WAR CEMETRY ....cont

Somewhere between January and March 1901, a Tribunal found 5 men guilty of treason and they were subsequently executed. Today their graves are to be found in the Klerksdorp Old Cemetry.

Jacobus Petrus Daniel Theunissen- was a well-to-do farmer near Hartbeesfontein. He tried to convince the other burghers to surrender to the British. At the time of the formal surrender of Klerksdorp, Theunissen and his son Christiaan took the oath of neutrality and went back to farming. But later on Jacobus was found guilty of treason and bribery, and executed on 23 January 1901.

The graves of the 4 executed men and W.F.Ahrens. From right to left lies R.Boyd, R. Machlachlan, J.P.D. Theunissen, H.D Ahrens & W.F. Ahrens - who was later exhumed from his Natal grave and reburied here.

Robert Machlachlan - was born in Scotland and moved to the Z.A.R. About a year before the war he married Martha Machlachlan (nee' Theunissen) - daughter of above J.C.D. Theunissen. On 14th November 1900 he was arrested in Hartbeesfontein and taken to Wolmaransstad and incarcerated. Here he appeared on charges of high treason which stated that he dodged the Draft, joined British forces and acted against Boer forces! He could not convince the Tribunal that he didn't warn the British forces at Wolmaransstad of the approach of the Boers in February1900. At age 29 he was executed by firing squad on 23 February 1901. 

Heinrich Didloff Ahrens & Christiaan Theunissen - On 25th July 1900 H.D Ahrens (who was married to R Machlachlan's sister) and his brother Willem Frederick Ahrens fled towards Wolmaransstad, together with R. Machlachlan where they also warned the British about the impending Boer attack. They were later arrested by the Boers and taken to Klerksdorp. On 14th february all 3 men  appeared before the tribunal on a charge of high treason - working with the British against the Boers.

Ronald Boyd - was born in Scotland in 1876 and arrived in South Africa in 1898. Boyd worked at the same shop as R.Machlachlan in Hartbeesfontein. At the outbreak of the war, he asked permission to remain in Hartbeesfontein to avoid being deported as an illegal alien. The condition was that he had to remain strictly neutral during the war. The actual reasons for his arrest cannot be ascertained. Boyd was subsequently found guilty of high treason and executed on 23 January 1901.

Willem Frederick Ahrens - although W.F.Ahrens was found guilty of treason together with his brother H.D.Ahrens, he received clemency and after his release, fled to Natal under British protection. Here he died in 1901 and was later reburied next to the 4 executed individuals in the Old Klerksdorp Cemetry.

Credit goes to Klerksdorp Museum brochure. Thankyou Bert Gaffen!