The Boers were left with two choices: abandon the fertile land of the Zuurveld or force the Xhosa back to “their country” by force. In early 1780, a strong, well-armed commando comprising 92 Boers and 40 Khoi-Khoi,[150] led by Adriaan van Jaarsveld, drove several Xhosa captains and their people across the government-proclaimed border and confiscated around 5,000 heads of livestock.[151] This event marked the end of the First Border War (1779-1781). The frontier would remain relatively peaceful for almost the next decade.
