Sarel Cilliers

Sarel Cilliers
Personal details
Born	Charl Arnoldus Cilliers[1] (1801-09-07)7 September 1801 Schoongezicht farm, Paarl, Cape Colony[1]
Died	4 October 1871(1871-10-04) (aged 70) Doornkloof farm, Lindley, Orange Free State[1]
Resting place	Doornkloof farm 27°43′36″S 27°41′53″E / 27.72667°S 27.69806°E / -27.72667; 27.69806
Spouse(s)	Anna Francina Viljoen (1801–1851),[1] Aletta Elizabeth Loots (1821–1906)
Parent(s)	Carel Cilliers, Elizabeth Catherine Louw
Residence	Doornkloof
Occupation	Spiritual leader/Preacher, later a church elder and Councillor
Military service
Allegiance	Voortrekkers
Commands	Transvaal and Orange River Commandos
Battles/wars	Battle of Blood River Vegkop

Charl (Sarel) Arnoldus Cilliers (7 September 1801 – 4 October 1871) was a Voortrekker leader and a preacher. With Andries Pretorius, he led the Boers to a huge victory over the Zulus at the Battle of Blood River in 1838. In particular, Cilliers led the Voortrekkers in a vow which promised that if God would protect them and deliver the enemy into their hands, they would build a church and commemorate the day of their victory as if it were an annual Sabbath day, which their descendants would also be instructed to honour.

He was a prominent member of the Gereformeerde Kerk (Reformed Church), an offshoot of the Dutch Reformed Church. He is described as being a short, stout man, and was believed to have been very religious. He joined the Great Trek at the age of thirty-five.^[2]

The town of Kroonstad was, according to folklore, named after a horse belonging to Cilliers, which drowned in a stream (Kroonspruit) where the town is situated.

There is a Sarel Cilliers Museum as well as a statue of him (on the site of the Dutch Reformed Church) in Kroonstad. Numerous streets and roads in Kroonstad and throughout South Africa are named after him.