the farm Houwater, some 40 kilometers north-west of Britstown. However, Liebenberg received an erroneous order by his superior general Jacob Johannes Marthinus Breytenbach (around 1860–1901) to retreat from the Cape Colony, which he obeyed: as a result Prieska was recaptured by the British on 19 March 1900 and the Cape rebels were deserted by the invaders. Subsequently, Orange Free State president Marthinus Steyn fired Breytenbach on 31 March 1900. Nothing had come of the plan to destroy the railway near De Aar to help break the encirclement of Cronjé by Lord Roberts at Paardeberg. Return to the Cape Colony After the British occupation of Bloemfontein on 13 March 1900, the capital of Orange Free State, Liebenberg returned to Griqualand West and established his headquarters at Rooidam. General S. P. Du Toit reported on 12 April 1900 that Liebenberg was acting general for Griqualand West. In April 1900 Liebenberg was reinforced in North West Cape by the Krugersdorp Commando from Natal. British general Archibald Hunter forced him to retreat to the North in May 1900. Failure to prevent the Relief of Mafeking In May 1900 Liebenberg advanced from Veertien Strome (Warrenton) with at first 300, but finally with 450 men to block 1149 British troops of Colonel B.T. Mahon, who came from Barkly West to relieve the besieged town of Mafeking. Liebenberg's force was composed of the Commandos from Bloemhof and Vryburg, reinforced by Louis Botha from Mafeking and others. He occupied a strong position on the ridge at the south bank of the Molopo River near Mafeking, while Boer burgers from Rustenburg en Marico protected the ridge on the north bank waiting for the unsuspecting troops of Mahon to pass in between. This plan was supervised by supreme general Koos de la Rey, who arrived at Mafeking on 14 May 1900. However, two horses on the north bank of the Molopo bolted under British cannon fire, leading the Rustenburg and Marico burgers there to retreat in a hurry. In the following night they left a gap between them through which Mahon could slip through. He and his troops entered Mafeking in the early hours of 17 May 1900 ending the 217-day siege. Slag van Donkerhoek and further actions After the Fall of Pretoria on 5 June 1900 Liebenberg was present at the meeting on the same day of more than 30 Boer commanders in the whiskey distillery of Lewis &