Guerrilla War - September 1900 to May 1902 Flashcards
Despite the British being in control of both Boer republics, what was the issue?
- 20,000 Boers remained at large with their leaders
What was the tactics that the Boers used to trouble the British?
- They had knowledge of the terrain and local support
- Strike hard and fast, to do as much damage as possible and then retreat before reinforcements could arrive
How many British troops were trying to deal with the Boers?
250,000
What skilled§ leaders remained at large, they caused trouble even in the Cape Colony?
- De Wet
- de la Rey
- Smuts
- Botha
What were Kitcheners Blockhouses?
- 8,000 houses built to restrict Boer manoeuvres and protect supply routes
- These housed 6-8 soldiers
- Helped section the veldt and soldiers would carry out sweeps of small areas to trap the enemy
What technology did the soldiers take advantage of to make Blockhouses more efficient?
- Blockhouses were linked with barbed wire fences which stretched over 4,000 miles to help section the veldt
- Used telephones and telegraph cables to keep communications between soldiers constant to trap Boers
What were Raiding Columns?
- Smaller columns to support the larger ones
- Used to rapidly follow and harass Boers, to cut them off or delay their escape whilst main columns caught up
- British used armoured trains to deliver rapid reaction forces to incidents or drop men off ahead of retreating commandos
Who initially started a Scorched Earth Policy?
- Roberts, before he left pursued one to burn farms which supposedly gave support to commandos
Did Kitchener continue the Scorched Earth Policy?
- Kitchener continued this and scorched anything that could sustain Boers
- Troops destroyed property, crops and salted fields as well as poisoning wells
What were Concentration Camps set up by Kitchener?
- Set up as refugee camps got families who had been forced to quit their homes
- Moving Boer women and children into camps was intended to prevent civilians in assisting commandos
What was the military issue with concentration camps?
- They captured the families of Boers
- This actually let the Boers be freed from that responsibility and focus more on fighting
What was the humanitarian issue with concentration camps?
- There was inadequate food, shelter, bad hygiene, sanitation and a shortage of medical supplies leading to overloading
- Measles, Typhoid and Dysentery made children vulnerable to this illness
How many Boer women and children died in the concentration camps?
- 20,000 died in 40 camps
- 1 in 4 inmates died
How were Black Africans treated in the camps?
- 12,000 died
- They were placed in separate camps and conditions were worse
How did Kitchener defend the use of concentration camps?
He argued that to turn them int the veldt was more cruel
How did St John Broderick defend the use of concentration camps?
- Argued camps were ‘voluntary’
- Boers were ‘contended and comfortable’ and argued it was a ‘military necessity’
Who spoke out greatly against the use of concentration camps?
Radical liberals who were led by David Lloyd George denounced the concentration camps
Why did the liberal leader Henry Campbell-Bannerman not initially support the radicals?
- He saw it as his duty to support the government in a time of war
- Radicals were only a third of the liberals so he did not want to press a matter that could divide the party
How did Emily Hobhouse describe the concentration camps
- “a grievous mistake”
- Her view caused international outcry in June 1901
What led to liberal leader Henry Campbell Bannerman finally denouncing the concentration camps?
- German Chancellor von Büllow denounced it as ‘brutal and inhuman’
- Caused Campbell-Bannerman to attack the ‘methods of barbarism’ in South Africa
What was the Fawcett Commission?
- An all women commission headed by Millicent Fawcett a liberal unionist
- Between Aug and Dec of 1901 the commission toured the camps and confirmed Hobhouse’s claims
- Recommended a long list of measures, including increased rations and more nurses
How did the government act on the Fawcett Commissions recommendations?
- November 1901 Chamberlain ordered the bettering of conditions ‘all possible steps’
- Civil authorities took over the running of camps
- By 1902 white inmate death rate dropped to 2%
How did Kitchener attempt to appease the critics of his concentration camp policy?
- December 1901 instructed all column commanders to not bring women and children when they cleared the country
- Appeased his critics and handicapped guerrillas who had to care for their families
Why was the Boer War originally seen as a ‘white mans war’?
- Zulu war had memories of the consequences of a militarised mass population of black people
How did Kitchener break the idea of a ‘white mans war’?
- As time went on Britain increasingly used black recruits as scouts, watchmen in blockhouses and auxiliary
- By 1902 one 30,000 back people had served in the British Army, a lot of whom were pro-British
What treaty ended the war?
- Treaty of Vereeniging signed 31st May 1902
- Boer commandos pledged their allegiance to Britain and recognised Britains annexation of the two republics
What did Britain give the Boers after winning the war?
- Boers given £3 million for reconstruction purposes
- Britain agreed to restore Boer self-government at the earliest opportunity
When did Britain restore self government and free elections for whites in the Transvaal and Orange Free State ?
1906-7
What happened to the Cape Colony, Natal, Orange Free State and Transvaal in 1910?
Formed the Union of South Africa
How many British died during the Boer War?
- 22,000 out of 60,000 died
- 100,000 British are wounded / diseased
How many Boers, Boer civilians and black Africans died?
- 7,000 Boers died
- Over 20,000 Boer civilians
- 12,000 Black Africans died
How many colonial troops did the Boer war require and how much did it cost the taxpayer?
- 450,000 British Colonial Troops
- Cost the British taxpayer £217 million
How much was it costing the Treasury in 1901 to knock out a single Boer?
£140
