Boer War Flashcards
1
Q
What was the Great Trek?
A
When Britain tried to gain control of the Cape Colony, the Boers tried to get away from the British by moving towards the Transvaal and the OFS
- Britain were initially quite happy for Boers to move that way
- discovery of gold in Transvaal meant the British wanted to get into this area now
2
Q
When was the First Boer War?
A
1880-81
3
Q
What happened in the first Boer War?
A
Britain were defeated, lost 400 troops at Majuba hill
4
Q
Why is it a bit of an exaggeration to call the first Boer war a war?
A
The defeat was only small (only 400 British troops defeated)
5
Q
What were the consequences of the First Boer War?
A
. Left a sour taste on behalf of the British as they felt they had to get back at the Boers for the defeat
. Uneasy truce between Britain and the Boers after this (slight tension)
6
Q
Who does John Bull represent?
A
The typical British person, always wanting to fight
7
Q
What did a cartoon of John Bull say that was directed towards the Boers and what does it show?
A
‘As you will fight, you shall have it. This time it’s a fight to the finish.’
- shows British believed Boers started the second Boer War, ‘let’s have it’
- shows Britain wanted to properly end the battle as the rivalry had been tense since the first war
- shows British view of lust for fighting
8
Q
Why were both Boer Republic’s overpopulated?
A
As they were agriculturally poor
9
Q
When had the Transvaal people been given political rights?
A
1852
10
Q
When was the Jameson Raid?
A
New Year Weekend of 1895/96
11
Q
What happened in the Jameson raid and how was it a failure?
A
. Force of 6000 men in hopes of starting an uprising in the Transvaal
- British tried to pretend they weren’t behind it
- British failure was a major embarrassment for the British government
- no more than 20 people killed in the resulting skirmish
12
Q
How did the Boers view the Jameson raid?
A
Almost as a declaration of war
13
Q
What was the relationship between Britain and the Boers after the Jameson raid?
A
Uneasy peace in following years, with political pressure put on the Boers from the British
14
Q
How did Milner worsen the tension between Britain and Boers following the Jameson raid?
A
Broke off talks with Kruger in the Bloemfontein Conference (31st May - 5th June 1899)
15
Q
When were British military reinforcement dispatched to SA and placed on the borders of the Boer republics?
A
September 1899
16
Q
How did Kruger give a final chance for the Boer War not to happen?
A
9th October 1899: created an ultimatum calling for the removal of imperial troops from the republic’s borders within 48 hours, not listened to
17
Q
How was it clear that it wasn’t just politicians that felt action needed to be taken in SA?
A
Writers such as George Bernard saw the war as part of Britain’s burden to ‘civilise’ the world
18
Q
How did Britain defend their participation in the Boer war?
A
Claimed they had tried to be reasonable and agreed with the Boers
19
Q
What was a massive turning point in British interest in SA?
A
Discovery of Gold in Transvaal in 1886
20
Q
What did Britain want to happen to SA that Boers didn’t want?
A
Imperialists sought a unification of the whole of South African under Britain and the Boer Republics were missing pieces of the puzzle
The Boers wanted their independence
21
Q
Why were the Boers always going to fight for their independence?
A
They were very territorial and fiercely opposed outside control, especially from the British
22
Q
Who were Uitlanders?
A
Mainly British people who wanted wealth from new gold discovery in Transvaal so moved here
23
Q
How did the Boers feel about the Uitlanders?
A
They viewed them as a threat to their continuing independence
24
Q
How was Kruger’s government awful towards the Uitlanders?
A
Uitlanders didn’t have the right to vote despite having to pay taxes as restrictions on their freedom favoured the Boers
25
Why did the appointment of Chamberlain to the colonial office and Alfred Milner as British High Commissioner escalate tensions for the Boer War?
They were both ardent imperialists, wanting to press ahead with the unification of SA under Britain
. Encouraged Uitlander discontent, hoping to provoke some kind of revolt from the Uitlander’s so they had an excuse to take some control over Kruger’s government
26
How did the British justify intervention in the Transvaal?
Claimed the Boers were treating Uitlander’s terribly, slightly over exaggerated
27
Who did Uitlanders seek help from in 1895 and why?
Cecil Rhodes as he was one of the leading magnates of the Rand Goldfield
- this created an excuse for British intervention
28
Where did the Jameson raid start?
British Rhodesia, hoping to get an uprising in the Transvaal
29
How did the Jameson raid affect Britian?
. Political embarrassment
. Britain tried to deny official involvement
30
How did the Boer victory at the Jameson raid affect things in the Boer republics?
Kruger became the Boer people’s hero
‘Afrikaner bond’ formed: anti-British bond made by Boers still living in Cape Colony to show they were willing to help fellow Boers in the Transvaal
31
Why was it stupid for Rhodes to force the Jameson Raid to commence?
At the same time, Uitlanders had recently been pulling back from a planned uprising against the Boer Republic, should’ve been more organised
32
What was the army of the Jameson raid made up of and how long did it last?
500 mounted police
Defeated and surrendered in only 4 days
33
What happened to the participants of the Jameson raid?
Jameson and 12 companions imprisoned by a British court
Rhodes forced to resign from the Cape premiership
34
How did Chamberlain feel about entering the Boer war?
Wanted to avoid war but wasn’t going to allow British influence to be weakened
35
When did Boer and British relationships seriously break down?
1899
36
How much did Britain spend to turn the Boer war around?
Almost 400k troops around the Empire, costing £250 million
37
When was the second Boer war?
1899-1902
38
How did Britain try and justify the Jameson raid?
By saying that they were protecting the rights of Uitlanders
39
What does Uitlanders translate to in British?
Outlanders
40
How did Chamberlain use his administration powers to try and overcome the setback of the Jameson raid?
Appointed Sir Alfred Milner (outspoken imperialist) as High Commissioner of SA in 1897
41
What is Kruger’s government called?
South African republic government
42
How did the Jameson raid change Kruger’s view of Uitlanders?
He became even more reluctant to give them political freedom as an uprising seemed a possibility
43
What proposals did the SAR make to try and prevent the Boer war?
1890: SAR offered an extension of the franchise to the Uitlanders (more rights) if the British agreed not to interfere in SAR’s international affairs
Krugers demands:
. Britain drop its claim to rule the SAR
. Britain allow external arbitration of other unresolved disputes between the Boer and British governments
44
Why did Chamberlain reject Kruger’s proposals to prevent the Boer war?
He saw the Boers as easy to defeat
45
Who started the Boer War and how?
Boer republics invade Cape Colony and Natal on 12th October 1899 as they see Britain didn’t want peace after rejecting the ultimatum
46
What towns were sieged by the Boers during Black week?
. Kimberley
. Mafeking
. Ladysmith
47
Which battles did Britain fail to push the Boers away in December 1899 (Black Week)?
. Battle of Stormberg
. Battle of Magersfontein
. Battle of Colenso
48
Why was ‘Black week” a massive shock for the British public?
These successive defeats were not ordinary for Britain, British weren’t used to defeat
49
How did Britain’s normal tactics in December fail?
Used fronted attacks on concealed Boer positions, ineffective as Boers were excellent at guerrilla warfare
50
How did Boers have much greater tactics in the beginning of the Boer war?
Used modern rifles and smokeless powder to snipe British infantry and then hide away
51
How was Boer army very skilled at the start of Boer war?
Only had 88,000 soldiers but very good generals such as Louis Botha
52
How did the British empire strike back after failures during Black week?
. Ended up sending more men to SA and amassed over 400k soldiers
. British public greatly volunteered to serve
. First war where British society took up arms
- many joined new formations such as the Imperial Yeomanry
. This volunteering to war inspired the same for WW1
53
What was the role of Black Africans in the Boer War?
Britain had made a tacit agreement with the Boers that both sides wouldn’t arm the Black population
. As war progressed, black people were armed as scouts for Britain
. Around 15-30k black Africans served with the British army as scouts and sentries
- another 100k worked as builders, labourers, blacksmiths etc
54
What was the role of India in helping Britain during the Boer War?
. Indian army wasn’t directly brought into SA but some took part as stretch bearers and servants
- Indian Ambulance Corps: 300 free Indians and 800 indentured workers sent to the front lines by their employers
55
How many OFS trooped crossed the border into Cape Colony once Ultimatum expired?
7500
56
Why were OFC troops interested in Kimberley?
They wanted control of diamond mines, railways and supplies here
57
How was the relief of Kimberley delayed?
Lieutenant-General Lord Methuen marched with British troops to relieve Kimberley but was halted for 2 months after a defeat at Magersfontein
. Lord Roberts took new command and renewed the offensive
. 15th February 1899 - Kimberley relieved after 4-month siege
58
How did the besiegement and bombardment at Ladysmith occur?
Sire George White’s Natal Field force, defending the Natal colony, was besieged in Ladysmith
13,500 troops were trapped
2nd November 1899: Boers started the bombardment with 17 field guns
59
Why did the Battle of Colenso happen?
The garrison as Ladysmith tried to hold off Boers as Sir Redvers Buller’s was coming to help
15th December 1899: Buller’s had to fight Boers at Colenso and suggested with White to surrender at Ladysmith
60
How was the siege at Ladysmith slowed down?
January 1900: Britain defeated Boers at Caesar’s camp and Wagon Hill, halting a swift taking of Ladysmith
61
When was the full siege of Ladysmith felt?
24th January 1900 - Buller defeated at Spion Kop, so all Boer force was put into Ladysmith
62
Why were living standards so bad during the sieges of the Boer War?
Rations had to be used after 1900 as sickness and food shortages became a serious problem, horseflesh even added to rations
63
When did Buller finally break through to Ladysmith and defend the fortress there?
28th February 1900
64
When did the Boers try to seize Mafeking?
11th October 1899: 6000 Boers under General Piet Cronje
65
What was the strategic importance of Mafeking?
. Contained stocks of food, forage and railway material, useful to Boers
. For the British, it was okay that the Boers were besieging here as it meant they couldn’t participate in the campaign further south as Mafeking was the most northerly town in the Cape Colony
66
Who was the British commander of Mafeking?
Colonel Robert Baden-Powell
67
How were the black Africans treated for their participation in defending Mafeking?
They were so vital but had their rations reduced and little reward after the fort was successfully defended :(
68
What was the composition of Baden Powell’s army at the start of the siege at Mafeking?
. 750 locally raised troops
. 400 irregulars (townspeople)
. 600 black Africans as cattle guards
69
When did the Boer bombardment of Mafeking start and how long did it last?
16th October 1899: last 217 days, longest siege of the war
70
How did Baden-Powell become a national hero?
His work helped relieve Mafeking on 17th May 1900 with 463 casualties from both sides
71
When was the OFS overrun and annexed by British?
24th May 1900
72
When did the Boer War seem over?
As OFS and Transvaal had been annexed by September 1900
73
When were each of the besieged towns relieved?
. Ladysmith (28th Feb 1900)
. Kimberly (15th Feb 1900)
. Mafeking (18th May 1900)
74
How did Boers refuse to lose even when Britain believed the war was over?
Came back with guerilla warfare which was extremely effective as Boers knew their soil well
75
When did Lord Roberts call on Boers to surrender?
13th September 1900
76
When did Lord Kitchener succeed Roberts as British commander-in-chief?
29th September 1900
77
How did the sections of the Boer war go?
1899: Boers in control
1900-Summer of 1900: British respond and turn the tables
November 1900-May 1902: Boers get back with guerrilla war, frustrating the British
78
How were the Boers effective at guerilla warfare?
. Good hunters, knew the terrain
. Supplied with Germany’s new rifles
. Captured supplies, disrupted communications and undertook raids
79
Why did the Boer guerrilla warfare frustrate the British public?
Annoyed that the war was still going on, it should have ended after the annexations
80
How did Kitchener’s ‘scorched earth policy’ work and why was it used?
It was incinerating Boer farms and livestock (destroying everything), allowing the supplies for the Boer fighters to be removed
- areas would be split into a grid, with each grid guarded with a blockhouse controlling a singular area to be burnt.
- all families destroyed in the burning in each area was sent to a tiny ‘concentration camp’
Intended to make the Boers surrender
81
How was the scorched earth policy ready to happen by May 1901?
8000 blockhouses had been built
3700 miles of wire fences built, guarded by 50,000 troops
82
Why were ‘drives’ used in scorched earth policy and what did it cause?
To corner Boers so guerilla warfare could end, however this produced large numbers of displaced Boer and African families
83
What happened to refugees created from the ‘drives’ in the scorched earth policy?
Sent to concentration camps
84
How many Boers died in the camps and from what?
Around 28000 from starvation, disease and exposure in the camps
85
How many died in the black camps?
At least 20,000
86
What did Britain claim about the concentration camps?
That the camps were never intended to have such horrible conditions
87
How were the concentration camps reacted to at home and abroad?
. The treatment was condemned in Europe and the world
- French illustration of the ‘Gallant British’
. Britain’s rivals were keen to pounce on this mistreatment to make the empire look worse
. British found it very hard to now justify the empire doing ‘good for the world’
88
How can the questionable British tactics against guerrilla warfare be seen as worth it?
. The English didn’t shoot a single person in the farmhouses
. Taking the women off the farms was an actual military necessity so it was a gentleman’s war on both sides
. Needed for the war to not drag on endlessly
. Death in camps were apparently ‘unintentional’
. Victory is the important thing
89
In what ways were the British tactics agains the Boer guerillas not worth it?
. Women taken away in open wagons
- ill-treated
- insulted by soldiers and officers
. Burned down farms and confiscated all cattle, stores, wagons etc
. Britain could have intervened before all the deaths
. Damaged Britain’s reputation
. Camps should’ve been managed better
90
Who was Emily Hobhouse and what did she do?
British welfare campaigner who visited the concentration camps in 1901 and created a report amongst MPs on her return that produced public outrage
. Worked tirelessly to improve conditions in the camps
91
Who was Millicent Fawcett and what did she do?
Active suffragist and political campaigner
. Appointed to lead investigations into conditions in the camps and toured South Africa
. Her report (the Fawcett commission) confirmed Hobhouse’s claims
92
What were the conditions inside the concentration camps?
. Epidemics spread easily such as cholera even though the causes of the diseases were known so should’ve been prevented
. 16000 British soldiers were killed by diseases (3x the number from enemy action)
93
What did humanitarians, left-wing liberals and socialists in Britain call the concentration camps?
‘Methods of barbarism’
94
How did the Boer war cost a lot more than expected and how did this affect Britain?
War only meant to last 3-4 months and cost no more than £75 million
- ended up lasting almost three years and costing 230 million
95
How many British died compared to Boers in Boer war and how many of these British deaths were produced by military action?
22,000 Brits to 6000 Boers
35% Brits killed by military action (much more from the other factors such as diseases)
96
Why was the poor treatment in the Boer war hard to defend on a racial point of view?
Fighting against a ‘white civilisation’ was hard to defend as there was a racist imperial mindset among Brits
97
How did Britain show their vulnerability during the Boer war?
Their efforts came with large costs
Britain had to call on troops from elsewhere in the Empire, mainly India
Britain weren’t able to use their sea power in SA, showing they had weakness elsewhere
98
What belief about the empire was hard to defend after the Boer war?
That it was to do good and improve the world
99
What did the Transvaal and OFS have to do after the Boer war?
Accept British sovereignty (superiority)
100
Who were the only people speaking politically for imperialism after the Boer war and why?
Conservatives, as Jingoism from the 1890s was dampened and a drive for national efficiency came about
101
How was cooperation between British and Boers (consequence) seen after the Boer war?
. Milner brought British and Boer colonies into a single customs union and amalgamated their railway systems
. 1910: parliaments of Cape Colony, Transvaal, Orange river colony and people of Natal agreed to create the Union of South Africa
. May 1902: Treaty of Vereeniging gave Boers £3 million to restore and restock farms
102
What did the Orange Free state become after its annexation?
Orange River Colony
103
When were the Transvaal and Orange River colonies granted self-government?
1906 and 1907 respectively
104
What was the Union of South Africa?
An INDEPENDENT dominion in the British empire
105
How did the constitution created for the Union of South Africa cause future trouble?
It allowed the states to keep their own voting policies
106
How was it clear that Britain and Boers quickly resolved relations?
Only 12 years after the Boer war, many of the Boer leaders in WW1 were allied with Britain and helped out
107
What kind of Boer culture was prompted to be used after the Boer war?
A more distinctive ‘Afrikaner’ culture:
. Promoting the use of the Afrikaans language
. Growth of political organisation such as ‘Het Volk’
108
What 3 main things came from the Peace of Vereeniging settlement in May 1902?
. Ended the hostilities between Britain and Boers and involved the surrender of all Boer forces and their arms to British
. Promise of eventual self-government to the Transvaal and OFS as colonies of the British empire
. Boer republics agreed to come under the sovereignty of the British crown
109
What were the terms of the Peace of Vereeniging treaty?
. Amnesty (giving up without fear of punishment) for Boer fighters
. Combatants disarmed
. Boers to swear allegiance to British crown
. No death penalties for Boers
. Afrikaans was allowed in schools and law courts
. Boers to be paid £3 million in reconstruction aid
. Property rights of Boers to be respected
. No land taxes
. Registered private guns allowed
110
What did the peace of Vereeniging show about Britain?
. They were clearly eager to end the guerrilla warfare as there are a lot of concessions in it
. Britain wants to look good with this huge treaty, they must’ e felt a bit guilty
111
Which part of the peace of Vereeniging treaty really made the Boer War look pointless?
The Transvaal and OFS got self-government, which is what they were fighting for in the first place, but maybe not under British control I guess
112
How did the Peace of Vereeniging settlement lay foundations for the Apartheid regime later in C.20?
There is no mention of the indigenous black population, which was the vast majority of the population in South Africa
113
What did Rudyard Kipling say about the Boer war in 1902 that was a strong British belief?
‘We have had an imperial lesson’ - many Brits saw the war as a lesson
114
How did the Boer War highlight problems in British society?
26.5% of the 3600 recruits looking for enlistment at York for the war were rejected as unfit and 29% were only accepted as ‘specials’
115
What are ‘specials’ in an army?
Those recruited who would need a few months of army life to be up to fighting fitness standard
116
How was poverty clearly bad at the start of the 1900s?
There was an unequal distribution of wealth so there were massively impoverished areas
- a C.19 study by Charles Booth (London) showed considerable poverty in London
117
Why did Britain feel the need to do the Jameson raid?
Both Rhodes and Chamberlain were worried that Britain’s dominance in SA was being threatened
118
Where did Rhodes’ ambition for the Boer republics to be brought into a SA federation come from?
. Irritation at the damage which high tariffs imposed by the Boers were causing to trade
. He had personal hostility towards Paul Kruger
119
Why did Chamberlain and Rhodes see the Transvaal as a threat to British power control over SA?
Transvaal’s prestige and power had grown with the discovery of gold and it had extended its control over Swaziland by establishing its own railway network to the Portuguese-controlled port of Lourenço Marques
120
What reflected the Boers’ strong nationalist sentiment and resentment of British interference?
Kruger successfully securing a fourth terms as Transvaal president in 1898
121
How powerful had the Transvaal become by 1898?
Gold fields of Transvaal had overtaken America, supplying 30% of the worlds output of gold
122
How did events in the Transvaal give even more reason for the British to justify a war?
December 1898: Tom Edgar (Englishman), shot by a Transvaal policeman, prompting Uitlander outrage and pressure on the British government from the Uitlanders for firm action
123
How were Uitlanders’ essentially denied voting rights in Kruger’s government?
. You had to be over 40
. Needed 14 years of residence in the Transvaal (Uitlanders had only come in during gold rush)
124
How were Uitlanders’ lacking voting rights unjust?
50,000 Britons excluded from political rights in Transvaal, despite Boer residents living in the British-run cape colony having voting rights
125
When was the Bloemfontein conference and what happened?
May-June 1899: Milner demanded that the Transvaal grant voting rights to the Uitlanders, but Kruger refused
Despite some half-hearted attempts at compromise, both sides began to mobilise/ready their troops
126
How was a constitution for the ‘Union of South Africa made’?
With PMs of Transvaal, OFS, Cape Colony and Natal
127
What did the act of union of the ‘union of south Africa’ establish?
A single parliament to run South Africa
128
When did the union of South Africa become a single British dominion territory?
1910
129
How did the union of South Africa do little for Black Africans?
Even though they had supported Britain during the Boer war, they were given no protection from settler-colonial racism
