The Capture Of Frank Pearson - The Renegade Englishman.

The Capture Of Frank Pearson - The Renegade Englishman.

The Transvaal 1900 - 1901.

The South African War had been raging since October 1899, despite many reverses by 1901 British and Empire troops had captured many towns and cities in both the Transvaal and Orange Free State.

The British generals thought the war was as good as won, but instead it had turned into a guerilla war, with roving Boer Commandos wreaking havoc on British outposts and supply lines.

By December 1900 the British were on the hunt for several Boer Generals, Koos De La Rey, Christiaan Frederik Beyers, and Christiaan De Wet being some of the more famous. At this point in the war the Boers were desperate for supplies, mainly boots and clothing. They attacked a British supply column on the 2nd December taking boots and clothes while burning the rest, then on the 13th December the Boers attacked the British camp at Nooitgedacht.

General Koos De La Rey On Commando

A British Brigade under the command of Major General R.A.P Clements were camped under the Magaliesberg mountains, to the north on top of the mountain was a picket of 300 men of the Northumberland Fusiliers stretched over 2 miles.

Beyers commando was split into three parts, one would attack the picket on the mountain, another would attack the main camp, while the last would take the several kopje's in the south. The result was that the Northumberland Fusiliers gave Beyers men on the mountain a very bloody time, the Boers falling back only to attack again, the fighting was furious with high losses on both sides, eventually the Fusiliers gave way to superior numbers and many were captured. A relief column from the main camp was cut to pieces as they tried to climb up the steep slopes.

General Christiaan Frederik Beyers

The main camp was attacked simultaneously, and although a stout resistance was put up the brigade retreated south to what became known as Yeomanry Hill, all the other kopje's had been captured by De La Rey. Yeomanry Hill became the focus of British resistance while the camp was looted for anything useful by the Boers, one Boer commented "we were refitted from head to heal".

This was quite a victory for the Boers but it did nothing to stem the tide, the British were soon back on the trail of the elusive commandos. This is only one example of how the Boers ran rings around the British during this guerilla phase, there were many other examples. 

It was due to this theft of British uniforms and increasing instances of British troops being fired upon by other supposed friendly forces that were far from friendly, that General Kitchener allegedly issued a controversial order, was it to summary execute or put the perpetrators on trial with the end result of a possible execution? The vagueness of this order was to eventually put Harry "Breaker" Morant and Peter Handcock in front of a firing squad in 1902, they saw it as a carte blanche to kill Boers, this controversial trial is still hotly debated.

On To Wolmaransstad.

Wolmaransstad was a strategic town for both the Boers and British, it would be important to deny the Boer commandos the towns supplies, and it would also be a good base for the British to dominate the surrounding area.

The Landdrost (a kind of official of military justice) of Wolmaransstad was an Englishman called Frank Pearson, Pearson was notorious for handing down harsh penalties and even the sentence of death for what he considered cowardice or treason. When the first phase of the war had ended Boer prisoners were encouraged to sign an oath of neutrality, to stop any further military action and hand over their firearms. Pearson encouraged them to renege on the oath and take up arms in the guerilla war. Some refused, and they were shot.

On the 11th February the Imperial forces were 30 miles to the south of Wolmaransstad, the day before, the Boers dug in on the Hart's River had been routed by artillery fire, and a direct assault across the swollen river.

A Boer Commando In Action.

Just before dawn British scouts found a party of Boers on the road, one of the Boers was wounded in the skirmish. Before the column reached the town Boer forces tried to flank the British, but were driven off by artillery fire. The remaining Boers in the town soon left, among them was Landdrost Pearson.

According to a press release called "Lord Methuen's Operations - Klerksdorp, Transvaal"; 

General Christiaan De Wet

"The Boers in the village cleared out smartly, and the notorious Commandant Pearson narrowly escaped being captured. He was in a cart, and one of the horses stuck, and our scouts were getting dangerously close, when the jibbing animal moved on, and the horses being fresh, he got away. A pocket book belonging to him was picked up in which was written a proclamation purporting to be issued by Lord Roberts offering £50,000 each for the capture of Steyn and Kruger, £30,000 for De Wet, and other rewards for other Boer leaders. The concoction of lies was evidently intended for publication. Four Boers were caught, three of them Griqualand West rebels."

"We found that the prisoners held by the Boers at the place had been sent away the night before, accompanied by the fire-eating officials, and were out of reach. Among them was Major Paget, of Paget's Horse, and six burgher prisoners condemned to death for assisting the British by the Boer court recently held in Wolmaransstad."

The next day there was an artillery duel between the British and Boers which caused several casualties on both sides. De Wet's commando were supposed to have attacked that night but it did not materialise. On the 15th the Imperial forces started to move north and west in the direction of Klerksdorp, with much skirmishing.

According to The Morning Post;

"Kimberley,

Five men who have arrived here from Wolmaransstad state that the Boers gave them the option of leaving the town or of standing their trial for high treason. They report that Mr Frank Pearson, an Englishman, the landdrost of the district and a former landdrost of Dewaal, is awaiting his trial for high treason.

The Boers have established a military court, and have appointed Mr Rothman, formerly British Prosecutor at Klerksdorp, State Attorney. This court has already sentenced six persons to death, but the sentences have not been carried out..

General Liebenberg has had a number of Burghers shot at Wolmaransstad. He is now chief of the arsenal and the food depot of the Boer forces operating in the western part of the Transvaal."

An interesting account of the capture of Wolmaransstad was published in The Age of Melbourne, Australia;

"On entering...we rounded up the inhabitants and collected them in the market square. One heard shouts all round of 'hands up, there!' 'Keep 'em up!' 'Into the middle of the street with you. Now stand fast; if you dare to move we'll shoot you!' And the orders were given in tones that ensured prompt and anxious obedience. Locked doors were at once smashed in, and every house searched for arms and armed men."

The Harm Pearson Has Done.

From the Oxford Chronicle and Reading Gazette, Friday 03 May 1901.

Lieut. General Paul Methuen

"All arms were employed, and all did well. Lord Methuen, who directed the operations from the front, won a well fought out fight by both sides, and got through successfully his large convoy and cattle to the village of Haartebeetefontein, and on to Klerksdorp next day.

We have since had a very interesting time, with a fair share of hard work. Amongst other things we caught a disreputable and loathsome brute called Frank Pearson, who has lately been acting as Landdrost, of Wolmaransstad. Although he is an Englishman born, on the plea of being a burgher he has been fighting for the Boers, and has not only carried out their orders in a most brutal manner, but has done incalculable harm on his own account, making Boers break the oath of neutrality and take up arms again after they had laid them down.

He has employed all sorts of unfair means to force the burghers to go on commando again, in fact, General Buller's term of 'filthy ingenuity' can rightly be employed to this horrible scoundrel.

I can only quote you what a Dutch refugee said to me regarding Pearson, 'that although an Englishman he had done more harm in the neighbourhood of Wolmaransstad, Haatefontain, and Klerksdorp than a thousand Boers."

The Capture of Frank Pearson.

From a letter received by Mr C. Pagett, from his brother, a sergeant in the 1st Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, who is with Lord Methuen's column at Fourteen Streams - the Hendon & Finchley Times, Friday 10 May 1901.

"Our detachment left Welverliend on 3rd March and rode towards Klerksdorp, where we joined A and E companies of our regiment who have been with Methuen all along. We have accomplished our first trek, viz, Klerksdorp to Fourteen Streams, 140 miles hard marching; we did it in ten days.

Column has been here a week come Thursday, so we expect trekking any day; should not be surprised to see division broken up. Trekking went down badly with us Welverdiend mob, but we soon broke ourselves in. Bad enough on the march now, but although marching is as hard as ever, it cannot be compared to the old time trekking in the Free State when we often - very often - had to march and fight on practically empty stomachs.

Now we always get full rations of biscuits and meat and coffee three times a day. I will give you a brief outline of how Methuen marches now.

British Soldiers On The March.

Start trekking at 2am, march till about 10 or 11, when, as a rule, we have done till following morning, unless, with something special in view, we do a second march in the evening. Then, again, we have tents to lie under, which makes things more comfortable.

Our march down here was without incident, just a little skirmish now and again on our rear guard. Our pom-poms always drive away any Boers who try to stop our progress. Pom-poms accounted for three Boers killed and five wounded on one occasion. We brought in plenty prisoners, including the notorious Landdrost and Commandant, Frank Pearson.

Methuen took a flying column of artillery and cavalry with him, and got a muck-in at a place called Wolmaransstad, where he worsted the Boers and captured Pearson, who was just getting away in a Cape Cart. Pearson, is a grand capture, he being a great agitator for the Boer cause. He is the man who shot in cold blood four Boers who had taken the oath of neutrality, and because they refused to go on commando Pearson shot them dead.

Australian Bushmen, Tough And Resilient.

Methuen refused to see Pearson when our bushmen collared him. His words were 'Take the coward away'. I did two guards over Pearson, six men and myself.  I had to keep him in handcuffs all day, and tie his legs at night. A splendidly educated man. None of the guard were allowed to speak to him, but I got a few words with him at meal times. He told me that this coming winter would finish the Boers as they were unable to get the forage for their horses."

Pearson Is Marched Into Captivity By The 1st Batt. Northumberland Fusiliers.

Pearson Looking Over His Shoulder, Under Guard Of The Northumberlands.

Pearson was a very important prisoner, Boer General De La Rey was concerned that Pearson would be executed for treason. De La Rey still had Major Paget as a prisoner of war, maybe a prisoner swap would be on the cards, this is a letter sent by De La Rey to Methuen, dated 9th March 1901.

It reads;

"Wolmaransstad 9 March 1901.

The Right Honourable Lord Methuen.

I have heard that Landdrost Pearson of Wolmaransstad has been taken prisoner of war by you. I am prepared to exchange him with Major Paget, who is my prisoner.

If you agree to this, you can send Mr Pearson back to our lines in the vicinity of your present camp and you can let me know where you wish me to send Major Paget.

Your obedient servant.

J.H. De La Rey.

The swap never happened and poor old Major Paget had to remain in captivity.

Pearson was lucky not to have been executed, according to Louis Creswicke in his book South Africa and the Transvaal War; Volume 7 (1901), the execution of Boers under Pearson's jurisdiction were barbaric.

"The result of their exertions was the capture of Landdrost Pearson, a person who had rendered himself notorious in connection with the cases of Messers McLachlan and Boyd, who with three burghers were shot at Wolmaransstad. The particulars of the dastardly murder of these men must be recorded, as they serve to show the innate brutality of the Boers, which in the earlier part of the war had been suppressed in hope to seduce the sympathy of the powers.

The news of the execution of five British subjects, so called rebels, by De La Rey's commando was brought to Klerksdorp by Mrs McLachlan, whose husband, father, and brother in law had been amongst the victims. Most of them were burghers who had surrendered or left the country prior to the war, while others were alleged to have taken up arms.

The man Boyd, a British subject, had been detained in jail since July 1900 by the Landdrost, who induced him, with two others, to write down a message to the English praying them to come to their rescue. This afterwards made the plea for sentencing the three men to death. 

Among others sentenced were two burghers named Theunissen, well known farmers of Klerksdorp, who had surrendered with Generals Cronje's commando in June, and had taken the oath of neutrality and refused to break it. Mrs McLachlan, the daughter of the elder Theunissen, gave an account of her loss, narrating how she had taken coffins to the place of execution to bury the bodies of her father, brother, and husband, to whom she had been married only two years, while another lady made the following statement :-

"The Boers have forty of our men prisoners there. Eight or ten have been condemned to be shot. They were tried by the late Landdrost of Klerksdorp, a man named Heethling or Neethling, in conjunction with other members of the court.

The sentences were confirmed by General Smuts and De La Rey, who sent men to carry them out. The four who were shot were Mr Theunissen, his son, his son in law Mr McLachlan, and Mr Boyd. From first to last they were most brutally treated. The execution was a sad spectacle.

The prisoners, on being taken out of jail, grasped one another's hands. They were placed in a row and shot down one by one. Mr Boyd received three bullets, but was still alive when put into the grave. The Boers then fired again, and all was over.

It was nearly being my husband's fate, but, thank God, he escaped. Mr George Savage was also condemned to be shot, but he has been insane since his trial. His wife has gone with Mrs Pienaar to try and get the sentence commuted. Mrs Pienaar being with her may possibly have some influence. From all accounts it appeared that the man Pearson, who was captured by Lord Methuen, was prime actor in the barbarous drama, and, handcuffed, he was removed to await his trial."

So what happened to Pearson? There is very little information on him post capture, it appears that two men, both called Frank Pearson were captured in the same area and six days apart. The first Frank Pearson, (18097), aged 45, has no POW camp listed, the other named Frank Huysche Pearson, (24044), aged 46, was sent to a prisoner of war camp in India. Are they the same man? It does sound like wartime confusion, and that he got off very lightly....but after that.....nothing!