How the Second Boer War began. To the 117 anniversary of the outbreak of hostilities

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October 12 1899, the Boer republics of South Africa declared war on Great Britain. So the Second Boer War officially began. As you know, the UK has long dreamed of establishing full control over the entire territory of South Africa. Despite the fact that the Dutch began to develop the territory of modern South Africa first, the UK considered this region to be extremely important for its strategic interests. First of all, London needed control over the South African coast because it was passing by a sea route to India - the largest and most important British colony.

In the middle of the 17th century the Dutch colony was founded by the Dutch. However, in the 1795 year, when the troops of Napoleonic France occupied the Netherlands themselves, the Cape colony, in turn, was occupied by Great Britain. Only in 1803, the Netherlands regained control of the Cape Colony, but in 1806 it, under the pretext of protection from the French, re-occupied the UK. According to the decision of the Vienna Congress 1814, the Cape Colony was transferred to the UK for "perpetual use". The first time in the life of the Dutch colonists, who were called Boers, or Afrikaners, little changed, but then, in 1834, Great Britain abolished slavery in its colonies.



How the Second Boer War began. To the 117 anniversary of the outbreak of hostilities


Since many Boers held slaves, on whose labor prosperous farms were kept, they began to move outside the Cape Colony. Another reason for the resettlement was the flirting of the British colonial authorities with the leaders of the African tribes, which could lead to the elimination of opportunities for further land seizure by borax farmers. In addition, English colonists began to actively migrate to the Cape Colony, which also did not suit the Afrikaners who settled here earlier. The massive relocation of the Boers entered into history like a great track. Over 15 thousand people participated in it. Most of them came from eastern districts of the Cape Colony. Boers began to move through the territories inhabited by African tribes - Zulus, Ndebele and others. Naturally, this promotion was not of a peaceful nature. It can be said that the Boer statehood was born in battles with African tribes and was accompanied by heavy losses. However, the Natal Republic was created in 1839. However, Britain refused to recognize the independence of this state. As a result of several years of negotiations, the authorities of Natal agreed to come under British control. After that, the Boers who disagreed with this decision moved further to the areas of the Vaal and Orange rivers, where the Orange Free State was created in 1854, and the Republic of South Africa (Transvaal Republic) was created in 1856.

Transvaal and Orange were full-fledged sovereign states of the Boers, who had to survive in a hostile environment - on the one hand, their neighbors were militant African tribes, on the other hand - the territories under British control. British politicians hatched a plan to unite the South African lands - both British possessions and the Boer territories into a single confederation. In 1877, the British managed to annex the Transvaal, but already in 1880, an armed uprising of the Boers began, which escalated into the First Anglo-Boer War, which continued until March of 1881.

Despite the obvious military advantage of the British, the Boers were able to inflict a number of serious defeats on British troops. This was due to the peculiarities of the battle tactics and the uniform of British troops. The English soldiers at the time still wore bright red uniforms, which were an excellent target for the Boer snipers. In addition, the British units were accustomed to act in the ranks, while the Boers acted more mobile and dispersed. In the end, not wanting to suffer serious losses, the British side agreed to a truce. In fact, it was a victory for the Boers, since the independence of the Transvaal was restored.
Of course, the leaders of the Boers had to agree with such demands of the British as recognition of the formal suzerainty of Great Britain and the representation of Transvaal’s last interests in international politics, but in turn, the British authorities pledged not to interfere in the internal affairs of the republic.

- Paul Kruger, President of the Republic of South Africa in 1883-1900

However, in 1886, diamond deposits were discovered on the territory controlled by the drills, after which the "diamond rush" began. Numerous prospectors and colonists began to move to Transvaal - representatives of very different nations, first of all - immigrants from Great Britain and other European countries. The diamond industry was under the control of the British, primarily the De Beers company, created by Cecil Rhodes. From that moment on, the British directly embarked on destabilizing the internal situation in the Transvaal, as they sought to finally establish control over the Boer Republic. For this, Cecil Rhodes, the former Prime Minister of the Cape Colony, used the Outlanders, the English settlers who lived in the Transvaal. They demanded equality of rights with the Boers, giving the English language the status of the state language, as well as the rejection of the principle of nomination of only Calvinist followers to government posts (the Dutch settlers were Calvinists). The British authorities demanded that the Outlanders who lived at least 5 years in the Transvaal and Orange have the right to vote. This was opposed by the Boer leaders, who were well aware that the influx of the Outlanders, and even with the right to vote, would mean the end of the Boer independence. The conference in Bloemfontein, which was assembled on 31 in May on 1899, ended in failure - the Boers and the British did not reach a compromise.

Nevertheless, Paul Kruger nevertheless went to meet the British - he offered to provide the electoral rights to the Oit-lander living in Transvaal in exchange for the refusal of the United Kingdom to interfere in the internal affairs of the Republic of South Africa. However, this seemed not enough for the British authorities - they demanded not only to immediately give the oot-landers the right to vote, but also to provide them with a quarter of the seats in the republic's Volksraad (parliament) and recognize English as the second official language of South Africa. Additional armed forces were deployed to the Cape Colony. Realizing that the war was about to begin, the Boer leaders decided to launch a preemptive strike on British positions. 9 October 1899 Mr. Paul Kruger demanded that the British authorities stop all military preparations at the border of the Republic of South Africa during the 48 hours. With the Transvaal, the Orange Free State stands in solidarity. Both republics did not have regular armed forces, but could mobilize up to 47 thousands of militias, many of whom had extensive experience in waging war in South Africa, as they participated in clashes with African tribes and in the First Anglo-Boer War.

October 12 1899 was a five-thousand Boer team commanded by Peter Arnold Cronier (1836-1911) - an outstanding Boer military and state leader, member of the First Boer War and a number of other armed conflicts - crossed the border of British possessions in South Africa and began the siege of the city of Mafinga which was defended by 700 fighters of British irregular troops with 2 artillery guns and 6 machine guns. Thus, October 12 can be considered the day of the start of hostilities of the Boer republics against Britain. However, in November 1899, the main part of the Boer army under the command of Cronier went to the city of Kimberley, which was also under siege from October 15. Kimberly was assisted by the 10-thousandth 1-I infantry division of the British army, which included 8 infantry battalions and a cavalry regiment, 16 artillery shells and even one armored train.

Despite the fact that the British managed to stop the advancement of the Boers, they suffered serious losses. So, in the battles at st. Belmont and Enslyn Heights, British troops lost 70 people killed and 436 people injured, and near the Modder River - 72 people killed and 396 people injured. In December, the British attempted to attack the Boer positions at Magersfontein, but were defeated and lost about 1000 personnel men. In Natal, the Boers managed to block the troops of General White under Ladysmith and defeat the military grouping of General R. Buller who set off to help them. In the Cape Colony, the Boer troops captured Nauport and Stormberg. In addition, numerous tribesmen, whose settlements remained on the territory of the Cape Colony, crossed over to the side of the Boers.



The rapid success of the Boers greatly scared the British authorities. London began the transfer of numerous military formations to South Africa. The British taken from the British cruisers were even delivered to Ladysmith by rail. fleet heavy long-range naval artillery, which played a crucial role in protecting the city. By December 1899, the number of British troops in South Africa reached 120 thousand people. The Boers could oppose the British army to much smaller forces. As noted above, 45-47 thousand people were mobilized in the Orange Republic and Transvaal. In addition, volunteers from all over Europe rushed to the aid of the Boer republics, who considered the actions of Great Britain in South Africa as aggression and violation of the sovereignty of independent states. The struggle of the Boers against British aggression aroused the sympathy of the broad masses of the European population. As the Second Boer War received media coverage, a real stir began around the events in faraway South Africa. Newspapers appealed to people who wanted to sign up as volunteers and go to South Africa to help the Boers defend their independence.

Do not become an exception and subjects of the Russian Empire. As is known, a large number of Russian volunteers participated in the Anglo-Boer War. In some studies, even an approximate number of Russian officers who came to fight on the side of the Boer republics - 225 people are voiced. Many of them were titled noblemen - representatives of the most famous aristocratic families in the Russian Empire. For example, Prince Bagration Mukhransky and Prince Engalychev took part in the Anglo-Boer War. Fyodor Guchkov went to South Africa as a volunteer - the brother of the famous politician Alexander Guchkov, the centurion of the Kuban Cossack army. For several months, Alexander Guchkov himself, the future chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Empire, also fought in South Africa. By the way, colleagues marked the courage of the Guchkov brothers, who, being not so young people (Alexander Guchkov was 37 years old, and his brother Fyodor - 39 years).

Perhaps the brightest figure among Russian volunteers in South Africa was Evgeny Yakovlevich Maksimov (1849-1904) - a man of amazing and tragic fate. In the past, an officer in the cuirassier regiment, still in 1877-1878. Maksimov participated in the Russian-Turkish war, in 1880 he set off for the Akhal-Teke expedition, as part of which he commanded the flying squad of General Mikhail Skobelev. In 1896, Maksimov traveled to Abyssinia, in 1897, in Central Asia. In addition to his military career, Maximov was engaged in front-line journalism. In 1899, the fifty-year-old Maximov traveled to South Africa. He joined the European Legion, staffed by volunteers from Europe and the Russian Empire as well.

When the commander of the Legion de Vilbois died, Maximov was appointed the new commander of the European Legion. The Boer command assigned him the title of "fencing general" (combat general). The further fate of Maximov was tragic. After returning to Russia, in 1904, he volunteered to participate in the Russian-Japanese war, although by his age (55 years) he could easily rest in retirement. In a battle on the Shah River, Lieutenant Colonel Yevgeny Maximov was killed. Fighting officer he left with weapons in the hands, never having reached a peaceful old age.

Despite the increased resistance of the Boers, the United Kingdom, which greatly increased the number of its contingent in South Africa, soon began to crowd the armed forces of Transvaal and Orange. Field Marshal Frederick Roberts was appointed commander of the British forces. Under his command, the British army achieved a turning point in the fighting. In February 1900, the forces of the Orange Free State were forced to capitulate. 13 March 1900, the British occupied Bloemfontein, the capital of the Orange Free State, and 5, June 1900, fell Pretoria, the capital of the Republic of South Africa. The British leadership announced the liquidation of the Orange Free State and the Republic of South Africa. Their territories were incorporated into British South Africa. By September 1900, the regular phase of the war in South Africa had ceased, but the Boers continued their partisan resistance. By this time, Field Marshal Roberts, who received the title of Earl of Pretoria, departed from South Africa, and the command of British troops was transferred to General Horace Herbert Kitchener.

In order to neutralize the partisan resistance of the Boers, the British resorted to barbaric methods of warfare. They burned down Boer’s farms, killed civilians, including women and children, poisoned springs, stole or killed livestock. By these actions to undermine the economic infrastructure, the British command planned to stop the fighting from the Boers. In addition, the British tried such a method as the construction of concentration camps, in which the Boers, who lived in the countryside, were placed. Thus, the British wanted to prevent the possible support from their part of the partisan detachments.

In the end, the Boer leaders were forced to sign the 31 of May 1902 of the year in the place called Fereniking near Pretoria a peace treaty. The Orange Free State and the Republic of South Africa recognized the authority of the British crown. In response, the United Kingdom pledged to amnesty the participants of the armed resistance, agreed to use the Dutch language in the judicial system and the education system, and most importantly - refused to grant voting rights to Africans before introducing self-government in their areas of residence. In 1910, the territories inhabited by the drills became part of the Union of South Africa, which in 1961 was transformed into the Republic of South Africa.
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  1. +9
    12 October 2016 05: 43
    The Boer War is a very interesting topic.
    And perhaps the behavior of the Anglo-Saxons has not changed much since then, except that there was more insidiousness on their part.

    the concentration camp was invented by a noble English lord, descended from the Anglo-Saxon aristocracy, who ruled the country even before the Norman conquest of England (XI century), and proudly wore the title of the first Earl of the County Kitchener, brave General Horatio Herbert Kitchener, Hoerio Her From the very beginning of the Boer War, he was the chief of staff, and from June 5, 1900, the commander in chief of the British troops in South Africa.


    In total, the British drove into the concentration camps 200 thousand people, which amounted to approximately half the white population of the Boer republics. Of these, about 26 thousand people, according to conservative estimates, died of hunger and disease, of which 50% of children under 16 years old died, and among children under eight years of age, 70% of young “guests of the British government” died.


    http://www.zaxodi-v-internet.ru/concentration-cam
    ps.html
    1. +2
      14 October 2016 19: 46
      "Time to collect, time to scatter ..."
      The descendants of the Dutch settlers (Boers) were driven from the lands and destroyed the Zulus .... And then the British came, who began to expel and destroy the Boers from diamondiferous lands ...
  2. +11
    12 October 2016 06: 30
    As a child, I read the book by Louis Boussinard "Captain Rip Head". Fiction, of course, but for the fifth grade it was very informative and informative, especially the "hooking a pig" scene performed by the British.
    1. +7
      12 October 2016 06: 55
      And as a child I read a book
      A. Niemann "Peter Maritz - a young drill from the Transvaal", is still at home.
      1. +5
        12 October 2016 12: 58
        There is another very interesting book by O.F. Koryakov. "Strange General" - also about the Anglo-Boer War and the participation of a Russian in it
    2. +5
      14 October 2016 19: 54
      Yes, I remember the picture that opens the first chapter. The British shoot a bearded Boer ... The cognitive value of literature was at the highest level. Now ask 12-17 year olds and young men about the Boers ... What will they answer? Everyone understands ... Nothing. And about the Cuban revolution, about Fidel, about barbudos, about Che Guevara ??? And you, dear, have already learned about the Boer republics .. And you will agree with me, sincerely worried about the fate of the heroes. And they hated the English with "every fiber of their souls" ...
      And I, had the pleasure in the beginning of the 60's, to read a book in such a publication ...
      1. +3
        14 October 2016 20: 25
        I loved this book .... Such fantasies and pictures arose in my head ... Hollywood is resting!
        Oh, there was a time ...
        And I also liked and like about Siberia, taizhnikov ... (I read Shishkova’s collection in childhood, thanks to my parents ..) I also read a lot of Dreiser ... And that's why I’m so unimpressed! It describes a lot that awaits us ...
        1. +1
          14 October 2016 20: 30
          If you didn't have a chance to read Zadorny Nicholas "Amur-Father" and his other works, I suggest reading ...
        2. 0
          14 October 2016 20: 43
          It was this book, of the fifties of publication, that aroused my sincere interest in the history of the development of the Far East. And interestingly, by the will of Fates, I had to serve there for more than one year ... And more interestingly, my eldest son happened to take a considerable part in the construction and commissioning of the Bureyskaya HPP ... These are the ups and downs for me from a resident of Central Russia ....
          1. 0
            14 October 2016 21: 18
            Showing ...
      2. 0
        21 October 2016 10: 19
        I agree, Favorite Book of Childhood ........ like many probably in our generations .... until now there is a house - the eldest son has already read it - I liked it.
  3. +2
    12 October 2016 06: 51
    Flags of the Orange Republics and Transvaal are very similar to the flag of Lithuania.))) Can't you find?
    1. +1
      12 October 2016 08: 05
      Quote: Viktor_klp
      Flags of the Orange Republics and Transvaal are very similar to the flag of Lithuania.))) Can't you find?

      The real Transvaal flag looks like this:


      P.S. Cannot put two images.
      https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Флаг_Трансвааля
      1. +2
        12 October 2016 08: 06
        And the Orange Republic is like this:

        In the future, together with the GB flag, they hit the flag of South Africa.
        1. +4
          12 October 2016 08: 18
          All flags in a bunch.
  4. +7
    12 October 2016 07: 15
    ...... Perhaps the most striking figure among Russian volunteers in South Africa was Yevgeny Yakovlevich Maximov ....... Colonel E. Ya. Maximov (right), along with the "grandfather" of the South African special forces, General P. Kolbe. Retired Lieutenant Colonel Evgeny Yakovlevich went to Transvaal as a correspondent for several capital newspapers. However, he wrote not only to the press, but also, using a special code, to the General Staff. He joined the "European Legion" and, after the death of his superior, Vilbuis, commanded this legion. Maksimov was seriously injured and could not take part in further partisan actions. Shortly before his departure home, in May 1900, the Boers awarded him the title of fencing general (combat general) of the Boer army for his courage. Link: zeleninsergey.livejournal.com/225288.html
  5. +7
    12 October 2016 07: 20
    The topic is interesting, but in essence - the imperialist state struggled with the slave system. Both those and others fought for supremacy in territories that do not belong to them. One of the last wars for the redivision of the world.
    1. +6
      12 October 2016 12: 38
      Quote: inkass_98
      Both those and others fought for supremacy in territories that do not belong to them. One of the last wars for the redivision of the world.


      Well you said!
      Afrikaner - descendants of Dutch settlers of the XVII-XVIII centuries. The first Dutch arrived here, led by Jan van Riebeck in 1652, establishing the city of Kapstad (Cape Town) and the Cape Colony, which was run by the Dutch East India Company. Then, waves (1657-1806) of another European immigration (French Huguenots, Germans, Flemings, Walloons, Irish, etc.) were added to them.

      If anything, the development of the Urals by Russians begins in the XIII-XIV centuries. From the XV century the first Russian settlements appear in the Urals ...
      Those. in your opinion, we Russians also "chopped off the land" in the Urals from the Bashkirs?
      1. +5
        12 October 2016 21: 09
        Why are you generalizing? You can explore the territory by different methods. The conquistadors of Cortes or Pizarro also seemed to have mastered the territory, but by what methods. In addition, the laws of the Boer republics against the black population should be studied. They were clearly discriminatory.
  6. +5
    12 October 2016 08: 06
    They wouldn’t have found a little gold and diamonds in this area .. maybe there would have been no war ..
    1. +5
      12 October 2016 10: 26
      There would be nothing to profit from, perhaps the English were not there!
      There would be a seedy portboy Cape Town on a transshipment on the way to India (and even then to the Suez Canal).

      Who, say, needed the Sahara or Namib before oil ("a place where there is nothing" on the local) before the discovery of uranium, tungsten and diamonds.
      This is the whole meaning of the colonies.
  7. +6
    12 October 2016 11: 27
    Perhaps the most anti-Angan song that I heard: Bok Van Blerk, De La Rey (Africans), which they sing in stadiums:

    On the mountain at night
    We lie in the dark and wait.
    We are covered in dirt and blood
    We are lying in the pouring rain.

    And all our houses and all farms
    Enemies burned and razed to the ground.
    We were able to avoid capture,
    But the flame remained in the soul!

    De La Rey, De La Rey, will you come and lead the Boers?
    General, General, we will rally around you!

    Far off laughing khaki [English]
    And there are a handful of us against the crowd.
    But behind us are our mountains,
    And in vain they think that they are stronger than us!

    But the heart of the drill is unstoppable
    And we will show them
    When on horseback we will lead
    Lion of the Western Transvaal! [nickname of General De La Rey]

    De La Rey, De La Rey, will you come and lead the Boers?
    General, General, we will rally around you!

    In the meantime, our wives and children
    Die in concentration camps
    Khaki walk on our land
    But we will rise again and again!

    De La Rey, De La Rey, will you come and lead the Boers?
    General, General, we will rally around you!

    Original https://youtu.be/nlHqKJyo3GQ
  8. +5
    12 October 2016 11: 40
    I will not put a plus.

    The topic has not been disclosed.
    Not even a word has been said about the concentration camps of the British (organized by Lord Horatio Herbert Kitchener Horatio Herbert Kitchener) - as a means of combating the Transval rebel movement. Civilians drove to concentration camps and massively died of hunger and disease, farms and crops were burned. Losses among the civilian population (they died mainly in concentration camps): more than 26000 people!



    http://gonovichev.livejournal.com/161083.html подробно об участии русских добровольцев в Англо-Бурской войне.
    1. +2
      12 October 2016 14: 09
      This is mentioned by a mass of people - especially in the context of Nazi concentration camps - who was the first.
      Standard set of topics:
      - Concentration camps (scorched earth tactics),
      -Khaki
      - Boer snipers
      -Help of Russia
      - An example of the colonial system of England
      - Mauser C96
    2. 0
      17 February 2017 01: 50
      Now they forget that the concentration camps were an invention of the Anglo-Saxons, and the Nazis simply adopted the ready-made experience in the extermination of "non-titular" peoples. One thing is good that this "English Lord" was drowned in 1916 on the Hampshire cruiser in the North Sea.
  9. +4
    12 October 2016 11: 59
    In fact - the civilian population of the Transvaal was taken hostage and did not stand on ceremony with it - in fact, the rebel movement was forced to stop resistance and sign a peace treaty with the British in order to prevent genocide of the population in concentration camps - a great example of the "civilized" colonial policy of the British!

    ] https://topwar.ru/uploads/posts/2016-10/14762624
    23_dd94e2b2-25d4-40dd-9ace-37f341d63cbe.jpg

    Tactics of scorched earth does not resemble anything?
  10. +7
    12 October 2016 12: 01

    The future British Prime Minister - Winston Church, captured by the Boers.
  11. +4
    12 October 2016 12: 10

    A Boer child dying of hunger in a concentration camp.



    The "civilized" British showed what kind of world order would suit them.
  12. +5
    12 October 2016 12: 25
    82742 borax against 346693 British soldiers
    more than 26000 dead in civilian concentration camps.
    What do we know about this war?
    Almost nothing - this war, still pain in the heart of every drill.
    The song De La Rey is sung while standing in the stadiums like an African anthem.


    Jacobus Gerkulaas de la Rey, also known as Koos de la Rey (October 22, 1847 - September 15, 1914) is a Boer general of the Second Boer War of 1899-1902, one of the most famous military leaders of this war, a national hero of Afrikaners (Boers) .
    His guerrilla tactics have demonstrated significant effectiveness. De la Rey opposed the war until the very end, but when he was once accused of cowardice at a session of the Volksraad (Boer parliament), he replied that if the time for war came, he would fight longer than those who were now shouting about the war , and then surrender (as it looks like the State Duma)!
    Despite the defeat at Magersfontein and the disaster on the Tugela River, the British, who mobilized all the forces of the Empire, gradually began to defeat the Boers. General Cronier, along with a whole army, was captured by Roberts. Bloemfontein was taken on March 13, 1900, Pretoria on June 5, Kruger fled to Portuguese East Africa.

    Only a small group of Boers continued the war. De la Rey, Luis Botha and other commanders gathered in Kronshtat and approved a guerrilla warfare strategy. Over the next 2 years, de la Rey conducted quick campaigns, won the battles of Mudville, Neutadaht, Drifontein, Donkerhuk, which led to enormous human and material losses to the British at Easter Springs on February 25, 1902, where a large amount of ammunition and provisions were captured by Boer forces . On March 7, 1902, most of Matthew's forces, including himself, were captured at the Battle of Twiboshi.
    De la Rey had an unusual ability to avoid ambushes, leading a lot of people. By the end of the war, his detachment totaled up to 3000 people.
    De la Rai nobly, chivalrously treated his enemies. For example, on March 7, 1902, he captured General Matthew with hundreds of his soldiers from Twibosh. The troops were sent back on their line, because De la Rey was not able to contain them. But Matthew was released because he was badly wounded, and de la Rey believed that the general would die if the British did not provide him with medical care.

    In response to guerrilla tactics, the British, led by Roberts and Kitcher, adopted the scorched earth tactics. It included the destruction of everything that could be useful for supplying the Boer partisans and even women and children. Crops were destroyed, farms and households were burned, springs and salt mines were poisoned, and families of Boer rebels and sympathizers were placed in concentration camps in which about 50% of children under 16 died.
    The morale of the Boers gradually began to decline. Lord Kitcher invited de la Rey to meet in Klerksdorp on March 11, 1902 for negotiations. Diplomatic efforts to get out of the conflict continued and ultimately led to an agreement on further peace negotiations in Ferihinikhine, in which de la Rey took an active part and facilitated the signing of the peace treaty. The peace treaty in Ferihinikhin was signed on March 31, 1902.
  13. +1
    12 October 2016 12: 59
    The topic is interesting. While reading, the question arose - where were and what were the natives doing? On their land goes rubbish between Europeans, and they are inactive? And not even one of the parties tried to draw them into his army?
    And yet - and the current South Africans (white by themselves) - are they descendants of the Boers or are they already English? Who they identify with is interesting. And if they are descendants of both the English and the Boers - are there any divisions or civil strife among them?
    1. +5
      12 October 2016 13: 27
      Afrikaans -Afrikaans, previously also known as the Boer language) - Germanic language (until the beginning of the 11th century, a Dutch dialect), one of the XNUMX official languages ​​of the Republic of South Africa.
      Afrikaans is native to a large part of the white and colored population of South Africa and Namibia.

      Afrikaans carriers make up the majority in the Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces of South Africa, as well as in the west of Free State (in these territories a considerable part of them are colored). In addition, many (mostly white) Afrikaans carriers live in some relatively large cities in the center of the country (Pretoria, Bloemfontein, Pochefstroom, Fereninging, Welkom, Klerksdorp, Krugersdorp, Johannesburg).

      Many Afrikaans speakers do not identify as “white” or “color” and are identified as “Afrikaans-speaking South Africans” or “Namibians.” The collective name for Afrikaans speakers is Afrikaanses; it is a broader term than Afrikaans - white Afrikaans speakers.

      Afrikaans is native to approximately 6 million people (in South Africa, according to the 2001 census, 5 983 426 [1]); the total number of speakers is about 10 million. Afrikaans and Dutch speakers can understand each other without prior preparation (literary Afrikaans differs from literary Dutch less than many Dutch dialects proper).
    2. 0
      12 October 2016 13: 34
      Quote: Alex_59
      The topic is interesting. While reading, the question arose - where were and what were the natives doing? On their land goes rubbish between Europeans, and they are inactive?

      Because the British from the beginning got rid of the local population (mainly the Zulus were a headache for the British), and when they were finished, they took up the Boers.
      1. +3
        12 October 2016 17: 05
        And the Boers have had enmity with the locals for a long time, the British skillfully took advantage of this (the Anglo-Saxons have pitted such a policy against peoples, they are still pursuing it, for example, Ukraine.) So it is unlikely that the natives supported either side.
  14. +4
    12 October 2016 13: 04

    Boers strong guys - the name of De La Ray - the national hero of the Boer War, unites Afrikaners
  15. +3
    12 October 2016 13: 35
    It should be noted that many believe that it was General De La Rey who was the initiator of the creation of the "Boer trench technology - field fortifications designed to reduce the vulnerability to artillery fire from the British, who had an overwhelming advantage in artillery.
  16. 0
    12 October 2016 20: 54
    The current descendants of the Boers are blacks, faithful followers of the African National Congress, partially killed, partially expelled. Revenge to the masters for slavery. It was not possible to achieve universal happiness, who was no one, no one remained, everything is like ours
  17. +5
    12 October 2016 21: 19
    The article does not mention the reasons for the war. And they consisted in the fact that by the end of the 19th century, the growth rate of English industry had seriously slowed down. "The first workshop in the world" yielded its positions in terms of economic growth to the United States and Germany. The trend in the development of this struggle was unfavorable for England, because the growth rate of export of goods from England lagged behind the growth rate of export of goods from the United States, Germany and a number of other countries. England still ranked first in the world in terms of the value of exported goods, but the gap between the value of British, German and American exports was rapidly closing. Carrying out colonial conquests, the British authorities pursued economic and political goals: they wanted to take possession of the richest sources of raw materials, capacious: sales markets, profitable areas for the export of capital, subjugate the indigenous population of the colonies to brutal exploitation, prevent the growth of the revolutionary trend in the English labor movement by resettlement in the colonies of a part population and the expansion of the stratum of the labor aristocracy at the expense of the huge profits received in the colonies. England expected the empire to expand. contribute to the acceleration of the pace of economic development, which will be able to retain its world leadership in the export of goods and capital.
  18. +3
    15 October 2016 14: 00
    In the Perevolotsky district of the Orenburg region there is the village of Pretoria, named so at the beginning of the twentieth century, when the sympathy of the Russian population was entirely on the side of the Boers.
  19. +1
    15 October 2016 14: 03
    More about Orenburg Pretoria

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