Diamond Hill

Map of the first day of the Battle of Diamond Hill (Battles of the 19th Century, vol. VII, 1905)

Diamond Hill is a hill twenty miles east of Pretoria, Transvaal, South Africa.

In Conan Doyle's works

It refers to The Battle of Diamond Hill (Donkerhoek) which took place on 11 and 12 june 1900 during the Second Boer War. 14000 British soldiers squared up against 4000 Boers and forced them from their positions on the hill. It was the last battle in which Winston Churchill was involved, where he had a decisive action by leading the attack.

Essay

• The Great Boer War (1900) : chapter 26 is dedicated to the Battle of Diamond Hill

Fictions

• The Prisoner's Defence (1916) : John Fowler was captain in the Second Breconshire Battalion. He had served in the South African Campaign and was mentioned in despatches after the Battle of Diamond Hill.

• The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier (1926) : Godfrey Emsworth was wounded at the Battle of Diamond Hill.

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