On 28 November the House of Traditional Leaders undertook the commemoration of the Transkei Rebellion of 1880 and 1881 with the participation of the 6SAI Battalion soldiers under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Roy Gowar and Lieutenant Colonel Martin Gopane.
On 28 November the House of Traditional Leaders undertook the commemoration of the Transkei Rebellion of 1880 and 1881 with the participation of the 6SAI Battalion soldiers under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Roy Gowar and Lieutenant Colonel Martin Gopane.
The company of soldiers were directed and trained by Basil Mills, commanding officer of the South African Battle Re-enactment Society (Sabre) and they re-enacted the Battle of Ndongwa near Lady Frere.
It was an amazing day as all of the amaXhosa spectators came out in their traditional dress and finery and the battle took place against the backdrop of the Drakensberg mountains.
Moose van Rensburg, the director of the Fort Beaufort Museum, took the place of magistrate Hope who played a role in the incident that sparked the rebellion that culminated into the Battle of Ndongwa.
The South African Police and Bomb Squad, Emergency Services and the Lady Frere and Queenstown municipalities were all on hand to ensure that the commemoration and festivities ran smoothly.
An appreciative crowd of a few thousand people were in attendance. The 6SAI soldiers were divided into three groups in the re-enactment, the Cape Colonial soldiers and police, the amaFengu and the combined amaXhosa and Sotho forces.
They responded enthusiastically to the handling of the old muzzle loading muskets and traditional weapon fighting tactics of the period.
The commemoration was dedicated to the people that lost their lives, their land and their livestock during these sad and trying times of our history. Both re-enactor and spectator alike were moved by the remembrance parade and felt that the re-enactment gave them a better idea of the actual events of that time.
Sabre has been based in Grahamstown and operational for the past 25 years. Its aim is to be both educational and entertaining, bringing a reconciliatory view of our history to all the people of South Africa.
Mills is the commanding officer and historian for the society and is appealing to any member of the public who would be willing to sell or donate any old muzzle loading muskets (voorlaaiers) to contact him on 083 4202 633 as these are desperately needed for future re-enactments.
