Boer war mausers?
- Thread starter ratherbefishin
- Start date
The definitive work on Boer Mausers and other Boer arms, Mauser, Guedes, Krag, is "Small Arms of the Anglo Boer War" by Ron Bester.
Boer Mausers are similar to the Spanish M1893 and can be identified by serial numbers and OVS stamped on those purchased by the Orange Vrei Staadt. Many also had the owners name carved in the stock.
They show up from time to time and seem to be have been brought back in fair numbers and also allocated to various institutions, schools, libraries etc, as war trophies by the govt.
Imperial forces also burned large numbers of Boer arms.
Boer Mausers are similar to the Spanish M1893 and can be identified by serial numbers and OVS stamped on those purchased by the Orange Vrei Staadt. Many also had the owners name carved in the stock.
They show up from time to time and seem to be have been brought back in fair numbers and also allocated to various institutions, schools, libraries etc, as war trophies by the govt.
Imperial forces also burned large numbers of Boer arms.
Forty4Forty
Regular
- Location
- Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
They are around, I think quite a few came back to Canada, expensive.
As green said, only 30,000 where made, 10,000 had the OVS markings but not all went to SA, the war ended and some went to Chile, and if one is very lucky they can find a Chilean marked one with OVS, two other batches where sent, just a serial number prefixed by an A and B.
As green said, only 30,000 where made, 10,000 had the OVS markings but not all went to SA, the war ended and some went to Chile, and if one is very lucky they can find a Chilean marked one with OVS, two other batches where sent, just a serial number prefixed by an A and B.
I have a Boer War Mauser carbine - Serial #6691. It was one of a lot of 2000 carbines made by DWM of Berlin in July/August of 1897 and shipped out later that year.
Mine was captured in a skirmish involving a group of Boers and a unit for the Northern Queensland Mounted Infantry, in the course of which they got their clocks comprehensively cleaned by assuming that the three Boer horsemen a ridge were all there were. As they cleared the crest, the other couple of hundred Boers, in a very bad temper, were waiting for them.
The resultant kerfuffle was called the Battle of Korannafontein on May 1 1901. My carbine was eventually surrendered by its owner, one Piet Huijsen, whose name is on the butt, as you can see in Dave George's book on the subject - http://www.boerwarcarvings.bravehost.com/
I shoot it often.
tac
Mine was captured in a skirmish involving a group of Boers and a unit for the Northern Queensland Mounted Infantry, in the course of which they got their clocks comprehensively cleaned by assuming that the three Boer horsemen a ridge were all there were. As they cleared the crest, the other couple of hundred Boers, in a very bad temper, were waiting for them.
The resultant kerfuffle was called the Battle of Korannafontein on May 1 1901. My carbine was eventually surrendered by its owner, one Piet Huijsen, whose name is on the butt, as you can see in Dave George's book on the subject - http://www.boerwarcarvings.bravehost.com/
I shoot it often.
tac
Yes, there are a number of these here in Canada. I acquired an OVS Mauser earlier this year, thanks to contacts here on CGN, and I'm very pleased to have been able to get an example.
Mine is personalized, to an S.J. Geel whom, thanks to Rob D., I now know was from Leeuwfontein / Lieuwfontein ( = Lion spring) in Boshof district, OVS.
He was captured and deported to a POW camp in Bermuda.
He would have been in the Boshof Commando, which had a very good combat record (Modder River, Magersfontein, Siege of Kimberley). Rob believes, in part because of the significant role Canadian troops played in the battle, that this rifle was probably captured at Cronje's surrender at Paardeberg, 27 Feb 1900.
Many, mine included, are bolt-mismatched, likely a function of a soldier grabbing a rifle from one pile of captured arms, and a bolt from another.
I'd also like to put in a plug (I posted this on a separate thread here) for Dave George and his books. I was recently in communication with him and he's found another 90 or so personalized Anglo-Boer firearms, and is looking for more so he can produce his third volume. The link provided in tacfoley's post will allow you to contact him if you've got a firearm so marked.
They're out there. A WTB ad might just generate a lead or two.
Mine is personalized, to an S.J. Geel whom, thanks to Rob D., I now know was from Leeuwfontein / Lieuwfontein ( = Lion spring) in Boshof district, OVS.
He was captured and deported to a POW camp in Bermuda.
He would have been in the Boshof Commando, which had a very good combat record (Modder River, Magersfontein, Siege of Kimberley). Rob believes, in part because of the significant role Canadian troops played in the battle, that this rifle was probably captured at Cronje's surrender at Paardeberg, 27 Feb 1900.
Many, mine included, are bolt-mismatched, likely a function of a soldier grabbing a rifle from one pile of captured arms, and a bolt from another.
I'd also like to put in a plug (I posted this on a separate thread here) for Dave George and his books. I was recently in communication with him and he's found another 90 or so personalized Anglo-Boer firearms, and is looking for more so he can produce his third volume. The link provided in tacfoley's post will allow you to contact him if you've got a firearm so marked.
They're out there. A WTB ad might just generate a lead or two.
Beautiful rifles....my carbine just read 'Piet Huijsen'. He was born in Klipspring and worked as a miner - more that that I do not know - in fact, everything I DO about the skirmish and who took plart in it is down to Peter de Jager, a local farmer/historian whose house was used to take the surrender and where the 'licences' of the Boers who were captured were issued and signed.
tac
tac
