Roberts Arrives
Field Marshal Lord Roberts arrived at Cape Town on 10 January 1900 and assumed supreme command of British forces in South Africa. He travelled aboard the Dunottar Castle with Lord Kitchener, who became his chief of staff. Their appointment followed the defeats of “Black Week,” when British reverses at Stormberg, Magersfontein and Colenso exposed serious weaknesses in command, intelligence and battlefield preparation. Roberts received a formal welcome at the harbour, but the ceremony could not conceal the gravity of his task. British garrisons remained besieged, casualties were rising and reinforcements arriving from across the Empire required organisation.
