Battle of Bronkhorstspruit 1880
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 20 December 1880 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1880 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | South Africa | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Africa | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | First Boer War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | -25.8403, 28.7419 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Bronkhorstspruit was the first major engagement of the First Boer War. It took place by the Bronkhorstspruit river, near the town of Bronkhorstspruit, Transvaal, on 20 December 1880. Threatened by the growing numbers of militant Boers in the Pretoria region, the British recalled the 94th Regiment of Foot, which had several companies garrisoned in towns and villages across the wider area. The regiment's commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Philip Robert Anstruther, led a 34-wagon column consisting of roughly 250 men on a 188-mile (303 km) journey from Lydenburg back to Pretoria. A similar-sized Boer commando force, led by Francois Gerhardus Joubert, was ordered to intercept and stop the British.
Despite several warnings of the threat of attack, the British travelled largely unprepared for combat, and the many wagons accompanying them slowed their progress significantly. On 20 December, 24 days after receiving the order to return, Anstruther's column was confronted by the Boers, who demanded under truce that the British stop their march. Anstruther refused, and the Boers attacked while the British soldiers were still preparing. The British suffered heavy casualties and surrendered after about 15 minutes; the survivors were captured.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Bronkhorstspruit (revision 1370435277), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
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- Siege of Marabastad 1881 · 58 km
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- Battle of Rooiwal 1902 · 63 km
- Battle of Bakenlaagte 1901 · 69 km
- Battle of Elandsfontein 1881 · 72 km
Other battles of the First Boer War
- Siege of Rustenburg 1880
- Battle of Elandsfontein 1881
- Battle of Laing's Nek 1881
- Battle of Majuba Hill 1881
- Battle of Rooihuiskraal 1881
- Battle of Schuinshoogte 1881
- Siege of Lydenburg 1881
- Siege of Marabastad 1881
All 9 battles of the First Boer War →
Browse more: battles in South Africa · Africa · 19th century battles