The Attack on Cronje’s Force at Vedute Drift near Paardeberg, 1900 (oil on canvas)

The Attack on Cronje’s Force at Vedute Drift near Paardeberg, 1900. Oil on canvas by Godfrey Douglas Giles (1857-1941), 1900. On 17 February 1900, during the Boer War (1899-1902), retreating Boer forces led by Piet Cronje from the South African Republic were surprised at a crossing of the Modder River by Lieutenant-General French's cavalry brigade, which had arrived from Kimberley. Accompanied by their families, the Boers chose to take up a defensive position on the north bank of the river. They successfully resisted a frontal attack by Major General Lord Kitchener on 18 February but lack of supplies and a continuing bombardment forced their surrender a few days later. Paardeberg was the first significant British victory of the war, with over 4,000 Boer prisoners taken. ‘The Graphic’ employed Giles, a veteran of the 1st Sudan War (1884-1885), as a special artist during the Boer War; he was present at the Relief of Kimberley and the later capture of Cronje.