Lest we forget – Deuteronomy 4:7-9
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while Wentworth itself didn’t see major battles during the Boer War, its location near Durban meant it was involved in the broader logistical, military, and naval activities of the conflict. There might be specific local records or stories about minor skirmishes or troop movements in the Wentworth area, but nothing on the scale of the larger battles such as Spion Kop
The Anglo Boer War, a remarkable chapter in history, reveals astonishing and often overlooked facts that highlight the human cost of conflict. One particularly striking statistic is that far more British troops succumbed to enteric fever and other diseases in South Africa than were lost to enemy action. An astounding 13,000 men and officers tragically died from these invisible foes, while nearly 8,000 lost their lives due to wounds or were killed in combat. In addition to this staggering loss of life, approximately 9,500 soldiers found themselves captured as prisoners of war.
These figures serve as a sobering reminder of the brutal realities faced during the Boer War, showcasing not only the physical struggle against opposing forces but also the relentless battle against disease and hardship. The sheer magnitude of these losses evokes awe at the sacrifices made by those who fought in this tumultuous period. Understanding these aspects enriches our perception of warfare and its impact on humanity, reminding us that every conflict harbors stories far beyond what we see on the battlefield.
Possibly the most important item of equipment the Voortrekkers took with them was their gun,
or rather guns, as they invariably possessed two and very often, more.
The gun was the clumsy “ou Sanna” with a barrel length of from 114 to 166 cms (45 or 60
inches) which could take a round lead ball of either 12 or 10 balls to the pound which indicates
that the bore varied in size.. The barrels were lightly rifled -also in various degrees. Some
would have a straight rifling and others up to three riflings with varying spiralling. These were
the more sophisticated and accurate weapons. In Cape Town Botha en Zoon, P J Botha &
Levick were noted gun makers. There is the record that Louis Trichardt paid 37 riksdaalers (at
15c per riksdaaler in the 1830’s would be R5,55) for a gun by Botha and considered it very
expensive. Of course the trader dealing with the native inhabitants would have guns for which
he paid only a fraction of that amount. This trade was illegal and profits high. The risks to
the trader were considerable should he be caught with guns, powder or lead for sale. The best
overseas guns came from Belgium and Flanders
The Voortrekkers grew up with this unwieldy gun and looked down on the more modern
percussion cap type as used and inspected by Cornwallis Harris who spent some time with the
Voortrekkers in the Free State. They felt his gun was inferior in spite of him shooting a buck
at 400 paces!
The “Ou Sanna” was primed with 4 to 6 grammes of gunpowder which worked out at from 40 to
60 shots to be fired from a pound of gunpowder. The method of loading was important. The
trigger is placed in the safety position; the gun is held in the left hand with the butt resting on
the ground; the barrel to face forward with the gun held on the slant; The powder-horn is
picked up with the right hand and the stopper removed with the thumb; the estimated amount
of powder is poured into the palm of the left hand while the gun rests in the crook of the left
arm; holding the gun upright the powder, or most of it, is poured into the end of the barrel
and the small amount left goes into the pan; now with the right hand withdraw the ram-rod
and tamp the powder down also tapping the butt of the gun on the ground. The powder must
reach the “touch-hole”. Next insert the ‘gad and tamp this down. Now comes the ball, which
is also tapped into position with the ram-rod. In times of haste and tension the wad was
omitted. The protective covering to the priming receptacle is now closed after more
tapping. Should the powder in the receptacle not flow down the touch-hole and make
contact with the powder in the barrel there will be no firing of the gun (hence the expression
“to hang fire” or if the shot misfires “a flash in the pan” The touch hole had to be cleaned
regularly
Supposing all has gone according to plan: The cocking-piece is now pulled back and the trigger
squeezed, this releases the cocking-piece whose flint scrapes against the steel, sparks fly, the
powder in the pan lights, the fire travels down the touch-hole and ignites the charge which
then explodes shooting the bullet and, of course, expels a vast amount of white smoke. During
the battle of Blood River it was fortunate that the enemy retreated fairly frequently to just
beyond rifle range before charging once more. These brief intervals allowed the powdersmoke to clear and allow the defenders to see once more.
Incidentally, at this battle the powder and balls were poured into basins for greater ease of
handling. The balls, slugs or small balls (buck-shot) was sewn in bags by the women – this
speeded up the reloading process. At some battles the women and girls loaded the guns some
of which got so hot that the powder ignited when poured into the barrel. Cleaning of the
barrels had to be done frequently due to the gunpowder fouling the barrels.
The range of the Ou Sanna was roughly 100 paces, but the Voortrekkers invariably allowed the
enemy to approach to within 30 paces. Not only would one shot then kill more than one person
but 30 paces was the range of the assegai.
GUNPOWDER
This was the old black type with little power but a lot of smoke. Not only used in guns but
Andrew Geddes Bain and Thomas Bain used it as an explosive; this was all they had.
Gunpowder came in 600 pound casks and of course, had to be dry or it would not ignite; casks
wrapped in skins did the job well. The Trekkers took as much powder as possible; where they
were going there would be no opportunity to replenish supplies and it was needed for
protection against wild animals, unfriendly people and to shoot game for the pot. When the
British put an embargo on taking powder and lead out of the Colony ways had to be found to get
it across the Orange River. Naturally they succeeded, they just had to!
That there were not more accidents is quite remarkable. There is an account of a wagon
catching alight which set the gunpowder off killing nine persons and injuring a further 12
THE BULLETS
These, in the main, were cast of lead and made in the field as and when they were needed.
But, like powder, lead was a scarce commodity. The lead was heated in pots and the melted
lead then ladled into the bullet-moulds then plunged into a bucket of cold water for cooling.
The pincers – resembling small ice cream spoons, had a cutting edge to nip off the small
extrusion of lead from the pouring spout. The round balls could either be used as they were
or have a x cut into them. On firing this ball would divide into 4 pieces. Smaller pellets, sewn
in bags, would have the same effect
So scarce was lead that on shooting a buck every effort was made to retrieve the bullet.
In 1812 John Graham undertook the task which was to define his military career, he was sent with British regulars and Boer commandos to clear around 20,000 Xhosa settled in the Zuurveld ( Albany) which lay beyond the Cape Colony’s frontiers. On completion of this ‘clearing’ he established Graham’s Town as the Zuurveld’s central military post. The same year, 1812, he returned to England and later accompanied his cousin General Thomas Graham, 1st Baron Lynedoch to Holland as his aide-de-camp and private military secretary
Voorheen laerskool Lindleyspoort, Swartruggens omgewing.
BRITISH COMPENSATION to BOERS was a PALTRY £9 ……….
The Anglo-Boer War Concentration Camps – a new tread ………… After what that retarded British politician, Jacob Rees-Mogg said in a previous thread – where he claimed that the British Concentration camps were justified, and not so bad, and for their own good……
NOW, a NEW THREAD: ANYBODY who knows ANYTHING about the “Boer/Afrikaans” nation will KNOW that, DESPITE the fact that their husbands were away on Commando – Boer women were perfectly able and capable to run their farms, to use firearms, and to sustain and protect themselves ON THEIR FARMS. BUT, what these women could NOT DO, was to exist / subsist on their farms after the ROBERTS / KITCHENER “SCORCHED EARTH POLICY” took effect over the length and breadth of the Boer territories.
The BRITISH ARMY killed all Boer livestock and farm animals; they burnt all crops; they poisoned water wells; they set fire to the farm houses, homesteads and buildings, and burnt and destroyed all Boer furniture, belongings, heirlooms and antiques.
A British officer who witnessed the burning of a Boer farm homestead noted: “The women, in a little group, cling together, comforting each other or hiding their faces in each other’s laps”. A Boer woman declared: “There I stood, surrounded by my small children, while the cruel soldiers plundered my property. Furniture, clothing, food, everything was thrown in a heap and set alight……. Despite my pleas that I might be allowed to retain a few antiques and heirlooms, they refused to listen.”
“Over the length and breadth of our Republic they raised everything to the ground. Horses, cattle and sheep were bayoneted to death. The bellowing of the cattle, the sad bleating of the sheep and all the blood is something that we shall never forget”
THEN, as we have seen, as many of these Boer women and children as could be found and rounded up, were sent in cattle trucks, to the CONCENTRATION CAMPS – where, as we know, about 28,000 of them died. Not to mention a further 15,000 (approx. – figures vary) Blacks who ALSO died in their separate Camps. The “Scorched Earth” policy, first started by Lord Roberts, and later continued by General Kitchener, had caused the (by now) homeless Boer women and children, – i.e. those who had not yet been herded into concentration camps – to wander the open veld for the entire duration of the war, often seeking shelter in kloofs and caves, and even in the hills, without any support at all. In the Transvaal alone, by 1902, some 10,000 women and children suffered this pitiful existence. In October, 1902 Lord Alfred Milner admitted that 30,000 Boer houses had been destroyed during the war. But it was not only the farms which the British attacked. The British partially or completely destroyed at least 40 Boer towns in the two Boer republics.
AND NOW – whilst NOBODY can condone what the British did – in the name of getting their hands on the Transvaal goldfields, we must consider the BOER NATION AFTER the WAR. With most of their farms destroyed, many villages and towns damaged and destroyed, and their major cities and capitals occupied, WHAT DID THE BRITISH, as the all-conquering “victors”, DO FOR THE TWO BOER NATIONS ????? VIRTUALLY NOTHING !!!!!
After the war, the Boers made 63,000 separate claims for their losses. Britain granted the Boer Republics the sum of only £3 million as compensation for the three years of war waged against them. If one considers that the Boer population by June, 1902 was in the order of 330,000 people, then the ‘compensation’ which the British gave the Boers amounted to a paltry £9 for each man, woman and child (at least what was left of them) – hardly equitable considering their material losses, if not the total losses they suffered, as a nation. And this calculation does not even begin to have account for the Black population of the two Republics.
HOW CAN THIS BE JUSTIFIED AND EQUITABLE ?????????? NEVER !!!!!!
PS: This article and some of the figures are a small, partial extract from my research PAPER entitled: “The Anglo – Boer War, 1899 – 1902: In Numbers” by David R. Bennett © 2012. I am a South African, with 3/8th BOER Ancestry, and with a large Afrikaans family, well versed with the BOER nation, of which I am part. PHOTOS: Some photos of young VICTIMS at the hands of the British; Boer orphaned children just after the War, and the JACOBS, Durban Boer Concentration Camp Memorial – NOTE the AGES of most of the BOER CHILDREN who DIED in this camp – and it was the same for ALL the camps ……. Nothing more need be said.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/AngloBoerWar/permalink/10157070415499182/
More than a century after 48 000 people died in concentration camps in what’s known as the South African War between 1899 and 1902 – or the Anglo-Boer War – the events of that period are back in the headlines.
The camps were established by the British as part of their military campaign against two small Afrikaner republics: the ZAR (Transvaal) and the Orange Free State.
The scandalous campaign is back in the news following controversial comments by British Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg on a BBC television programme.
Rees-Mogg’s statements have caused consternation because they were riddled with inaccuracies. It’s time to set the record straight and to refute his inaccuracies one by one. I do this based on the historical research I’ve done on the South African War for the last 49 years.
March 16, 1900-the 3rd Canadian Contingent, Strathcona’s Horse set sail overseas during the South African War#FactFriday #CanadaRemembersThe South African War of 1899-1902 was the first time that large contingents of Canadian soldiers served overseas. More than 7,000 Canadians would eventually volunteer to serve in the conflict. This number included troopers of the Strathcona’s Horse, whose members first shipped out to South Africa March 16, 1900. Pictured are men of the regiment en route to South Africa aboard the S.S. Monterey. Photo: Library and Archives CanadaMore information: http://ow.ly/IrMP30iY8SN
