Bethlehem

Three times in its history, the Free State went to war against the Basutos and their king, Moshoeshoe. That was 1858, 1865-66 and 1867-68. It was a turbulent time for both sides, which included the time in between the wars.

In this article I am reporting on some of the trekker monuments, graves and fortifications that still exist from that time. This is not a complete collection, it is just items I have come across in my travels.

First a summary of the historical events. Conflict between the Basutos and the trekkers started as the first trekboers crossed the Orange River to seek better pastures.

The confusing boundary situation between the Basutos and the Free State

Underlying the conflict was the confusing situation regarding the boundary between the Free State and the Basutos. The map above illustrates this. There was the Napier line, the Warden line, the various attempts in between to get some agreement and finally the present borders. When the first trekboers came over the Orange River they saw this as empty, uninhabited land, but the Basutos viewed it as the land of their ancestors. When the British took over the Free State in 1848, the Warden line was declared as the boundary between the Free State and the Basutos. Little heedance was given to this border by the...

On the road from Reitz to Bethlehem (R26) in the Free State one crosses over the railway line about 10km out of Bethlehem. Inspecting the area under the bridge one finds a grave next to the rails a few meters from the bridge. It is marked by some upright railway sleepers, totally overgrown and with a largely illegible gravestone. I could just make out... ‘Nov 1931’. 

Who is buried here? And why next to the rails, not in a cemetery?

The person laid to rest here is Cornelius van Heerden, aged 22 at the time of his death. He was what we nowadays would call a troubled youth. At the beginning of November 1931 he had been in court charged by his father for theft by conversion. He received a suspended sentence due to his age and being a first offender. Earlier in the month he was fired from his job with the railways for absenteeism and the day before the incident he was in court on a charge of negligent driving.

He lived with his parents at Bethlehemspoort, about 7km out of town. On the morning of the 26 November he went into town and bought ammunition. On his return he announced to his brother that he was going out to do some shooting.

First, as reported by various sources, he went around the neighbourhood asking for Dawie Viljoen who was farming nearby. It is speculated that he wanted to kill him because he laughed during an incident when van Heerden fell off a...