Well tonight Lismore Cubs and Joeys will be met in Casino by the Casino group to visit the Mafeking Lamp (War Memeorial enscribed with the names of the Richmond Valley men who died in the 2nd Boer War) and take a ride on the Mini Rail. Why will we visit the Mafeking Lamp? Well, this week we celebrate "Founder's Day", the joint birthdays of Baden Powell and his wife Olave, who founded Scouting and Guiding, and it was at Mafeking that B-P got some of his inspiration to found Scouts. Below, some of the story of Mafeking is quoted (from Wikipedia).
"The Siege of Mafeking was the most famous British action in the Second Boer War. It took place at the town of Mahikeng (called Mafeking by the British) in South Africa over a period of 217 days, from October 1899 to May 1900, and turned Robert Baden-Powell, who went on to found the Scouting Movement, into a national hero. The Relief of Mafeking (the lifting of the siege) was a decisive victory for the British and a crushing defeat for the Boers.
"The Siege of Mafeking was the most famous British action in the Second Boer War. It took place at the town of Mahikeng (called Mafeking by the British) in South Africa over a period of 217 days, from October 1899 to May 1900, and turned Robert Baden-Powell, who went on to found the Scouting Movement, into a national hero. The Relief of Mafeking (the lifting of the siege) was a decisive victory for the British and a crushing defeat for the Boers.
"Although outnumbered by over 8,000 Boer troops, the garrison withstood the siege for 217 days, defying the predictions of the politicians on both sides. Much of this was attributable to some of the cunning military deceptions instituted by Baden-Powell. Fake landmines were laid around the town in view of the Boers and their spies within the town, and his soldiers were ordered to simulate avoiding barbed wire (non-existent) when moving between trenches; guns and a searchlight (improvised from an acetylene lamp and biscuit tin) were moved around the town to increase their apparent number. (See Jon Latimer, Deception in War, London: John Murray, 2001, pp. 32–5.) A howitzer was built in Mafeking's railway workshops, and even an old cannon (dated 1770, it coincidentally had "B.P. & Co." engraved on the barrel)[2]:424 was pressed into service. Noticing the Boers had failed to remove any of the rails, Baden-Powell had an armoured train from the Mafeking railyard loaded with sharpshooters and sent up the rail line in a daring attack right into the heart of the Boer camp, followed by a safe return to Mafeking. Often soldiers were asked to dress as women undertaking normal activities such as fetching water and sewing to disillusion the enemy. |
The morale of the civilian population was also given attention, and Sunday ceasefires were negotiated so that sports, competitions and theatrical performances could be held. Notable were the cricket matches held on a Sunday. Initially, the religious sensibilities of General J. P. Snyman (in command after Cronje departed) were offended, and he threatened to fire upon the players if they continued. Eventually Snyman relented and even invited the British to a game. Baden-Powell replied that first he had to finish the present match, in which the score was '200 days, not out'!
http://www.scouting.org.za/seeds/bluff.html - notes from Scouts South Africa
See you in Casino, 6pm.
Kim.
http://www.scouting.org.za/seeds/bluff.html - notes from Scouts South Africa
See you in Casino, 6pm.
Kim.