Boer wars

Question 1

First boer war?

Answer 1

• 1867-81
• 1867 - diamonds discovered in new boer states - british tried to get boers to unite states with british ones - boers refused
• war began - british could not defeat boers - fought brilliantly

Question 2

Second boer war?

Answer 2

• 1899-1902
• golder discovered in boer states - cecicl rh odes opened mindes inside boer territory - british workers flooded in
• paul kruger refused to give british workers and political rights
• rhodes sponsored plan to overthrow kruger and replac him
• rhodes plan failed - relations between boers and british tense
• 1899 wr broke out

Question 3

Boer victories?

Answer 3

• boer army stunned british with series of victories
• boers high skilled fighters - mordern guns - lived off the land - helped by black farm workers
• used guerrilla tactics - fought in groups of 5-12 men -very small./hard to detect
• british sent 500,000 troops to fight 50,000 soldiers
• boers refused to surrender - carried out dozens of small raids on british camps, railways, mines

Question 4

British reponse?

Answer 4

• general kitchener introduced scorched earth policy
• boer men, women and children rounded up in concentration camps - 28,000/116,000 in these camps died - illness and disease
• black concentration camps too - 130,000

Question 5

Peace?

Answer 5

• 1902 - both sides exhausted - boers surrendered - peace talks started
• agreed boer states would becolme british colonies - boers promised they could make key decisions
• 1910- boer states joined with cape colony and natal to forum untion of south africa

Question 6

Consequences of boer wars?

Answer 6

• 22,000 british soldiers died - 35,000 boers died