Against All Odds Traditional Cache

The cache is placed at one of Kimberley’s most famous historical monuments, the Honoured Dead Memorial. Its tall sandstone walls and beautiful pillars make it a well-known landmark. A key feature of this site is the large artillery gun on the South-East platform. While many come and marvel at the sight of the weapon and memorial few know the history behind the large gun known as the “Long Cecil”.

 The story starts on 14 October 1899, during the Second Beor War, the Boer army surrounded the small mining town of Kimberley. This was the beginning of the Siege of Kimberley. With all supply lines cut off and almost no military aid Kimberley became desperate. The water and food supply were managed closely by the military. Rationing was imposed as the food supply dwindled, with the inhabitants eventually eating horse meat.

As the situation became more and more dire, engineers from Rhodes's company under the keen leadership of the Chief Mechanical Engineer, George Labram (from Detroit, Michigan, USA), began using their knowledge of machines and mine equipment to help the community in any way possible. They built fortifications, watch towers, armoured trains,  freshwater pumps and refrigerator systems in the mine to preserve food as long as possible.

At the time of the siege Kimberley only had one artillery gun and it was relatively small. Seeing the need for a bigger artillery gun, George Labram used his engineering knowledge to build a larger gun capable of firing up to 7,300 metres (8,000 yd). Since there were no military materials to build the gun, it was made out of mining equipment. It was named the “Long Cecil” in honour of the head of the mining company at that time. It greatly raised the advantage of the town and helped them survive until the end of the siege in mid-February 1900.

A week before the end of the siege, George Labram was killed by a Boer shell while in his room. In honour of the soldiers who gave their lives in the siege and to George Labram for his contribution to the protection of Kimberley, the Honoured Dead Memorial was built in 1904. It displays the actual “Long Cecil” and is the burial place of 27 Soldiers.