THE HISTORY OF GENERAL PIET RETIEF VILJOEN AND HIS FAMILY

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MILITARY COMMAND AND THE SURRENDER OF HEIDELBERG (1900 - 1902)

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On 27 May 1900, the British military columns under General Roberts crossed the Vaal River and advanced rapidly toward Johannesburg. Facing overwhelming numbers, the Boer forces were compelled to abandon traditional frontline warfare and formulate a highly flexible guerrilla strategy.

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On 15 June 1900, the senior officers of the Heidelberg Commando convened an urgent council of war to rethink their tactical position. Commandant Cornelius T. Spruyt - who had served until that point as the commanding officer of the Dorp Wyk (town sector) - was reassigned to serve directly under the Commander-in-Chief, General Louis Botha. Consequently, Piet Retief Viljoen, then aged 47, assumed supreme operational command of the Heidelberg Commando.

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As General Hart’s invading British column closed in, Heidelberg faced imminent artillery bombardment. To preserve the civilian population and save the historic town infrastructure from destruction, General Viljoen entered into direct diplomatic negotiations with General Hart.

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Viljoen offered a strategic compromise: he promised to evacuate all active Boer combatants from the town perimeter by midnight on 22 June 1900, on the condition that the British forces would withhold their shelling and enter peacefully on 23 June 1900. Before executing the withdrawal, Viljoen ordered his burghers to systematically destroy all surplus arms and heavy military ammunition to prevent it from falling into enemy hands. At midnight, the commando slipped into the surrounding hills.

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General Viljoen directed the commando's guerrilla campaigns through the rugged eastern highveld for the remainder of the conflict. In May 1902, following the cessation of hostilities, he was selected as an official regional delegate to attend the historic national Peace Conference at Vereeniging, where he participated in the debates surrounding the signing of the Treaty of Vereeniging.

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POST-WAR ADMINISTRATIVE LIFE AND DOMESTIC EXILE (1902 - 1932)

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Following the declaration of peace and the re-establishment of civil administration, General Viljoen returned to his prominent pre-war civil service post, resuming his duties as the official Mining Commissioner of Heidelberg. He managed the district's mining bureaucracy for several decades, passing away in 1926 at the age of 73. He was interred within the historic family plot at the Heidelberg Kloof Cemetery.

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The Viljoen family was subjected to harsh, vindictive treatment by the occupying British military garrison throughout the martial law period. Shortly after taking over the town, British search parties raided the Viljoen home and aggressively demanded the surrender of the family's traditional Transvaal Republic flags, which Mrs Susanna Adriana Viljoen was forced to hand over.

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Despite being widely revered across the district as a deeply gentle and kindly woman, the continuous stress of the occupation eventually led to a dramatic confrontation. After being provoked by a local colonial policeman, Susanna turned to the officer and stated fiercely: "Damn the general, damn the brigade major, and damn you."

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The policeman reported the incident to the garrison high command, resulting in Susanna being placed under armed escort and transported to a military court in Johannesburg, where she was formally reprimanded for insubordination against the British crown. Susanna survived her husband by six years, passing away in 1932 at the age of 73, and was laid to rest directly beside the General in the Kloof Cemetery.

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THE WAR SERVICES OF THE THREE VILJOEN SONS

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General Piet Viljoen was accompanied into the field by his three young sons, who served under his direct command throughout the Second Anglo-Boer War:

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• Pieter Viljoen: Survived the guerrilla campaigns and went on to establish himself as a highly prominent attorney within the district. He became the foundational partner of the long-standing local legal firm, Viljoen & Meek.

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• Marthinus "Ouboet" Viljoen: Achieved widespread fame among the commandos for growing his hair down to his shoulders during the field campaigns and for wearing a distinctive, custom-crafted calf-leather outfit and matching wide-brimmed leather hat. His unique battlefield attire outlived the war; when King George VI and Queen Elizabeth conducted their official royal tour of South Africa in 1947, the Queen explicitly picked out Ouboet from the gathered crowds, captivated by his appearance, and spoke to him at length regarding his experiences.

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Ouboet was a highly prominent and creative Heidelberger who organized numerous cultural events, most notably founding and directing a popular town orchestra known as the Wilhelmina Band. He recorded his wartime encounters inside a comprehensive personal diary, a manuscript that was subsequently edited by Willem J. Pretorius and published as the historical book Perre Toe.

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His iconic calf-leather combat outfit and an extensive collection of archival photographs were initially preserved as centerpiece exhibits inside the historic Klipkerk Museum. The collection was later transferred to the A.G. Visser House Museum, from where these priceless artifacts were subsequently stolen during a modern break-in.

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• Henning Viljoen (1885 - 1902): The General’s youngest son joined the commando as a boy soldier. On 6 March 1902, at the young age of 17, Henning was killed in action during a fierce engagement at Bushmans Kop, situated on the opposite side of the Nigel district.

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Henning and a small group of burghers had successfully infiltrated and taken over a British military blockhouse fortification. In response, the British artillery units brought up a heavy cannon and opened fire directly on the structure. Just as Henning attempted to evacuate the compromised building, a direct artillery shell strike took away the entire upper section of his head, killing him instantly. (Local heritage researchers, led by Tony Burisch, continue to actively survey the district to locate his missing battlefield grave).

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Sources: Biographical history from Ian Uys's "Heidelbergers of the Boer War"; the published wartime memoir "Perre Toe" by Marthinus Viljoen (edited by Willem J. Pretorius); and the historical Tour Guide of Heidelberg compiled by Lynn Fordred. Architectural field notes indicate that the decorative window shutters currently mounted onto the historic Viljoen residence for public display are actually the original timber shutters salvaged from Oak View Manor on Fenter Street.

​Source: Heidelberg Heritage Association - Article Post (Click to visit website)