#Second Anglo Boer War

[stephensmithuk]

The Three Garridebs

Originally published in 1925 and part of the 1927 Case-Book collection.

Refusals of honours are fairly common in Britain - some find the whole thing silly, some these days object to being in something called the "Order of the British Empire", some have political disagreements and others may hold out for something higher.

The South African War refers to the Second Boer War. This is going to get its own post at a later date.

"Britisher" was a contemporary term for British people; most people now use "Brit".

The "wheat pit" in Chicago refers to the Chicago Board of Trade Building, where wheat futures were traded. The building on the site was demolished in 1929 due to structural issues and replaced by the 1930 Art Deco building still on the site today.

Tyburn Tree refers to the former public execution site at Tyburn, near where Marble Arch is located today, which had a three-legged triangular gallows used for mass executions. The last execution was carried out there in 1783, before executions moved to Newgate Prison, now the site of the Old Bailey. A plaque marks the location.

Sotheby's and Christie's are two famous London auction houses.

Sir Hans Sloane was an Anglo-Irish physician, naturalist and collector, whose personal collection was bequeathed to the British nation on his death in 1753, forming the basis of three of London's major museums.

An artesian well is a well that brings water to the surface without pumping as it's under pressure below.

This was a time when the political machines were very much active in Chicago.

"Queen Anne" refers to the Baroque style of architecture popular during her reign from 1702 to 1714. There was a Queen Anne Revival style going at the time, which is somewhat different. Neither should be confused with the American style of architecture of that name.

The Bank of England is the sole printer of banknotes in England and Wales. Seven banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland are able to print banknotes there, but these are technically not legal tender and will generally be refused in England.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 5.19 (before 1930)

639 – Ashina Jiesheshuai and his tribesmen assaulted Emperor Taizong at Jiucheng Palace. 715 – Pope Gregory II is elected. 1051 – Henry I of France marries the Rus' princess, Anne of Kiev. 1445 – John II of Castile defeats the Infantes of Aragon at the First Battle of Olmedo. 1499 – Catherine of Aragon is married by proxy to Arthur, Prince of Wales. Catherine is 13 and Arthur is 12. 1535 – French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships, 110 men, and Chief Donnacona's two sons (whom Cartier had kidnapped during his first voyage). 1536 – Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery, treason, and incest. 1542 – The Prome Kingdom falls to the Taungoo Dynasty in present-day Myanmar. 1643 – Thirty Years' War: French forces under the duc d'Enghien decisively defeat Spanish forces at the Battle of Rocroi, marking the symbolic end of Spain as a dominant land power. 1649 – An Act of Parliament declaring England a Commonwealth is passed by the Long Parliament. England would be a republic for the next eleven years. 1655 – The Invasion of Jamaica begins during the Anglo-Spanish War. 1743 – Jean-Pierre Christin developed the centigrade temperature scale. 1749 – King George II of Great Britain grants the Ohio Company a charter of land around the forks of the Ohio River. 1776 – American Revolutionary War: A Continental Army garrison surrenders in the Battle of The Cedars. 1780 – New England's Dark Day, an unusual darkening of the day sky, was observed over the New England states and parts of Canada. 1802 – Napoleon Bonaparte founds the Legion of Honour. 1828 – U.S. President John Quincy Adams signs the Tariff of 1828 into law, protecting wool manufacturers in the United States. 1845 – Captain Sir John Franklin and his ill-fated Arctic expedition depart from Greenhithe, England. 1848 – Mexican–American War: Mexico ratifies the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo thus ending the war and ceding California, Nevada, Utah and parts of four other modern-day U.S. states to the United States for US$15 million. 1883 – Buffalo Bill's first Buffalo Bill's Wild West opens in Omaha, Nebraska. 1900 – Great Britain annexes Tonga Island. 1900 – Second Boer War: British troops relieve Mafeking. 1911 – Parks Canada, the world's first national park service, is established as the Dominion Parks Branch under the Department of the Interior. 1917 – The Norwegian football club Rosenborg BK is founded. 1919 – Mustafa Kemal Atatürk lands at Samsun on the Anatolian Black Sea coast, initiating what is later termed the Turkish War of Independence. 1921 – The United States Congress passes the Emergency Quota Act establishing national quotas on immigration. 1922 – The Young Pioneer Organization of the Soviet Union is established.

[barbucomedie]

Officer's Undress Tunic of the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys) from the British Empire dated to 1900 on display at the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards Museum in Edinburgh Castle, Scotland

In 1899 the Royal Scots Greys were orderd to Cape Town at the start of the Second Anglo-Boer War to join the cavalry division. This year was the end of the regiment wearing the red tunics in the field as they adopted khaki along with many other British Army regiments. Supposedly the Scots Greys tried to dye their horses khaki to better camoflage themselves in the field. Cavalry uniforms used chain mail epaulettes whcih were supposed to protect their shoulders and arms from sword cuts.

Photographs taken by myself 2023

[enig-og-tro]

Alright fellas I've finished listening to the audio book about the second anglo-boer war, which should I start listening while I'm working next? An audio book on the anglo-zulu war or one on the African theater of ww1?

[nebris]

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill[a] (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1951 to 1955. Apart from two years between 1922 and 1924, he was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1900 to 1964 and represented a total of five constituencies. Ideologically an economic liberal and imperialist, he was for most of his career a member of the Conservative Party, which he led from 1940 to 1955. He was a member of the Liberal Party from 1904 to 1924.

Of mixed English and American parentage, Churchill was born in Oxfordshire to a wealthy, aristocratic family. He joined the British Army in 1895 and saw action in British India, the Anglo-Sudan War, and the Second Boer War, gaining fame as a war correspondent and writing books about his campaigns. Elected a Conservative MP in 1900, he defected to the Liberals in 1904. In H. H. Asquith's Liberal government, Churchill served as President of the Board of Trade and Home Secretary, championing prison reform and workers' social security. As First Lord of the Admiralty during the First World War, he oversaw the Gallipoli Campaign but, after it proved a disaster, he was demoted to Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. He resigned in November 1915 and joined the Royal Scots Fusiliers on the Western Front for six months. In 1917, he returned to government under David Lloyd George and served successively as Minister of Munitions, Secretary of State for War, Secretary of State for Air, and Secretary of State for the Colonies, overseeing the Anglo-Irish Treaty and British foreign policy in the Middle East. After two years out of Parliament, he served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in Stanley Baldwin's Conservative government, returning the pound sterling in 1925 to the gold standard at its pre-war parity, a move widely seen as creating deflationary pressure and depressing the UK economy.

Out of government during his so-called "wilderness years" in the 1930s, Churchill took the lead in calling for British rearmament to counter the growing threat of militarism in Nazi Germany. At the outbreak of the Second World War he was re-appointed First Lord of the Admiralty. In May 1940, he became Prime Minister, succeeding Neville Chamberlain. Churchill formed a national government and oversaw British involvement in the Allied war effort against the Axis powers, resulting in victory in 1945. After the Conservatives' defeat in the 1945 general election, he became Leader of the Opposition. Amid the developing Cold War with the Soviet Union, he publicly warned of an "iron curtain" of Soviet influence in Europe and promoted European unity. Between his terms as Prime Minister, he authored several books recounting his experience during the war for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1953. He lost the 1950 election, but was returned to office in 1951. His second term was preoccupied with foreign affairs, especially Anglo-American relations and the preservation of what remained of the British Empire with India now no longer part of it. Domestically, his government emphasised housebuilding and completed the development of a nuclear weapon (begun by his predecessor). In declining health, Churchill resigned as Prime Minister in 1955, although he remained an MP until 1964. Upon his death in 1965, he was given a state funeral.

Widely considered one of the 20th century's most significant figures, Churchill remains popular in the Anglosphere, where he is seen as a victorious wartime leader who played an important role in defending Europe's liberal democracy against the spread of fascism. On the other hand, he has been criticised for some wartime events and also for his imperialist views.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchill

[mrsdawg4908]

Breathing In: 2023

1901, South Africa. As the Second Anglo-Boer War rages on, a wounded general seeks refuge in the small home of a woman and her young daughter. As the hurt man settles in, he begins noticing that something is off about the two women, particularly the daughter, and before long he'll learn the real reason why they've invited him and how they've survived on their own for so long.

https://youtu.be/aeiGUg2-ukk?si=SaxaLbUJmAK6Gj-P

[reclaiming-spaces]

The history of the Ndebele people in South Africa is a complex narrative that spans several centuries. Here is a chronological account of their journey and settlement in the region:

Early Origins: The Ndebele people, originally known as the amaNdebele, trace their origins to the Bantu migration that took place in Southern Africa around the 16th century. It is believed that they migrated from Central Africa and settled in present-day South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique.

Formation of the Ndebele Kingdom: In the early 19th century, under the leadership of King Mzilikazi, a faction of the Zulu people led by Mzilikazi broke away from the Zulu kingdom in present-day KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. This breakaway group, known as the Ndebele, migrated further south into the region that is now known as Mpumalanga and parts of Gauteng in South Africa.

Wars and Conflicts: As the Ndebele migrated south, conflicts with other indigenous groups, such as the Sotho and the Swazi, arose. These conflicts were driven by territorial disputes, competition for resources, and the Ndebele's expansionist ambitions. The wars resulted in a reshaping of the regional political landscape.

British Colonization and the Boer Wars: In the late 19th century, the Ndebele came into contact with European colonizers, particularly the British and the Boers (Dutch settlers). The British colonial forces, led by Cecil Rhodes, sought to assert control over the region and its resources. This led to the Anglo-Ndebele Wars and later the Second Boer War, during which the Ndebele were caught in the middle of the conflict.

Forced Removals and Land Dispossession: As European colonization intensified, the Ndebele faced displacement and forced removals from their ancestral lands. The British and Boer authorities implemented policies that aimed to control and marginalize indigenous populations, resulting in the loss of Ndebele lands and resources.

Apartheid Era: The implementation of apartheid policies in the mid-20th century further impacted the Ndebele community. They experienced forced removals, segregation, and the destruction of their cultural and social structures. Many Ndebele people were forced to relocate to designated "homelands" or Bantustans, disrupting their traditional way of life.

Post-Apartheid Reclamation: With the end of apartheid in the 1990s, the Ndebele people, like other indigenous groups in South Africa, have been working towards reclaiming their cultural identity and asserting their rights. Efforts to preserve Ndebele art, language, traditions, and cultural practices have gained momentum, contributing to a revitalization of Ndebele culture.

Today, the Ndebele people continue to thrive in South Africa, preserving their unique cultural heritage and contributing to the country's rich diversity. The Ndebele art, architecture, and vibrant traditions serve as powerful reminders of their historical journey and resilience in the face of challenges.

[liberty1776]

Harry "The Breaker" Harbord Morant (born Edwin Henry Murrant, 9 December 1864 – 27 February 1902), more popularly known as Breaker Morant, was an Anglo-Australian drover, horseman, bush poet, military officer, and war criminal who was convicted and executed for murdering six prisoners-of-war (POWs) and three captured civilians in two separate incidents during the Second Anglo-Boer War.

I just watched the movie Breaker Morant  a 1980 Australian war drama film directed by Bruce Beresford, who co-wrote the screenplay based on Kenneth G. Ross's 1978 play of the same name, about Morant's trial. Very good film about war and morality. Found the movie free on You Tube.

[stephensmithuk]

The Empty House

Published in 1903, this was the first Holmes short story for a decade. Doyle had previously released - in a serial format - The Hound of the Baskervilles, which was set before "The Final Problem".

ACD had become Sir Arthur Conan Doyle by this point, honoured in the 1902 Coronation Honours, arguably for a pro-Boer War short work he wrote. That's what he believed in any event.

This is the first story in The Return of Sherlock Holmes and the second that we've covered - we did "The Second Stain" previously because Baring-Gould's chronology puts it quite early.

Park Lane, as I might have mentioned previously, is a highly desirable street and is the equivalent of Park Place on the London Monopoly board.

"Honourable" is the courtesy title used for the younger sons of earls; it's also used by most members of the House of Commons. Insert joke about politicians here.

Carstairs is a village in South Lanarkshire Scotland. It is best known in British railway circles as a major junction and the place where the London to Edinburgh & Glasgow sleeper is split up, a section for each destination.

Expanding bullets were also known as dum-dum bullets after the Indian city of Dum Dum where some of them were made. The hollow point is a more modern version. The nastier injuries that they cause led to their banning from use in warfare in the 1899 Hague Convention, but they remain legal for law enforcement use, it being argued there is less risk of harm to bystanders as the bullet will not pass through.

Baritsu is possibly a typo for Bartitsu, a martial art invented by Edward William Barton-Wright, an engineer who had spent three years living in Japan. Combining elements of boxing, cane fighting, jujitsu and Frence kickboxing, it faded into obscurity during the 20th century before making something of a small comeback in the 21st.

Mecca, then under Ottoman rule, is closed to non-Muslims and the Ahmadiyya movement (seen as heretics). Holmes likely followed some other Westerners by getting in disguised as a Muslim.

The "Khalifa" was Abdallahi ibn Muhammad, a figure who tried to set up an Islamic caliphate in Sudan and the surrounding area at this time (1893). He faced an Anglo-Egyptian invasion in 1896-1899, lost and then engaged in a final stand at the Battle of Umm Diwaykarat in October 1899. To make use of a famous phrase, the other side had Maxim guns and he did not; the battle was massively one-sided, resulting in his death.

The "Jew's harp" is a mouth harp. It's probably from Siberia.

"Journeys end in lovers' meetings" is from Twelfth Night.

A shikari is a big game hunter.

Charasiab was an 1879 battle between the British and Indian Army on one side, with Afghans on the other. The British used Gatling guns for the first time in anger and won, capturing Kabul shortly after.

Despatches refers to the fact that Moran's conduct in the battle was sufficiently brave or high quality to warrant a mention in the official report sent to London and usually published in The London Gazette, the official government journal of record. This still exists and is used to formally announce honours etc. like Arthur Conan Doyle's knighthood. Simply put, it is an official commendation - not a gallantry medal, but one may well follow.

The Scotland Yard Museum, historically known as the Black Museum and now the Crime Museum, is a collection of criminal artefacts used for teaching purposes. Located in the basement of the current New Scotland Yard (the third to use that name) it is not open to the public - only police officers are generally allowed in and need an appointment. The Metropolitan Police has a public museum in Sidcup, but this is also appointment only.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 8.16 (before 1920)

1 BC – Wang Mang consolidates his power in China and is declared marshal of state. Emperor Ai of Han, who died the previous day, had no heirs. 942 – Start of the four-day Battle of al-Mada'in, between the Hamdanids of Mosul and the Baridis of Basra over control of the Abbasid capital, Baghdad. 963 – Nikephoros II Phokas is crowned emperor of the Byzantine Empire. 1328 – The House of Gonzaga seizes power in the Duchy of Mantua, and will rule until 1708. 1513 – Battle of the Spurs (Battle of Guinegate): King Henry VIII of England and his Imperial allies defeat French Forces who are then forced to retreat. 1570 – The Principality of Transylvania is established after John II Zápolya renounces his claim as King of Hungary in the Treaty of Speyer. 1652 – Battle of Plymouth: Inconclusive naval action between the fleets of Michiel de Ruyter and George Ayscue in the First Anglo-Dutch War. 1777 – American Revolutionary War: The Americans led by General John Stark rout British and Brunswick troops under Friedrich Baum at the Battle of Bennington in Walloomsac, New York. 1780 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of Camden: The British defeat the Americans near Camden, South Carolina. 1792 – Maximilien de Robespierre presents the petition of the Commune of Paris to the Legislative Assembly, which demanded the formation of a revolutionary tribunal. 1793 – French Revolution: A levée en masse is decreed by the National Convention. 1812 – War of 1812: American General William Hull surrenders Fort Detroit without a fight to the British Army. 1819 – Peterloo Massacre: Seventeen people die and over 600 are injured in cavalry charges at a public meeting at St. Peter's Field, Manchester, England. 1841 – U.S. President John Tyler vetoes a bill which called for the re-establishment of the Second Bank of the United States. Enraged Whig Party members riot outside the White House in the most violent demonstration on White House grounds in U.S. history. 1844 – Governor-general of the Philippines Narciso Claveria, signs a decree to reform the country's calendar by skipping Tuesday, December 31, as a solution to anomalies that had existed since 1844. 1858 – U.S. President James Buchanan inaugurates the new transatlantic telegraph cable by exchanging greetings with Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. However, a weak signal forces a shutdown of the service in a few weeks. 1859 – The Grand Duchy of Tuscany formally deposes the exiled House of Lorraine. 1863 – The Dominican Restoration War begins when Gregorio Luperón raises the Dominican flag in Santo Domingo after Spain had recolonized the country. 1869 – Battle of Acosta Ñu: A Paraguayan battalion largely made up of children is massacred by the Brazilian Army during the Paraguayan War. 1870 – Franco-Prussian War: The Battle of Mars-la-Tour is fought, resulting in a Prussian victory. 1876 – Richard Wagner's Siegfried, the penultimate opera in his Ring cycle, is premiered at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus. 1891 – The Basilica of San Sebastian, Manila, the first all-steel church in Asia, is officially inaugurated and blessed. 1896 – Skookum Jim Mason, George Carmack and Dawson Charlie discover gold in a tributary of the Klondike River in Canada, setting off the Klondike Gold Rush. 1900 – The Battle of Elands River during the Second Boer War ends after a 13-day siege is lifted by the British. The battle had begun when a force of between 2,000 and 3,000 Boers had surrounded a force of 500 Australians, Rhodesians, Canadians and British soldiers at a supply dump at Brakfontein Drift. 1906 – The 8.2 Mw Valparaíso earthquake hits central Chile, killing 3,882 people. 1913 – Tōhoku Imperial University of Japan (modern day Tohoku University) becomes the first university in Japan to admit female students. 1913 – Completion of the Royal Navy battlecruiser HMS Queen Mary. 1916 – The Migratory Bird Treaty between Canada and the United States is signed. 1918 – The Battle of Lake Baikal was fought between the Czechoslovak Legion and the Red Army.

[foundphotouk]

Boer war c.1901. J.K.Rashleigh rides the carrousel. War tourist album. These photographs show how context can challenge your persecution of an image. From an album of photographs taken during the Second Anglo Boer war. While the war raged a group of tourists visited the outskirts of the battle fields, drank cocktails, visited the races, swam in the sea and rode the fairground rides. Bearing in mind that this war also included the creation of the first concentration camps, the contrast is striking and haunting. #FoundPhotograph #FoundPhotography #OldPhotograph #PhotographicHistory #SouthAfrica #SouthAfricanHistory #Boerwar https://www.instagram.com/p/CnSlKHVsKU2/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[tdurrant]

The second Boer War, also know as the Anglo-Boer War, was one of the last wars of the British Empire, certainly the last of the Victorian age.

It's a time we associate with stilted, posed group photos. Yet, it's also a period when newsreel was being used, as this footage of a cavalry detachment shows.

These riders were probably prompted to canter past the camera. Note the two different units; the riders with slouch hats could well be from Australia or New Zealand while those with solar helmets could be British. One group certainly has a more relaxed riding style than the other.

[chamerionwrites]

"The old shikari's nerves have not lost their steadiness, nor his eyes their keenness," said [Holmes], with a laugh, as he inspected the shattered forehead of his bust. "Plumb in the middle of the back of the head and smack through the brain. He was the best shot in India, and I expect that there are few better in London. Have you heard the name?" "No, I have not." "Well, well, such is fame! But, then, if I remember right, you had not heard the name of Professor James Moriarty, who had one of the great brains of the century. Just give me down my index of biographies from the shelf." He turned over the pages lazily, leaning back in his chair and blowing great clouds from his cigar...[then] he handed over the book, and I read: Moran, Sebastian, Colonel. Unemployed. Formerly 1st Bangalore Pioneers. Born London, 1840. Son of Sir Augustus Moran, C.B., once British Minister to Persia. Educated Eton and Oxford. Served in Jowaki Campaign, Afghan Campaign, Charasiab (despatches), Sherpur, and Cabul. Author of Heavy Game of the Western Himalayas (1881); Three Months in the Jungle (1884). Address: Conduit Street. Clubs: The Anglo-Indian, the Tankerville, the Bagatelle Card Club. On the margin was written, in Holmes’s precise hand: The second most dangerous man in London. "This is astonishing," said I, as I handed back the volume. "The man’s career is that of an honourable soldier." "It is true," Holmes answered. "Up to a certain point he did well. He was always a man of iron nerve, and the story is still told in India how he crawled down a drain after a wounded man-eating tiger. There are some trees, Watson, which grow to a certain height, and then suddenly develop some unsightly eccentricity...whatever the cause, Colonel Moran began to go wrong. Without any open scandal, he still made India too hot to hold him. He retired, came to London, and again acquired an evil name...

Well fancy that, Sir Arthur "knighted for writing propaganda about the Boer War" Conan Doyle!!!

Aimé Césaire saying that colonization works to decivilize the colonizer truly lives in my head rent-free

[historicalfirearms]

Webley MkIV .455 Revolver

The latest Armourer’s Bench video is now up, this week I take a look at a classic British Webley revolver. Adopted by the British Army around the outbreak of the Second Anglo-Boer War in 1899, the Webley MkIV saw action through to the Great War. The last of the 4-inch barrel Webley's the MkIV proved to be a decent sidearm for both officers and enlisted specialists like gunners, NCOs and trumpeters.

Hope you enjoy the video guys, don’t forget to check out my longer, in-depth blog about the MkIV over at www.armourersbench.com

[fionabrennanartist]

Major John McBride c. 1900-1916

McBride was known as Foxy Jack due to his red hair and long nose.

McBride was executed for his participation in the 1916 Rising. When faced with a firing squad, he said he did not wish to be blindfolded;

 "I have looked down the muzzles of too many guns in the South African war to fear death and now please carry out your sentence."

[uriello-bello]

Meet Sir Ernest Dunlop Swinton, army official and engineer, major member of the think-tank that give us the tank. Every man need to be a hobbyist and this man was a science fiction nerd. Of course, the idea of an armoured tactic vehicle was already in the mind of thousand of people over the past four-five centuries, including Leonardo Da Vinci, but these men have never heard of the scientifiction of writers like H.G. Wells and Jules Verne. And thus, in the same way some juvenile fiction like Tom Swift give us the prompt for the taser rifle, a short story called “The Land Ironclads” serves as ignition for the tank. 

There’s more? There’s more. Ernest Swinton fought in the second Anglo-Boer war and wrote, under pseudonym, a retrospective of the events AND a military tactical book with a narrative twist called “The Defence of Duffer’s Drift: A Few Experiences in Field Defence for Detached Posts which may Prove Useful in the Next War”, a book “couched as a sequence of fantasticated dreams in which Lt. Forethought repeat the title’s imaginary Boer War battle again and again in a kind of Time Loop discovering via successive dreams that five increasingly canny plans for defending the river-ford Duffer’s Drift end in disasters; his sixth plan is successful”. Remember something?

Oh, right. He also wrote one short novel (The Green Curve) and various short stories published in magazines like The Strand and collected in a short story collection (The Great Tab Dope) under the pseudonym “Ole Luk-Oie“ (from the danish “Closed Eye”, a fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen)