Battle of Ladysmith The Battle of Ladysmith was one of the early engagements of the Second Boer War . A large British force which had concentrated at the garrison town of Ladysmith launched a sortie on 30 October 1899 , against Boer armies which were slowly surrounding the town . The result was a disaster for the British . The main body was driven back into the town , and an isolated detachment of 800 men was forced to surrender to Commandant De Wet . The Boers did not follow up their advantage by proceeding towards the strategically important port of Durban , and instead began a Siege of Ladysmith , which was relieved after 118 days . Background . In June 1899 , when it appeared that hostilities between Britain and the independent Boer republics were likely , the British government began sending troops to South Africa as a precaution . Most went to Natal , where the vital port of Durban appeared to be within comparatively easy striking distance for the Boer forces . The British government was unwilling to order a complete mobilisation , but on the recommendation of the Commander in Chief of the British Army , General Wolseley , they agreed to send 10 , 000 troops which Wolseley believed could defend Natal if war broke out until reinforcements could arrive by sea . The first contingent were some troops returning to Britain from India , under Major General Penn Symons . The War Office subsequently dispatched units from garrisons in the Mediterranean and elsewhere , eventually totalling 15 , 000 . Lieutenant General Sir George White was appointed to command this enlarged force . White was 64 years old , and suffered from a leg injury incurred in a riding accident . Having served mainly in India , he had little previous experience of South Africa . British deployments . Natal was divided roughly into northern and southern parts by the Tugela River . Northern Natal was surrounded on three sides by Boer territory . Although advised to deploy his force south of the Tugela , White rejected this advice for reasons of prestige . Other senior British officers considered that White was badly advised by over - eager officers such as Penn - Symons or White ' s Adjutant General , Colonel Ian Hamilton . White concentrated the bulk of his force at Ladysmith , about north of the Tugela , while a brigade under Penn - Symons was posted even further north at Glencoe and Dundee . Penn Symons ' position was particularly exposed to danger , being so far north that it was vulnerable to being surrounded , while not far enough north to block the passes through the Drakensberg mountains which the main Boer armies would have to cross to invade Natal . Outbreak of war . Contrary to the advice of several British officials such as Sir Alfred Milner , the High Commissioner for Southern Africa , the independent Boer governments were not over - awed by the despatch of British troops to Natal . Instead , they regarded it as evidence of Britain ' s determination to seize control of the Boer republics . The South African Republic or Transvaal government under President Paul Kruger considered launching an attack in September , but President Steyn of the Orange Free State dissuaded them for several weeks while he tried to act as intermediary . With the complete breakdown in negotiations , both independent republics declared war and attacked on 12 October . A total of 21 , 000 Boers advanced into Natal from all sides . The only regular uniformed units were the " Staatsartillerie " of both republics ( and some units of policemen such as the South African Republic Police or ZARP ) . The rest were mainly farmers , dressed in their ordinary working clothes , with some townsmen and contingents of foreign volunteers known as Vrijwilligers . All were mounted , and most were armed with Mauser Bolt action rifles . The artillery had two dozen German manufactured Krupp field guns and four heavy French manufactured 155 mm Creusot Long Tom guns . On 20 October , two Boer forces attacked Penn - Symons ' detachment at Dundee but were driven back at the Battle of Talana Hill . The British suffered heavy casualties ( including Penn - Symons , who was mortally wounded ) and were cut off from Ladysmith by another Boer force which captured a railway station at Elandslaagte which lay between them . On 21 October , British troops under Colonel Ian Hamilton and White ' s cavalry commander , Colonel John French , recaptured the station in the Battle of Elandslaagte . White was unable to follow up this success by relieving Penn - Symons ' s force ( now commanded by Brigadier General J . H . Yule ) as he feared that Boers from the Orange Free State were about to attack Ladysmith . This decision highlighted Ladysmith ' s exposed position . Yule ' s force had to make an exhausting four - day march across the Biggarsberg hills before they could rejoin White in Ladysmith . On 24 October , White made a demonstration at Rietfontein against the Boers pressing forward down the railway line from Glencoe to Ladysmith , to distract them from attacking Yule . The British suffered 132 casualties , mainly from artillery fire . British plans . Rather than retreat south of the Tugela , White continued to mass supplies and reinforcements in Ladysmith . ( He sent the wounded south to Pietermaritzburg but left the civilians and other non - combatants in the town . ) As the British troops concentrated in Ladysmith now constituted a balanced " field force " of all arms , White also rejected the option of leaving an infantry garrison in Ladysmith while sending the bulk of the mounted troops and artillery south of the river . He gambled on being able to strike a knock - out blow against the Boer armies in a " set - piece " action . This was despite the disadvantages of the terrain , with Ladysmith being on low ground surrounded by hills rising to above the town , which gave the Boers the advantage of height . From 26 to 29 October , White sent out tentative cavalry reconnaissances , which he recalled when it appeared that Boer horsemen might cut them off . On 29 October , Boers could be seen emplacing one of their heavy Creusot siege guns on Pepworth Hill , roughly north - north east of the town . Before this gun could open fire , White had already made plans for attack the following dawn , based on incomplete reconnaissances and observations . The main frontal attack was intended to capture Pepworth Hill . The column was led by Colonel Ian Hamilton and consisted of the 1st battalion , the Devonshire Regiment , 1st battalion , the Manchester Regiment , 2nd battalion , the Gordon Highlanders and 2nd battalion , the Rifle Brigade . This attack was to be supported by a column under Colonel Grimwood , consisting of the 1st and 2nd battalions , the King ' s Royal Rifle Corps , 1st battalion , the Leicestershire Regiment , 1st battalion , the King ' s Liverpool Regiment and the 2nd battalion , the Royal Dublin Fusiliers , which would attack the supposed Boer left flank and capture Long Hill , about east of Pepworth Hill . The bulk of the mounted troops under Colonel John French ( the 5th Lancers , 5th Dragoon Guards , 18th Hussars less a squadron lost at Talana Hill , 19th Hussars , several companies of Mounted infantry , the Natal Carbineers and Imperial Light Horse were stationed in reserve or to Grimwood ' s right . Six batteries ( the 13th , 21st , 42nd , 53rd , 67th and 69th ) of 15 - pounder guns of the Royal Artillery were to support the attacks . White also sent a detachment consisting of the 1st battalion , the Royal Irish Fusiliers and half the 1st battalion , the Gloucestershire Regiment , with number 10 Mountain Battery ( equipped with RML 2 . 5 - inch Mountain Gun s ) to capture a pass known as Nicholson ' s Nek which lay about to the northwest of Pepworth Hill . The force was commanded by Lieutenant - Colonel Carleton of the Royal Irish Fusiliers . White intended that by seizing the pass , this detachment would prevent the Boer force from the Orange Free State reinforcing the Transvaal Boers on Pepworth Hill , and also prevent the defeated Boers retreating directly north . Lombard ' s Kop . Grimwood ' s brigade had deployed during the night around Lombard ' s Kop and Farquhar ' s Farm , and faced north towards Long Hill . As dawn broke , Grimwood found that half his brigade had straggled , and French ' s mounted troops had not reached their assigned position . Before this could be corrected , the British troops came under heavy rifle fire from their own right flank . The Boers in this sector were nominally commanded by the elderly Commandant Lukas Meyer , but were actually led by Louis Botha . At the same time , the first shell from the Boers ' " Long Tom " on Pepworth Hill landed in the town , causing consternation . The British field guns opened fire on Pepworth Hill and Long Hill , and temporarily silenced the Boer siege gun but Colonel Ian Hamilton ' s frontal attack on Pepworth Hill was called off as it became clear that Grimwood was in trouble , and Hamilton ' s attack would not be supported . Although the main body of South African Republic Boers under Commandant - General Piet Joubert were stationed behind Pepworth Hill , there were none on Long Hill , and fire on this hill was wasted . The British artillery itself came under accurate and effective fire from the Boers ' field guns , which were fought as individual gun detachments , and were quickly moved between emplacements before British guns could find their range . The British guns were deployed as they had been drilled to do , in neat rows of six without using cover from artillery or even rifle fire . Their fire was not as effective as that of the Boer " Staatsartillerie " , and they incurred needless casualties . After four hours , White had received no messages from Carleton , although firing could be heard from the position he was supposed to have occupied . With no prospect of a successful attack , he ordered his troops to " retire as opportunity offers " . As they began to fall back into the open plain between Lombard ' s Kop and Ladysmith , they came under heavy fire from Botha ' s riflemen and the Boer gun on Pepworth Hill . Some of Grimwood ' s units ( mainly those which had already suffered heavy casualties at Talana Hill , and were short of officers and tired ) panicked and the retreat became a rout . Two batteries of field guns covered the retreat by withdrawing in stages , each battery providing covering fire in turn while the other limbered up and fell back . The British were also very fortunate that a detachment of naval guns ( four 12 - pounder and two 4 . 7 - inch guns , under Captain Percy Scott of " HMS Terrible " ) arrived by train in Ladysmith and went almost straight into action . Their first few rounds immediately found the range to Pepworth Hill and suppressed the Boers ' " Long Tom " . The British fell back into Ladysmith , with units temporarily demoralised . The day was subsequently termed " Mournful Monday " . Nevertheless , the Boers did not immediately take advantage of their victory . It is said that when Joubert was urged to follow up the British infantry , he replied , " When God stretches out a finger , do not take the whole hand " . Nicholson ' s Nek . White was not aware of the fate of Carleton ' s force until the next day , when Joubert sent a letter which also unilaterally granted an armistice to allow the dead to be buried . Carleton ' s force had been late setting out because the mules carrying his guns and reserve ammunition had not been properly controlled by inexperienced drivers and had been fractious . As dawn approached , Carleton feared that because of the late start , his force would be exposed at daybreak in the open plain between Pepworth Hill and the Nek . He therefore decided to occupy a hill known as Tchrengula just to the south of the Nek . As they climbed the hill , the mules bolted and startled British soldiers fired several shots , alerting the nearest Boers . Carleton ' s men began preparing sangars on what they thought was the summit of Tchrengula . In fact the mile - long summit was divided into two peaks , and in the dark , the British had occupied only the southern , lower summit . Vice Commandant Christiaan De Wet quickly grasped the situation , and led some men on horseback to gallop to the northern end of the hill , where they dismounted and climbed the hill to occupy the undefended northern summit . From there , the Boers pressed forward along the summit which was strewn with rocks which gave individual Boer riflemen ample cover . The British sangars were exposed and obvious targets to the Boers , and gave inadequate protection . Like the artillery , the British infantry relied on drill , firing volleys on the command of an officer . By the time the order had been given , the intended target was safe behind cover , while the British soldiers were exposed to fire . The British infantry resisted for several hours , but the numbers of wounded and killed increased and ammunition ran out . Finally , as the main British force could be seen retreating into Ladysmith , Carleton gave the order to surrender . A British officer waved a white flag at the same time . Some of the British troops had seen no reason for the surrender and felt themselves humiliated by the order . Eight hundred soldiers were taken prisoner . Aftermath . Since the Boers launched no immediate assault , the British force reorganised and constructed defensive lines around the town , which would require a major effort to overcome . They recovered morale through some small - scale raids at night which sabotaged some of the Boer artillery . Thereafter the siege became a long drawn - out blockade , except for a single storming attempt . After several failures , a force under General Redvers Buller , who was later known as " Sir Reverse " and the " Ferryman of the Tugela " , broke through the Boer forces defending the Tugela to effect the Relief of Ladysmith on 28 February 1900 .