On 31 March 1902, during the final months of the Second Boer War, the Battle of Harts River, also known as "Battle of Boschbult", was fought between the Boers and the British forces near the confluence of the Harts River and the Brak Spruit, one of its dry tributaries.

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Hart's River (Boschbult)

31 March 1902

By late March 1902, the character of the war had changed dramatically. The British had sectioned off large portions of the veldt with long lengths of barbed wire strung along railway lines, connected by as many as 8000 specially-built blockhouses. More than 23,656 square kilometres of the Transvaal and 27,358 square kilometres of the Orange Free State had been thus enclosed. Some 50,000 troops manned these lines, while another 80,000, all mounted, pursued the Boers, attempting to trap them against the blockhouse lines. There were, however, a number of gaps in the network of blockhouses. One of these was the desert-like western Transvaal, an area half the size of New Brunswick.

The 900-strong 2nd Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles had arrived in the region in mid-March 1902, and already had taken part in a major offensive involving 16,000 troops. The operation drove 2500 Boers into the desolate far western reaches of the Transvaal. The British were soon on their trail again. Early on the morning of 3 March, a column that included the 2nd Regiment embarked on a 65-kilometre search for Boers along the bed of the practically dry Brak Spruit, which ran off the much larger Harts River. By mid-morning, the scouts had struck a fresh trail, apparently made by a small number of Boers.

Sensing an easy victory, the column went off in pursuit, leaving the 2nd Regiment to follow, escorting the slow-moving baggage train. Prospects seemed good, but the Boers, in fact, outnumbered the British force, and had the advantage of terrain. The British commander decided to set up a defensive position around a farm called Boschbult. By the time the Canadians arrived with the baggage train, the Boers were beginning to push back the British defences.

All during the afternoon the Boers shelled the camp with artillery, while their riflemen on the surrounding ridges poured down a steady fire.

They also made a series of mounted charges during one of which a party of 21 Canadians, under Lieutenant Bruce Carruthers, was cut off by a vastly superior force. Rather than surrender or run, the men fought until their ammunition was exhausted and their position was overrun. 18 of the 22 were killed or wounded. (

The Canadian stand

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The determined Boers attacked the British camp for hours. Between the heavy shell and rifle fire, they would send in regular cavalry charges.

During one such charge, a large group of Boer troops separated 21 Canadian soldiers from the main British force. The Canadians chose not to surrender or retreat. Instead they fought until their ammunition ran out and their position was overrun. The Canadians suffered great loss: 18 of the 21 soldiers were killed or wounded. )

At 5:00 p.m. the Boers suddenly broke off the engagement and withdrew.

The battle was a British defeat. Out of a total force of 1800 men, the British lost 33 killed, 126 wounded, and over 70 missing. Canadian casualties were 13 killed and 40 wounded. With the exception of the first engagement at Paardeberg, on 18 February 1900, Harts River was the bloodiest day of the war for Canada.

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On the morning of March 31, 1902, a column including the 2nd Regiment, C.M.R., left on a 65-kilometer search for Boer commandoes along the Brak Spruit, a tributary of the Harts River. A fresh trail of what appeared a small number of Boers was discovered by mid-morning and, believing an easy victory was at hand, the column left in pursuit. The 2nd Regiment, C.M.R. was left to guard the slow moving baggage train.

The Boers outnumbered the British forces pursuing them and the British were forced to establish a defensive position around a farm known as Boschbult. The defenders were being pushed back by the time the Canadians arrived and the Boer artillery and rifle fire continued through the afternoon. The Boers also conducted a number of mounted charges, at one time cutting off 21 Canadians under Lt. Bruce Carruthers. The Canadians fought until their ammunition ran out and they were overrun, with 18 of them being killed or wounded. At 5:00 pm, the Boers unexpectedly broke off the engagement and left.

Of the 1,800 men engaged on the British side, 33 were killed, 126 wounded, and 70 were missing. Canada lost 13 men and 40 wounded. It was the second worst day for casualties for Canada since Paardeberg, on February 18, 1900

This battle occured on my family 's farm . ( Phillipp Weyers )

Canada and the South African War (Boer War)

The South African War (1899–1902) was Canada's first foreign war. Also known as the Boer War, it was fought between Britain (with help from its colonies and Dominions such as Canada) and the Afrikaner republics of Transvaal and the Orange Free State. Canada sent three contingents to South Africa, while some Canadians also served in British units. In total, more than 7,000 Canadians, including 12 nurses, served in the war. Of these, approximately 270 died. The war was significant because it marked the first time Canadian troops distinguished themselves in battle overseas. At home, it fuelled a sense that Canada could stand apart from the British Empire, and it highlighted the French-English divide over Canada's role in world affairs — two factors that would soon appear again in the First World War

• Major Wallace Bruce Matthews Carruthers

(13 February 1863 - 21 October 1910)

In 1902, Carruthers again volunteered for service in South Africa as a Lieutenant in the 2nd Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles. On 31 March 1902 he was involved in the action at Harts River (Boschbult) where he was leading some 21 men of 3rd and 4th Troops 'E' Squadron to screen the main body of Cookson's Column as they prepared a defensive position. Faced with several hundred charging Boers and no cover, Lieutenant Carruthers dismounted his men to meet the attack. They fought until out of ammunition by which time 18 had been killed or wounded, including Carruthers. Some references, although not consistently, indicate that he was taken prisoner in that action but further details of that are unknown.

In general, the Boer were not capable or interested in keeping prisoners and usually, after being stripped of weapons and useful equipment, the prisoners were soon released. For this action, Carrtuhers was Mentioned in Despatches by Lord Kitchener who said "There have been fewer finer instances of heroism in the whole course of the campaign." As a result of his service he was awarded the Queen's South Africa Medal with five clasps: Paardeberg, Driefontein, Johannesburg, Cape Colony, SA 1902

Reference

https://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/exhibitions/boer/battlehartsriver_e.html

http://www.goldiproductions.com/angloboerwarmuseum/Boer31_battles4....

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/south-african-war

http://www.rcsigs.ca/index.php/Wallace_Bruce_Matthews_Carruthers