Boer War: The South African War and the Horrors of the Concentration Camps

By Kelly Mass

The Boer War was a conflict between the British Empire and the Boer Republics (the South African Republic and the Orange Free State) from 1899 to 1902. The discovery of diamond and gold mines in the Boer republics led to initial successful raids by the Boers against British outposts. However, the British responded with reinforcements, and despite the Boers resorting to guerrilla warfare, the conflict ended with the implementation of the British scorched-earth policy, which eventually brought the Boer leaders to the negotiation table.

The war began in 1899 when Boer irregulars and militia attacked British colonial outposts. Battles like Colenso, Magersfontein, and the sieges of Ladysmith, Kimberley, and Mafeking occurred in 1900. The British sent a large expeditionary army to South Africa under the leadership of Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener, aiming to rescue the beleaguered cities and subdue the Boer Republics. Facing overwhelming force, the Boers decided to avoid pitched battles and allowed the British to take control.

With the annexation of South Africa and Namibia by the British Empire in 1900, Boer politicians fled or hid, and an early general election was called in Britain to capitalize on military successes. Some Boer fighters, known as the bittereinders, continued their resistance with a two-year campaign of hit-and-run raids and ambushes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Efalon Acies
• Release date: Jan 16, 2024
• ISBN: 9791222496450

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1: What Lied Central to the Boer War Conflict?

The Boer War was a conflict between the British Empire and the Boer Republics (the South African Republic and the Orange Free State) from 1899 to 1902. The discovery of diamond and gold mines in the Boer republics led to initial successful raids by the Boers against British outposts. However, the British responded with reinforcements, and despite the Boers resorting to guerrilla warfare, the conflict ended with the implementation of the British scorched-earth policy, which eventually brought the Boer leaders to the negotiation table.

The war began in 1899 when Boer irregulars and militia attacked British colonial outposts. Battles like Colenso, Magersfontein, and the sieges of Ladysmith, Kimberley, and Mafeking occurred in 1900. The British sent a large expeditionary army to South Africa under the leadership of Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener, aiming to rescue the beleaguered cities and subdue the Boer Republics. Facing overwhelming force, the Boers decided to avoid pitched battles and allowed the British to take control.

With the annexation of South Africa and Namibia by the British Empire in 1900, Boer politicians fled or hid, and an early general election was called in Britain to capitalize on military successes. Some Boer fighters, known as the bittereinders, continued their resistance with a two-year campaign of hit-and-run raids and ambushes.

The British struggled to defeat the Boer guerrillas due to their lack of experience with guerrilla tactics and widespread support for the insurgents. They responded with a counterinsurgency effort, including constructing barbed wire fences, strong positions, and blockhouses. Thousands of Boer civilians, mainly women and children, were detained in concentration camps, where many died from disease and famine. Black Africans were also detained in camps to prevent them from aiding the Boers, resulting in thousands of deaths.

The conflict entered a stage of small-scale skirmishes, and British mounted infantry regiments were deployed to engage individual Boer guerrilla units. The British offered generous terms of capitulation to the remaining Boer leaders, leading to the Treaty of Vereeniging in May 1902 and the formal surrender of the Boers.

The war had international implications, as public opinion favored the Boers over the British. Many volunteers from around the