Winterberg Commando

Winterberg Commando was a light infantry regiment of the South African Army. It formed part of the South African Army Infantry Formation as well as the South African Territorial Reserve.

Origin
The Winterberg Commando was founded in Adelaide, Eastern Cape in 1948.

With the UDF
By 1940, rifle associations were under control of the National Reserve of Volunteers. These rifle associations were re-designated as commandos by 1948.

With the SADF
The units area of responsibility was significantly large on the outset, and two further commandos namely Katberg and Midland Commandos were developed. Katberg Commando was again reincorporated with the Winterberg Commando in 1979.

During this era, the unit was mainly used for area force protection, search and cordones as well as stock theft control assistance to the rural police.

With the independence of Ciskei, the previous Katberg Commando area was incorporated with the new Homelands territory.

Freedom of Adelaide
The unit received the Freedom of Adelaide in October 1986.

Disbandment
This unit, along with all other Commando units was disbanded after a decision by South African President Thabo Mbeki to disband all Commando Units. The Commando system was phased out between 2003 and 2008 "because of the role it played in the apartheid era", according to the Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula.