While Methuen conducted operations in the west and Buller
personally supervised those in the east, it fell to the veteran of Omdurman
General Sir William Gatacre to hold the central position in eastern Cape
Colony. Gatacre was tasked with preventing the Boers moving any further south
than the positions they held at Stormberg.
Gatacre was a highly respected and capable officer but
the force he was allocated was woefully inadequate for offensive operations,
yet he received contradictory instructions from both Cape Town and Buller which
whilst saying he “had a free hand to act” made it clear they expected him to attack.
So it was that on the evening of 9th December 1899 Gatacre
took his meagre force forward with the aim of expelling the Boers from the
Kissieberg Kopje and forcing them to abandon Stormberg. Marching by night and
having only inaccurate sketch maps he ended up coming against the Boer
positions from the wrong direction although fortunately for him the Boers were
as surprised as he was.
This scenario aims to recreate the resulting assault by
the British on 10 December that was to mark the beginning of Black Week in
1899.
Special Rules
1. The British battalions begin the game in column and do
not deploy to line until fired upon. Once deployed they remain in close order. The
Boers were surprised by the British line of approach and did not open fire
until they were very close. Rule: The Boers must attempt to spot the British each
turn on die roll of 4, 5 or 6 (they are automatically spotted when within 18”).
2. During the battle Boers occupied the Steynsburg Kopje
where they brought fire to bear on the British rear. Rule: at the start of turn
2 Boers roll 1x D6, the Boers appear on the Steynsburg on a 5 or 6 (continue
rolling each turn adding one to the die roll every time). The Boer troops are
not permitted to move off the Steynsburg Kopje.
3. The British force attacked in a different location to the
one chosen by Gatacre in an area that was almost a sheer cliff making the
attack hard going. Rule: to represent this, British troops must -1 from all
melee die rolls.
4. Once again, the British suffered casualties from their
own artillery as they could not clearly spot the progress of the infantry.
Rule: if the artillery is firing on Boers within 12” of any British infantry
then split the firing dice 50:50 into two colours – white will be hits on the
Boers and blue on the British.
5. The Mounted Infantry were tasked with protecting the guns
and did not take part in the attack. Rule: The Mounted Infantry must remain
with the guns. They may turn to fire at any Boers that appear on Steynsburg Kopjie.
Order of Battle
British C-in-C General Gatacre
2nd Northumberland Fusiliers
2nd Royal Irish
Rifles
Mounted Infantry (half-battalion dismounted) protecting guns
74 & 77
RFA
Boers C-in-C General Ollivier
Ollivier Commando (reinforced to
15 figures)
Grobelaar Commando (on Steynsburg)
Victory Conditions
To win the British must occupy the Kissieberg Kopje
within 8 turns.
