Newsletter No. 484
June 2016
Our first speaker was the highly acclaimed author and KwaZulu-Natal military historian, Dr Mark Coghlan of the Provincial Museum Service in Pietermaritzburg. He opened by acknowledging up front that it is obviously impossible to do credit to the topic of this lecture in a scant 20 minutes, given the vast corpus of literature on the First World War, its causes, progress and consequences, a list that stretches to many thousands of book titles alone, and this pile has been added to considerably, just when a reader or student of the War may have been forgiven for thinking, during this centenary period (2014-2018), that there couldn't possibly be space for one more! That is one of the wonders of history research and writing - always new material and new or revised and contesting interpretations.
The speaker nevertheless made an attempt at the impossible with a trot through a selection of World War I titles read during the past few years, from Emil Ludwig's July 1914 (1929) to Mark Bostridge, The Fateful years: England 1914, a Year that Began in Peace and Ended in War (2014), by way of such luminaries as Barbara Tuchman and her August 1914 (1962), and Catastrophe: Europe Goes to War 1914 (2013) by Max Hastings.
This modest selection from the vast array of literature was then deployed to discuss, very briefly, some significant areas of contested and/or revised interpretations of this epic conflict, unprecedented as it was in casualties and destructive power. The three topics selected for evaluation were: Causes and Culpability; Lions led by Donkeys; and Stabbed in the Back.
Causes and Culpability emerged immediately after the War ended with Germany being saddled with the lion's share of blame and guilt, only for subsequent generations of historians to migrate towards a more balanced apportionment of culpability.
Then the speaker moved on to another emotive issue that of the brave and phlegmatic Tommies being led to mass slaughter by the proverbial 'donkey' senior officers. Here too, history has shifted in the modern era to a kinder and more balanced interpretation. While not denying the obvious evidence of the horrendous casualties, the extenuating circumstances, such as vast conscript armies, and the impact of devastating defensive weaponry such as artillery and the machine-gun, has increasingly been given more air, along with the evidence that the 'donkeys' were, in fact, learning (although the Germans faster than the Allies), an interpretation that led to the adaptation, as far as weaponry and terrain allowed, of the combined arms operations, with more precise support, that became a hallmark of World War II.
The final issue was that of the Stabbed in the Back assertion put forward after the War by many Germans, including Adolf Hitler, namely that the German Army was never defeated, and had instead been betrayed by politicians. Not so, it has emerged from the evidence and most interpretations: While the German Army on 11 November 1918 remained a significant fighting force, it was, thanks to the numerous lessons learnt by Allied commanders at all levels, and with the Allies buttressed by vast American manpower reserves, definitely heading rapidly for defeat - hence the request for an Armistice. In fact, senior Allied generals were, towards the end of 1918, planning for resumed operations in 1919 when it is almost certain, Allied armies would have pushed into Germany itself and imposed total military defeat.
The talk finished on a light-hearted note with an 'assessment' of ongoing research, investigating trouble with the ladies that beset Sir Edward Grey, the British Foreign Secretary (1905-1916) and his Liberal Party Prime Minister, Herbert Henry Asquith, prior to and during the initial War years. The evidence, so far, was enough to convince the speaker that as women are arguably to blame for most things that go wrong, it was no surprise that they were 'largely' to blame for World War I as well!
The Main Talk was presented by fellow member Alan Townsend, whose topic was entitled "Three Scouts of the Anglo-Boer War and their exploits".
Fritz Joubert Dusquesne
There were about 30 British Scouting units and about 10 Boer units in the Boer War.
The first Scout that Alan dealt with was Captain Frederick "Fritz" Joubert Duquesne (pronounced 'doo - cane') (1877-1956). He was a Boer who led an astonishing life on both sides of the war and law who spoke with an upper class English accent and was schooled in England and Belgium. An officer in the Anglo-Boer War, he fought in Natal and became the creator of the Kruger Millions legend. He was sent to Portugal as a POW but escaped and joined the British Army, became a lieutenant and returned to the War. He swopped sides after witnessing the utter destruction of his family homestead and vowed to kill Kitchener. He was recaptured and sentenced to be executed but managed to evade this fate and was sent to Bermuda as a POW. He led a charming, exciting life on the edge, many times as an escaped prisoner faced execution on several occasions, even being referred to as a pimp. Duquesne was a newspaper reporter, foreign correspondent, novelist, spy and saboteur donning many uniforms including those of Imperial and Nazi Germany.
After the Anglo-Boer War he became a correspondent and an adviser on big game hunting to President Theodore Roosevelt. He accompanied him on safari to East Africa and was publicist for Joseph Kennedy's movie business. Together with another scout in our talk tonight he proposed the translocation of African big game to the USA (including the hippopotami) to overcome meat shortages in the early 1900s. During WW1 he was an Imperial German spy and plotted to kill Kitchener with German aid, and was the best known member of the largest Nazi spy ring broken up by the FBI during World War II. Apparently he is still one of the FBI Top 10 spy cases. Admiral Canaris of the Abwehr lamented his capture.
As a scout he learnt to take the right chances, to deceive the enemy and to take advantage of any weakness to achieve his objective. He was an impostor playing the game on both sides when it suited him but serving only one true master. There are 2 biographies and while one is disparaging the other was adulatory. Films have been made of him, most recently in 1999 a documentary by Francois Verster that won 6 Stone Awards.
In a letter to Major Frederick Burnham written in 1933, Duquesne wrote: "To my friendly enemy, Major Frederick Russell Burnham, the greatest scout of the world, whose eyes were that of an Empire. I once craved the honour of killing him, but failing that, I extend my heartiest admiration. One warrior to another, Fritz Joubert Duquesne, 1933".
Burnham (Chief of Scouts, British Army) had this to say about Duquesne: "He was one of the craftiest men I ever met. He had something of a genius of the Apache for avoiding a combat except in his own terms; yet he would be the last man I should choose to meet in a dark room for a finish fight armed only with knives. Next to Theron I believe Duquesne the greatest scout the Boers produced."
Described as an adventurer, hero, rascal, fool, madman, patriot, villain, perhaps he was all of these.
The second Scout dealt with by our speaker was Danie Theron, who had a tough upbringing by his older half-brother in Bethlehem in the Free State, but had progressed from teacher to lawyer by 1897. He became known for a court case in which he was prosecuted for assaulting the editor of the Star, Mr W.F. Moneypenny, who had written a derogatory editorial article entitled "The Ignorant Dutch". Although he was fined, Theron's satisfaction was giving Moneypenny a hiding. The money for the fine was collected by sympathisers. Inspired by the use of bicycles for dispatch riders by Britain, Australia and New Zealand, Theron was prompted to develop their use in despatch and reconnaissance work in the military and to save horses for combat. President Kruger and Commandant-General Piet Joubert give permission to Danie Theron to form the Wielrijders Rapportgangers Corps. They were initially despatch riders that were also required to provide their units with a variety of field intelligence, not only the enemy's position and strength. Although looked down upon at first, the bravery and successful exploits of Danie Theron´s men resulted in a type of cult following.
Danie Theron
Theron distinguished himself in the eastern or Natal theatre of the war. He became known as "Kaptein Dik-eet" on account of his intervention for his troops to get extra rations. From the 20th October 1899 at the Battle of Talana Hill and subsequent battles in Natal, Theron and his men provided the type of information required to challenge the British army's effectiveness. After the battle of Talana, Theron played a significant role in the capture of most of the 246 British prisoners at Adelaide Farm.
The British advance on Bloemfontein was seen as the biggest threat facing the Boers in that region, which became a new theatre of war for Theron and he was attached to General De Wet's command. By the18th February 1900 General Piet Cronje had become surrounded at Paardeberg on the Modder River. Cronje's force, which included women and children, come under attack and were heavily shelled by the British guns. General de Wet who had arrived on the perimeter of the battlefield, proposed a plan for Cronje´s escape. The difficulty lay in communicating this to Cronje as it meant infiltrating the British lines. Theron performed an extraordinary feat by doing so but Cronje, who was hampered by the presence of women and children, rejected de Wet's plan and eventually surrendered to Field Marshal Lord Roberts on 'Majuba Day', the 27th February 1900.
In March 1900 de Wet appointed Danie Theron to establish his own corps of scouts - known as "Theron se Verkenningskorps" (Theron's Scouts, also known as the "TVK"). Theron was given carte blanche recruit and men of his choice from the forces of both Boer Republics. General de Wet wrote that he had never seen a more colourful bunch of men from all over the world than the "TVK". The corps consisted of about 100 elite young men on horseback and concentrated on reconnaissance and guerrilla attacks. Theron had high standards and was renowned for his tough but fair style of leadership and although his men feared his short fuse, they respected his honesty and admired his strategic superiority. He led the TVK on numerous legendary exploits.
Theron became a thorn in the side of the British by sabotaging railway lines, bridges and attacking numerous outposts, taking several prisoners and capturing vital supplies and continuously harassing the British. For example, on the 19th July 1900 after being attacked by General Broadwood with a force of 4000, his small force engaged in running battles at Karroospruit, Palmietfontein and Tierbank. The TVK lost 8 killed while British casualties were 5 killed and 15 wounded. Massive delays were caused as the British were under the impression that they were dealing with a far larger force. Another example was on the 21st July 1900, when Theron and his men captured a British train four kilometres north of Heuningspruit Station. During the action Theron disarmed and captured 102 Welsh Fusiliers aboard the train. Theron personally cared for the wounded British soldiers, sharing his last water ration with one of them.
On the 5th September 1900 while scouting alone on a kopje in the Gatsrand near Fochville, Theron engaged seven members of Marshall's Horse. Theron's superb marksmanship and weapon handling enabled him to kill three and wound the rest. Despite keeping up a terrific volume of fire (thus giving the impression of a far larger force), the column's escort, alerted by the firing, charged the koppie. The lone scout continued firing and the column´s artillery - comprising a battery of six field guns and a 4,7 inch naval gun - open a heavy barrage on the hill killing the Boer hero.
Tributes were paid to him by both Boer and Briton. On the 28th December 1907, Generals Botha and Smuts unveiled a monument to Danie Theron near Potchefstroom. Another more symbolic monument was erected on the koppie where he fell on the 9th September 1950.
Theron was a true patriot and scorned Boer deserters who returned to their farms, declaring: "Those who do not obey must be forced with loaded rifles to do their duty."
On 6th March 2002, former President Nelson Mandela unveiled the new Danie Theron Monument near the Union Building in Pretoria and gave a rare but touching tribute in Afrikaans. In his speech the late former President valued the fighting spirit of Danie Theron, his honesty, bravery and his determination to do the right thing for his nation and his beliefs. Nelson Mandela said that the modern South Africa needs more people of the calibre of Danie Theron in order to meet the challenges that lie ahead. The South African actress Charlize Theron claims to be a descendant.
When the Neethling family (Theron's proposed parents-in-law) were moved to a Concentration camp the following was recorded: "It was a very slow journey. We young ones sat on the wagon talking. But very soon we were bored and began to sing. We liked to sing Hallelujah hymns. Also English songs. 'What a friend we have in Jesus', many-voiced like our mothers taught us. Then we saw the old English soldier who was walking next to the wagon, with tears in his eyes also singing along, whilst he was staring in the distance. We didn't understand this. 'You are Christians. I am a Christian. It is so wrong.' he said and kept on walking. 'It is so wrong.' Oom Christiaan Neethling said that that soldier gave him hope for the future of our land".
The third scout was Major Frederick Russel Burnham, who grew up on an Indian reservation and from a young age learnt bushcraft skills. He was short but muscular and had remarkable light blue eyes. He developed a deceptive sense of awareness of others in the bush. In those formative years scouting became an exact study to him and as a result he was unsurpassed in what one would term scouting skills today - a blend of tracker, woodsman, hunter and conservationist.
Frederick Russel Burnham
In his pre-teens Burnham assisted his poverty stricken, widowed mother by working as a mounted messenger. Often he was in the saddle from twelve to fifteen hours and gained local fame as a hard rider. He obtained once in a lifetime experiences in the west where he worked with Indians, bandits, prospectors, hunters, soldiers and military scouts. He practised pistol shooting incessantly with both hands as well as from a galloping horse.
Burnham became aware of Cecil Rhodes and his requests for volunteers for the Rhodesian campaign where he fought in the first Matabele uprising and the rebellion of 1896. He survived Allan Wilson's "Last Stand" in 1893, Rhodesia's equivalent of the Alamo.
Burnham developed a reputation even among the black community as "One who sees in the Dark". It was this feat that established his reputation among them as well as Boers and the British in South Africa. Burnham left Rhodesia and continued his travels. In 1900 he received a telegram while in the Klondike to join Lord Roberts in the Anglo-Boer War as Chief of Scouts of the British Army in the field. Lord Carrington who was on Lord Roberts staff recommended him as "The Best". He represented a principle in warfare -- that of individual resources and initiative. He was empathetic to the Boer aspirations, likening them to the Mormons trekking across America. Burnham joined Lord Roberts at Paardeberg in February 1900 as Cronje was making his last stand. Like Theron he often worked alone while scouting. It is said that he entered the Boer lines almost a hundred times, was captured once, but escaped within three days. He encountered General de Wet and Danie Theron in the field, even being shot at by the latter.
Before Johannesburg was captured by the British, Burnham blew up the railway in three places, thus preventing the Boers from removing their locomotive. When Lord Roberts made his dash upon Pretoria, Burnham - carrying a quantity of explosives - planned to blow up the rail east of the town. He was, however, observed by the Boers who fired at him, killing his horse, and the animal fell upon him, causing severe injury. Nonetheless he clung to his explosives, crawled through the Boer lines and achieved his objective thereby preventing the Boers from removing 3,000 British prisoners.
Lord Roberts, the supreme judge of Major Burnham's achievements, wrote the following letter: "Dear Major Burnham. As I hear you are about to return to Europe, I take this opportunity of thanking you for the valuable services you have rendered since you joined my headquarters at Paardeberg last February. I doubt if any other man in the force could have successfully carried out the thrilling enterprises in demanding as they did the training of a lifetime, combined with exceptional courage, caution, and powers of endurance. I was very sorry to hear of the seriousness of the accident you met with on your last successful attempt on the enemy's lines of rail, and I trust sincerely to hear that you are quite well again. Believe me, your sincerely, - - Roberts."
On his arrival in England Burnham was commanded to dine with Queen Victoria and spend the night at Osborne House (on the Isle of Wight) and a few months later, after her death, King Edward VII created him a member of the Distinguished Service Order, and personally presented him with the South African medal with five bars, and the cross of the D. S. O.
Burnham went on to make his fortune in oil and met Duquesne, then a correspondent in New York and they worked together on importing African game to USA to counter meat shortages.
Burnham became the catalyst for Lord Baden-Powell to start the Boy Scout Movement and he died in California in 1947 aged 87.
After some lively questions were put to the speakers, Professor Philip Everitt conveyed the thanks of the audience to both speakers on two well researched and extremely fascinating presentations.
Next Meeting:
Darrell Hall Memorial Lecture: "The Emden" by Rob Crawley
Main Talk: "General CCJ Badenhorst in the Western Free State during the Guerrilla phase of the Anglo-Boer War" by Dr Arnold van Dyk
Future Meetings:
Thursday 14th July 2016:
Darrell Hall Memorial Lecture: "The Last Man to Leave Delville Wood" by Brian Thomas
Main Talk: "The Battles of Tassafarongo and Rennell Island, Guadalcanal" by Roy Bowman
Thursday 8th September 2016:
Darrell Hall Memorial Lecture: Military History Quiz
Main Talk: "D-Day 1066" by Charles Whiteing
Thursday 13th October 2016:
Darrell Hall Memorial Lecture: "The WW2 Arctic Convoys of William Foster" by Clyde Foster
Main Talk: "Isis" by Maj Peter Williams.
Meetings are held at the Murray Theatre, Department of Civil Engineering, University of KwaZulu-Natal Howard College Campus, Durban at 19h00 for 19h30.
2016 Subscription. Those members who have not yet renewed their subscriptions, please note that regrettably this will be the last newsletter that will be sent to you. This coming year the Society is going to have differential rates for the subscriptions viz:
It has been decided that the 2016 Battlefield tour will take place over the weekend of the 27th and 28th August 2016. The tour will include sites in and around Pietermaritburg and the Midlands and those wishing to stay over in that area will be welcome to do so.
The following sites have been identified for possible inclusion in the itinerary:
Further details will be circulated in due course.
CALL FOR PAPERS: "WORLD WAR 1 - SOUTH AFRICA REMEMBERS"
The South African Military History Society and Talana Museum will be facilitating and hosting a Conference to coincide with the centenary of the Battle of Delville Wood. The Conference theme will be "South Africa Remembers" and it will take place at Talana Museum on the 18th and 19th July 2016. A flyer is available on the web-site and anyone who is interested is encouraged to contact either Ken Gillings via e-mail on ken.gillings@mweb.co.za or Ms Pam McFadden on info@talana.co.za if they would like to attend or to present a paper.
South African Military History Society / scribe@samilitaryhistory.org