This week we’ll hear about the start of the war in October 1899 and hear about the structure of both the British and Boer armies. We’ll also find out just how unprepared the British were for this conflict and learn a little about how mobile the Boers really were in this first war of the modern era.

In this episode we’ll learn about the attempts by Kruger and the Free State leadership to avoid war while continuing to deny English speakers the vote in the two Boer Republics, the Transvaal and Free State. At the same time, Sir Alfred Milner, the governor of the Cape, pushes for intervention. We’ll take a closer look at how the two sides shaped up and what happened at the Bloemfontein Convention and ultimately, the failure of talks.

The Anglo-Boer war which began in 1899 and ended in 1902 was the culmination of more than 250 years of Boer expansion into Africa and conflict with blacks as well as a century of conflict with the British Empire. Some of the most famous names of the 20th Century were involved including Mahatma Gandhi as a stretcher bearer and Winston Churchill as a war correspondent. It was a war that the British expected to wrap up in a few months but ended up costing tens of thousands of lives over three years. It started with lofty ideals and ended with the British throwing Boer women and children into concentration camps where they died in their hundreds.