The Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek and the Oranje-Vrijstaat have taken the upper hand against the perfidious British imperialists and their subservient colonies, who simply follow the British in their oppressive conquest. We have the advantage, and we must continue our rapid advancement into the Cape and Natal colonies, or we risk losing the war entirely with the loss of our advantage. The High Command of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek and the Oranje-Vrijstaat have come up with this grand battle plan to be executed immediately by multiple generals and armies, in order to keep our advantage. We shall finish our sieges that have begun, and moving troops into offensives that shall push through British Bechuanaland and the Cape Colony. We shall not stop and cede our advantage to the British who wish to crush us under their colonial boot until we have gained our freedom once again from these British. We have done it before, and we shall do it again, only this time more successfully.

General Schalk Willem Burger is to dig trenches and get stuck in on the Tugela river by the Spion Kop hill. He is to fortify with the Boer Krupp artillery on the Kop on the multiple high positions, and have armies prepared to move and attack any British troops that attempt to cross the river or climb the hill to relieve Ladysmith. He is to utilize his troops that he has currently, that is 8,000 men, 4 Field Guns, and 2 QF 1-Pounders. He shall be reinforced with 6 more field guns, and 3 more QF 1-Pounders, to assist in the holding of Spiel Kop and his position behind the Tugela River. His main efforts are to stop any troops from bringing supplies to Ladysmith, due to its valuable strategic position and location, both to British Natal and the city of Durban. If there is a large British assault on the entrenched position, he is to contact Commandant-General Botha, who shall detach a contingent of troops to defend Spion Kop.

Commandant-General Louis Botha shall take the Italian Volunteer Legion (who shall act as scouts, reporting on any British troops ahead of the advancing army) along with his other troops, the total of with is 7,000 Boers and 250 Italians as well as 10 37mm Maxim Nordenfeldt guns, to assist in the capture of Ladysmith. They shall meet with the troops already sieging the city and bring a total of 20 extra guns to bombard Ladysmith. They shall also coordinate with the troops of General Christiaan de Wet of the Oranje-Vrijstaat and his 2,000 well trained guerilla troops at Ladysmith. Once de Wet and Botha have coordinated their troops with the current sieging forces at Ladysmith, a grand bombardment of the city shall commence for two days. After this grand bombardment of Ladysmith has finished, Commandant-General Botha shall commence an assault from all sides of Ladysmith, with the intent of capturing the city in a rapid and complete fashion, moving and harassing the defenders until they surrender and give Ladysmith over to the combined Boer forces.

As Ladysmith is being sieged and assaulted, Christiaan de Wet is to take his troops and begin a march to Durban, along with 1,000 troops of Commandant-General Botha, where they are to harass and destroy as much infrastructure that could be of possible use to the British. However, it is not a ‘March to the Sea’, such as the one by Tecumseh Sherman in the American Civil War, simply a rapid and destructive advance over Natal towards Durban, where, hopefully, the defenders are not expecting a Boer attack and shall surrender immediately. However, if Durban is fortified with defenders expecting us, we are to stop

President Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, on behalf of all Boers, has delivered a message to the Boers of the Colony of Natal and the Cape. ‘We ask, no, plead, for you to rise up against the British, join our forces in defeating them. Fight, not just for yourselves, but for South Africa, for freedom, for your brothers, and for the end of imperialism. Rise up, fight for your freedom, fight against the oppressive boot that is the British ‘empire’ for the people of South Africa.’ Kruger also wrote a message to the chieftains of the various tribes of the Cape, promising them land if they fight alongside the ZAR and Oranje-Vrijstaat. Kruger also wrote about the advantageous position that the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek and Oranje-Vrijstaat were in, writing,

‘We can only improve our position against the perfidious British if you join our alliance, as we have stunned them with our victories. Please, join us in our fight for freedom against these British.'

General Piet Cronjé is to take his 8,000 troops, fresh from victory at the Battle of Magersfontein, and split them (6,000 to Mafeking and 2,000 to Kimberley) into two groups to be sent to the multiple sieges happening. As we control all of the strategic points outside of Mafeking, and due to the lack of British troops in the city, we shall break the siege utilizing multiple guns and assaults, utilizing the terrain available in and around the city. Due to the surprisingly staunch resistance from Colonel Robert Baden-Powell and his small number of troops who have managed to hold out (primarily due to a lack of a coordinated attack from the troops of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek and Oranje-Vrijstaat), we shall utilize our troops that were, for the moment, defending against any possible relief troops for Mafeking. 1,500 troops shall be left behind to notify, patrol, and defend against, however unlikely and far-fetched, a British relief column. The rest of the 4,500 troops shall take up positions around the city, where small groups of 500 troops shall assault the city utilizing small raids all around the city, causing the British defenders to pull their troops out of position. Whenever they engage, we shall fire a few irregular salvos, and pull away, slowly whittling the British down, all the while moving into the city.

The ongoing Siege of Kimberley, led by Commandant Cornelius Wessels, is to be reinforced with the troops of Piet Cronjé, and shall follow a similar pattern to the other sieges taking place around the British territory. The troops there shall quickly bombard the troops there and assault the city. However, if the city cannot be taken with relative ease in a week, we shall take a token force to defend the city and begin a mobile campaign to defend the city, defending Magersfontein like we have done in the past, and lightly engaging any troops that attempt to relieve Kimberley with raids before they get to Magersfontein, where we shall engage and win like we have done I the past.

Once any ZAR/OV troops, including those of the sieging Generals Cronjé and Botha, as well as other Generals like Jan Smuts and Jacobus Herculaas de la Rey, have finished a siege or are not engaging in a meaningful conflict or defense, are to begin a campaign of guerrilla warfare. All of our troops (Save for General Burger’s until we are sure of the safety and capture of Ladysmith) are to split into small groups suitable for raiding. They are to utilize similar tactics to what we used in the First Boer War, but in the case of supply caravans, the troops are to completely and fully engage, destroying any supplies unable to be taken and used by our forces.

Total Troop Numbers

General Shalk Willem Burger

• 8,000 Boer Troops

• 10 Field Guns

• 5 QF 1-Pounder

Objective: Defend Spion Kop against any British relief efforts to Ladsmith

Commandant-General Louis Botha

• 7,000 Boer Troops

• 250 Italian Scouts

• 30 37mm Maxim-Nordenfeldt Guns

Objective: Supporting the siege of Ladysmith and rapidly ending the siege with a collective and organized assault on the city

General Christaan de Wet

• 2,000 Boer Guerrillas

Objective: Meeting with the troops of General Botha and then moving towards Durban, attempting to take the city quickly. If that cannot be achieved he is to begin guerilla warfare towards troops in the areas around Ladysmith, Durban, etc. preventing any British reinforcements

General Piet Cronjé

• 8,000 Boer Troops

  • 6,000 Boers to Mafeking
  • 2,000 to Kimberley

Objective for Group I: Finish the Siege of Mafeking using similar tactics to the other sieges, etc.

Objective for Group II: Reinforce and assist in the capture of Kimberley

Commandant Cornelius Wessels

• 4,500 Boers

  • Reinforced by 2,000 Troops of Piet Cronjé

• 15 Field Guns

Objective: Finish siege of Kimberley

Once all troops have finished their Primary objective, they are to begin a campaign of guerrilla warfare to harass and disrupt the supply chains of the massive British army in the Cape Colony