Units
2nd Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles
The 2nd Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles on patrol in South Africa,
February – March 1902. Note the rather bedraggled appearance of
some of the
Stetsons, the Orndorff bandoliers, and
Mark 1 Lee-Enfield rifles.
In early 1901, the Canadian government offered to raise a third
contingent for service in South Africa, but the British replied that
there was no need. In November 1901, however, the British government
requested a four-squadron regiment of mounted rifles. In a departure
from previous practice, the unit was recruited as an integral part of
the British Army, though retaining its Canadian identity. Moreover,
while the Canadian Department of Militia and Defence would equip and
train the unit, the British would pay its costs. The response from the
public was so enthusiastic that Ottawa, realizing there was surplus
space on the troopships, offered to raise another two squadrons. When
the unit finally sailed from Canada in January 1902 it was a
six-squadron regiment of 901 officers and men. Together with the
10th Canadian Field Hospital,
it formed the third Canadian contingent.
Appointed to command the new unit was
Lieutenant-Colonel T.D.B. Evans, who
had earlier earned a reputation as the best Canadian leader of mounted
troops while in command of the Canadian Mounted Rifles in the second
contingent. The majority of the officers and at least a quarter of the
men had previously served in South Africa.
After a number of weeks training at Newcastle in Natal, the unit was
ready for action and moved by rail to Klerksdorp, southwest of
Johannesburg. By this time, the nature of the war had changed
dramatically. The Boer forces were reduced in numbers to less than
25,000 in the field. The countryside had been largely cleared of
inhabitants, who had been confined in concentration camps. Moreover, the
free movement of the mounted Boer commandos was greatly restricted by
long lines of blockhouses, linked by barbed wire, that snaked across the
veldt and followed railways and river lines. The British had 150,000 men
in the field, with nearly half manning the blockhouse lines and
garrisoning towns. The bulk of the remainder were mounted, pursuing
Boers across the veldt. There were still gaps in the network of
blockhouses, including the arid western Transvaal
(See map), where the British
sent the regiment.
The mounted rifles participated in a number of major drives that
resulted in the destruction of at least twenty percent of the Boer
forces in the western Transvaal, most of these being captured. It was
not all one sided, however. On 31 March the unit fought as part of an
outnumbered British force at the
Battle of Harts River, or Boschbult.
Casualties were heavy, including 13 Canadians killed, 40 wounded, and
seven missing. With the exception of the first engagement at Paardeberg
on 18 February 1900, Harts River
was the bloodiest day of the war for
Canada.
The unit participated in a number of other drives to round up Boers
before the war ended on 31 May 1902. It returned to Canada at the end
of June. While its tour of operations had not been long, the 2nd
Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles had proven to be a worthy successor
to the units of the first and second contingents.
Map Indicating the Movement of
the 2nd Canadian Mounted Rifles, 19 March - 16 June 1902