Battlefield History Tours Incorporating History and Heritage tours

Please note that the dates for these tours may vary from the guide below. No tours will be offered until international borders are open.

Today, at least in the morning, the gods who had been favouring us with great weather decided we were not paying them sufficient homage. It rained.

The spitting rain aside, we were all most impressed with the Peace Monument in Vereeniging and Pieter's ingenuity in getting us access. Then on to Parys and the site of the battle of the Flour Wagons where Christian de Wet attempted to take back wagons loaded with flour that had been taken by the British. The British were supported by members of the NSW Medical Team including Neville Howse. In cold steady rain Mary Jane ably assisted by Ross collected a soil sample for the New South Wales War Memorial at Hyde Park, Sydney. We followed-up with a visit to the hill near Vredefort where the then Lieutenant Howse became the first Australian to win the VC.

Road and resultant traffic conditions precluded us visiting Bothaville to collect the next soil sample. Instead we made for Klerksdorp in order to visit the Museum before it closed. We were most impressed by the collection and the fine display.

We were not impressed by the condition of the Klerksdorp Boer War Cemetery. The grave marking scrolls have all been stolen, and the whole cemetery is overgrown. The list of names in the Concentration Camp Cemetery was the only saving grace, we all lamented the loss of such young children, mainly through negligence on the part of British authorities.

© Battlefield History Tours ABN 74107857705, PO Box 201, Northmead NSW 2152, AUSTRALIA, Phone: 1300 450 436 or +61 412 399 693