Three Years' War

by Unknown

Three Years' War by Christiaan Rudolf De Wet CHAPTER I I Go on Commando as a Private Burgher In the month of September, 1899, the burghers of the Orange Free State were notified, under the Commando Law, to hold themselves in readiness to go on active service at the shortest possible notice. Before proceeding any further I should like to explain that portion of the Commando Law which dealt with commandeering. It stipulated that every burgher between the ages of sixteen and sixty must be prepared to fight for his country at any moment; and that, if required for active service, he must provide himself with a riding-horse, saddle and bridle, with a rifle and thirty cartridges-or, if he were unable to obtain a rifle, he must bring with him thirty bullets, thirty caps, and half a pound of powder-in addition he must be provisioned for eight days. That there should have been an alternative to the rifle was due to the fact that the law was made at a time when only a few burghers possessed breech-loading rifles-achterlaaiers, as we call them. With reference to the provisions the law did not specify their quality or quantity, but there was an unwritten but strictly observed rule amongst the burghers that they should consist of meat cut in strips, salted, peppered, and dried, or else of sausages and "Boer biscuits." With regard to quantity, each burgher had to make his own estimate of the amount he would require for eight days. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.

461 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1902

About the author

Books can be attributed to "Unknown" when the author or editor (as applicable) is not known and cannot be discovered. If at all possible, list at least one actual author or editor for a book instead of using "Unknown".

Books whose authorship is purposefully withheld should be attributed instead to Anonymous.

Reviews

[Misha Gericke · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very insightful look at what the war was like. Definitely a must-read for a more realistic view of the war.

[De Wet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to see the war through the famous general's eyes. As always with a book like this set against a complicated conflict, you get only one person's point of view. Someone without a good understanding of the war and how it progressed may be somewhat lost in these pages as De Wet doesn't give a wide view of events (how could he, of course), only what he saw and heard about while in the field. Most skirmishes and battles are also dealt with quite briefly. The entire battle of Groenkop (Tweefontein) is described in two pages, for example, and the writing remains very matter of fact thoughout the book.

On the good side though there are many anecdotes and personal observations that add to and enrich the narrative about this war, like the devastating effect of treachery from within the Boers own ranks and the mix of bravery and cowardice that conspired to achieve both impossible success and tragic failure. De Wet also documents his movements so well that it's mostly possible to follow him and his commandos around on a map (which I would recommend you do to get an idea of what these men achieved).

Overall a good read, with the obvious shortcomings you'd expect from a personal "in the trenches" perspective on a wide ranging war.

[Malcolm Retief · Rating 3 out of 5]

I specifically enjoyed the post war meeting deliberations.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great classic - war through the eyes of a simple farmer with no formal education who discovered that he had a genius for the leadership of men in conditions of great adversity and who took on the world's mightiest Empire and was never bettered in battle.

[Johannes J Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A true story about the sick intentions of brittain

Was hitler the first to commit genocide? Read the history books about the british invasion of south africa and decide