carrying young Welsh, Scottish and English soldiers and their officers and family on their way to Eastern Cape to fight the Xhosa. The "Birkenhead" became famous because it was the first shipwreck where the "women and children first" protocol was applied. All women and children were saved but 445 of the men, mostly soldiers, perished. Most of the horses swam ashore and were the ancestors of a feral herd that roamed the plains east of Gansbaai until late in the 20th century.