African Entrepreneurship Record-Chapter 799 - 103: The Wheel of Fortune Turns

Natal Colony.

British Commissioner Marshall arrived here by ship. Due to the devastation of the South African War, the Mozambique alliance is in a precarious situation, so to explore and question the South African War, Commissioner Marshall landed on Natal Colony.

Seeing Marshall come to South Africa empty-handed, the Natal garrison felt somewhat disappointed; what they need most right now is support and reinforcements from home.

However, Marshall evidently doesn't think so, because before the war, on paper, the Allies had a definite advantage, with troop strength exceeding East Africa prior to the Angola campaign.

Therefore, the failure of the South African War ultimately lies in the incompetence of the commanders, with Earl Roberts being the foremost, even though Earl Roberts is currently besieged in Mozambique.

Marshall naturally can't fly over to trouble Earl Roberts, while the temporarily safe commanders of the Natal Colony garrison are the ones suffering misfortune.

Having not received assistance, instead they welcomed a harbinger of doom. Marshall's first words upon arriving in Durban were: "Why not attack East Africa!"

"The East Africans have reclaimed and blocked the Tugela River, currently cutting off our northern passage to support Earl Roberts. What kills us is how to respond to the enemy's threat; they are unlikely to stop at the Tugela River line, so our foremost concern should be our own safety, not rescuing Earl Roberts," said Bides, the highest military commander of the Natal Colony, with a tough demeanor.

"Is the situation in South Africa really this dire?" Marshall asked, frowning.

"Far worse than that; we've lost contact with Earl Roberts. Three days ago, the East Africans took Maputo, but according to reports from half a month ago, Earl Roberts and the Mozambique government had already moved inland, so they might still be confronting East Africa."

"Maputo is lost!" This news shocked Marshall.

"Yes, we got this intelligence from Portuguese merchants. Actually, East Africa had already started actions around Maputo earlier, but now it's confirmed, Maputo has been taken by East Africa."

The fall of Maputo left Marshall completely silent. Considering the journey from Britain to South Africa wasn't short, Marshall had been at sea for more than a dozen days, and when he set out, Maputo was still firmly in the hands of the Allies.

"What's the current situation in the Natal Colony? And Cape Town, on the way here I saw the Natal forces weren't few, but many soldiers are idle and not engaged. If not for the East Africans occupying the northern shore, I would have thought Natal had returned to peace!" Marshall asked angrily: "So why haven't you organized a counterattack?"

Bides answered with cold sweat: "Commissioner, don't be fooled by the apparent size of Natal's forces; most of these soldiers are Indians, thus their fighting competency is extremely concerning, and the majority of the British have been taken by Earl Roberts to Mozambique. Natal's British forces aren't more than four thousand, only three thousand seven hundred troops, insufficient to change the tide of war; our main focus is on defense now."

"Are the East Africans undefeatable gods? And what about Indian soldiers, are they not human too? If they can pull the trigger and aim, they are qualified soldiers, don't make excuses for your failures," Marshall dismissively said, in his view the defeat in the war was entirely due to the incompetence of commanders led by Roberts.

Yet Bides couldn't express his grievances, facing the reality of taking Indian soldiers into battle was daunting despite their reputation for boasting.

He had no doubt, if the defense at the Tugela River was left entirely to Indians, the next day East Africans would be walking the streets of Durban City, probably let in directly by Indians.

However, Marshall didn't believe in such absurdity, even though Britain had plenty of derogatory jokes about Indians, they were human as well, possessing many strengths, such as being better at cooking than the British.

So Marshall issued orders to Bides directly: "I don't care what kind of soldiers you command, even if it's a herd of pigs, dogs, cattle, and sheep, you must mobilize them to reclaim Maputo instead of idling in Natal."

Facing the "unreasonable" new superior, Bides had no recourse, ironically, he began to miss Earl Roberts; while strict, Roberts understood the military situation fairly well.

As for this home-appointed commissioner, he was like a fighting hen, making Bides uneasy, yet Bides dared not defy Marshall's orders, reluctantly beginning to organize the "hopeless" Indian soldiers, preparing to confront East Africa along the Tugela River line.

As for crossing the river, it was completely out of Bides' consideration for now; the Natal Colony should pray that East Africans focus their efforts on Mozambique, not Natal, given the current momentum of East Africans, should they aim for Natal, the Tugela River defense might not hold for even one day.

...

Bides' worries proved entirely justified; the difficulty of defending the Tugela River was something East Africa's Ninth Brigade was quite familiar with, even though East Africa had maintained the defense line for years prior.

Even then, it was captured by British forces after just one day, albeit East Africa's Ninth Brigade strategically withdrew to New Hamburg City rather than fully counter the British crossing.

It indicated the Tugela River's unfavorable conditions for defense, and now tables have turned, making it a dilemma for Natal Colony as it once was for East Africa.

After resolving Maputo, East African forces concentrated in Mozambique, not needing as many troops, thus the Southern District began planning offensives towards Natal and Cape Town.

Before the war ended, East Africa certainly wouldn't allow Natal Colony and Cape Town Colony to remain unchallenged.

Previously targeting Angola and Mozambique took priority, leaving East Africa no room to deal with the British; now with Mozambique secured, the Southern District plans to exact revenge on Natal and Cape Town.

Natal and Cape Town, two British colonies, were the most "nauseating" existence for the Southern District due to overarching strategic reasons.

Southern District had to cooperate with other military districts for campaigns against Portuguese colonies, while British colonies were often stabbing Southern District in the back.

Of course, as an adversary, it's understandable for Britain to do so, yet such provocation long ago stirred disgust in the Southern District, much like flies, irritating.

Moreover, the culprits of the South African War included the British; it could even be said that Britain and East Africa jointly led the conflict, indifferent to finding fault within themselves, so it was all the British's fault.

After resolving Maputo, most Southern District forces retreated, leaving a small contingent to follow the Guard Division, West District marched north to hunt Earl Roberts.

Whereas Southern District forces gathered towards directions of the Orange River and Tugela River.

On December 23, 1888.

The Southern District launched a counteroffensive against the southern British colonies on Christmas Eve, while simultaneously other East African forces arrived at Shao Kui, firmly encircling Earl Roberts' troops.