1900 – Freddie Tait Falls at Koodoosberg

On 7 February 1900, Lieutenant Frederick Guthrie Tait, better known as Freddie Tait, was killed while leading his men during the fighting at Koodoosberg Drift on the Modder River.

Born in Scotland in 1870, Tait was one of the finest amateur golfers of his generation, winning The Amateur Championship in 1896 and 1898. His powerful driving became legendary, and he was widely admired for his sportsmanship and courage. When the South African War broke out, Tait volunteered for military service with the Black Watch. During the campaign to relieve Kimberley, he was leading an advance against Boer positions when he was struck by a sniper's bullet and killed instantly at the age of just 29.

Tait already had strong connections with Kimberley. Before the war, he had visited the city to compete on its golf course, where his remarkable skill earned him lasting admiration among local golfers. Today, his memory lives on at the Kimberley Golf Club, home to the Freddie Tait Golf Museum, which preserves the story of one of the game's greatest amateurs and his connection to the Diamond City.

Did You Know?

The Freddie Tait Golf Museum at Kimberley Golf Club is believed to be the only museum in the world dedicated entirely to the life of the legendary amateur golfer.

1900 – Long Tom Arrives

115 days since the beginning of the Siege of Kimberley

On the morning of 7 February 1900, Kimberley's residents heard an explosion unlike anything they had experienced during the siege.

Winifred Heberden later recorded her first reaction: "I jumped to the conclusion that 'Long Cecil' had exploded and reversed itself and sent the shell over our heads..." Rushing upstairs with her son Reggie, she watched in astonishment as another enormous shell burst near the No. 2 Redoubt. It soon became clear that the Boers had secretly positioned a powerful 6-inch Creusot siege gun, better known as Long Tom, at Kamfersdam, approximately 3¼ miles (5.2 kilometres) from the town.

The gun had been concealed so skilfully among the buildings and machinery at Kamfersdam that Kimberley's observers had failed to detect it. Its massive 100-pound (45 kg) shells were unlike anything previously fired into the town. One shell narrowly missed George Labram's office at the De Beers headquarters, ricocheting around the room after striking a safe. Another demolished part of an ironmonger's shop opposite the Grand Hotel, seriously injuring a workman and narrowly missing several pedestrians.

Between bombardments, life continued as best it could.

Winifred observed: "One lives, nowadays, only to see what one can get to eat." That evening she and her family ate a simple meal of horse meat and pickles before the shelling resumed. The arrival of Long Tom marked a turning point in the siege. Kimberley was no longer simply under bombardment—it was now within range of one of the most formidable artillery pieces of the South African War.

Did You Know?

The Long Tom shell that narrowly missed George Labram's office on 7 February was fired by the same gun that would kill him just two days later, on 9 February 1900, while he was walking through Kimberley.