Sparks Commentary: A review of “The Boer War”

Warning: This blog post contains some disturbing pictures. One of these, in particular, is very graphic, and may merit special caution.

The Boer War in Southern Africa was more important than many Americans realize …

I would wager that most Americans have never heard of the Boer War. They might have heard of the Spanish-American War, which was fought around the same time, but they probably wouldn’t even remember much of that – beyond Teddy Roosevelt charging up San Juan Hill, at least. But their history classes are unlikely to have even mentioned the Boer War. This means that most of them will reach adulthood without having heard of it. This is not surprising, because the Boer War was fought in the southern tip of Africa, by the various parts of the British Empire. The conflict did not involve the United States, which may explain why our own history classes don’t teach much about it. Nonetheless, the Boer War was quite important, and continues to be remembered as such in some other places.

Wounded British soldiers (circa 1900)

The British Empire fought against Dutch South Africans (or “Boers”) …

For example, the Boer War is remembered in the British Isles, and is lamented even there. It is remembered by Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, which all sent troops to fight on the side of the British. And most of all, it is remembered today in Southern Africa, where the conflict was actually fought. This topic is associated with many old wounds and bitter grudges. Many are still angry about these things even today. I don’t know if Southern Africans have ever made a film about the Boer War in English – or in any other language, for that matter. But I do know that the British made this film about it, which I will be reviewing today. It is simply entitled “The Boer War,” and gives an 80-minute overview of this long-ago conflict from the turn of the last century.

British casualties lie dead on the battlefield, after the Battle of Spion Kop (1900)

… who rebelled against British rule during the “Boer War” (1899-1902)

But calling it “the” Boer War may be something of a misnomer. The First Boer War was fought more than a decade earlier. Specifically, the First Boer War was fought from December 1880 to March 1881. The Second Boer War was fought from 1899 to 1902, and this is the conflict that this documentary focuses on. This is the conflict that people are usually referring to, when they use the phrase “the Boer War.” So who were the Boers? They were a group of Dutch speakers whose ancestors had colonized Southern Africa on behalf of the Netherlands. It was only later that Southern Africa was taken from the Dutch, and became British instead. The Dutch South Africans resented the rule of the British Empire, and revolted against it in both of these “Boer Wars.” But the First Boer War had only lasted for three months and three days. The Second Boer War went on for nearly three years. This makes it much longer than the Spanish-American War of 1898, which lasted less than four months.

Map of Southern Africa in 1885, between the First and Second Boer Wars

This documentary makes the most of a rather limited budget

Both of these Boer Wars took place well into the photography era. Thus, this documentary was able to use photographs. They use them in Ken Burns style – panning and scanning across the photos, or zooming in and out as appropriate. But they also use some real footage from this time, which helps to dramatize the subject even better when it’s available. They dramatize both the photos and the real footage with some sound re-enactments. The viewer is bound to notice that this film was made on the cheap. Nonetheless, it’s the only film that I know of about this subject, so one doesn’t have the luxury of being picky here. The music isn’t that great, but nor is it melodramatic. It does the job despite its obvious limitations. The sound is also fairly primitive, but this is inevitable given the documentary’s low budget. Despite these limitations, the sound still fits the mood that they’re trying to create. For example, the noise of angry crowds is used to dramatize riots, and yelling and shooting noises are used to dramatize the battles themselves.

Boer civilian home is destroyed, as part of Britain’s scorched-earth policy

This film focuses mainly on the British side of the war

This film focuses mainly on the British side of the war. Thus, this film has sometimes been accused of British bias, even by some British reviewers. For example, I noticed this criticism in some of the reviews from Amazon Britain. But if so, it’s a fairly mild bias. They don’t dramatize the Boer side, but nor do they demonize them. Minimal coverage is given to how the war was perceived back home in the British Isles, since they focus more on how it was fought in Southern Africa. (I would say “South” Africa, but it was also fought in what are today the nearby countries of Lesotho and Eswatini. This is why I broaden it to “Southern” Africa, which includes all of these countries.) They don’t show the most shocking pictures from the concentration camps (such as the one below), where Boer civilians who had been made homeless by the scorched-earth policy were then being interned. Nonetheless, they do mention the appalling death toll in these camps, where more than 26,000 Boer civilians died. These included many women and children. This film basically argues that the camps were a necessary response to the homelessness caused by the scorched-earth policy, and points out that the vast majority of these civilian deaths were from various diseases that were ravaging the camps. Nonetheless, they acknowledge the terrible human cost of the scorched-earth policies, and the success of those back home who campaigned against these camps created by British policies.

Lizzie van Zyl, a Boer child, visited by Emily Hobhouse in a British concentration camp

Comments on the narration, and the lack of interviews with historians on either side

I found the narration for this film to be quite interesting. My only criticism in this regard was that they might have needed a better “hook” at the beginning, to draw readers into the story. The only thing they use for this is a scratchy old recording of Dutch-language Boer music. (At least, I think that it’s in Dutch – whatever it is, I’m fairly certain that it isn’t English). The narration is performed by actor Robert Powell, who is good at bringing the subject to life. They probably spent a good portion of their limited budget on getting this high-quality narrator. If so, it was a wise decision for them, as this is one area where they could not afford to cut costs (in my not-so-humble opinion). Viewers will no doubt notice that his accent is British, rather than Southern African. But to me, this is not a bad thing. I would have appreciated some interviews with historians, both on the British and Boer sides. But again, this film was made on the cheap, and thus could not afford even to interview the historians involved. I would have liked to see some footage of what these places look like today, but one can’t be picky with a subject like this. One will have to accept what they can get, if they want to see a film about the Boer War – or any other relatively obscure topic. That being said, though, I wouldn’t mind seeing a Boer War film made by a Southern African, which focuses on the Southern African side of the war. If you know of any such films, please feel free to leave a comment below for me and my readers, telling us something about it.

Conclusion: This film is a good one despite its limited budget

Overall, this film is a good one despite its limited budget. The information in it is solid, making this film well worth the attention of British and African history buffs.

“The BURGHER Forces in the Field will forthwith lay down their Arms, handing over all Guns, Rifles, and Munitions of War, in their possession or under their control, and desist from any further resistance to the Authority of HIS MAJESTY KING EDWARD VII, whom they recognise as their lawful SOVEREIGN … The Manner and details of this surrender will be arranged between Lord Kitchener and Commandant General Botha, Assistant Commandant General de la Rey and Chief Commandant De Wet.”

– Peace Treaty of Vereeniging (31 May 1902), which ended the Second Boer War

Warnings about this DVD:

The DVD for this program is in a Region 2 format. Therefore, it will not play on most North American DVD players.

But if you’re still interested in getting this, you might consider some other information about this DVD. Even with the cost of shipping across the Atlantic, I actually found it cheaper to order this DVD from Amazon Britain than from Amazon USA. For all I know, this information may have changed by the time that you read this. But you might consider both of the links below, if you’re worried about prices.

DVD at Amazon USA

DVD at Amazon Britain

If you liked this post, you might also like:

A review of Henry Louis Gates, Jr.’s “Africa’s Great Civilizations” (PBS)

Why are certain European languages so often spoken in Africa? (Answer: History)

A review of PBS’s “Crucible of Empire: The Spanish-American War” (1898)

A review of “Queen Victoria’s Empire” (PBS Empires)

A review of Andrew Marr’s “Modern Britain” (BBC)

A review of “The Great War” (1964 BBC miniseries)

Forgotten battlegrounds of the World Wars: Africa, the Middle East, and Italy

The South African Border War and the Angolan Civil War

A review of PBS’s “The Long Walk of Nelson Mandela”