Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Daniel Hermanus Pienaar (27 August 1893 – 19 December 1942) was a South African
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
military commander.
Early life and career
He was born in
Ladybrand
Ladybrand is a small agricultural town in the Free State (South African province), Free State province of South Africa, situated 18 km from Maseru, the capital of Lesotho. Ladybrand is one of five towns that forms the Mantsopa Local Municipa ...
,
Orange Free State
The Orange Free State ( nl, Oranje Vrijstaat; af, Oranje-Vrystaat;) was an independent Boer sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeat ...
and in his youth grew up in
Natal
NATAL or Natal may refer to:
Places
* Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil
* Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa
** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843)
** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...
.
His family members had fought against the British during the
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 Sout ...
.
[ Pienaar joined the artillery branch of the ]Natal Police
The Natal Mounted Police (NMP) were the colonial police force of the Colony of Natal created in 1874 by Major John Dartnell, a farmer and retired officer in the British Army as a semi-military force to bolster the defences of Natal in South Afric ...
(NP) in 1911, and transferred to the Union Defence Forces (UDF) when they took over the NP in 1913.[ In ]World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, he first served as an artilleryman in the South West Africa campaign, then with the South African Overseas Expeditionary Force
The South African Overseas Expeditionary Force (SAOEF) was a volunteer military organisation in World War I.
Organisation
The South African government formed the South African Overseas Expeditionary Force (''SAOEF'') in July 1915, as part of ...
in German East Africa
German East Africa (GEA; german: Deutsch-Ostafrika) was a German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, the Tanzania mainland, and the Kionga Triangle, a small region later incorporated into Mozam ...
in the South African Field Artillery Brigade and was mentioned several times in dispatches and then later in Palestine
__NOTOC__
Palestine may refer to:
* State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia
* Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia
* Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...
from 1917 until 1918 finishing the war with the rank of subaltern
Subaltern may refer to:
*Subaltern (postcolonialism), colonial populations who are outside the hierarchy of power
* Subaltern (military), a primarily British and Commonwealth military term for a junior officer
* Subalternation, going from a univer ...
in the British Army.[
]
Between the wars
He returned to the South Africa and back into the Union Defence Force ranks at the end of the war.[ He was commissioned and sent to England to train as battery commander as well as attending a staff officers course.][ He returned to South Africa in 1922 and was promoted to Adjutant of the South African Field Artillery.][ In 1930 he was a Lieutenant-Colonel of 1st Field Service Brigade in ]Ladysmith Ladysmith may refer to:
* Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
* Ladysmith, British Columbia, Canada
* Ladysmith, Wisconsin, United States
* Ladysmith, New South Wales, Australia
* Ladysmith, Virginia, United States
* Ladysmith Island, Queenslan ...
.[ He commanded ]Orange Free State Command
Orange Free State Command was a command of the South African Army, active from to .
Its headquarters was at Bloemfontein, seemingly for a period at the Tempe airfield, later to become the Tempe Military Base.
History Origin Union Defence Fo ...
from 1935 to 1937. Other positions held were Voortrekkerhoogte and Transvaal Commands.[ When war started he was promoted to Brigadier.][
]
World War 2
In 1940–1941, during the East African Campaign, Pienaar commanded the 1st South African Infantry Brigade. He fought in the battles of El Wak, The Juba, Combolcia and Amba Alagi.[ After Amba Alagi fell, the brigade was dispatched to ]Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
.[
In 1941–1942, during the North Africa Campaign, Pienaar fought in the battles of ]Sidi Rezegh
''Sidi'' or ''Sayidi'', also Sayyidi and Sayeedi, ( ar, سيدي, Sayyīdī, Sīdī (dialectal) "milord") is an Arabic masculine title of respect. ''Sidi'' is used often to mean "saint" or "my master" in Maghrebi Arabic and Egyptian Arabic. Wi ...
and Gazala
Gazala, or ʿAyn al-Ġazāla ( ), is a small Libyan village near the coast in the northeastern portion of the country. It is located west of Tobruk.
History
In the late 1930s (during the Italian occupation of Libya), the village was the site of ...
. On 10 March 1942, he was promoted to Major-General GOC 1st South African Infantry Division, which he led in the Battle of Gazala, the retreat to Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
, the defence of El Alamein and the Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...
.[ He was twice awarded the DSO and twice ]mentioned in dispatches
To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...
for his service in North Africa. He was recorded by the press after El Alamein as saying, "Rommel
Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...
will not get to Alexandria, he will not get the Canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...
, and he will never dine in Cairo - unless as a tourist."[
During the early stages of ]Operation Crusader
Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert Campaign during the Second World War by the British Eighth Army (United Kingdom), Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) ...
, the 5th South African Brigade was destroyed on 23 November 1941 at Sidi Rezegh. This loss is thought to have spurred Pienaar to disobey a series of orders to engage the enemy over the remainder of the battle. Pienaar's 1st South African Brigade was situated 25 miles south of Sidi Rezegh at Taieb El Esem. Over the following week, Pienaar was first ordered to hold position at Taieb El Esem and later to move north to relieve the encircled 2nd New Zealand Division of XIII Corps (United Kingdom)XIII Corps. Instead, Pienaar defied his superiors; his brigade withdrew from Taieb El Esem and was then slow to move north to relieve the 2nd New Zealand Division, who were then partly overrun and forced to retreat. Historians have argued these actions qualify as insubordination by Pienaar, who is thought to have been reluctant to commit his troops after the loss of the 5th South African Brigade, fabricating or exaggerating reports of enemy attacks as justification for actions. However, despite incurring the anger of senior commanders at the time, he was not formally disciplined.
On 21 June 1942, the 2nd South African Division, with 4th and 6th brigades under command, surrendered at the fall of Tobruk.
On the other hand, Ronald Lewin
George Ronald Lewin CBE (11 October 1914 – 6 January 1984), later known as Ronald Lewin, was a British officer, publishing editor, radio producer and military historian.
Education
Lewin attended University of Oxford at The Queens College on an ...
, who took part in the entire campaign, writes: "what is striking . . . is how often the British would squander a complete armoured brigade in some useless assault on a fixed position." Pienaar simply did not buy into the "Up Guards and at 'em!" approach of the British, which led to the decimation of the Commonwealth and Indian divisions that bore the brunt of so much of the fighting in the Desert War. "You know the three things I hate in this world—British lords, British generals and these bloody Guards!" he told Brigadier E. P. Hartshorn.[Hartshorn, Eric P. ''Avenge Tobruk'', Purnell, Cape Town (1960)] regarding the loss of Tobruk in 1942. Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...
wrote in volume 4 of his memoirs, ''The Hinge of Fate'', "The burden of blame falls upon the ritishHigh Command rather than on he fortress commander, South AfricanGeneral Klopper">endrikKlopper and still less on his troops."
On 20 November 1942 he was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath
Companion may refer to:
Relationships Currently
* Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance
* A domestic partner, akin to a spouse
* Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach
* Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...
(CB) "in recognition of the supreme gallantry and magnificent achievements of British and Dominion Troops and their Commanders in the present operations in the Middle East".
Death and legacy
In 1942, Major General Pienaar was killed in an air crash in Kenya
)
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, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
on his way back to South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. The plane crash occurred early Saturday morning in Kavirondo Gulf at Lake Victoria killing him and eleven South African officers and men, including Colonel Frederick Theron, Lt. Col. Eric Vickers Frykberg and Lt. Col. Eric Loftus Mackenzie. The plane crashed 16 km from the airfield at Kisumu
Kisumu ( ) is the List of cities and towns in Kenya by population, third-largest city in Kenya after the capital, Nairobi, and the coastal city of Mombasa (census 2019). It is the third-largest city after Kampala and Mwanza in the Lake Victor ...
when a combination of pilot fatigue and an electrical fault in the undercarriage which could not be raised, resulted in a loss of speed and failure to maintain height and it flew into the water. He was survived by his wife Norma and his children: Nelia, Barry and Fay.
Pienaar was arguably one of South Africa's most charismatic and popular military commanders. An infantry regiment, the exhibition hall at the South African National Museum of Military History
The South African National War Museum in Johannesburg was officially opened by Prime Minister Jan Smuts on 29 August 1947 to preserve the history of South Africa's involvement in the Second World War. In 1975, the museum was renamed the South Af ...
and a suburb of his home town, Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State (province), Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legisla ...
, were later named after him.
Sam Brewer, war correspondent for the ''Chicago Tribune,'' wrote in an obituary that Pienaar was "acknowledged by all the military authorities...as one of the best fighting leaders the British have found in this war. He was every inch a soldier and a man, and on top of that had a quality not always found in a tough general—he was loved like a father by his men. . . . More than once he had hard words with higher authorities when he thought insufficient attention was being paid to the safety and comfort of the footsloggers who were bearing the brunt of the fight. Two points struck everybody who met Dan Pienaar—first his disregard for personal danger; second his solicitude for his men."[
Numerous streets throughout South Africa have been named after him, including: ]Aliwal North
Aliwal North (officially Maletswai) is a town in central South Africa on the banks of the Orange River, Eastern Cape Province. It is a medium-sized commercial centre in the northernmost part of the Eastern Cape.
History
Sir Harry Smith, then ...
, Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...
and Queenstown in the Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha.
The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
; Nelspruit
Mbombela (also known as Nelspruit) is a city in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province. Located on the Crocodile River (Mpumalanga), Crocodile River, Mbombela lies about by road west of the Mozambique border, ea ...
, Middelburg Middelburg may refer to:
Places and jurisdictions Europe
* Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands
** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...
and Volksrust
Volksrust is a town in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa near the KwaZulu-Natal provincial border, some 240 km southeast of Johannesburg, 53 km north of Newcastle and 80 km southeast of Standerton.
History
The town was la ...
in Mpumalanga; Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein, ( ; , "fountain of flowers") also known as Bloem, is one of South Africa's three capital cities and the capital of the Free State (province), Free State province. It serves as the country's judicial capital, along with legisla ...
and Ladybrand
Ladybrand is a small agricultural town in the Free State (South African province), Free State province of South Africa, situated 18 km from Maseru, the capital of Lesotho. Ladybrand is one of five towns that forms the Mantsopa Local Municipa ...
in the Free State; Thaba Tshwane
Thaba Tshwane is a military base (or military area) in Pretoria, South Africa.
Units and facilities
The oldest building in the complex is the South African Garrison Institute, what is now known as the Army College. Lord Kitchener laid the corn ...
military base in Pretoria
Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.
Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...
, Centurion East, Florida North and Florida Hills
Florida Hills is a suburb of Johannesburg in Gauteng Province, South Africa. It lies to the northwest of downtown Johannesburg and north of Soweto. It is a suburb of Roodepoort
Roodepoort is a town in the Gauteng province of South Africa. For ...
in Gauteng
Gauteng ( ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The name in Sotho-Tswana languages means 'place of gold'.
Situated on the Highveld, Gauteng is the smallest province by land area in South Africa. Although Gauteng accounts for only ...
; in the Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
;
See also
* 1st Infantry Division (South Africa)
* East African Campaign (World War II)
* Western Desert campaign
Sources
*
*
*''Militaria''—Official Professional Journal of the SADF (Vol 12/2: 1982)
* Eric Rosenthal, ''General Dan Pienaar – his Life and his Battles.'' Unie-Volkspers Beperk, Cape Town, 1943, pp. 3, 170
References
External links
Generals of World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pienaar, Dan
1893 births
1942 deaths
South African military personnel of World War I
South African Army generals
People from Bloemfontein
Western Desert campaign
Companions of the Order of the Bath
Afrikaner people
South African military personnel of World War II
Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Kenya
Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
People from Ladybrand
South African military personnel killed in World War II