Meyer de Kock
| Meyer de Kock | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5 October 1849 |
| Died | 12 February 1901 (aged 51) Farm Windhoek, near Dullstroom, Mpumalanga in erstwhileTransvaal Colony |
| Cause of death | Firing squad |
| Burial place | Farm Windhoek, near Dullstroom, Mpumalanga 25°22.89′S 30°00.536′E / 25.38150°S 30.008933°E |
| Nationality | Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek |
Meyer de Kock (5 October 1849 – 12 February 1901) was a citizen of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek("ZAR") during the Second Anglo-Boer War. After the Brits had captured the capital Pretoria and annexed the Transvaal, he surrendered on 10 December 1900. In January 1901 he went to the eastern Transvaal to persuade burghers still in the field to surrender. He was arrested, court-martialled and later, on 12 February 1901, executed by firing squad.
Prior to the Second Anglo-Boer War Meyer de Kock was a businessman living with his wife in Belfast in the eastern part of the ZAR. He was a dignified, progressive and well-liked man from a good family. When war broke out in October 1899, de Kock did not join his local commando, but remained behind to guard the bridges and railway line from Lourenço Marques (Maputo) to Pretoria. After Lord Roberts captured Pretoria on 5 June 1900, his army swept down the railway line past Belfast and reached the Portuguese border by 25 September 1900. The ZAR was annexed by the British Crown on 25 October 1900.
Like many other burghers De Kock regarded the war as having been lost and he voluntarily surrendered to the British garrison in Belfast on 10 December 1900. His first reason for surrendering was that his wife was a refined woman not used to the hardships of war. As head of his family he had to rescue them from the difficult situation they found themselves in. He also wanted to prevent British troops from damaging his property as they were already doing. Lastly, he wanted to complain to the British authorities about Boer houses being burnt down and their women being molested.
De Kock was taken to Pretoria, where he was interviewed by Colonel D. Henderson, the head of British military intelligence, and even Lord Kitchener, to whom he conveyed his complaints about British troops. Shortly thereafter he met a number of other burghers who had decided to surrender. They discussed various ways in which peace could be made. They decided to return to their own districts, form local peace committees and approach the burghers in the field to try and persuade them to surrender.
De Kock returned to Belfast and started a local peace committee, of which he became the secretary. He wrote to local Boer officers in the field, inviting them to discuss the advantages of laying down their arms. On 22 January 1901 he decided to visit the Boer Commandos where they were then camping on the Steenkamps Mountain, some 20 miles from Belfast.
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