| First Battle of Colenso | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theNorthern Natal Offensive of theSecond Boer War | |||||
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland |  South African Republic | ||||
| Strength | |||||
| ~200 | unknown | ||||
TheFirst Battle of Colenso (3 November 1899), often called theSkirmish of Colenso, was a military engagement between theDurban Light Infantry and aBoer commando.[1] At the time, the Boers had just surrounded the city ofLadysmith, placing them under siege.
With the Boers having laid Ladysmith under siege, and trapping most of the British force in Natal there, the remainder of the British forces began to move towardsEstcourt. A small detachment of theDurban Light Infantry and a naval brigade fromHMS Tartar had constructed fortifications atColenso, acting as an outpost for the British forces in the area.[1] On 3 November, the Boers moved their artillery to the heights to the north of Colenso. They began to open fire on the British position, with the British taking no cover as they had no artillery to counter. They hastily evacuated their positions after some time, and left before Boer infantry could take the town. These forces then moved to Estcourt, leaving theTugela River undefended, allowing the Boers to set up defensive positions there.[2]