- See also: First Boer War
| Second Anglo-Boer War | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Boer Wars | |||||||||
 Boer guerrillas during the Second Boer War | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 British Empire |  Orange Free State | ||||||||
| Commanders | |||||||||
Lord Milner Sir Redvers Buller Lord Kitchener Lord Roberts |  Paul Kruger Louis Botha Koos de la Rey Martinus Steyn Christiaan de Wet | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 6,000 - 7,000 (A further ~14,000 from disease) | 6,000 - 8,000 (Unknown number from disease) | ||||||||
| Civilians killed [mainly Boers]: 24,000+ | |||||||||
The Second Boer War (Dutch: Tweede Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: Tweede Boereoorlog), commonly referred to as The Boer War and also known as the South African War (outside of South Africa), the Anglo-Boer War (among most South Africans) and in Afrikaans as the Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog ("Second War of Liberation"), was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902, between the British Empire and the two independent Boer republics of the Orange Free State and the South African Republic (Transvaal Republic). See also Second Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The First Boer War ( Dutch: Eerste Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: Two Boer Wars were fought between the British Empire and the two independent Boer republics the Orange Free State and the South African Republic Boer (ˈbuːr in Dutch ˈbʊɚ/ /boʊɚ or /ˈbɔr/ in English is the Dutch word for Farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc Events 1138 - A massive earthquake struck Aleppo, Syria. 1531 - Huldrych Zwingli is killed Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The Treaty of Vereeniging (commonly referred to as Peace of Vereeniging) was the Peace treaty, signed on 31 May 1902, that ended the South The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa This article is about the former country in Africa For the present-day country see South Africa; for the region where both are located see Southern Africa Boer foreign volunteers were participants who volunteered their military services to the Boers in the Second Boer War. Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British General Sir Redvers Henry Buller VC GCB GCMG ( 7 December 1839 &ndash 2 June 1908) was a British Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener 1st Earl Kitchener, KG, KP, GCB, OM Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts 1st Earl Roberts, VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, PC Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom Louis Botha (27 September 1862 &ndash 27 August 1919 was an Afrikaner and first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa —the forerunner of the modern Jacobus Herculaas de la Rey ( 22 October 1847 - 15 September 1914) known as Koos de la Rey was a Boer General Martinus (or Marthinus) Theunis Steyn ( October 2, 1857 &ndash 28 November 1916) was a South African Christiaan Rudolf de Wet ( 7 October 1854 - 3 February 1922) was a Boer General, Rebel Leader Dutch ( is a West Germanic language spoken by around 24 million people 22 million of which are from the Netherlands, Belgium and Suriname Afrikaans is an Indo-European language, derived from 17th century Dutch and classified as Low Franconian Germanic, mainly spoken in Afrikaans is an Indo-European language, derived from 17th century Dutch and classified as Low Franconian Germanic, mainly spoken in Events 1138 - A massive earthquake struck Aleppo, Syria. 1531 - Huldrych Zwingli is killed Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. Boer (ˈbuːr in Dutch ˈbʊɚ/ /boʊɚ or /ˈbɔr/ in English is the Dutch word for Farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa This article is about the former country in Africa For the present-day country see South Africa; for the region where both are located see Southern Africa
The origins of the war were complex, resulting from over two centuries of conflict between the Afrikaners and the British. The term Afrikaner people refers to white Afrikaans -speaking people who have been established in Southern Africa since the 17th century and are mainly of northwestern The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. [1] Boers had over the centuries migrated away from the rule of the British Empire in the Cape Colony, first along the eastern coast towards Natal and then, after Natal was annexed, northwards towards the interior where two independent Boer republics (the Orange Free State, and the South African Republic - also called the Transvaal) were established. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. Initially the British Empire recognised the two Boer Republics but then attempted to annex the Transvaal in 1877 leading to the First Boer War, 1880-1, and the British defeats, particularly at the Battle of Majuba, had resulted in an uneasy peace. See also Second Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The First Boer War ( Dutch: Eerste Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: The skirmish at Majuba Hill (near Volksrust, South Africa) on 27 February, 1881 was the main battle of the First Boer War
However, when massive deposits of gold were discovered in the Transvaal, a huge inflow of uitlanders (foreigners), mainly from Britain, came to region in search of employment and fortune. Uitlander, Afrikaans for 'outlander' was the name given to foreign Migrant workers during the initial exploitation of the Witwatersrand gold fields in The number of uitlanders in the Transvaal eventually exceeded the number of Boers and confrontations over uitlander rights culminated in the failed Jameson Raid of 1895. The Jameson Raid ( December 29, 1895 - January 2, 1896) was a raid on Paul Kruger 's Transvaal Republic carried out by a The raid led by Colonel Jameson, with the connivance of the Governor of the Cape Cecil Rhodes and a Johannesburg mining magnate Alfred Beit, was intended to encourage an uprising of the uitlanders in Johannesburg. Cecil John Rhodes, PC DCL (5 July 1853 &ndash 26 March 1902 was an English -born Businessman mining Magnate, and Politician Alfred Beit ( 15 February 1853 - 16 July 1906) was a British South African gold and diamond magnate a supporter of British Johannesburg ( Pronounced /jō-hān'ĭs-bûrg'/ is the largest city in South Africa. However Transvaal forces surrounded the column and captured Jameson's men before they could reach Johannesburg. [2]
As tensions continued to escalate, there were political manouverings and lengthy negotiations to reach a compromise over the issue of 'uitlander rights'. The negotiations however eventually failed and in September 1899, Chamberlain sent an ultimatum to the Boers, demanding full equality for the uitlanders resident in the Transvaal. Joseph Chamberlain ( 8 July 1836 &ndash 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman politician and statesman President Kruger, seeing that war was inevitable, issued his own ultimatum giving the British 48 hours to withdraw all their troops from the border of the Transvaal, failing which the Transvaal, allied with the Orange Free State, would declare war against the British. Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom The rejection of the ultimatum followed and war was declared.
The war had three distinct phases. First, the Boers mounted pre-emptive strikes into British-held territory in Natal and the Cape Colony, besieging the British garrisons of Ladysmith, Mafeking and Kimberley. Kimberley may refer to Kimberley Northern Cape in South Africa Kimberley in Western Australia Kimberley Nottinghamshire The Boers then won a series of tactical victories at Colenso and Spion Kop against a failed British counter-offensive to relieve the three sieges. Colenso is a Town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. History It was established in 1855 at a ford on the Tugela River Second, after the introduciton of greatly increased British troop numbers under the command of Lord Roberts, another and this time successful British offensive was launched in 1900 to relieve the sieges. Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts 1st Earl Roberts, VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, PC After Natal and the Cape Colony was secure, the British were able to invade the Transvaal and the republic's capital, Pretoria, was captured in June 1900. Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa.
Finally, beginning in March 1900, the Boers engaged a protracted hard-fought guerilla warfare against the British forces. Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc This lasted a further eighteen months during which the Boers raided targets such as British columns, telegraph sites, railways and storage depots. "Railroad" and "Railway" both redirect here For other uses see Railroad (disambiguation. In an effort to cut off supplies to the raiders, the British, now under the control of Lord Kitchener, responded with a scorched earth policy of destroying Boer farms and by moving civilians into concentration camps. Lord Kitchener may refer to Horatio Kitchener 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916 prominent British soldier in the Sudan, the Second Boer War A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial [3]
The campaign had been expected by the British to be over within months, and the protracted war became increasingly unpopular especially after revelations about the conditions in the concentration camps (where thousands died of disease and malnutrition). The demand for peace led to a settlement of hostilities, and in 1902 the Treaty of Vereeniging was signed. Peace, in the modern usage is a concept defined by the ideal state of relationship as absence of hostility at the international level that of a War. The Treaty of Vereeniging (commonly referred to as Peace of Vereeniging) was the Peace treaty, signed on 31 May 1902, that ended the South [4] The two Republics were absorbed into the British Empire, although the British were forced to make a number of concessions and reparations to the Boers. The granting of limited autonomy for the area ultimately lead to the establishment of the Union of South Africa. The war had a lasting effect on the region and on British domestic politics. The war, known as the last British imperial war, was the longest (almost three years), the most expensive (over £200 million), and the most disastrous of all wars for Britain between 1815 and 1914. Year 1815 ( MDCCCXV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year [5]
Background
The southern part of the African continent was dominated in the 19th century by a set of epic struggles to create within it a single unified state. This article is about the former country in Africa For the present-day country see South Africa; for the region where both are located see Southern Africa The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. The Natalia Republic was a short-lived Boer republic established in 1839 by local Afrikaans -speaking Voortrekkers shortly after the famous Battle While the Berlin Conference of 1884-5 sought to draw boundaries between the European powers' African possessions, it set the stage for further scrambles. See also Congress of Berlin (1878 and Berlin Conference of 1954 (Cold War The British attempted to annex first the Transvaal in 1880, and then in 1899 both the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. In 1868, the British annexed Basutoland in the Drakensberg Mountains following an appeal from Moshesh, the leader of a mixed group of African refugees from the Zulu wars, who sought British protection against the Boers. Lesotho (lɪˈsuːtuː &mdash had been populated by Khoi Khoi (Qhuaique for possibly as long as 40000 years The Drakensberg ( Afrikaans: "Dragon's Mountain" Mountains are the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, rising up to in height Moshoeshoe moʊˈʃweɪʃweɪ (c1786 - March 11 1870) was born at Menkhoaneng in the Northern part of present-day Lesotho. The Zulu ( IsiZulu: amaZulu) are the largest South African ethnic group of an estimated 10-11 million people who live mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal In the 1880s, Bechuanaland (modern Botswana, located north of the Orange River) became the object of dispute between the Germans to the west, the Boers to the east, and Cape Colony to the south. The Republic of Botswana (Lefatshe la Botswana is a Landlocked nation in Southern Africa. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. Although Bechuanaland had no economic value, the "Missionaries Road" passed through it towards territory farther north. After the Germans annexed Damaraland and Namaqualand (modern Namibia) in 1884, the British annexed Bechuanaland in 1885. LocationBantoustanDamaralandPNG|thumb|right|120px|Location]] Damaraland was a name given to the north-central part of what later became Namibia, inhabited by Herero Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa on the Atlantic coast
The Boers of the Transvaal Republic had in the 1880-1881 war ("First Boer War") proved skilful fighters in resisting the British attempt at annexation, resulting in a series of British defeats. See also Second Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The First Boer War ( Dutch: Eerste Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: The British government of William Gladstone had been unwilling to become bemired in a distant war, which required substantial troop reinforcement and expense, for what was at the time was perceived to be minimal return. An armistice followed, ending the war, and subsequently a peace treaty followed with the Transvaal President Paul Kruger. Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom
Gold and the Uitlanders
However when, in 1886, a major gold field find was made at an outcrop on a large ridge some thirty miles south of the Boer capital at Pretoria, it reignited British imperial interests. Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. The ridge, known locally as the "Witwatersrand" (literally "white water ridge"—a watershed) contained the world's largest deposit of gold-bearing ore. Although it was not as rich as gold finds in Canada and Australia, its consistency made it especially well-suited to industrial mining methods. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. With the 1886 discovery of gold in Transvaal, thousands of British and other prospectors and settlers streamed over the border from the Cape Colony (annexed by Britain earlier) and from across the globe. For the Russian theme park see Transvaal Park. The Transvaal (Afrikaans lit The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town.
The city of Johannesburg sprang up as a shanty town nearly overnight as the uitlanders (foreigners) poured in and settled around the mines. Johannesburg ( Pronounced /jō-hān'ĭs-bûrg'/ is the largest city in South Africa. Shanty towns (also called Squatter camps or Favelas are settlements (sometimes illegal or unauthorized of impoverished people who live in improvised Uitlander, Afrikaans for 'outlander' was the name given to foreign Migrant workers during the initial exploitation of the Witwatersrand gold fields in The influx was such that the uitlanders quickly outnumbered the Boers in Johannesburg and along the Rand, although they remained a minority in the Transvaal as a whole. Boer (ˈbuːr in Dutch ˈbʊɚ/ /boʊɚ or /ˈbɔr/ in English is the Dutch word for Farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans Johannesburg ( Pronounced /jō-hān'ĭs-bûrg'/ is the largest city in South Africa. The Witwatersrand is a low sedimentary range of hills at an elevation of 1700-1800 metres above sea-level which runs in an east-west direction through Gauteng in The Afrikaners, nervous and resentful of the stream of arrivals and the uitlanders' growing presence, sought to contain their influence through requiring lengthy residential qualifying periods before voting rights were obtained, imposing taxes on the gold industry, and introducing controls through licensing, tariffs and administrative requirements. The term Afrikaner people refers to white Afrikaans -speaking people who have been established in Southern Africa since the 17th century and are mainly of northwestern Amongst the issues giving rise to tension between the Transvaal government and the Uitlanders were:
(a) The gold-bearing ore sloped away from the outcrop underground to the south and more and more blasting was necessary for extraction. Mines consumed vast quantities of explosives. A box of dynamite costing five pounds included five shillings tax, and President Paul Kruger gave monopoly rights for the manufacture of the explosive to a non-British operation of the Nobel company, which infuriated the British. Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom [6] The so-called "dynamite monopoly" became a major pretext for war.
(b) In 1894–95 Kruger wanted to build a railway through Portuguese East Africa to Delagoa Bay, thereby bypassing British controlled ports in Natal and Cape Town and avoiding British tariffs. Mozambique was a string of Portuguese overseas colonies and later a Portuguese overseas province along the south-east African coast which now form the republic of Mozambique Maputo Bay (Baia de Maputo formerly Delagoa Bay is an Inlet of the Indian Ocean on the coast of Mozambique, between 25 40 and 26 20 S [7] At the time the Prime Minister of the Cape Colony was Cecil Rhodes, a man driven by a vision of a British controlled Africa extending from Cape to Cairo. Cecil John Rhodes, PC DCL (5 July 1853 &ndash 26 March 1902 was an English -born Businessman mining Magnate, and Politician The Cape to Cairo Road or 'Pan-African Highway' sometimes called the Great North Road in sub-Saharan Africa was an imperial dream envisioned by the British Empire that would
(c) Certain self appointed Uitlanders representatives, and certain British mine owners, became increasingly angered and frustrated by their dealings with the government of the Transvaal Republic. A Reform Committee (Transvaal) was formed to represent Uitlander concerns which demanded amongst other things a stable constitution, a fair franchise law, an independent judiciary, and a better educational system.
Jameson Raid
In 1895, a plan was hatched to liberate Johannesburg and remove it from the control of the Boer government. Johannesburg ( Pronounced /jō-hān'ĭs-bûrg'/ is the largest city in South Africa. A column of armed men was led by Leander Starr Jameson (the Administrator General for Matabeleland and mainly comprised his Rhodesian and Bechuanaland policemen, and subsequently called the Jameson Raid) over the border from Rhodesia towards Johannesburg. Sir Leander Starr Jameson 1st Baronet, KCMG, CB, ( February 9, 1853 &ndash November 26, 1917) also known as " Rhodesia was the name adopted when the formerly British colony of Southern Rhodesia declared itself independent ( Unilateral Declaration of Independence The Bechuanaland Protectorate (BP was a protectorate established on March 31, 1885, by the United Kingdom in Southern Africa. The Jameson Raid ( December 29, 1895 - January 2, 1896) was a raid on Paul Kruger 's Transvaal Republic carried out by a It was intended to trigger an uprising by the primarily British expatriate workers (uitlanders) organised by the Reform Committee. However, the authorities had advanced warning of the raid and the column was surrounded near Krugersdorp some distance from Johannesburg, and after a brief skirmish Jameson's men surrendered and were in turn arrested. Krugersdorp ( Afrikaans for Kruger's town is a mining city in the West Rand of Gauteng, South Africa. [8]
The botched Jameson Raid caused repercussions in Europe. The Jameson Raid ( December 29, 1895 - January 2, 1896) was a raid on Paul Kruger 's Transvaal Republic carried out by a Joseph Chamberlain, the British Colonial Secretary, condemned the raid despite previously having approved Rhodes' plans to send armed assistance in the case of a Johannesburg uprising. Joseph Chamberlain ( 8 July 1836 &ndash 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman politician and statesman Subsequently it was disclosed that Cecil Rhodes had sponsored the failed coup d'état, and he was forced to resign as Prime Minister of the Cape. Cecil John Rhodes, PC DCL (5 July 1853 &ndash 26 March 1902 was an English -born Businessman mining Magnate, and Politician The Boer government handed the men over to the British for trial, and Dr Jameson was tried in England for leading the raid. However, during that time he was lionized by the press and London society, where his defeat was widely portrayed as a victory and many newspapers used the episode as an opportunity to increase anti-Boer feelings. Jameson was sentenced to 15 months, which he served in Holloway (he was later to became Prime Minister of the Cape Colony (1904-08) and one of the founders of the Union of South Africa). For conspiring with Jameson, the members of the Reform Committee (Transvaal) were tried in the Transavaal courts and found guilty of high treason. They were sentenced to death by hanging but this sentence was later commuted to 15 years' imprisonment, and in June 1896, all surviving members of the Committee were released on payment of stiff fines.
Of the Jameson Raid, Jan C. The Jameson Raid ( December 29, 1895 - January 2, 1896) was a raid on Paul Kruger 's Transvaal Republic carried out by a Smuts wrote in 1906, "The Jameson Raid was the real declaration of war. . . And that is so in spite of the four years of truce that followed. . . [the] aggressors consolidated their alliance. . . the defenders on the other hand silently and grimly prepared for the inevitable. " [9]
Escalation and war
Paul Kruger and the President Martinus Theunis Steyn of the Orange Free State noted the treatment of Jameson and his raiders in London as public heroes and both understood that the failed raid was the precursor to a war. Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom This article is about the former country in Africa For the present-day country see South Africa; for the region where both are located see Southern Africa For the Russian theme park see Transvaal Park. The Transvaal (Afrikaans lit Joseph Chamberlain ( 8 July 1836 &ndash 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman politician and statesman Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom Martinus (or Marthinus) Theunis Steyn ( October 2, 1857 &ndash 28 November 1916) was a South African The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa They accordingly in 1896 placed orders for Mauser rifles [10] and German Krupp artillery. Mauser is the common name of a German arms manufacturer maker of a line of Bolt-action Rifles from the 1870s to present The Krupp family, a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, have become famous for their Steel production and for their manufacture of Chamberlain welcomed the escalation by Transvaal as an opportunity to annex the Orange states.
The failure to gain improved rights for Uitlanders became a pretext for war, and to justify a major military buildup in the Cape Colony. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. The case for war was justified and espoused as far away as the Australian colonies. [11] Several key British colonial leaders favoured annexation of the independent Boer republics. These figures included the Cape Colony governor Sir Alfred Milner, Cape Prime Minister Cecil Rhodes, British Colonial Secretary Joseph Chamberlain and mining syndicate owners or Randlords (nicknamed the gold bugs) such as Alfred Beit, Barney Barnato and Lionel Phillips. Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British Cecil John Rhodes, PC DCL (5 July 1853 &ndash 26 March 1902 was an English -born Businessman mining Magnate, and Politician Joseph Chamberlain ( 8 July 1836 &ndash 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman politician and statesman Randlord is a term used to denote the entrepreneurs who controlled the Diamond and Gold mining industries in South Africa in its pioneer phase from the Alfred Beit ( 15 February 1853 - 16 July 1906) was a British South African gold and diamond magnate a supporter of British Barney Barnato (born Barnett Isaacs) ( 5 July 1852 – 14 June 1897) was a South African Randlord, one of the Entrepreneurs Sir Lionel Phillips 1st Baronet ( 6 August 1855 &ndash 2 July 1936) was a South African mining magnate and politician Confident that the Boers would be quickly defeated, they planned and organised a short war, citing the Uitlanders' grievances as the motivation for the conflict.
President Steyn of the Orange Free State invited Milner and Kruger to attend a conference in Bloemfontein which started on 30 May 1899, but negotiations quickly broke down, despite Kruger's offer of concessions. Bloemfontein (ˈbluːmfɒnteɪn Afrikaans and Dutch for "spring of Bloem (bloom" Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common In September 1899, Chamberlain sent an ultimatum demanding full equality for British citizens resident in Transvaal. Kruger, seeing that war was inevitable, simultaneously issued his own ultimatum prior to receiving Chamberlain's. This gave the British 48 hours to withdraw all their troops from the border of Transvaal; otherwise the Transvaal, allied with the Orange Free State, would declare war.
News of the ultimatum reached London on the day it expired. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Outrage and laughter were the main responses. The editor of the Times laughed out loud when he read it, saying 'an official document is seldom amusing and useful yet this was both'. The Times denounced the ultimatum as an 'extravagant farce', The Globe denounced this 'trumpery little state'. Most editorials were similar to the Daily Telegraph, which declared: 'of course there can only be one answer to this grotesque challenge. Kruger has asked for war and war he must have!'.
First phase: The Boer offensive (October – December 1899)
War was declared on 11 October 1899. Events 1138 - A massive earthquake struck Aleppo, Syria. 1531 - Huldrych Zwingli is killed Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Boers had no problems with mobilisation, since the fiercely independent Boers had no regular army units (apart from the Staatsartillerie of both republics). When danger threatened, all the burghers (citizens) in a district would form a military unit called a commando and would elect officers. A full-time official titled a Feldcornet maintained muster rolls, but had no disciplinary powers. Each man brought his own weapon and his own horses. The Presidents of the Transvaal and Orange Free State simply signed decrees to concentrate within a week and the Commandos could muster between 30-40,000 men. [12]
Although it seemed a mismatch between the might of the British Empire on the one hand and farmers on the other, and the British anticipated a quick and easy victory, it became clear from the start that Britain would have problems. What the Boers presented was a mobile and innovative approach to warfare, drawing on their experiences from the First Boer War and strategies that had first appeared in the American Civil War. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South The average Boers who made up their Commandos were farmers who had spent almost all their working life in the saddle both as farmers and hunters. They had to depend for the pot on their horse and their rifle and were skilled stalkers and marksmen. As hunters they had learnt to fire from cover, from a prone position and to make the first shot count, knowing that if they missed the game would be long gone. Word history The word prone meaning "naturally inclined to something apt liable" is recorded in English since 1382 the meaning "lying face-down" is first At community gatherings, target shooting was a major sport and they practised shooting at targets such as hens' eggs perched on posts 100 yards away. They made expert light cavalry, using every scrap of cover, from which they could pour in a destructive fire using their modern Mauser rifles. Mauser is the common name of a German arms manufacturer maker of a line of Bolt-action Rifles from the 1870s to present Furthermore, in preparation for hostilities the Boers had acquired around one hundred of the latest Krupp field guns, all horse drawn and dispersed among the various Commando group, and several Le Creusot "Long Tom" siege guns. The Krupp family, a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, have become famous for their Steel production and for their manufacture of Le Creusot is a French commune in the Saône-et-Loire département and the Bourgogne région. The Boers' skill in adapting themselves to becoming first-rate artillerymen shows them to have been a versatile adversary. [13]
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The Boers struck first by invading Cape Colony and Colony of Natal between October 1899 and January 1900. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. The Colony of Natal was a British colony in south-eastern Africa. With elements of both speed and surprise the Boer drove quickly towards the major British garrison at Ladysmith and the smaller ones at Mafeking and Kimberley. The quick Boer mobilisation resulted in early military successes against the scattered British forces.
Sir George White, commanding the British division at Ladysmith, had unwisely allowed Major-General Penn Symons to throw a brigade forward to the coal-mining town of Dundee (also reported as Glencoe) which was surrounded by hills. George White may refer to George White (artist (c 1684&ndash1732 known for Plumbago drawing George Stuart White (1835&ndash1912 This became the site of the first engagement of the war, the Battle of Talana Hill. The Battle of Talana Hill was the first major clash of the Second Boer War. Boer guns began shelling the British camp from the summit of Talana Hill at dawn on October 20. Events 1740 - Maria Theresa takes the throne of Austria. France, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony Penn-Symons immediately counter-attacked. His infantry drove the Boers from the hill, but at the cost of 464 British casualties including Penn-Symons himself.
Another Boer force had occupied Elandslaagte which lay between Ladysmith and Dundee. The British under Major General John French and Colonel Ian Hamilton attacked to clear the line of communications to Dundee. John French may refer to John French (doctor (1616-1657 English doctor and chemist John R Ian Hamilton may refer to Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton (1853–1947 British general Ian Hamilton (lawyer (born 1925 Scottish The resulting Battle of Elandslaagte was a clear-cut British tactical victory, but Sir George White feared that more Boers were about to attack his main position and ordered a chaotic retreat from Elandslaagte, throwing away any advantage gained. The Battle of Elandslaage was a battle of the Second Boer War fought at, and one of the few clear-cut tactical victories won by the British in that conflict The detachment from Dundee was compelled to make an exhausting cross-country retreat to rejoin White's main force.
As Boers surrounded Ladysmith and opened fire on the town with siege guns, White ordered a major sortie against the Boer artillery positions. The result was a disaster, with 140 men killed and over 1000 captured. The Siege of Ladysmith began, and was to last several months. The Siege of Ladysmith was a protracted engagement in the Second Boer War, taking place between 30 October 1899 and 28 February 1900
Meanwhile to the north-west at Mafeking, on the border with Transvaal, Colonel Robert Baden-Powell had raised two regiments of local forces amounting to some 1,200 men in order to attack and create diversions if things further south went amiss. Mafeking, being a railway junction, provided good supply facilities and was the obvious place for Baden-Powell to fortify in readiness for such attacks. However, instead of being the aggressor Baden-Powell and Mafeking were forced to defend when 6,000 Boer, commanded by Piet Cronje, attempted a determined assault on the town. But this quickly subsided into a desultory affair with the Boer prepared to starve the stronghold into submission and so, on the 13th October, began the 217-day Siege of Mafeking. The Siege of Mafeking was the most famous British action in the Second Boer War.
Lastly, over 200 miles to the south of Mafeking lay the large town of Kimberley, the centre of diamond mining, which was also subject to a siege. Although not militarily significant it nonetheless represented existing British Imperialism and hence an important Boer prize. From early November about 7,500 Boer began their siege, again content to starve the town into submission, but the 50,000 inhabitants of which only 5,000 were armed were under little threat as the town was well-stocked with provisions. The defending troops were commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Kekewich.
Siege life took its toll on both the defending soldiers and the civilians in the cities of Mafeking, Ladysmith, and Kimberley as food began to grow scarce after a few weeks. In Mafeking, Sol Plaatje wrote, "I saw horseflesh for the first time being treated as a human foodstuff. Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje (9 October 1876 – 19 June 1932 was a South African intellectual journalist linguist politician translator and writer " The cities under siege also dealt with constant artillery bombardment, making the streets a dangerous place. Near the end of the siege of Kimberley, it was expected that the Boers would intensify their bombardment, so a notice was displayed encouraging people to go down into the mines for protection. The townspeople panicked, and people flowed into the mineshafts constantly for a 12-hour period. Although the bombardment never came, this did nothing to diminish the distress of the civilians. Many of the townspeople, now under siege, sheltered in the local convent, now the Mcgregor museum. Since the mining that occurred there, for diamonds, was open air, the people were not able to shelter in mine shafts. The mine is now known as the Big Hole, a popular tourist attraction in the area.
First British relief attempts
It was at this point that General Sir Redvers Henry Buller, a much respected commander, arrived in South Africa with major British reinforcements (including an Army Corps of three divisions). General Sir Redvers Henry Buller VC GCB GCMG ( 7 December 1839 &ndash 2 June 1908) was a British Colenso is a Town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. History It was established in 1855 at a ford on the Tugela River Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts 1st Earl Roberts, VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, PC General Sir Redvers Henry Buller VC GCB GCMG ( 7 December 1839 &ndash 2 June 1908) was a British Buller originally intended an offensive straight up the railway line leading from Cape Town through Bloemfontein to Pretoria. Cape Town (Kaapstad Xhosa: Ikapa) is the second most populous city in South Africa, forming part of the metropolitan municipality of the Bloemfontein (ˈbluːmfɒnteɪn Afrikaans and Dutch for "spring of Bloem (bloom" Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. Finding on arrival that the British troops already in South Africa were under siege, he split his Army Corps into several widely spread detachments, to relieve the besieged garrisons. One force, led by Lieutenant General Lord Methuen, was to follow the Western Railway to the north and relieve Kimberley and Mafeking. Field Marshal Paul Sanford Methuen 3rd Baron Methuen, GCB, GCMG, GCVO ( 1 September 1845 - 30 October 1932 A smaller force of about 3,000 led by Major General William Gatacre, was to push north toward the railway junction at Stormberg, to secure the Cape Midlands district from Boer raids and local rebellions by Boer inhabitants. Lieutenant-General Sir William Forbes Gatacre KCB, DSO (1843-1906 was an British soldier born near Stirling, and educated at Finally, Buller himself would lead the major force and relieve Ladysmith to the east.
The initial results of this offensive were mixed with Methuen winning several bloody skirmishes at Belmont on November 23, Graspan on November 25 and a larger conflict at the Modder River on November 28 resulting in British losses of 71 dead and over 400 wounded. Background At the beginning of the Civil War the critical border state of Kentucky, with a pro-Confederate governor and a pro-Union legislature had declared Events 800 - Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Events 1034 - Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots dies Donnchad, the The Battle of Modder River was an engagement in the Boer War, fought at Modder River, on November 28, 1899. For the town in Argentina, see 28 de Noviembre. Events British commanders had trained on the lessons of the Crimean War, and were adept at battalion and regimental set pieces with columns manoeuvring in jungles, deserts and mountainous regions; what they entirely failed to comprehend was the impact of destructive fire from trench positions, and the mobility of cavalry raids both of which had been developed in the American Civil War. The Crimean War, also known in Russia as the Eastern War (Восточная война Vostochnaya Vojna) (March 1854–February 1856 was fought The British troops went to war with what would prove to be antiquated tactics, and in some cases antiquated weapons [14], against the mobile Boer forces with the destructive fire of their modern Mausers, the latest Krupp field guns and their innovative tactics.
The middle of December was disastrous for the British army. In a period known as Black Week (10 – 15 December 1899), the British suffered a series of devastating losses at Magersfontein, Stormberg, and Colenso. Black Week is a phrase frequently used in the popular press to mark periods of a few days when a string of similar unfortunate events occur Events 533 - Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Battle of Magersfontein is the second of the battles included in the Black Week of the Second Boer War. The Battle of Stormberg was the first British defeat of Black Week, in which three successive British forces were defeated by Boer irregulars in the Second The Battle of Colenso is the third and final of the battles fought during the Black Week of the Boer War
On December 10, General Gatacre tried to recapture Stormberg railway junction about 50 miles (80 km) south of the Orange River. Events 1041 - Empress Zoe of Byzantium elevates her adoptive son to the throne of the Eastern Roman Empire as Michael V The Orange River ( Afrikaans / Dutch: Oranjerivier) Gariep River, Groote River or Senqu River is the longest river in Gatacre's attack was marked by administrative and tactical blunders, and the Battle of Stormberg ended in a British defeat, with 135 killed and wounded, as well as two guns and over 600 troops captured. The Battle of Stormberg was the first British defeat of Black Week, in which three successive British forces were defeated by Boer irregulars in the Second
At the Battle of Magersfontein on December 11, Methuen's 14,000 British troops attempted to capture a Boer position in a dawn attack to relieve Kimberley. The Battle of Magersfontein is the second of the battles included in the Black Week of the Second Boer War. Events 359 - Honoratus, the first known Prefect of the City of Constantinople, takes office This turned into a disaster when the Highland Brigade became pinned down by accurate Boer fire. After suffering from intense heat and thirst for nine hours, they eventually broke in ill-disciplined retreat. The Boer commanders, Koos de la Rey and Piet Cronje, had devised a plan to dig trenches in an unconventional place to fool the British and to give their riflemen a greater firing range. Jacobus Herculaas de la Rey ( 22 October 1847 - 15 September 1914) known as Koos de la Rey was a Boer General Pieter Arnoldus Cronjé, commonly known as Piet Cronjé ( 'KRON-year' ( Colesberg, Cape Colony, 4 October 1836 &ndash Potchefstroom A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide (as opposed to a wider Gully or Ditch The plan worked and this tactic helped write the doctrine of the supremacy of the defensive position, using modern small arms and trench fortifications. [15] The British lost 120 killed and 690 wounded and were prevented from relieving Kimberley and Mafeking. A British soldier encapsulated the soldiers view of the defeat:
"Such was the day for our regiment
Dread the revenge we will take.
Dearly we paid for the blunder -
A drawing-room General’s mistake.
Why weren’t we told of the trenches?
Why weren’t we told of the wire?
Why were we marched up in column,
May Tommy Atkins enquire…. Tommy Atkins (often just Tommy) is a term for a common soldier in the British Army that was already well established in the nineteenth century but is particularly " [16]
But the nadir of Black Week was the Battle of Colenso on December 15 where 21,000 British troops commanded by Buller himself, attempted to cross the Tugela River to relieve Ladysmith where 8,000 Transvaal Boers, under the command of Louis Botha, were awaiting them. The nadir (from Arabic ندير nadeer نظير nathir, "opposite" is the astronomical term for the point directly Black Week is a phrase frequently used in the popular press to mark periods of a few days when a string of similar unfortunate events occur The Battle of Colenso is the third and final of the battles fought during the Black Week of the Boer War Events 533 - Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Note Tugela redirects here For the Australian racehorse named after the river see Tugela (horse. Louis Botha (27 September 1862 &ndash 27 August 1919 was an Afrikaner and first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa —the forerunner of the modern Through a combination of artillery and accurate rifle fire, and a better use of the ground, the Boers repelled all British attempts to cross the river. After his first attacks failed, Buller broke off the battle and ordered a retreat, abandoning many wounded men, several isolated units and ten field guns to be captured by Botha's men. Buller’s forces lost 145 men killed and 1,200 missing or wounded. The Boers suffered 40 casualties.
Second phase: The British offensive of January to September 1900
The British Government took these defeats badly and with the sieges still continuing was compelled to send two more divisions plus large numbers of colonial volunteers. By January 1900 this would become the largest force Britain had ever sent overseas, amounting to some 180,000 men with further reinforcements being sought.
While waiting for these reinforcements, Buller attempted to recover some of his lost reputation by making another bid to relieve Ladysmith by crossing the Tugela west of Colenso. Colenso is a Town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. History It was established in 1855 at a ford on the Tugela River Buller's subordinate, Major General Charles Warren, successfully crossed the river, but was then faced with a fresh defensive position centred on a prominent hill known as Spion Kop. General Sir Charles Warren, GCMG, KCB, FRS ( 7 February 1840 &ndash 21 January 1927) was an officer in the In the resulting Battle of Spion Kop, British troops captured the summit by surprise during the early hours of January 24, 1900, but as the early morning fog lifted they realised too late that they were overlooked by Boer gun emplacements on the surrounding hills. The Battle of Spion Kop ( Slag bij Spionkop Afrikaans: Slag van Spioenkop) was fought about 38 km (21 miles west-south-west of Ladysmith on the hilltop Events 41 - Gaius Caesar (Caligula, known for his eccentricity and cruel Despotism, is Assassinated by his disgruntled Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar The rest of the day resulted in a disaster caused by poor communication between Buller and his commanders. Between them they issued contradictory orders, on the one hand ordering men off the hill, while other officers ordered fresh reinforcements to defend it. The result was 350 men killed and nearly 1,000 wounded and a retreat back across the Tugela River into British territory. There were nearly 300 Boer casualties.
Buller attacked Louis Botha again on February 5 at Vaal Krantz and was again defeated. Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Buller withdrew early when it appeared that the British would be isolated in an exposed bridgehead across the Tugela, and was nicknamed "Sir Reverse" by some of his officers.
By taking command in person in Natal, Buller had allowed the overall direction of the war to drift. Because of concerns about his performance and negative reports from the field, he was replaced as Commander in Chief by Field Marshal Lord Roberts. Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts 1st Earl Roberts, VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, PC Roberts first intended like Buller to attack directly along the Cape Town - Pretoria railway but, again like Buller, was forced to relieve the beleaguered garrisons. Leaving Buller in command in Natal, Roberts massed his main force near the Orange River and along the Western Railway behind Methuen's force at the Modder River, and prepared to make a wide outflanking move to relieve Kimberley. The Orange River ( Afrikaans / Dutch: Oranjerivier) Gariep River, Groote River or Senqu River is the longest river in for the town see Modder River Northern Cape for the battle see Battle of Modder River The Modder River is a river in
Except in Natal, the war had stagnated. Except for a single attempt to storm Ladysmith, the Boers made no attempt to capture the besieged towns. In the Cape Midlands, the Boers did not exploit the British defeat at Stormberg, and were prevented from capturing the railway junction at Colesberg. Colesberg is a South African town in the Northern Cape and on the main road from Cape Town to Johannesburg. In the dry summer, the grazing on the veld became parched, weakening the Boers horses and draught oxen, and many Boer families joined their menfolk in the siege lines and laagers (encampments), fatally encumbering Cronje's army.
Roberts launched his main attack on February 10, 1900 and although hampered by a long supply route, managed to outflank the Boers defending Magersfontein. Events 1355 - The St Scholastica's Day riot breaks out in Oxford, England, leaving 63 scholars and perhaps 30 locals dead Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar On February 14, a cavalry division under Major General John French launched a major attack to relieve Kimberley. Events 842 - Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German Field Marshal John Denton Pinkstone French 1st Earl of Ypres KP, GCB, OM, GCVO, KCMG, ADC, PC ( Although encountering severe fire, a massed cavalry charge split the Boer defences on February 15, opening the way for French to enter Kimberley that evening, ending its 124 days’ siege. Events 590 - Khosrau II is crowned as king of Persia 1637 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor
Meanwhile, Roberts pursued Piet Cronje’s 7,000 strong force, which had abandoned Magersfontein to head for Bloemfontein. General French’s cavalry was also ordered to assist in the pursuit by embarking on an epic 30-mile drive towards Paardeberg where Cronje was entrenched. At the Battle of Paardeberg from February 18 to February 27, Roberts then surrounded General Piet Cronje's retreating Boer army. The Battle of Paardeberg ("Mountain of the horses" was a major battle during the Second Anglo-Boer War. Events 3102 BC - Epoch (origin of the Kali Yuga. 1229 - The Sixth Crusade: Frederick II Holy Events 1560 - The Treaty of Berwick, which would expel the French from Scotland, is signed by England and the Congregation Pieter Arnoldus Cronjé, commonly known as Piet Cronjé ( 'KRON-year' ( Colesberg, Cape Colony, 4 October 1836 &ndash Potchefstroom On the 17th February, a pincer movement involving both French’s cavalry and the main British force attempted to take the entrenched position, but the frontal attacks were unco-ordinated and so easily repulsed by the Boers. Finally, Roberts resorted to bombarding Cronje into submission, but it took a further ten precious days and with the British troops using the polluted Modder River as water supply, resulting in a typhoid epidemic killing many troops. General Cronje was forced to surrender with 4000 men.
In Natal, Buller began his fourth attempt to relieve Ladysmith on February 14. Events 842 - Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German Despite reinforcements his progress was painfully slow against stiff opposition. However, on February 26, after much deliberation, Buller used all his forces in one all-out attack for the first time and at last succeeded in forcing a crossing of the Tugela, and defeated Botha's outnumbered forces north of Colenso. Events 747 BC - Epoch (origin of Ptolemy 's Nabonassar Era 364 - Valentinian I is proclaimed Ladysmith was relieved after a siege lasting 118 days the day after Cronje surrendered, but at a total cost of 7,000 British casualties. The Siege of Ladysmith was a protracted engagement in the Second Boer War, taking place between 30 October 1899 and 28 February 1900
After a succession of defeats the Boers realised that against such overwhelming superiority of troops they had little chance of defeating the British and so became demoralised. Roberts then advanced into the Orange Free State from the west, capturing Bloemfontein, the capital, unopposed on March 13 with the Boer defenders escaping and scattering. Bloemfontein (ˈbluːmfɒnteɪn Afrikaans and Dutch for "spring of Bloem (bloom" Events 1138 - Cardinal Gregorio Conti is elected Antipope as Victor IV, succeeding Anacletus II. Meanwhile, he detached a small force to relieve Baden-Powell, and the Relief of Mafeking on May 18, 1900 provoked riotous celebrations in Britain. The Siege of Mafeking was the most famous British action in the Second Boer War. Events 1152 - Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar
On the 28th May the Orange Free State was annexed and renamed the Orange River Colony.
After being forced to delay for several weeks at Bloemfontein due to shortage of supplies and enteric fever (caused by poor hygiene, drinking bad water at Paardeburg and appalling medical care),[17], Roberts resumed his advance. Typhoid fever, also known as enteric fever, bilious fever, Yellow Jack or commonly just typhoid, is an illness caused by the Bacterium He was forced to halt again at Kroonstad for 10 days, due once again to the collapse of his medical and supply systems, then finally captured Johannesburg on May 31 and the capital of the Transvaal, Pretoria, on June 5. Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. Events 70 - Titus and his Roman Legions breach the middle wall of Jerusalem in the Siege of Jerusalem The first into Pretoria, was Lt. William Watson of the New South Wales Mounted Rifles, who persuaded the Boer to surrender the capital. [18](Before the war, the Boers had constructed several forts south of Pretoria, but the artillery had been removed from the forts for use in the field, and in the event the Boers abandoned Pretoria without a fight).
This allowed the Roberts to declare the war over, having won the principal cities and so, on the 3rd September 1900, the South African Republic was formally annexed.
British observers believed the war to be all but over after the capture of the two capital cities. However, the Boers had earlier met at the temporary new capital of the Orange Free State, Kroonstad, and planned a guerrilla campaign to hit the British supply and communication lines. The town of Kroonstad, the third-largest town in Free State province of South Africa, lies two hours drive from Gauteng. Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc The first engagement of this new form of warfare was at Sanna's Post on 31 March where 1,500 Boers under the command of Christiaan De Wet attacked Bloemfontein's waterworks about 23 miles (37 km) east of the city, and ambushed a heavily escorted convoy which resulted in 155 British casualties and the capture of seven guns, 117 wagons and 428 British troops. Sanna’s Post (aka Korn Spruit) was an engagement fought during the Second Boer War (1899-1902 between the British Empire and the Boers Events 307 - After divorcing his wife Minervina, Constantine marries Fausta, the daughter of the retired Roman Emperor Christiaan Rudolf de Wet ( 7 October 1854 - 3 February 1922) was a Boer General, Rebel Leader [19]
After the fall of Pretoria, one of the last formal battles was at Diamond Hill on 11 – 12 June, where Roberts attempted to drive the remnants of the Boer field army beyond striking distance of Pretoria. The Battle of Diamond Hill (Donkerhoek took place between 11 and 12 June 1900 during the Second Boer War. Events 1381 - Peasants' Revolt: in England, rebels arrive at Blackheath. Although Roberts drove the Boers from the hill, the Boer commander, Louis Botha, did not regard it as a defeat, for he inflicted more casualties on the British (totalling 162 men) while suffering around 50 casualties.
The set-piece period of the war now largely gave way to a mobile guerrilla war, but one final operation remained. Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc President Kruger and what remained of the Transvaal government had retreated to eastern Transvaal. Roberts, joined by troops from Natal under Buller, advanced against them, and broke their last defensive position at Bergendal on August 26. The Battle of Bergendal (also known as the Battle of Belfast) was the last set-piece battle of the Second Anglo-Boer War. Events 1071 - Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Army at Manzikert. As Roberts and Buller followed up along the railway line to Komatipoort, Kruger sought asylum in Portuguese East Africa (modern Mozambique). Komatipoort is a town situated at the confluence of the Crocodile and Komati Rivers in Mpumalanga province South Africa. Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique (Moçambique or República de Moçambique, ʁɛ'publikɐ d musɐ̃'bik is a country in southeastern Africa Some dispirited Boers did likewise, and the British gathered up much war material. However, the core of the Boer fighters under Botha easily broke back through the Drakensberg mountains into the Transvaal highveld after riding north through the bushveld. The Drakensberg ( Afrikaans: "Dragon's Mountain" Mountains are the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, rising up to in height Under the new conditions of the war, heavy equipment was no use to them, and therefore no great loss.
There was much sympathy for the Boers on mainland Europe and in October, President Kruger and members of the Transvaal government left South Africa on the Dutch warship De Gelderland, sent by the Queen of the Netherlands Wilhelmina, who had simply ignored the British naval blockade of South Africa. History The ship began its history as the Dutch Holland -class armoured deck cruiser ( pantserdekschip) HNLMS Gelderland. Wilhelmina (Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Marie 31 August 1880 &ndash 28 November 1962) was Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Paul Kruger's wife however was too ill to travel and remained in South Africa where she died on 20 July 1901 without seeing Paul Kruger again. President Kruger first went to Marseille and then on to The Netherlands where he stayed for a while before moving finally to Clarens, Switzerland, where he died in exile on 14 July 1904. Clarens is a small village in the municipality of Montreux, in the canton of Vaud, in Switzerland.
POWs sent overseas
The first sizable batch of Boer prisoners of war taken by the British consisted of those captured at the Battle of Elandslaagte on 21 October 1899. The Battle of Elandslaage was a battle of the Second Boer War fought at, and one of the few clear-cut tactical victories won by the British in that conflict Events 1512 - Martin Luther joins the theological faculty of the University of Wittenberg. Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common At first many were put on ships, but as numbers grew, the British decided they didn't want them kept locally. The capture of 400 POWs in February 1900 was a key event, which made the British realise they could not accommodate all POWs in South Africa. [20] The British feared they could be freed by sympathetic locals. They already had trouble supplying their own troops in South Africa, and did not want the added burden of sending supplies for the POWs. Britain therefore chose to send many POWs overseas.
The first overseas (off African mainland) camps were opened in Saint Helena, which ultimately received about 5,000 POWs. Saint Helena (pronounced saint he-LEE-na) named after St Helena of Constantinople, is an island of volcanic origin and a British overseas territory About 5,000 POWs were sent to Ceylon. Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island Other POWs were sent to Bermuda and India. Ba (officially The Bermuda Islands or The Somers Isles) is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Some POWs were even sent outside the British Empire, with 1443[21] Boers (mostly POWs) sent to Portugal. The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. No evidence exists of Boer POWs being sent to the Dominions of the British Empire such as Australia, Canada or New Zealand. [20]
Third phase: Guerrilla war (September 1900 – May 1902)
By September 1900, the British were nominally in control of both Republics, with the exception of the northern part of Transvaal. Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar However, they soon discovered that they only controlled directly the territory which their columns physically occupied. The Boer commanders adopted Guerrilla warfare tactics, primarily conducting raids against infrastructure, resource and supply targets, all aimed at disrupting the operational capacity of the British Army. Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc A raid can refer to either a military tactic, or a larger Grand Tactical or Operational warfare mission which require the execution of a plan where
Each Boer commando was sent to the district from which its members had been recruited which meant that they could rely on local support and personal knowledge of the terrain and the towns within the district thereby enabling them to live off the land. Their orders were simply to act against the British whenever possible. Their strategy was to strike fast and hard causing as much damage to the enemy as possible, and then to withdraw and vanish before enemy reinforcements could arrive. The vast distances of the Republics allowed the Boer commandos considerable freedom to move about and made it impossible for the 250,000 British troops to control the territory effectively using columns alone. As soon as a British column left a town or district, British control of that area faded away.
The Boer commandos were especially effective during the initial guerrilla phase of the war because Roberts had assumed that the war would end with the capture of the Boer capitals and the dispersal of the main Boer armies. Many British troops were therefore redeployed, and had been replaced by lower-quality contingents of Imperial Yeomanry and locally-raised irregular corps. The Imperial Yeomanry was a British Volunteer Cavalry Regiment that mainly saw action during the Second Boer War.
From late May 1900 the first successes of the Boer strategy were at Lindley (where 500 Yeomanry surrendered), and at Heilbron (capturing a large convey and its escort) and other skirmishes resulting in 1,500 British casualties in less than ten days. As a result of these and other Boer successes the British, led by Lord Kitchener, mounted three extensive searches for De Wet, but without success. However, by its very nature the guerrilla war was sporadic, poorly planned and with little overall objective in mind except to harass the British. This lead to a disorganised pattern of scattered engagements throughout the whole region.
British response
The British were forced to quickly revise their tactics. They concentrated on restricting the freedom of movement of the Boer commandos, and depriving them of local support. The railway lines had provided vital lines of communication and supply, and as the British had advanced across South Africa they had used armoured trains and had established fortified blockhouses at key points. In Military science, a blockhouse is a small isolated Fort in the form of a single building [22] They now built additional blockhouses (, each housing 6-8 soldiers) and fortified these to protect supply routes against Boer raiders. A raid can refer to either a military tactic, or a larger Grand Tactical or Operational warfare mission which require the execution of a plan where Eventually some 10,000 such blockhouses were built radiating from the larger towns. Each blockhouse cost between 800 and 1,000 pounds and took 3 months to build. However, they proved very effective. Not one bridge where one of these blockhouses was sited and manned was blown. [22]
The blockhouse system required an enormous amount of troops to maintain. Well over 50,000 British troops, or 50 battalions, were involved in blockhouse duty, greater than the approximately 30,000 Boers in the field during the guerilla phase. In addition up to 16,000 Africans were used to patrol the line at night. [22] The Army linked the blockhouses with barbed wire fences to parcel up the wide veld into smaller areas. "New Model" drives were mounted under which a continuous line of troops could sweep an area of veld bounded by blockhouse lines, unlike the earlier inefficient scouring of the countryside by scattered columns.
The British also implemented a "Scorched Earth" policy under which they targeted everything within the controlled areas that could give sustenance to the Boer guerrillas with a view to making it harder and harder for the Boers to survive. A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between As British troops swept the countryside, they systematically destroyed crops, burned homesteads and farms, poisoned wells, and interned women, children and workers in concentration camps. Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial Finally, the British also established their own mounted raiding columns in support of the sweeper columns. These were used to rapidly follow and relentlessly harass the Boers with a view to delaying them, and cutting off escape, while the sweeper units caught up. They also utilised the armoured trains to deliver the rapid reaction forces much more quickly to incidents (such as Boer attacks on blockhouses and columns) or to drop them off ahead of retreating Boer columns.
Western Transvaal and the Orange Free State
The Boer commandos in the Western Transvaal were very active after September 1901. Several battles of importance were fought here between September 1901 and March 1902. At Moedwil on 30 September 1901 and again at Driefontein on 24 October, Gen. Events 1399 - Henry IV is proclaimed King of England. 1744 - France and Spain defeat the Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Events 69 - Second Battle of Bedriacum, forces under Antonius Primus the commander of the Danube armies loyal to Vespasian, defeat De la Rey’s forces attacked the British, but were forced to withdraw after the British offered strong resistance.
A time of relative quiet descended thereafter on the western Transvaal. February 1902 saw the next major battle in that region. On 25 February De la Rey attacked a British column at Ysterspruit near Wolmaransstad. Events 138 - The Emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius, effectively making him his successor De la Rey succeeded in capturing the column and a large amount of ammunition. The Boer attacks prompted Lord Methuen, the British second-in-command after Lord Kitchener, to move his column from Vryburg to Klerksdorp to deal with De la Rey. Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener 1st Earl Kitchener, KG, KP, GCB, OM On the morning of 7 March 1902, the Boers attacked the rear guard of Methuen’s moving column at Tweebosch. Events 161 - Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius dies and is succeeded by co-Emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Confusion reigned in British ranks and Methuen was wounded and captured by the Boers. The Boer victories in the west led to stronger action by the British. In the second half of March 1902, large British reinforcements were sent to the Western Transvaal. The opportunity the British were waiting for arose on 11 April 1902 at Rooiwal, where the combined forces of Gens. Events 491 - Flavius Anastasius becomes Byzantine Emperor, with the name of Anastasius I. Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Battle of Rooiwal was an engagement of the Second Boer War. Grenfell, Kekewich and Von Donop came into contact with the forces of Gen. Kemp. The British soldiers were well positioned on the mountainside and inflicted severe casualties on the Boers charging on horseback over a large distance, beating them back. This was the end of the war in the Western Transvaal and also the last major battle of the war.
While the British occupied Pretoria, the Boer fighters in the Orange Free State had been driven into a fertile area in the north east of the Republic, known as the Brandwater Basin. Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa This offered only temporary sanctuary, as the mountain passes leading to it could be occupied by the British, trapping the Boers. A force under General Hunter set out from Bloemfontein to achieve this in July 1900. The hard core of the Boers under Christiaan de Wet, accompanied by President Steyn, left the basin early. Christiaan Rudolf de Wet ( 7 October 1854 - 3 February 1922) was a Boer General, Rebel Leader Those remaining fell into confusion and most failed to break out before Hunter trapped them. 4,500 Boers surrendered and much equipment was captured, but as with Robert's drive against Kruger at the same time, these losses were of relatively little consequence, as the hard core of the Boer armies and their most determined and active leaders remained at large.
From the Basin, de Wet headed west. Although hounded by British columns, he succeeded in crossing the Vaal into the Western Transvaal, to allow Steyn to travel to meet the Transvaal leaders. Returning to the Orange Free State, de Wet inspired a series of attacks and raids from the hitherto quiet western part of the country. The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa Many Boers who had earlier returned to their farms, sometimes giving formal parole to the British, took up arms again. In late January 1901, De Wet led a renewed invasion of Cape Colony. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. This was less successful, because there was no general uprising among the Cape Boers, and de Wet's men were hampered by bad weather and relentlessly pursued by British forces. They narrowly escaped across the Orange River. The Orange River ( Afrikaans / Dutch: Oranjerivier) Gariep River, Groote River or Senqu River is the longest river in
From then until the final days of the war, de Wet remained comparatively quiet, partly because the Orange Free State was effectively left desolate by British sweeps. In late 1901, De Wet overran an isolated British detachment at Groenkop, inflicting heavy casualties. This prompted Kitchener to launch the first of the "New Model" drives against him.
The British had first erected lines of blockhouses to protect the railway lines. They now built fresh lines of these, linked by barbed wire fences, to prevent free Boer movement across the veld. They also allowed "New Model" drives. Unlike the earlier inefficient scouring of the countryside by scattered columns, a continuous line of troops could now effectively sweep an area of veld bounded by blockhouse lines. De Wet escaped the first such drive, but lost 300 of his fighters. This was a severe loss, and a portent of further such attrition.
Eastern Transvaal and Cape Colony
Two Boer forces fought in this area; under Botha in the south east and Ben Viljoen in the north east. Botha's forces were particularly active, raiding railways and even mounting a renewed invasion of Natal in September, 1901. After defeating British mounted infantry near Dundee, Botha was forced to withdraw by heavy rains which made movement difficult and crippled his horses. The coal Back in the Transvaal, he attacked a British raiding column at Bakenlaagte. This made his forces the target of increasingly large and ruthless drives by British forces, and eventually, he had to abandon the high veld and retreat to a narrow enclave bordering Swaziland. The Kingdom of Swaziland is a country located in Southern Africa centred at approximately 26o49'S 31o38'E
To the north, Ben Viljoen grew steadily less active. His forces mounted comparatively few attacks and as a result, the Boer enclave around Lydenburg was largely unmolested. Lydenburg is a Town in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The town is slated to be renamed Mashishing, according to an announcement made on June 30 2006 Viljoen was eventually captured.
After he escaped across the Orange in March 1901, de Wet had left forces under Cape rebels Kritzinger and Scheepers to maintain a guerrilla campaign in the Cape Midlands. The campaign here was one of the least chivalrous, with intimidation by both sides of each other's civilian sympathisers. Several captured rebels, including Scheepers, were executed for treason by the British, some in public. In most cases though, the executions were ostensibly for capital crimes such as the murder of prisoners or of unarmed civilians.
Fresh Boer forces under Jan Christiaan Smuts, joined by the surviving rebels under Kritzinger, made another attack on the Cape in September 1901. Field Marshal Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, PC, ED, KC, FRS (24 May 1870 &ndash 11 September 1950 was a prominent They suffered severe hardships and were hard pressed by British columns, but eventually rescued themselves by routing some of their pursuers and capturing their equipment.
From then until the end of the war, Smuts increased his forces until they numbered 3,000. However, no general uprising took place, and the situation in the Cape remained stalemated.
Concentration camps (1900 - 1902)
The English term "concentration camp" was first used to describe camps operated by the British in South Africa during this conflict. Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa
The camps had originally been set up by the British Army as "refugee camps" to provide refuge for civilian families who had been forced to abandon their homes for one or other reason related to the war. The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. A refugee camp is a temporary camp built by a government the United Nations, international organizations (such as the Red Cross) or NGOs to receive However, when Kitchener succeeded Roberts as commander-in-chief in South Africa in November 29, 1900 the influx of civilians grew dramatically as a result of the tactics employed by the British Army in an attempt to break the guerrilla campaign. Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener 1st Earl Kitchener, KG, KP, GCB, OM Kitchener initiated plans to "flush out guerrillas in a series of systematic drives, organized like a sporting shoot, with success defined in a weekly 'bag' of killed, captured and wounded, and to sweep the country bare of everything that could give sustenance to the guerrillas, including women and children. . . . It was the clearance of civilians - uprooting a whole nation - that would come to dominate the last phase of the war. "[23]
As Boer farms were destroyed by the British under their "Scorched Earth" policy - including the systematic destruction of crops and slaughtering of livestock, the burning down of homesteads and farms, and the poisoning of wells and salting of fields - many tens of thousands of women and children were forcibly moved into the concentration camps to prevent the Boers from resupplying from a home base. Emily Hobhouse ( April 9, 1860 &mdash June 8, 1926) was a British welfare campaigner who is primarily remembered for bringing Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between The policy was ruthlessly applied; although most black Africans were not considered by the British to be hostile, many were also forcibly removed from Boer areas and also placed in concentration camps. This was not the first appearance of internment camps. The Spanish had used internment in the Ten Years' War that later led to the Spanish-American War, and the United States had used them to devastate guerrilla forces during the Philippine-American War. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The Ten Years' War ( Guerra de los Diez Años, (1868-1878 also known as the Great War, began on October 10 1868 when sugar mill owner Carlos Manuel de Céspedes The United States of America —commonly referred to as the But the Boer War concentration camp system was the first time that a whole nation had been systematically targeted, and the first in which some whole regions had been depopulated.
Boer internees were separately held from black Africans. Eventually there were a total of 45 tented camps built for Boer internees and 64 for black Africans. A tent is a shelter consisting of sheets of fabric or other material draped over or attached to a frame of poles or attached to a supporting rope Of the 28,000 Boer men captured as prisoners of war, 25,630 were sent overseas. The vast majority of Boers remaining in the local camps were women and children, but the camps established for black Africans held large numbers of men as well. A number of the black African internees who were not considered by the British to be hostile were used as a paid labour force.
The camps were poorly administered from the outset and became increasingly overcrowded when Kitchener's troops implemented the internment strategy on a wide scale. Conditions were terrible for the health of the internees, mainly due to poor hygiene, sanitation and food. Hygiene refers to practices associated with ensuring good health and cleanliness The food rations were meagre, and wives and children of men who were still fighting were routinely given smaller rations than others. Rationing is the controlled distribution of resources and scarce goods or services The inadequate shelter, poor diet, inadequate hygiene and overcrowding led to malnutrition and endemic contagious diseases such as measles, typhoid and dysentery to which the children were particularly vulnerable. Measles (rubeola is a Disease caused by a virus specifically a Paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Typhoid fever, also known as enteric fever, bilious fever, Yellow Jack or commonly just typhoid, is an illness caused by the Bacterium Dysentery (formerly known as flux or the bloody flux) is an infection of the digestive system that results in severe Diarrhea containing mucus and blood Coupled with a shortage of medical facilities many of the internees died.
Public opinion and political opposition
Although the 1900 UK general election, also known as the "Khaki election", had resulted in a victory for the Conservative government on the back of recent British victories against the Boers, public support quickly waned as it became apparent that the war would not be easy and unease developed following reports about the treatment by the Army of the Boer civilians. The United Kingdom general election of 1900 was held from 25 September to 24 October 1900 The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative and Unionist Party) is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Public and political opposition to Government policies in South Africa regarding Boer civilians was first expressed in Parliament in February 1901 in the form of an attack on the policy, the government, and the Army by the radical Liberal MP David Lloyd George. The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the rise of the Labour Party in the 1920s and a third party David Lloyd George 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor OM, PC (17 January 1863 &ndash 26 March 1945 was a British Statesman and the only
Emily Hobhouse, a delegate of the South African Women and Children's Distress Fund, visited some of the camps in the Orange Free State from January 1901 and in May, 1901 she returned to England on board the ship, the Saxon. Emily Hobhouse ( April 9, 1860 &mdash June 8, 1926) was a British welfare campaigner who is primarily remembered for bringing Alfred Milner, High Commissioner in South Africa, also boarded the Saxon for holiday in England but, unfortunately for both the camp internees and the British government, had no time for Miss Hobhouse, regarding her as a Boer sympathizer and "trouble maker. Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British " [24] On her return Emily Hobhouse did much to publicize the distress of the camp inmates. She managed to speak to the Liberal Party leader, Henry Campbell-Bannerman who professed to be suitably outraged but was disinclined to press the matter, as his party was split between the imperialists and the pro-Boer factions. Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, GCB (7 September 1836 &ndash 22 April 1908 was a British Liberal Statesman who served as Prime Minister
The more radical Liberals however such as David Lloyd George and John Ellis were prepared to raise the matter in Parliament and to harass the government on the issue, which they duly did. David Lloyd George 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor OM, PC (17 January 1863 &ndash 26 March 1945 was a British Statesman and the only John Edward Ellis PC ( 1841 - 5 December 1910) was a British colliery owner and Liberal politician St John Brodrick, the Conservative secretary of state for war, first defended the government's policy by arguing that the camps were purely 'voluntary' and that that the interned Boers were "contented and comfortable", but was somewhat undermined as he had no firm statistics to back up his argument so when that position proved untenable, he resorted to the "military necessity" argument and stated that everything possible was being done to ensure satisfactory conditions in the camps. William St John Fremantle Brodrick 1st Earl of Midleton, KP ( December 14, 1856 &ndash February 13, 1942) commonly known as St
Hobhouse published a report in June 1901 which contradicted Brodrick's claim, and Lloyd George then openly accused the government of "a policy of extermination" directed against the Boer population. In June, 1901, Liberal opposition party leader Campbell-Bannerman took up the assault and answered the rhetorical "When is a war not a war?" with "When it is carried on by methods of barbarism in South Africa," referring to those same camps and the policies that created them. The Hobhouse report caused uproar both domestically and in the international community.
The Fawcett Commission
Although the Government had comfortably won the parliamentary debate by a margin of 252 to 149, it was stung by the criticism and concerned by the escalating public outcry, and called on Kitchener for a detailed report. Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener 1st Earl Kitchener, KG, KP, GCB, OM In response complete statistical returns from camps were sent in July 1901. By August 1901 it was clear to Government and Opposition alike that Miss Hobhouse's worst fears were being confirmed - 93,940 Boers and 24,457 black Africans were reported to be in "camps of refuge" and the crisis was becoming a catastrophe as the death rates appeared very high, especially amongst the children.
The Government responded to the growing clamour by appointing a commission. The Fawcett Commission as it became known was, uniquely for its time, an all-woman affair headed by Millicent Fawcett who despite being the leader of the women's suffrage movement was a Liberal Unionist and thus a government supporter and considered a safe pair of hands. Dame Millicent Fawcett GBE LLD ( June 11, 1847 &ndash August 5, 1929) was an English Suffragist The Liberal Unionists were a British political party that split away from the Liberals in 1886 and had effectively merged with the Conservatives by the Between August and December 1901 the Fawcett Commission conducted its own tour of the camps in South Africa. Whilst it is probable that the British Government expected the Commission to produce a report that could be used to fend off criticism, in the end it confirmed everything that Emily Hobhouse had said. Emily Hobhouse ( April 9, 1860 &mdash June 8, 1926) was a British welfare campaigner who is primarily remembered for bringing Indeed, if anything the Commission's recommendations went even further, the Commission insisted that rations should be increased and that additional nurses be sent out immediately, and included a long list of other practical measures designed to improve conditions in the camp. Millicent Fawcett was quite blunt in expressing her opinion that much of the catastrophe was down to a simple failure to observe elementary rules of hygiene. Hygiene refers to practices associated with ensuring good health and cleanliness
Under pressure, the Colonial Secretary Joseph Chamberlain in November 1901 ordered Arthur Milner to ensure that "all possible steps are being taken to reduce the rate of mortality". Joseph Chamberlain ( 8 July 1836 &ndash 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman politician and statesman The civil authority took over the running of the camps from Kitchener and British Command and by February 1902, the annual death-rate in the concentration camps for white inmates dropped to 6. 9% and eventually it dropped to 2%, which was a lower rate than pertained in many British cities at the time.
However, by then the damage had been done. A report after the war concluded that 27,927 Boers (of whom 24,074 [50% of the Boer child population] were children under 16) had died of starvation, disease and exposure in the concentration camps. Starvation (also called inanition) is a severe reduction in Vitamin, Nutrient, and Energy intake and is the most extreme form of A disease is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions and can be deadly Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial In all, about one in four (25%) of the Boer inmates, mostly children, died.
"Improvements [however] were much slower in coming to the black camps. "[25]. It is thought that about 12% of black African inmates died (about 14,154) but the precise number of deaths of black Africans in concentration camps is unknown as little attempt was made to keep any records of the 107,000 black Africans who were interned. It is however worth noting that Emily Hobhouse and the Fawcett Commission only ever concerned themselves with the camps that held white Boer refugees. No one paid much attention to what was going on in the camps that held native refugees.
“The main decisions (or their absence) had been left to the soldiers, to whom the life or death of the 154,000 Boer and African civilians in the camps rated as an abysmally low priority. [It was only] . . . ten months after the subject had first been raised in Parliament…[and after public outcry and after the Fawcett Commission that remedial action was taken and] . . . the terrible mortality figures were at last declining. In the interval, at least twenty thousand whites and twelve thousand coloured people had died in the concentration camps, the majority from epidemics of measles and typhoid that could have been avoided. ”[26] [27]
Kitcheners Policy and the Post-war debate
It has been argued that "this was not a deliberately genocidal policy; rather it was the result of disastrous lack of foresight and rank incompetence on part of the [British] military" [28]. Fergusan also argues that "Kitchener no more desired the deaths of women and children in the camps than of the wounded Dervishes after Omdurman, or of his own soldiers in the typhoid stricken hospitals of Bloemfontein. " [29].
However, to Kitchener and the British Command "the life or death of the 154,000 Boer and African civilians in the camps rated as an abysmally low priority" against military objectives. As the Fawcett Commission was delivering its recommendations, Kitchener wrote to St John Brodrick defending his policy of sweeps, and emphasizing that no new Boer families were being brought in unless they were in danger of starving. William St John Fremantle Brodrick 1st Earl of Midleton, KP ( December 14, 1856 &ndash February 13, 1942) commonly known as St This was disingenuous as the countryside had by then been devastated under the "Scorched Earth" policy (the Fawcett Commission in December 1901 in its recommendations commented that: "to turn 100,000 people now being held in the concentration camps out on the veldt to take care of themselves would be cruelty") and now that the New Model counter insurgency tactics were in full swing it made cynical military sense to leave the Boer families in desperate conditions in the countryside.
According to writer S. B. Spies, "at [the Vereeniging negotiations in May 1902] Boer leader Louis Botha stated that he had tried to send [Boer] families to the British, but they had refused to receive them,". Spies quotes a Boer Commandant referring to Boer women and children made refugees by Britain's scorched-earth policy as saying "Our families are in a pitiable condition and the enemy uses those families to force us to surrender. " Spies adds, "and there is little doubt that that was indeed the intention of Kitchener when he had issued instructions that no more families were to be brought into the concentration camps. " Thomas Pakenham writes of Kichener's policy U-turn, "No doubt the continued 'hullabaloo' at the death-rate in these concentration camps, and Milner's belated agreement to take over their administration, helped changed Kitchener's mind [some time at the end of 1901]. Thomas Francis Dermot Pakenham 8th Earl of Longford, born 14 August 1933 known simply as Thomas Pakenham, is an Anglo-Irish historian and Arborist who [30] . . . By mid-December at any rate, Kitchener was already circulating all column commanders with instructions not to bring in women and children when they cleared the country, but to leave them with the guerrillas. . . Viewed as a gesture to Liberals, on the eve of the new session of Parliament at Westminster, it was a shrewd political move. It also made excellent military sense, as it greatly handicapped the guerrillas, now that the drives were in full swing. . . . It was effective precisely because, contrary to the Liberals' convictions, it was less humane than bringing them into camps, though this was of no great concern to Kitchener. "[31]
The end of the war
Towards the end of the war, British tactics of containment, denial and harassment began to yield results against the guerillas. The sourcing and coordination of intelligence became increasingly efficient with regular reporting from observers in the blockhouses from units patrolling the fences and conducting "sweeper" operations, and from native Africans in rural areas who increasingly supplied intelligence, as the Scorched Earth policy took effect and they found themselves competing with the Boers for food supplies. In Military science, a blockhouse is a small isolated Fort in the form of a single building A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between Kitchener's forces at last began to seriously affect the Boers' fighting strength and freedom of manoeuvre, and made it harder and harder for the Boers and their families to survive.
The British offered terms of peace on various occasions, notably in March 1901, but were rejected by Botha. The last of the Boers surrendered in May 1902 and the war ended with the Treaty of Vereeniging signed on 31 May 1902. The Treaty of Vereeniging (commonly referred to as Peace of Vereeniging) was the Peace treaty, signed on 31 May 1902, that ended the South Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. See also 1901 in South Africa, other events of 1902, 1903 in South Africa and the Timeline of South African history. Although the British had won, this came at a cost; the Boers were given £3,000,000 for reconstruction and were promised eventual limited self-government granted in 1906 and 1907. The treaty ended the existence of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State as independent Boer republics and placed them within the British Empire. This article is about the former country in Africa For the present-day country see South Africa; for the region where both are located see Southern Africa The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. The Union of South Africa was established as a member of the Commonwealth in 1910. } The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day state of the Republic of South Africa.
In all, the war had cost around 75,000 lives; 22,000 British soldiers (7,792 battle casualties, the rest through disease), between 6,000 and 7,000 Boer soldiers, and, mainly in the concentration camps, between 20,000 to 28,000 Boer civilians (mainly women and children) and perhaps 20,000 black Africans (both on the battlefield and in the concentration camps). During the conflict, 78 Victoria Crosses (VC) — the highest and most prestigious award in the British armed forces for bravery in the face of the enemy — were awarded to British and Colonial soldiers. See below the section "Separate Commonwealth awards" Note that since See List of Boer War Victoria Cross recipients.
Aftermath and analysis
The Second Boer War cast long shadows over the history of the South African region. Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk Quebec City ( French: Ville de Québec, or simply Québec) (kwɨˈbɛk or /keˈbɛk/ is the Capital of the Canadian province The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The predominantly agrarian society of the former Afrikaner-Dutch republics was profoundly and fundamentally affected by the scorched earth policy of Roberts and Kitchener. The term Afrikaner people refers to white Afrikaans -speaking people who have been established in Southern Africa since the 17th century and are mainly of northwestern The devastation of both Boer and black African populations in the concentration camps and through war and exile were to have a lasting effect on the demography and quality of life in the region. Many exiles and prisoners unable to return to their farms at all; others attempted to do so but were forced to abandon the farms as unworkable given the damage caused by farm burning and salting of the fields in the course of the scorched earth policy. Destitute Boers and black Africans swelled the ranks of the unskilled urban poor competing with the "uitlanders" on the mines. [32]
The postwar reconstruction administration was presided over by Lord Milner and his largely Oxford trained Milner's Kindergarten. Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British Milner's Kindergarten is an informal reference to a group of Britons who served in the South African Civil Service under High Commissioner Alfred This small group of civil servants was to have a profound effect on the region, eventually leading to the Union of South Africa. } The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day state of the Republic of South Africa. “In the aftermath of the war, an imperial administration freed from accountability to a domestic electorate set about reconstructing an economy that was by then predicated unambiguously on gold. At the same time, British civil servants, municipal officials, and their cultural adjuncts were hard at work in the heartland of the former Afrikaner-Dutch republics helping to forge new identities—first as "British South Africans" and then, later still, as white "South Africans. " Some scholars, for good reasons, identify these new identities as partly underpinning the act of union that followed in 1910. Although challenged by an Afrikaner rebellion only four years later, they did much to shape South African politics between the two world wars and right up to the present day”. The Maritz Rebellion or the Boer Revolt or the Five Shilling Rebellion, occurred in South Africa in 1914 at the start of World War I, in which [33]
The counterinsurgency techniques and lessons (the restriction of movement, the containment of space, the targeting of anything and everything that could give sustenance to guerrillas, the relentless harassment through sweeper groups coupled with rapid reaction forces, the sourcing and coordination of intelligence, and the nurturing of native allies) learned during the Boer War were used by the British (and other forces) in future guerrilla campaigns including to counter Malayan communist rebels during the Malayan Emergency. The Federation of Malaya (Persekutuan Tanah Melayu was a federation of 11 states formed on January 31 1948 from the nine Malay states and the British Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The Malayan Emergency was a State of emergency declared by the British colonial government of Malaya in 1948 and lifted in 1960 as well as an insurrection and
Many of the Boers referred to the war as the second of the Freedom Wars. The most resistant of Boers wanted to continue the fight and were known as "bittereinders" (or irreconcilables) and at the end of the war a number of Boer fighters such as Deneys Reitz chose exile rather than sign an undertaking that they would abide by the peace terms. Deneys Reitz (1882&mdash1944 was a Boer Commando South African soldier and politician Over the following decade, many returned to South Africa and never signed the undertaking. Some, like Reitz, eventually reconciled themselves to the new status quo, but others could not.
Union of South Africa
One of the most important events in the decade after the end of the war was the creation of the Union of South Africa (later the Republic of South Africa). } The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day state of the Republic of South Africa. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa The federation republic was to prove a key ally to Britain and a valuable member of the Dominion of the British Empire during the World Wars. A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities under sovereign authority within the British Empire and The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. At the start of First World War a crisis ensued when the South African Government led by Louis Botha and other former Boer fighters such as Jan Smuts, declared support for Britain and agreed to send troops to capture and take over the German colony of German South-West Africa (Namibia). World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Louis Botha (27 September 1862 &ndash 27 August 1919 was an Afrikaner and first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa —the forerunner of the modern Field Marshal Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, PC, ED, KC, FRS (24 May 1870 &ndash 11 September 1950 was a prominent German South West Africa ( German: Deutsch-Südwestafrika, DSWA) was a Colony of Germany from 1884 until 1915 when it was taken
Many Boers were opposed to fighting for Britain, especially against Germany which had been sympathetic to their struggle. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. A number of bittereinders and their allies took part in a revolt known as the Maritz Rebellion. The Maritz Rebellion or the Boer Revolt or the Five Shilling Rebellion, occurred in South Africa in 1914 at the start of World War I, in which This was quickly suppressed and in 1916, the leading Boer rebels in the Maritz Rebellion got off lightly (especially compared with the fate of leading Irish rebels of the Easter Rising), with terms of imprisonment of six and seven years and heavy fines. The Easter Rising (Éirí Amach na Cásca was a rebellion staged in Ireland in Easter Week, 1916 Two years later, they were released from prison, as Louis Botha recognised the value of reconciliation. Thereafter the bittereinders concentrated on political organisation within the constitutional system and built up what later became the National Party which took power in 1948 and dominated the politics of South Africa from the late 1940s until the early 1990s, under the apartheid system. The National Party ( Afrikaans: Nasionale Party) (with its members sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats) was the governing party of
Effect of the war on domestic British politics
Many Irish nationalists sympathised with the Boers, viewing them to be a people oppressed by British imperialism, much like themselves. Irish nationalism (Náisiúnachas Éireannach refers to political and sociological movements and sentiment that embodies a love for Irish ancestry, culture and language and Imperialism has two meanings one describing an action and the other describing an attitude Irish miners already in the Transvaal at the start of the war formed the nucleus of two Irish commandos. Two units of Irish commandos fought alongside the Boers against the British forces during the Second Boer War (1899&ndash1902 Irish Transvaal Brigade The Second Irish Brigade was headed up by an Australian of Irish parents, Colonel Arthur Lynch. Arthur Alfred Lynch (16 October 1861–25 March 1934 was an Australian Civil engineer, Physician, Journalist, Author, soldier In addition, small groups of Irish volunteers went to South Africa to fight with the Boers — this despite the fact that there were many Irish troops fighting with the British army. [34] In Britain, the "Pro-Boer" campaign expanded,[35] with writers often idealizing the Boer society.
The war also highlighted the dangers of Britain's policy of non-alignment and deepened her isolation. The 1900 UK general election, also known as the "Khaki election", was called by the Prime Minister, Lord Salisbury, on the back of recent British victories. The United Kingdom general election of 1900 was held from 25 September to 24 October 1900 In British political history a khaki election is any national election which is heavily influenced by wartime or postwar sentiment The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom "Lord Salisbury" redirects here For other holders of the title see Marquess of Salisbury. There was much enthusiasm for the war at this point, resulting in a victory for the Conservative government. The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative and Unionist Party) is a Political party in the United Kingdom.
However, public support quickly waned as it became apparent that the war would not be easy and it dragged on, partially contributing to the Conservatives' spectacular defeat in 1906. There was public outrage at the use of scorched earth tactics — the forced clearance of women and children, the destruction of the countryside, burning of Boer homesteads and poisoning of wells, for example — and the conditions in the concentration camps. A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between Boer (ˈbuːr in Dutch ˈbʊɚ/ /boʊɚ or /ˈbɔr/ in English is the Dutch word for Farmer which came to denote the descendants of the proto Afrikaans Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial It also became apparent that there were serious problems with public health in Britain: up to 40% of recruits in Britain were unfit for military service, suffering from medical problems such as rickets and other poverty-related illnesses. Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease prolonging life and promoting health through the organised efforts and informed choices of society organisations Conscription (also known as the draft, the call-up or national service) is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by some established authority Rickets is a softening of the bones in children potentially leading to fractures and deformity This came at a time of increasing concern for the state of the poor in Britain.
Having taken the country into a prolonged war, the electorate delivered a harsh verdict at the first general election after the war was over. Balfour, succeeding his uncle Lord Salisbury in 1903 immediately after the war, took over a Conservative party that had won two successive landslide majorities but led it to a landslide defeat in 1906. "Lord Salisbury" redirects here For other holders of the title see Marquess of Salisbury.
The war and its aftermath reverberated across the Empire. The importing to South Africa and use (especially on the gold mines) of Chinese labour , known as Coolies, after the war by the governor of the new crown colonies, Lord Milner as cheap labour to repress local workers and break strikes, also caused much revulsion in the UK and Australia. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Coolie (variously spelled Cooly Kuli Quli Koelie etcis A historical term for manual labourers from Asia particularly China and India, in the 19th The British Overseas Territories are fourteen territories that are under the Sovereignty of the United Kingdom, but which do not form part of the United Kingdom Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British The Chinese workers were themselves often kept in appalling conditions, receiving only a small wage and isolated from the local population — revelations of homosexual acts between those forbidden contact with the local population and the services of prostitutes led to further public shock. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. Prostitution is the act of performing Sexual activity in exchange for Money. Some believe the Chinese slavery issue can be seen as the climax of public antipathy with the war. As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another
Empire involvement
- See also History of the British Army
The vast majority of troops fighting for the British Army came from the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located However, a large number did come from other parts of the British Empire and later the Commonwealth of Nations. The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. These countries had their own internal disputes over whether they should remain tied to the United Kingdom, or have full independence, which carried over into the debate around the sending of forces to assist the United Kingdom. Though not fully independent on foreign affairs, these countries did have local say over how much support to provide, and the manner in which it would be provided. Ultimately, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand all sent volunteers to aid the United Kingdom. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Australia provided the largest number of troops followed by Canada. Troops were also raised to fight with the British from the Cape Colony and the Colony of Natal. The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. The Colony of Natal was a British colony in south-eastern Africa. Some Boers fighters such as Jan Smuts and Louis Botha were technically British subjects as they came from the Cape Colony and Colony of Natal respectively.
There were also many volunteers from the Empire who were not selected for the official contingents from their countries and travelled privately to South Africa to form private units such as the Canadian Scouts and Doyle’s Australian Scouts. There were also some European volunteer units from India and Ceylon, though the British Government refused offers of non-white troops from the Empire. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island Some Cape Coloureds also volunteered early in the war, but later some of them were effectively conscripted and kept in segregated units. The term Cape Coloureds refers to the modern-day descendants of slave labourers imported into South Africa by Dutch settlers as well as to other groups As a community, they received comparatively little reward for their services. In many ways, the war set the pattern for the Empire's later involvement in the two World Wars. A world war is a War affecting the majority of the world's most powerful and populous nations Specially raised units, consisting mainly of volunteers, were dispatched overseas to serve with forces from elsewhere in the British Empire.
Australia
- See also History of the Australian Army
From 1899 to 1901 the six separate self-governing colonies in Australia sent their own contingents to serve in the Boer War. The Two Armies Militia and Permanent forces 1870&ndash1947 For more about Australian military history before the withdrawal of British forces see Colonial forces of Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting A self-governing colony is a Colony with an elected Legislature, in which Politicians are able to make most decisions without reference to the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Much of population of the colonies had originated from Great Britain (England, Wales, Ireland) and the desire to support Britain during the conflict appealed to many. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located After the colonies formed the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901, the new Government of Australia sent "Commonwealth" contingents to the war. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. This article describes the federal government of Australia See Australian governments for other jurisdictions [36] The Boer War was thus the first war in which the Commonwealth of Australia fought. However it must also be noted that a few Australians fought on the Boer side. [37] The most famous and colourful character was Colonel Arthur Alfred Lynch, formerly of Ballarat, Victoria, who raised the Second Irish Brigade. Arthur Alfred Lynch (16 October 1861–25 March 1934 was an Australian Civil engineer, Physician, Journalist, Author, soldier Ballarat (formerly spelt "Ballaarat" is a city in Victoria, Australia, and one of the country's largest inland cities
The Australian climate and geography were far closer to that of South Africa than most other parts of the empire, so Australians adapted quickly to the environment, with troops serving mostly among the army's "mounted rifles". The climate of Australia varies widely but by far the largest part of Australia is Desert or Semi-arid – 40% of the landmass is covered by This article deals with the geography of the Commonwealth of Australia. Enlistment in all official Australian contingents totalled 16,463. [38] Another five to seven thousand Australians served in "irregular" regiments raised in South Africa. Perhaps five hundred Australian irregulars were killed. In total, 20,000 or more Australians served and about a 1,000 were killed. A total of 267 died from disease, 251 were killed in action or died from wounds sustained in battle. A further 43 men were reported missing. [39]
When the war began some Australians, like some Britons, opposed it. As the war dragged on some Australians became disenchanted, in part because of the sufferings of Boer civilians reported in the press. In an interesting twist (for Australians), when the British missed capturing President Paul Kruger, as he escaped Pretoria during its fall in June 1900, a Melbourne Punch, 21 June 1900, cartoon depicted how the War could be won, using the Kelly Gang. Edward "Ned" Kelly (3 June 1855 &ndash 11 November 1880 was an Australian Bushranger, and to some a Folk hero for his defiance of the colonial [40]
The convictions and executions of two Australian Lieutenants, Breaker Morant and Peter Handcock in 1902, and the imprisonment of a third, George Witton, had little impact on the Australian public at the time despite later legend. For the film of the same name see Breaker Morant (film Harry 'Breaker' Harbord Morant ( 9 December[[ 864]] – 27 February Peter Joseph Handcock (1869 – 1902 was a Veterinary Lieutenant in the Bushveldt Carbineers in the Boer War in South Africa George Ramsdale Witton (1874 – 1942 was a Lieutenant in the Bushveldt Carbineers in the Boer War in South Africa The controversial court-martial saw the three convicted of executing Afrikaner prisoners under their authority. A court-martial (plural courts-martial) is a Military court. These military courts can determine Punishments for members of the Military subject The term Afrikaner people refers to white Afrikaans -speaking people who have been established in Southern Africa since the 17th century and are mainly of northwestern After the war, though, Australians joined an empire-wide campaign that saw Witton released from jail. Much later, some Australians came to see the execution of Morant and Handcock as instances of wrongfully executed British, as illustrated in the 1980 Australian film Breaker Morant. Breaker Morant is a 1980 Australian Feature film, directed by Bruce Beresford and starring British actor Edward Woodward as Harry "Breaker"
Canada
- See also Military history of Canada
At first, Canadian Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier tried to keep Canada out of the war. The Military history of Canada comprises hundreds of years of armed actions in the territory encompassing Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page [41] The Canadian government was divided between those, primarily French Canadians, who wished to stay out of the war and others, primarily English Canadians, who wanted to fight. English Canada|Canadians of English descentAn English Canadian is a Canadian whose principal language is English or who is of English ancestry; it is used In the end, Laurier compromised by agreeing to support the British by providing only volunteers, equipment and transportation to the war. [42] 89 men were killed in action, 135 died of disease, and the remainder died of accident or injury. 252 were wounded. The United Kingdom would be responsible for paying the troops and returning them to Canada at the end of their service. The Boer War marked the first occasion in which large contingents of Canadian troops served abroad. The 1st Canadian Contingent was composed of 1000 men recruited from the Canadian Militia to form the 2nd (Special Service) Battalion of The Royal Canadian Regiment. Canadian Militia was created in 1920 from the recommendations of the Otter Committee to re-organize and modernize Canada 's army units The Royal Canadian Regiment ( The RCR) is an Infantry Regiment of the Canadian Forces. This contingent served under the command of the Permanent Force officer William Dillon Otter. General Sir William Dillon Otter KCB, CVO, VD ( December 3, 1843 &ndash May 6, 1929) was a professional
The Battle of Paardeberg in February 1900 represented the second time Canadian Troops saw battle abroad, the first being the Canadian involvement in the Nile Expedition of 1884-85. Confederation Park is a downtown park in Ottawa, Canada It is bordered on the south by Laurier Avenue and Ottawa City Hall; on the east by the Rideau Ottawa (ˈɒtəwə or sometimes /ˈɒtəwɑː/ is the Capital of Canada and the country's fourth largest municipality. The Battle of Paardeberg ("Mountain of the horses" was a major battle during the Second Anglo-Boer War. The Nile Expedition, sometimes called the Gordon Relief Expedition, was a British mission to relieve Major-General Charles George Gordon [43] Canadians also saw action at the Battle of Faber's Put on 30 May 1900. [44] On November 7, 1900, the Royal Canadian Dragoons engaged the Boers in the Battle of Leliefontein, where they saved the British guns from capture during a retreat from the banks of the Komati River. Events 1492 - The Ensisheim Meteorite the oldest Meteorite with a known date of impact strikes the Earth around noon in a Wheat The Royal Canadian Dragoons (RCD is an Armoured Regiment of the Canadian Army. The Battle of Leliefontein (also known as the Battle of Witkloof) was an engagement between Canadian and Boer forces during the Second Boer War on The Komati River (also called Incomati River) is a river in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique. [45]
The Canadians had four Victoria Cross recipients in this war: Lieutenant Turner, Lieutenant Cockburn, Sergeant Holland amd Arthur Richardson. See below the section "Separate Commonwealth awards" Note that since Lieutenant General Sir Richard Ernest William Turner VC, KCB, KCMG, DSO ( July 25, 1871 &ndash June 19 Hampden Zane Churchill Cockburn VC ( November 19, 1867 - July 12, 1913) was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross Edward James Gibson Holland VC ( February 2, 1878, Ottawa - June 18, 1948, Cobalt Ontario) was a Canadian Arthur Herbert Lindsay Richardson VC (23 September 1872 — 15 December 1932 was a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious [46] Ultimately, over 8,600 Canadians volunteered to fight in the South African War. [47] 89 men were killed in action, 135 died of disease, and the remainder died of accident or injury. 252 were wounded. However, not all saw action since many landed in South Africa after the hostilities ended while others (including the 3rd (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment) performed garrison duty in Halifax, Nova Scotia so that their British counterparts could join at the front. The Royal Canadian Regiment ( The RCR) is an Infantry Regiment of the Canadian Forces. The City of Halifax (est 1841 is the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County Nova Scotia (ˌnəʊvəˈskəʊʃə ( Latin for New Scotland; Alba Nuadh Nouvelle-Écosse is a Canadian province located on Canada 's Later on, contingents of Canadians served with the paramilitary South Africa Constabulary. Approximately 267 Canadians died in the War. [48] 89 men were killed in action, 135 died of disease, and the remainder died of accident or injury. 252 were wounded.
New Zealand
- See also Military history of New Zealand
When the Second Boer War seemed imminent, New Zealand offered its support. The military history of New Zealand is an aspect of the History of New Zealand that spans several hundred years New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island On 28 September 1899, Prime Minister Richard Seddon asked Parliament to approve the offer to the imperial government of a contingent of mounted rifles thus becoming the first British Colony to send troops to the Boer War. Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Richard John Seddon ( 27 April 1845 - 10 June 1906) sometimes known as King Dick, was the longest serving Prime Minister The Parliament of New Zealand consists of the Queen of New Zealand and the New Zealand House of Representatives and until 1951 the New Zealand Legislative Council The British position in the dispute with the Transvaal was 'moderate and righteous', he maintained. He stressed the 'crimson tie' of Empire which bound New Zealand to the Mother-country and the importance of a strong British Empire for the colony's security. [49]
By the time peace was concluded two and a half year later, ten contingents of volunteers, totalling nearly 6,500 men from New Zealand, with 8,000 horses had fought in the conflict, along with doctors, nurses, veterinary surgeons and a small number of school teachers. [50] 70 New Zealanders died from enemy action, with another 158 killed accidentally or by disease. [51]
South Africa
During the war, the British army also included substantial contingents from South Africa itself. There were large communities of English-speaking immigrants and settlers in Natal and Cape Colony (especially around Cape Town and Grahamstown), which formed volunteer units which took the field, or local "town guards". The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652 with the founding of Cape Town. Cape Town (Kaapstad Xhosa: Ikapa) is the second most populous city in South Africa, forming part of the metropolitan municipality of the Grahamstown is a city in the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa and is the seat of the Makana municipality At one stage of the war, a "Colonial Division", consisting of five light horse and infantry units under Brigadier General Edward Brabant, took part in the invasion of the Orange Free State. Major-General Sir Edward Yewd Brabant, KCB, CMG, born 1839 was a South African colonial military commander The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa Part of it withstood a siege by Christiaan De Wet at Wepener on the borders of Basutoland. Wepener is a village in the Free State, South Africa, located on the border with Lesotho. Lesotho (lɪˈsuːtuː) officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a Landlocked country and Enclave — entirely surrounded by the Republic of South Another large source of volunteers was the uitlander community, many of whom hastily left Johannesburg in the days immediately preceding the war. Uitlander, Afrikaans for 'outlander' was the name given to foreign Migrant workers during the initial exploitation of the Witwatersrand gold fields in Johannesburg ( Pronounced /jō-hān'ĭs-bûrg'/ is the largest city in South Africa.
Later during the war, Lord Kitchener attempted to form a Boer Police Force, as part of his efforts to pacify the occupied areas and effect a reconciliation with the Boer community. Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener 1st Earl Kitchener, KG, KP, GCB, OM The members of this force were despised as traitors by the Boers still in the field. Those Boers who attempted to remain neutral after giving their parole to British forces were derided as "hansoppers" (hands-uppers) and were often coerced into giving support to the Boer guerillas. (This was one of the reasons for the British ruthlessly scouring the countryside of people, livestock and anything else which the Boer commandos might find useful. )
Like the Canadian and particularly the Australian and New Zealand contingents, many of the volunteer units formed by South Africans were "light horse" or mounted infantry, well suited to the countryside and manner of warfare. Mounted infantry were Soldiers who rode Horses instead of marching but actually fought on foot in the modern era with Muskets or Rifles but before Some regular British officers scorned their comparative lack of formal discipline, but the light horse units were hardier and more suited to the demands of campaigning than the overloaded British cavalry, who were still obsessed with the charge with lance or sabre. At their peak, 24,000 South Africans (including volunteers from the Empire) served in the field in various "Colonial" units. Notable units (in addition to the Imperial Light Horse) were the South African Light Horse, Rimington's "Tigers", Kitchener's Horse and the Imperial Light Infantry.
See also
- British Logistics in the Boer War
- History of South Africa
- Military history of South Africa
- Opposition to the Second Boer War
- Volkstaat
- Boer foreign volunteers
- London to Ladysmith via Pretoria account of the war by Winston Churchill as a newspaper correspondent accompanying the troops
- Category:People of the Boer War
References
Notes
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. The Second Boer War (1899-1902 involved the British in a global logistics effort Ancient history The Bushmen See also Ancient History of South Africa Some three million years ago Ape -human-like Hominids The military history of South Africa chronicles a vast time period and complex events from the dawn of history until the present time Opposition to the Second Boer War in Britain was modest when the war began on 11 October 1899 and was always less widespread than support for it let alone See other meanings of Volkstaat. Volkstaat ( Afrikaans for "People's state" is a proposal for the establishment of Boer foreign volunteers were participants who volunteered their military services to the Boers in the Second Boer War. London to Ladysmith via Pretoria is a book written by Winston Churchill. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 xxi
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 1 - 5
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 493 - 495
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 463 - 571
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. xv
- ^ A. P. Cartwright, The Dynamite Company, Purnell & Sons, Cape Town, 1964.
- ^ M. Nathan, Paul Kruger: His Life And Times, Knox, Durban, 1941.
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 1 - 5
- ^ cited in, T. Pakenham, The Boer War, Part 1, 'Milner's War'
- ^ R. Bester, Boer Rifles and Carbines of the Anglo-Boer War, War Museum of the Boer Republics, Bloemfontein, 1994.
- ^ C. N. Connolly, 'Manufacturing Spontaneity'
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 56
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 30
- ^ Field Marshal Lord Carver, The Boer War, pp. 259-262
- ^ 'Historical Overview' in Antony O'Brien, Bye-Bye Dolly Gray
- ^ From the "Battle of Magersfontein," verse by Private Smith of the Black Watch December 1899. Quoted in, ‘Thomas Pakenham’s "The Boer War," page 115.
- ^ A. B. "Banjo" Patterson,From the Front (see Australian references) ,
- ^ Wilcox, Australia's Boer War, pp. 84-85.
- ^ N. G. Speed, Born to Fight
- ^ a b Anglo-Boer War Philatelic Society: Collecting Interests
- ^ Anglo-Boer War Philatelic Society: Picture Detail
- ^ a b c Maurig Jones (1996). Blockhouses of the Boer War. Colonial Conquest, magweb. Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, pp. 531-32, 536+
- ^ Ferguson, N. (2002). Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power. Basic Books p. 235
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War p. 549)
- ^ Somewhat higher figures for total deaths in the concentration camps are given by S. B. Spies. Methods of Barbarism: Roberts and Kitchener and Civilians in the Boer Republics January 1900 - May 1902. Cape Town: Human & Rousseau, 1977p. 265.
- ^ Niall Ferguson, Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order, p. 250
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p. 524
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p 461 - 572
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Boer War, p 461 - 572
- ^ Charles van Onselen, Studies in the Social and Economic History of the Witwatersrand, 1886-1914, c. 1, New Babylon, (London, 1982)
- ^ The Modernization of the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek: F. E. T. Krause, J. C. Smuts, and the Struggle for the Johannesburg Public Prosecutor's Office, 1898–1899 Charles Van Onselen
- ^ "Although some 30,000 Irishmen served in the British Army under Irish General Lord Frederick Roberts, who had been Commander of Chief of British Forces in Ireland prior to his transfer to South Africa, some historians argue that the sympathies of many of their compatriots lay with the Boers. Nationalist-controlled local authorities passed pro-Boer resolutions and there were proposals to confer civic honours on Boer leader, Paul Kruger. " (Irish Ambassador Daniel Mulhall written for History Ireland, 2004. )
- ^ Lloyd George and Keir Hardie were members of the Stop the War Committee (See the founder's biography: William T. Stead's. David Lloyd George 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor OM, PC (17 January 1863 &ndash 26 March 1945 was a British Statesman and the only James Keir Hardie (15 August 1856 - 26 September 1915 was a Scottish Socialist and labour leader and was the first independent labour Member of Parliament The Stop the War Committee was an Anti-war organisation which opposed the Second Boer War. ) Many British authors gave their "Pro-Boer" opinions in British press, such as G. K. Chesterton's writing to 1905 — see Rice University Chesterton's poetry analysis
- ^ See Craig Wilcox, Australia's Boer War
- ^ Boer War
- ^ Australian War Memorial (2008). Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936 was an influential English writer of the early 20th century William Marsh Rice University (commonly called Rice University and opened in 1912 as The William Marsh Rice Institute for the Advancement of Letters Science and Art Australian Military Statistics. Australian War Memorial. The Australian War Memorial is Australia 's national memorial to the members of all its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Australian War Memorial (2008). Australia and the Boer War, 1899–1902. Australian War Memorial. The Australian War Memorial is Australia 's national memorial to the members of all its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Wilcox, p. 103.
- ^ South African War 105th Anniversary - Veterans Affairs Canada
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Canada & The South African War, 1899-1902. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Battle of Paardeberg. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Battle of Faber's Put. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Battle of Leliefontein. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Canadian VC Winners, Boer War. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Canada & The South African War, 1899-1902. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ Canadian War Museum (2008). Canada & The South African War, 1899-1902. Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum (CWM is Canada ’s national museum of military history Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ New Zealand History Online (2008). Brief history - New Zealand in the South African ('Boer') War. New Zealand History. Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ New Zealand History Online (2008). New Zealand in the South African ('Boer') War. New Zealand History. Retrieved on 2008-05-10. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1291 - Scottish Nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England.
- ^ D. O. W. Hall, The New Zealanders in South Africa 1899-1902 (War History Branch, Wellington, 1949).
Primary sources
- Arthur Conan Doyle: The Great Boer War. Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle, DL (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930 was an Anglo-Scottish Author most noted for his stories about the London: Smith, Elder, 1900.
- Sol T. Plaatje: Mafeking diary: a black man's view of a white man's war. Cambridge: Meridor Books; Athens: Ohio University Press, 1990. ISBN 0-85255-064-2 (Meridor) ISBN 0-8214-0944-1 (Ohio UP). Originally published as The Boer War diary of Sol T. Plaatje; an African at Mafeking. Johannesburg: Macmillan, 1973 ISBN 0-86954-002-5.
- Alfred Milner: "The Milner Papers", vol. Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British II South Africa 1899 – 1905, edited by Cecil Headlam, London: Cassell, 1933.
- J. H. M. Abbott, Tommy Cornstalk, Longmans London, 1902, (an autobiography of Abbott's service in the War).
- Droogleever, R. W. F. (ed. ), From the Front: A. B. (Banjo) Patterson's Dispatches from the Boer War, MacMillan, Sydney, 2000. (A completed compilation of the reporter 'Banjo Patterson's (1864-1941) dispatches (75 letters and articles sent to Australia during the period November 1899 to July 1900. Patterson was present at numerous engagements including Paardeberg, Bloemfontein, Pretoria and finally the surrender of General Martinus Prinsloo at the Brandwater Basin. These writings give a military and literary insight into events, with comments on the medical crisis in Bloemfontein following its occupation and outbreak of enteric fever) ISBN 07329 1062 5
- Lieut. George Witton, Scapegoats of the Empire, Melbourne, 1907; republished as George R. Witton, Scapegoats of the Empire, Angus & Robertson Melbourne, 1982. , (Witton's autobiography of his trial and conviction along with "Breaker Morant"). ISBN 0 207 146667
- Field, Kingslet (edt). Book "Soldier Boy" A young New Zealander writes home from the Boer War, compiled by Kingsley Field. Letters written by Harry Gilbert to his family in New Zealand from April 1901. First published in 2007 by New Holland Publishers (NZ) Ltd. ISBN 978 186966 177 9.
- Lt. Col. P. L. Murray, (ed. ) Official Records of the Australian Military Contingents to the War in South Africa, Government Printer, Melbourne, 1911. (Rare, but this book lists all Colonial Forces, plus Commonwealth troops' names, number rank, including nurses rates of pay and promotions. Citations on each serviceman's /servicewoman's injuries, illnesses, wounds, killed in action etc. Details the ships on which contingents sailed and returned, the number of horses per contingent despatched to the war, unit establishments, active services and honours, unit patrols and engagements etc. Book comprises 607 pages)
Scholarly secondary sources
- Byron Farwell: The Great Anglo-Boer War. New York: Harper and Row, 1976. ISBN 0-06-011204-2 (published in the UK as The Great Boer War. London: Allen Lane, 1977. ISBN 0-7139-0820-3).
- April A. Gordon and Donald L. Gordon (eds. ): Understanding contemporary Africa. 3rd ed. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner, 2001. ISBN 1-55587-850-4.
- David Harrison: The white tribe of Africa: South Africa in perspective. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1981. ISBN 0-520-04690-0.
- Denis Judd and Keith Surridge. The Boer War. London: John Murray, 2003. John Murray (1745–1793 was the founder of a British publishing house renowned for the roster of authors it has published in its history including Jane Austen ISBN 0-7195-6169-8.
- W. Baring Pemberton. Battles of the Boer War. First published 1964 by B. T. Batsford - republished by Pan, 1969.
- Thomas Pakenham: The Boer War. Thomas Francis Dermot Pakenham 8th Earl of Longford, born 14 August 1933 known simply as Thomas Pakenham, is an Anglo-Irish historian and Arborist who New York: Random House, 1979; ISBN 0-394-42742-4.
- Fransjohan Pretorius : Scorched Earth. Cape Town: Human & Rousseau, 2001; ISBN 0-7981-4192-1.
- Kit Denton, Australian at War: For Queen and Commonwealth, Time-Life Books, Australia, 1987, (pp. 76-163) ISBN 0949118 08 7 (many photos and maps)
- Laurie Field, The Forgotten War, Melbourne University Press, 1979.
- R. L. Wallace, Australians at the Boer War, AGPS, Canberra, 1976. ISBN 0 642 999391 2 (an important work in re-awaking Australian interest in the Boer War - but hard to locate)
- William (Bill) Woolmore, The Bushveldt Carbineers and the Pietersburg Light Horse, Slouch Hat Publications, Rosebud, 2002. ISBN 0 9579752 0 1 (solid work on the men who served in the ill-fated unit)
- Neil G. Speed, Born to Fight, Caps & Flints Press, Melbourne, 2002. (an Australian Maj. Charles Ross DSO who served with Canadian Scouts) ISBN 0 9581356 0 6
- Craig Wilcox, Australia's Boer War, Oxford University Press, 2002. (important academic work) ISBN 0 19 551637 0
- William (Bill) Woolmore,Steinaecker's Horsemen: South Africa 1899-1903, South African Country Life,Barberton, 2006. ISBN 0 9584782 4 4 (solid research by an Australian writer into the men who served in this unit)
- Max Chamberlain & Robert Droogleever, The War with Johnny Boer: Australians in the Boer War 1899-1902, Ligare, Riverwood, 2003. (sound research with maps, drawing and pictures of Australian participants)
- Dave C. George, Carvings from the Veldt: Rifle carvings from Anglo-Boer War, 1899-1902, Northern Rivers N. S. W. , 2004. (photographic and historical record of surviving Boer War rifles (in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, UK and USA) and the variety of stock carvings) ISBN 0 646 44043 8
External links
- The Register of the Anglo-Boer War; casualties and participants
- Chronology South Africa Boer War
- The Australian War Memorial (hundreds of photos in the Boer War section)
- Canada & The South African War, 1899-1902 - Canadian War Museum
- Chronology Great Britain Boer War
- Colonial Units
- The New Zealand Contingents
- Field Gun photos and video
- British casualties - Officers: A to Z
- War Museum of the Boer Republics. Anglo Boer War Museum (accessed 24 December 2003)
- National UK Archives site
- Royal Engineers Museum Royal Engineers in the Anglo-Boer war (Ballooning, Blockhouses, Bridging, Railways, Searchlights, Signals, Steam Transport and Telegraph)
- Battlefields in KwaZulu Natal
- A Handbook of the Boer War by Gale and Polden, Limited, from Project Gutenberg
- The Record of a Regiment of the Line, by M. Events 563 - The Byzantine church Hagia Sophia in Constantinople is dedicated for the second time after being destroyed by Earthquakes Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Project Gutenberg, abbreviated as PG, is a volunteer effort to Digitize, archive and distribute Cultural works Jacson, from Project Gutenberg
- Commando: A Boer Journal of the Boer War (now in the public domain and readable online), by Deneys Reitz, a participant and later deputy prime minister of South Africa
- The Boer War from a Boer Perspective
- British Soldiers who served, were wounded or died
- Soldiers of the Queen - Heritage Resources Saint John
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