Layman's resource to understand the Boer War
March 20, 2021 4:59 PM Subscribe
I've plowed through the Wikipedia entry, and am sure there's a huge Colonial text - and subtext I've missed.
Can someone who knows this subject area recommend a comprehensive and readable book, article, website, etc. that will explain the competing political, racial, and commercial interests and how the military conflict evolved? Something that reflects on the sociological, racial, financial, and political pressures rather than a more military history approach is preferred. Thank you South Africa scholars for your insights!
Can someone who knows this subject area recommend a comprehensive and readable book, article, website, etc. that will explain the competing political, racial, and commercial interests and how the military conflict evolved? Something that reflects on the sociological, racial, financial, and political pressures rather than a more military history approach is preferred. Thank you South Africa scholars for your insights!
Response by poster: Thanks exxexjan, for those pertinent and interesting leads. I'll take a look.
Would love to hear from others with sources from other perspectives, but sadly, must be in English.
It seems this particular war has been romanticized (Shirley Temple's The Little Princess, for example, and reframed as patriotic.) I'd like sources that explore the economic and racial underpinnings in particular.
posted by citygirl at 7:31 AM on March 21, 2021
Would love to hear from others with sources from other perspectives, but sadly, must be in English.
It seems this particular war has been romanticized (Shirley Temple's The Little Princess, for example, and reframed as patriotic.) I'd like sources that explore the economic and racial underpinnings in particular.
posted by citygirl at 7:31 AM on March 21, 2021
I am not a subject expert, however I am an academic, the child of a librarian, and a former history grad student who researched the social, political and colonial contexts of the Korean War but who had to slog through a zillion books on the military aspects. My suggestion for you. Search on Google Books for "Boer war" + British colonialism. Or replace British colonialism with another search term of your choice (finance, imperialism).
On the first page of results, Diamonds, Gold and War: The British, the Boers, and the Making of South Africa looks promising. The several books titled "Boer War" however, are more likely to be military history.
posted by spamandkimchi at 2:09 PM on March 21, 2021
On the first page of results, Diamonds, Gold and War: The British, the Boers, and the Making of South Africa looks promising. The several books titled "Boer War" however, are more likely to be military history.
posted by spamandkimchi at 2:09 PM on March 21, 2021
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Here's a fairly detailed article about the Boer War which delves into the reasons for the war, including the role played by The Times newspaper in fomenting racial hatred against the Boers in order to gain support for starting a war against them.
I remember from my school history lessons that when the British Army was recruiting for the war, a significant number of young men were unfit for service, due to poor diet and living conditions amongst the working class. That led to reforms in the early 1900s to introduce school meals, slum clearance and better living conditions. There's a little about that here.
The website of the Anglo-Boer War Museum also has a lot of resources, and as it's a South African museum, the perspective on the war is likely to be different from the UK point of view.
On a personal note, my grandfather, born in 1883, volunteered to join the British Army and fought in the Boer War towards the end of the conflict. He died in 1971.
posted by essexjan at 3:05 AM on March 21, 2021 [5 favorites]