1899-1902



In 1652, the Dutch East India Company established a base in the Southern Cape, and Dutch settlers - the Boers – began to populate the area. The Company later went bankrupt and the Dutch government took over the administration of the area. However the Dutch willingly signed the colony over to the British in 1795 to stop the French getting hold of it.

The Colony was returned to the Dutch in 1802, but by 1806 they were again at war with the French and so a flotilla of 63 British ships sailed into Simons Bay and seized the Cape to secure the route to India. By 1814, Napoleon was in exile and the Dutch demanded their colonies back but the British were determined to keep it. A compromise was reached and Cape Colony was purchased from the Dutch for £6 million. Therefore after 162 years the Boers came under British rule.

Between 1836 and 1838 approximately 10,000 dissatisfied Boers left the Cape and headed north where eventually they founded the Orange Free State and the Transvaal Republic.  Britain recognised these republics in the 1850’s but in 1877 they took control of the Transvaal to prevent it becoming embroiled in the Zulu War. However once the war was over, the Boers saw no reason for the British to remain in control and so the First Boer War was fought in 1881. It was a short war lasting three months in which the British were humiliated. A treaty was signed whereby the British recognised the independence of the Transvaal, but retained control of its foreign policy.

Gold was discovered in the Transvaal in 1886 and a large number of foreigners – known as ‘Uitlanders’ – came to the area. The government was determined that they would not remove the wealth from the area and so they were heavily taxed and denied citizenship. After many years, the Uitlanders petitioned Queen Victoria and asked the British Government to intervene.

Talks were held between the two governments but they failed to come to an agreement and both sides began to prepare for war. The Boers made a series of unrealistic demands, and when the British failed to comply war was declared on 11th October, 1899.

The 1st Battalion, then based in Gibraltar, and the 2nd Battalion both joined the 1st Guards Brigade along with the 3rd Grenadiers and 1st Bn Scots Guards, and arrived in South Africa in November.
 
The two armies were complete opposites. The British Army was very much out of date not having fought a major war since 1856. Apart from three weeks field training each year, much of their time was taken up with parading, cleaning and polishing. The general standard of marksmanship was poor. The Boers were largely an irregular force of farmers who formed Commandos. They were highly skilled marksmen and horsemen. While the Boers were highly mobile, the British were used to static formations and relied heavily on the railway system for moving men and supplies.
 
The war progressed in three distinct phases. The period from October 1899 to January 1900 was disastrous for the British. After several defeats, the garrisons at Mafeking, Kimberley and Ladysmith were besieged. The British commander, Sir Redvers Buller VC was replaced by Lord Roberts VC and the British began a counter-offensive. Roberts ensured that his transport and supplies were no longer reliant on the railways, and he increased the mobility of his troops by introducing the concept of the Mounted Infantryman – infanteers on horseback . With the advances the sieges were eventually lifted.
 
The third phase was the longest, lasting between October 1900 and May 1902. By this time Lord Kitchener was now the Commander-in-Chief and he instigated a policy of removing the support of the population from the Boers. This he achieved by burning farms and moving the families into concentration camps, but these camps were so squalid that over 20,000 people perished in them through disease. His other initiative was the building of blockhouses along stretches of wire. This enabled the wire to be dominated and patrolled by small groups of soldiers, and by the end of the war there were approximately 8,000 blockhouses along 3,700 miles of wire.
 
On the 31st May, 1902, the Boers surrendered. In simple terms, they accepted the sovereignty of Great Britain and in return the Dutch language was given parity in school and the Courts of Law.
 
Both battalions saw a great deal of action in all phases of the war. They took part in the early battles of Belmont, Modder River, Diamond Hill, Driefontein, Paardeberg and Bloemfontein amongst others. They travelled in armoured trains which were often attacked, and they manned the blockhouses. With the formation of the Mounted Infantry, the Brigade of Guards formed two companies comprising of men from each regiment, including the newly formed Irish Guards.
 
Both battalions remained in South Africa and sent small detachments home in June 1902 for the Coronation of King Edward VII. The remainder returned home in October 1902.
 
The 3rd Battalion was formed in 1897, but remained in England undertaking Public Duties and found reinforcements for South Africa as required. Men who were wounded and sent home also found themselves posted to the Battalion.
 
The war highlighted many deficiencies in the equipment and training of the British Army. As a result of the lessons learnt the army was re-equipped and retrained so that by the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, it was one of the finest armies in the world.