155 mm Creusot Long Tom part of the war the time fuses did not work properly. Case shot was used as a last resort when the enemy's foot soldiers were close to the gun. Case shot was effective up to 400 metres. During the Second Boer War the guns were deployed as field guns and siege guns at Vaal Krantz, Ladysmith, Mafeking, Kimberley and Bergendal. During the early stages of the war these guns gave the Boers an advantage as they had longer range than any British guns that were deployed in South Africa at the time. After all their ammunition had been expended, the
Siege of Ladysmith men were too weak to do so. The first party of the relief column, under Major Hubert Gough and of which Winston Churchill was a part, rode in on the evening of 28 February. White reportedly greeted them saying, "Thank God we kept the flag flying". The relief was widely celebrated, followed by much larger celebrations after the Siege of Mafeking. There were four Victoria Crosses awarded during the siege: John Norwood on 30 October 1899, at Wagon Hill on 6 January 1900, Herman Albrecht and Robert James Thomas Digby-Jones (who both died), and James Edward Ignatius Masterson. Early in