Buller, Gen Sir Redvers Henry (1839-1908). Buller, scion of a notable family, joined the army in 1858 and served with the 60th Rifles in China two years later. He was one of the most dashing personalities in the ‘small wars’ of the era. On the Red River campaign of 1870 he encountered Wolseley, and became part of the influential ‘Ashanti Ring’, serving under Wolseley on the Ashanti expedition, in Egypt in 1882, and in the Sudan in 1884-5, where he rose to major general. Meanwhile he had distinguished himself as a leader of irregular horse in South Africa, winning the VC in a horrific battle on Hlobane Mountain in the Zulu war (1879), and serving as Evelyn Wood's COS in the First Boer War (1880-1).
QMG in 1887 and adjutant general in 1890, Buller went to the army's principal command at Aldershot in 1898, and was the natural choice to head the South African Field Force the following year. However, a run of defeats—notably ‘Black Week’ of December 1899—led to his replacement by Roberts. He remained commander in Natal, where defeat at Spion Kop did him more damage. In 1901, after his return to Aldershot, he defended himself in a public speech which ended his career.
Despite failure in South Africa Buller never lost popularity with the rank and file and the public: his heavy build and avuncular manner were seen as reflecting ‘the best English type’. Many historians now argue that Buller was less culpable for the disasters than was once believed: he faced a well-prepared and resolute enemy in unforgiving terrain with far fewer resources than were enjoyed by his successors.
— Richard Holmes
