It is impossible to understand South Africa’s modern history without examining this conflict, according to Andre Wessels, Senior Professor (Emeritus) and Research Fellow, Department of History, University of Free-state, Bloemfontein, South Africa. He explains that the war “set in motion a train of events that had a profound impact on the history of South Africa,” affecting all its inhabitants.
The historian explains that the underlying causes of the war lay in the conflicting ambitions of Afrikaner nationalism and British imperialism. The Boer republics sought to maintain their independence, while Britain aimed to expand its empire, as symbolized by Cecil John Rhodes' vision of a British territory stretching from Cape to Cairo. However, Professor Wessels believes the conflict was not merely ideological.
“The whole idea of Cecil John Rhodes, for example, of Cape to Cairo, the British Empire stretching from the Cape right up to Egypt. But of course, there were also economic reasons and economic reasons to a large extent centered around the very rich gold fields that were discovered in the Transvaal in 1886 and the British Empire, for obvious reasons would have liked to get hold of the gold riches and everything that goes with it,” he says.
As the war dragged on, British forces implemented a devastating anti-guerrilla strategy that included the “scorched earth” policy. Towns, villages, and farms were systematically destroyed, leaving tens of thousands of civilians homeless. Boer women and children were forcibly relocated to internment camps, a term Wessels prefers over “concentration camps”.
“Approximately 30,000 farms and 30 towns and villages were destroyed by British forces. There were approximately 140 or 150,000 Boer women and children who were interned, and at least 28,000 of them died because of malnutrition or because of a lack of medical facilities; about 80% of those who died were children aged 16 and younger,” Professor Wessels recalls.
The suffering extended beyond the Boer population. Black South Africans also faced significant trauma during the war, Wessels highlights the scale of this tragedy, stating, “There is a possibility that there might have been more deaths in the Black camps than in the White camps.”
The South African academician points out the support the Boers received from Russia during the war, noting that Russian volunteers joined their ranks. He also recalls how the conflict later became an important subject of academic study in the Soviet Union and, subsequently, in Russia.
“The Anglo-Boer War was also studied at USSR and later Russian universities […] we also share some history, which is also very important as far as dialog between our two countries are concerned,” he adds.
To find out what else the historian had to say, tune in to the Global South Pole podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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