Battle of Laing ' s Nek The Battle of Laing ' s Nek was a major battle fought at Laing ' s Nek during the First Boer War on 28 January 1881 . Background . Following the Boer declaration of independence for the Transvaal in 1880 the British suffered a series of disastrous defeats in attempting to regain the territory . On 20 December 1880 , Lieutenant - Colonel Philip Robert Anstruther and elements of his regiment , the 94th , marched from Lydenburg to Pretoria , the regiment ’ s band leading the column playing the popular song “ Kiss Me , Mother Darling ” . At Bronkhorstspruit the force was stopped by Boers who courteously required the “ Red Soldiers ” to turn back . Armstrong equally courteously refused at which the column was devastated by rifle fire from the surrounding Boer ambush . Of the 259 in the column , 155 officers and men became casualties as did some of the women accompanying the regiment . Instead of waiting for the reinforcements , the British High Commissioner for South East Africa , Major General Sir George Pomeroy Colley , assembled what troops he could and rushed forward , claiming to be moving to relieve the British garrisons in the Transvaal . Colley gathered his force at Newcastle in Natal , dispatched an ultimatum to the Boers and , on its rejection , advanced towards the Transvaal border . The first British camp on the march lay some 4 miles short of Laing ’ s Nek , a ridge in the foothills of the Drakensberg mountains that blocked the road between Newcastle and Standerton in Natal , South Africa . History . The British Natal Field Force , commanded by General Colley , numbered around 1 , 216 officers and men , including 5 companies of the 58th Regiment , 5 companies of the 3rd Battalion , the 60th Rifles , about 150 cavalry of the Mounted Squadron , a party of Royal Navy sailors and 4 guns of the Royal Artillery . The Boers , under the command of Commandant - General Joubert had about 2 , 000 men in the area , with at least 400 fortifying the heights around Laing ' s Nek . They had little difficulty in repulsing General Colley ' s inadequate force . On the morning of 28 January , Colley tried to force a way through the pass . The battle began at around half past nine with a heavy bombardment with four 9 - pound guns and two 7 - pound guns of the British Naval Brigade pounding the Boer positions on Table Hill . Ten minutes later , the main British force , made up of the 58th Regiment , went forward and had difficulty advancing over the broken ground towards the summit . Further down the line , the Mounted Squadron made a charge against the Boer positions on nearby Brownlow ' s Kop . But , on reaching the summit , the British cavalry were fired upon by a line of entrenched Boers on the reverse slope and suffered many casualties , forcing them to withdraw . By 10 : 30 , with their threat to their flank removed , the Boers moved to attack the 58th Regiment still advancing on Table Hill where at 11 : 00 , at reaching the top of the summit , the British were fired upon by concealed Boers in trenches just away and suffered even more casualties , including both commanding officers , Major Hingeston and Colonel Deane being killed . While this was happening , a small party of Boers actually advanced from their positions on the lower slopes of nearby Majuba Hill and engaged the Naval Brigade near the British camp at Mount Prospect . Return rifle fire from the British kept the Boers back . By 11 : 10 , two companies of the 3 / 60th Rifles moves up Table Hill to cover the retreat of the 58th Regiment and by noon , the battle was over . The British lost 84 killed , 113 wounded , and 2 captured during what was perceived as a fiasco . Most of the casualties were in the 58th Regiment with 74 killed and 101 wounded , around 35 % of their total strength . Among those killed in the battle were many of General Colley ' s staff including Major Poole and Lieutenants Dolphin , Elwes and Inman . The Boers reported their losses at 14 killed and 27 wounded . One month later , General Colley was killed at the Battle of Majuba which ended the war , after which Transvaal was recognised as an independent state . Victoria Crosses . The Victoria Cross is the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces .