|
Battle Of Spion Kop
The Battle of Spioen Kop ( nl, Slag bij Spionkop; af, Slag van Spioenkop) was a military engagement between British forces and two Boer Republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State, during the campaign by the British to relieve the besieged city Ladysmith during the initial months of the Second Boer War. The battle was fought 23–24 January 1900 on the hilltop of Spioen Kop (1), about west-southwest of Ladysmith. It resulted in a Boer victory. Prelude Planning and crossing the Tugela General Sir Redvers Buller, VC, commander of the British forces in Natal, was attempting to relieve a British force besieged in Ladysmith. The Boers under General Louis Botha held the Tugela River against him. Although Botha's men were outnumbered, they were mostly equipped with modern Mauser rifles and up-to-date field guns, and had carefully entrenched their positions. In late December, 1899, Buller made a frontal assault on the Boer positions at the Battle of Colen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South African Republic and the Orange Free State) over the Empire's influence in Southern Africa from 1899 to 1902. Following the discovery of gold deposits in the Boer republics, there was a large influx of "foreigners", mostly British from the Cape Colony. They were not permitted to have a vote, and were regarded as "unwelcome visitors", invaders, and they protested to the British authorities in the Cape. Negotiations failed and, in the opening stages of the war, the Boers launched successful attacks against British outposts before being pushed back by imperial reinforcements. Though the British swiftly occupied the Boer republics, numerous Boers refused to accept defeat and engaged in guerrilla warfare. Eventually, British scorched earth po ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Ladysmith
The siege of Ladysmith was a protracted engagement in the Second Boer War, taking place between 2 November 1899 and 28 February 1900 at Ladysmith, Natal. Background As war with the Boer republics appeared likely in June 1899, the War Office in Britain dispatched a total of 15,000 troops to Natal, expecting that if war broke out they would be capable of defending the colony until reinforcements could be mobilized and sent to South Africa by steamship. Some of these troops were diverted while returning to Britain from India, others were sent from garrisons in the Mediterranean and elsewhere. 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 in South Africa. Outbreak of war Contrary to the advice of several British officials such as Sir Alfred Milner, the High Commissioner for Southern Africa, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and led to heavy, fairly immobile siege engines. As technology improved, lighter, more mobile field artillery cannons developed for battlefield use. This development continues today; modern self-propelled artillery vehicles are highly mobile weapons of great versatility generally providing the largest share of an army's total firepower. Originally, the word "artillery" referred to any group of soldiers primarily armed with some form of manufactured weapon or armor. Since the introduction of gunpowder and cannon, "artillery" has largely meant cannons, and in contemporary usage, usually refers to shell-firing guns, howitzers, and mortars (collectively called ''barrel artillery'', ''cannon artillery'', ''gun artillery'', or - a layman t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is headed by the Chief Royal Engineer. The Regimental Headquarters and the Royal School of Military Engineering are in Chatham in Kent, England. The corps is divided into several regiments, barracked at various places in the United Kingdom and around the world. History The Royal Engineers trace their origins back to the military engineers brought to England by William the Conqueror, specifically Bishop Gundulf of Rochester Cathedral, and claim over 900 years of unbroken service to the crown. Engineers have always served in the armies of the Crown; however, the origins of the modern corps, along with those of the Royal Artillery, lie in the Board of Ordnance established in the 15th century. In Woolwich in 1716, the Board formed the Royal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Picket (military)
A picket (archaically, picquet ariant form ''piquet'' is a soldier, or small unit of soldiers, placed on a defensive line forward of a friendly position to provide timely warning and screening against an enemy advance. It can also refer to any unit (e.g. a scout vehicle, surveillance aircraft or patrol ship) performing a similar function. A picket guarding a fixed position may be known as a sentry or guard. Origins Picket (Fr. , a pointed stake or peg, from , 'to point or pierce'), is thought to have originated in the French Army around 1690, from the circumstance that an infantry company on outpost duty dispersed its musketeers to watch, with a small group of pikemen called ''piquet'' remaining in reserve. It was in use in the British Army before 1735 and probably much earlier. Usage ''Picket'' now refers to a soldier or small unit of soldiers maintaining a watch. This may mean a watch for the enemy, or other types of watch e.g. fire picket. This can be likened to the art o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mounted Infantry
Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially mobile infantry." Today, with motor vehicles having replaced horses for military transport, the motorized infantry are in some respects successors to mounted infantry. History Pre-gunpowder The origins of mounted infantry go back to at least the beginnings of organised warfare. With the weight of ancient bronze armor, the opposing champions would travel to battle on chariots before dismounting to fight. With the evolution of hoplite warfare, some hoplites would travel to battle on horseback, before dismounting to take their place in the phalanx. The early pre-Marian Roman military had units consisting of infantrymen clinging to the saddles of the cavalry to take them to battle and then dismounting to fight. Gallic and Germanic warban ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Herbert Plumer
Field Marshal Herbert Charles Onslow Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer, (13 March 1857 – 16 July 1932) was a senior British Army officer of the First World War. After commanding V Corps at the Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915, he took command of the Second Army in May 1915 and in June 1917 won an overwhelming victory over the German Army at the Battle of Messines, which started with the simultaneous explosion of a series of mines placed by the Royal Engineers' tunnelling companies beneath German lines, which created large craters and was described as the ''loudest explosion in human history''. He later served as Commander-in-Chief of the British Army of the Rhine and then as Governor of Malta before becoming High Commissioner of the British Mandate for Palestine in 1925 and retiring in 1928. Military career Born the son of Hall Plumer and Louisa Alice Plumer (née Turnley) and educated at Eton College and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, Plumer was commissioned a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell
Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, ( ; (Commonly pronounced by others as ) 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941) was a British Army officer, writer, founder and first Chief Scout of the world-wide Scout Movement, and founder, with his sister Agnes, of the world-wide Girl Guide / Girl Scout Movement. Baden-Powell authored the first editions of the seminal work '' Scouting for Boys'', which was an inspiration for the Scout Movement. Educated at Charterhouse School, Baden-Powell served in the British Army from 1876 until 1910 in India and Africa. In 1899, during the Second Boer War in South Africa, Baden-Powell successfully defended the town in the Siege of Mafeking. Several of his books, written for military reconnaissance and scout training in his African years, were also read by boys. In August 1907, he held a demonstration camp, the Brownsea Island Scout camp, which is now seen as the beginning of Scouting. Based on his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Francis Clery
Major-General Sir Cornelius Francis Clery (13 February 1838 – 25 June 1926) was a British Army officer who took part in the Anglo-Zulu War and later commanded the 2nd Division during the Second Boer War. Early life Cornelius Frances Clery was born in 2 Sidney Place, Cork, Ireland on 13 February 1838. He was educated at Clongowes Wood College in County Kildare. Military career Clery was commissioned as an ensign into the 32nd Regiment of Foot in 1858. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1859 and captain in 1866. He became an instructor at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, in 1872, and later became Professor of Tactics. He became Deputy Assistant Adjutant & Quartermaster-General in Ireland in 1875,Greaves (2011), p.163-4 the same year his book, ''Minor Tactics'' was published. The book would be highly influential for at least thirty years. In 1877, he was Deputy Assistant Adjutant & Quartermaster-General at Aldershot.Greaves (2011), p.163-4 South Africa In 1878 Clery, n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Douglas Cochrane, 12th Earl Of Dundonald
Lieutenant General Douglas Mackinnon Baillie Hamilton Cochrane, 12th Earl of Dundonald, (29 October 1852 – 12 April 1935), styled Lord Cochrane between 1860 and 1885, was a Scottish representative peer and a British Army general. Early life Cochrane was the second but eldest surviving son of Thomas Cochrane, 11th Earl of Dundonald, by Louisa Harriet Mackinnon, daughter of William Alexander Mackinnon. Thomas Cochrane, 1st Baron Cochrane of Cults, was his younger brother. hepeerage.com Lt.-Gen. Douglas Mackinnon Baillie Hamilton Cochrane, 12th Earl of Dundonald/ref> He was educated at Eton College. Military career Cochrane was commissioned into the Life Guards in July 1870, and was promoted to lieutenant the following year and captain in 1878. He served in the Nile Expedition, the Desert March and the Relief of Khartoum in 1885. He was appointed Commanding Officer of 2nd Life Guards in 1895. He served in the Second Boer War and in November 1899 he was appointed Commander ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
5th Infantry Division (United Kingdom)
The 5th Infantry Division was a regular army infantry division of the British Army. It was established by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington for service in the Peninsular War, as part of the Anglo-Portuguese Army, and was active for most of the period since, including the First World War and the Second World War and was disbanded soon after. The division was reformed in 1995 as an administrative division covering Wales and the English regions of West Midlands, East Midlands and East. Its headquarters were in Shrewsbury. It was disbanded on 1 April 2012. Peninsular War The 5th Division during the Peninsular War under the command of General James Leith was present at most of the major engagements including the Battle of Bussaco, the Battle of Sabugal, the Siege of Almeida, the Battle of Badajoz, the Battle of Salamanca, the Battle of Vitoria, the Siege of San Sebastian, the Battle of Nivelle and the Battle of the Nive. Peninsular War order of battle The order of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2nd Infantry Division (United Kingdom)
The 2nd Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that was formed and disestablished numerous times between 1809 and 2012. It was raised by Lieutenant-General Arthur Wellesley for service in the Peninsular War (part of the Coalition Wars of the Napoleonic Wars) as the 2nd Division. It was disestablished in 1814, but re-formed the following year for service in the War of the Seventh Coalition. The formation fought at the Battle of Waterloo and played an important role in defeating the final French attack of the day. It then marched into France and became part of the Army of Occupation, and was the only British force allowed to march through Paris. In December 1818, the division was disbanded once again. During the mid- to late-19th century, several formations bearing the name 2nd Division were formed. Only two such were considered part of the division's lineage by Everard Wyrall, who compiled its First World War history. The first was created in 1854 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell")
