Thus, after eight months’ fighting, the main body of the Natal Army was at last in bivouac in the enemy’s country.  Buller had taken Botha’s Pass with three infantry and two cavalry brigades; and with these he made for his next objective, the town of Volksrust in the Transvaal, a few miles north of Laing’s Nek, which Clery at Ingogo was watching from the south.  Lyttelton was posted on the left bank of the Buffalo watching the right flank of the advance.

Buller’s operations in the Free State lasted two days only.  On June 10 he engaged a small body of the retreating enemy and entered the Transvaal.  In front of him was the Versamelberg, a spur of the Drakensberg, over which the road from Vrede to Volksrust passes at Alleman’s Nek, where 2,000 Boers with four guns had taken up a very strong position.  The road rises to the Nek between heights, and the initial movements of the attack had to be made across two miles of open veld.  The burghers had not had the time, or did not think it necessary, to strengthen the position artificially, but they were observed throwing up some entrenchments when Buller approached.

His bivouac on June 10 was at the Gansvlei Spruit on the Transvaal-Free State border, and next day at dawn he resumed his march on Volksrust.  No serious opposition was encountered until early in the afternoon, when Dundonald, who was operating on the right front, came under artillery fire from the Nek.  The infantry, whose left flank was watched by Brocklehurst with a cavalry brigade, was then ordered to advance, the objective of the 2nd Brigade under E. Hamilton being the ridge on the left of the Nek, and that of the 10th Brigade under Talbot Coke the ridges on the right of it, the 11th Brigade under Wynne being kept in reserve.

The advance was made under a heavy and worrying but not very effective fire from each section of the ridge.  The key of the position proved to be a conical hill on the right of the road at the entrance to the Nek.  The Dorsets of Coke’s brigade gallantly climbed the slopes, and aided by artillery fire carried it with the bayonet.  The fight, however, was far from ended.  The Boers beyond remained until the shells which had been pouring on the conical hill followed them to the crestline.  Then again the Dorsets threw themselves upon the enemy, and by sunset the heights on the right of the Nek were in possession of Coke.  Almost simultaneously E. Hamilton established himself on the left of it.  The resistance offered to Dundonald on the right flank was more effective; and as between him and his immediate opponents the day waned upon an uncertain issue.  He had driven them out of successive positions though not actually off the ridge; but the occupation of the Nek made further opposition useless and they withdrew during the night.