Boer Generalship and the Politics of Command

Abstract

The British forces fielded in South Africa during the Anglo-Boer War, after suffering several reverses, rolled back the Boer armies from the frontiers. The British did not expect protracted resistance after the fall of Pretoria. Yet, the Boer armies, the very nature of which facilitated their transition to a guerrilla force, underwent a transformation during the second half of 1900. The pre-war leadership, unprofessional and found wanting by the realities of the war, was replaced by a younger, better educated and disciplined cadre of commanders. Not conditioned by small native campaigning, they adopted a guerrilla strategy, which tied up thousands of British troops and delayed the outcome, perhaps now inevitable, by 20 months.