The Bambatha Rifles (formerly the Witwatersrand Rifles) is a reserve mechanised

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

of the

South African Army The South African Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of South Africa, a part of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), along with the South African Air Force, South African Navy and South African Military Health Servi ...

History

Origin

The Witwatersrand Rifles (often familiarly known as the "Wits Rifles or the Wit Rifles") was formed by proclamation on 1 May 1903 and absorbed the members of the Railway Pioneer Regiment and the Rand Rifles, both of which had fought on the British side during the

Second Anglo-Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic an ...

of 1899 – 1902. As befitted a regiment based from the gold-rich

Witwatersrand The Witwatersrand (, ; ; locally the Rand or, less commonly, the Reef) is a , north-facing scarp in South Africa. It consists of a hard, erosion-resistant quartzite metamorphic rock, over which several north-flowing rivers form waterfalls, w ...

region, it had a very close relationship with the mining establishment of the time; and its cap badge further emphasised this link.

Bambatha Rebellion

The regiment first saw action during the Bambata Rebellion of 1906, when it deployed a contingent to (the then) Zululand.

Absorption of the Transvaal Light Infantry

In 1907 the regiment was further strengthened when it absorbed the Transvaal Light Infantry Regiment.

World War 1

The regiment was mobilised again when

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

broke out.

German South West Africa

The first action that it took part in was the South African invasion of

German South-West Africa German South West Africa () was a colony of the German Empire from 1884 until 1915, though Germany did not officially recognise its loss of this territory until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. German rule over this territory was punctuated by ...

(now Namibia). After the successful conclusion of this campaign, virtually all members volunteered for overseas service.

Western Front

Most of the volunteers were consequently assigned to the 3rd South African Infantry Battalion. (Due to the South African military law of the time, soldiers could not be forced to serve overseas, nor could existing military units be deployed there.) The most well-known action that this unit took part in was the Battle of

Delville Wood The Battle of Delville Wood was a series of engagements in the 1916 Battle of the Somme in the First World War, between the armies of the German Empire and the British Empire. Delville Wood , was a thick tangle of trees, chiefly beech and ...

in the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France * Somme, Queensland, Australia * Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), ...

East Africa

Other members of the regiment served in the Witwatersrand Rifles company of 7th Infantry ACF, which served in

German East Africa German East Africa (GEA; ) was a German colonial empire, German colony in the African Great Lakes region, which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, the Tanzania mainland, and the Kionga Triangle, a small region later incorporated into Portugu ...

against the forces of General von Lettow-Vorbeck.

Rand Revolt

The inter-war years saw the regiment deployed during the 1922 Rand Revolt, when rebellious

South African Communist Party The South African Communist Party (SACP) is a communist party in South Africa. It was founded on 12 February 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA), and tactically dissolved itself in 1950 in the face of being declared illegal by t ...

miners attempted to overthrow the government of General

Jan Smuts Field Marshal Jan Christian Smuts, (baptismal name Jan Christiaan Smuts, 24 May 1870 11 September 1950) was a South African statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various military and cabinet posts, he served as P ...

. In the early 1930s the regiment affiliated with the

Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was a rifle regiment of the British Army, the only regiment of rifles amongst the Scottish regiments of infantry. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 26th Cameronian Reg ...

Regiment of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. As a consequence, the Witwatersrand Rifles adopted the uniform and many of the traditions of this Scottish Lowland regiment. Despite the Cameronians' disbandment in 1968, the Wits Rifles still continues this heritage today.

World War 2

As a result of the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1939, the regiment was expanded to two

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

s. However, due to the battalions being used to supply replacements in a piecemeal fashion to depleted South African units taking part in the

North African campaign The North African campaign of World War II took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943, fought between the Allies and the Axis Powers. It included campaigns in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts (Western Desert campaign, Desert Wa ...

, the Witwatersrand Rifles was only deployed as a coherent unit (to Egypt) in 1943. During its service in North Africa, the Witwatersrand Rifles was amalgamated with

Regiment de la Rey The General de la Rey Regiment (formerly Regiment de la Rey) is a reserve infantry regiment of the South African Army. Formation The Regiment de la Rey was established in 1934 as one of the new Afrikaans language Citizen Force (South Africa), ...

. This combined regiment, was nicknamed the "Royal Boere" and saw extensive action in Italy as part of the

South African 6th Armoured Division The 6th South African Armoured Division was the second armoured warfare, armoured division (military), division of the South African Army and was formed during World War II. Established in early 1943, it was based on a nucleus of men from the ...

, particularly at Monte Caprara and Monte Stanco.

Border War

From 1970 until the first all-race democratic elections in 1994, the regiment saw action in the

South African Border War The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...

South-West Africa South West Africa was a territory under South African administration from 1915 to 1990. Renamed ''Namibia'' by the United Nations in 1968, it became independent under this name on 21 March 1990. South West Africa bordered Angola ( a Portu ...

(now Namibia) and Angola as well as on the South Africa/Botswana border and in South African

townships A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

Post 1994

When conscription ended in 1993, the regiment began an active recruitment drive to maintain reserve troop strength. During South Africa's second democratic election in 1999, the regiment deployed 180 volunteers in support of the

South African Police Service The South African Police Service (SAPS) is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa. Its 1,154 police stations in South Africa are divided according to the Provinces of South Africa, provincial borders, and a Provincial Commis ...

(SAPS). Late in its history the Witwatersrand Rifles Regiment attracted volunteers for regular part-time training.

Scottish tradition

To maintain its Scottish links, the regiment had formed alliances with the

and the

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers, Royal Highland Fusiliers ...

(now amalgamated into the

Royal Scots Borderers The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Scotland (1 SCOTS) was a battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The battalion formed on 1 August 2006 when its antecedent regiments - the Royal Scots and the King's Own Scottis ...

). Up to the disbandment and name change, members of the regiment continued to maintain their traditional Scottish Lowland uniforms and traditions and uphold very high standards of discipline and effective military training. The regiment also had an active pipe band as well as one of the top shooting teams in the country and was ably supported by a Regimental Council, a very active Regimental Association and a Ladies Committee up to the point of the renaming process.

Peacekeeping

The Witwatersrand Rifles Regiment provided troops for internal operations in support of the

and on the border (as part of Operation Corona) as well as for

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

peacekeeping operations in the DRC and the Sudan.

Name Change

In August 2019, 52 Reserve Force units had their names changed to reflect the diverse military history of South Africa. The Witwatersrand Rifles became the Bambatha Rifles, and have 3 years to design and implement new regimental insignia.

Freedom of Entry

The Regiment holds the Freedom of the Cities of Johannesburg and Germiston as well as the town of Barberton.

Commanding officers

Colonel-in-Chief

(This Honorary post officially fell away in 1961 when the Union of South Africa became a Republic) * HM Queen Elizabeth (The Queen Mother) (1947–1961) (unofficially 1947 – 2002)

Railway Pioneer Regiment

*Lt Col. J.E. Capper, RE (1899–1903) (Later Maj Gen. J.E. Capper, )

Witwatersand Rifles

1st Battalion

2nd Battalion

Regimental Symbols

*Regimental motto: "Pro Deo et Patria" (For God and Country). This motto was adopted in 1961, when the Republic of South Africa became a republic, prior to 1961 the motto was "Pro Deo et Rege et Patria" (For God, King and Country). *Regimental march: "Within a Mile O' Edinburgh Town". *Regimental anniversaries: Regimental Day (1 May), Monte Stanco Day (20 April). *Regimental Freedoms:

Germiston Germiston, also known as kwaDukathole, is a city in the East Rand region of Gauteng, South Africa, administratively forming part of the City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality since the latter's establishment in 2000. It functions as the m ...

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, Barberton. *Regimental badge: A

Maltese cross The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four " V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically. It is a heraldic cross variant which develope ...

within a wreath of ten

Protea ''Protea'' () is a genus of South African flowering plants, also called sugarbushes (Afrikaans: ''suikerbos''). It is the type genus of the Proteaceae family. About 92% of the species occur only in the Cape Floristic Region, a narrow belt of mo ...

flowers, with a rifle on each side of the cross. The cross was surmounted by a stringed bugle and in the centre of the cross is a mine shaft in a circlet. At the top of the wreath is the Cameronian Star and on the base of the wreath is a scroll with the inscription "Pro Deo et Patria". *Regimental headdress:

Glengarry The Glengarry bonnet is a traditional Scots cap made of thick-milled woollen material, decorated with a toorie on top, frequently a rosette cockade on the left side, and ribbons hanging behind. It is normally worn as part of Scottish military ...

or Kilmarnoch with black

hackle The hackle is a clipped plume or short spray of coloured feathers that is attached to a military headdress, with different colours being associated with particular regiments. In the British Army and the armies of some Commonwealth countries, ...

. *Regimental

tartan Tartan or plaid ( ) is a patterned cloth consisting of crossing horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours, forming repeating symmetrical patterns known as ''setts''. Originating in woven wool, tartan is most strongly associated wi ...

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

(trews).

Previous Dress Insignia

Current Dress Insignia

Honours and Affiliations

Battle honours

As a Rifle regiment, the Witwatersrand Rifles did not carry colours. Instead the honours banner was displayed on the pipes of the

Pipe Major The pipe major is the leading musician of a pipe band, whether military or civilian. Like the appointment of drum major, the position is derived from British Army traditions. During the early twentieth century, the term sergeant piper was used ...

. The Witwatersrand Rifles had the following battle honours: *First World War: South West Africa 1914–1915 *Second World War: Italy 1944–45, Cassino II, Allerona, Florence, Monte Querciabella, Monte Fili, The Greve, Gothic Line, Monte Stanco, Monte Salvaro, Sole/Caprara, Po Valley, Campo Santo Bridge

Sister Regiments

* –

Transvaal Scottish Regiment Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name ''Transvaal''. * South African Republic (1856–1902; ...

* –

Alliances

* – The Royal Scots Borderers * –

References

External links

Witwatersrand Rifles Regimental History Archive
{{Greater Johannesburg, mil South African Army Infantry regiments of South Africa Military units and formations in Germiston Military units and formations established in 1903 Military units and formations of South Africa in World War I Regiments of South Africa in World War II Military units and formations of South Africa in the Border War