October 11

Oct 11, 1899:

Boer War begins in South Africa
The South African Boer War begins between the British Empire and the Boers of the Transvaal and Orange Free State.
The Boers, also known as Afrikaners, were the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of southern Africa. Britain took
possession of the Dutch Cape colony in 1806 during the Napoleonic wars, sparking resistance from the independence-
minded Boers, who resented the Anglicization of South Africa and Britain's anti-slavery policies. In 1833, the Boers began an
exodus into African tribal territory, where they founded the republics of the Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The two new
republics lived peaceably with their British neighbors until 1867, when the discovery of diamonds and gold in the region
made conflict between the Boer states and Britain inevitable.
Minor fighting with Britain began in the 1890s, and in October 1899 full-scale war ensued. By mid June 1900, British forces
had captured most major Boer cities and formally annexed their territories, but the Boers launched a guerrilla war that
frustrated the British occupiers. Beginning in 1901, the British began a strategy of systematically searching out and
destroying these guerrilla units, while herding the families of the Boer soldiers into concentration camps. By 1902, the
British had crushed the Boer resistance, and on May 31 of that year the Peace of Vereeniging was signed, ending hostilities.
The treaty recognized the British military administration over Transvaal and the Orange Free State and authorized a general
amnesty for Boer forces. In 1910, the autonomous Union of South Africa was established by the British. It included
Transvaal, the Orange Free State, the Cape of Good Hope, and Natal as provinces.