Consequences of the Boer War (AQA A-Level History): Revision Notes
Consequences of the Boer War
The consequences of the war for southern Africa
Post-war reconstruction under Milner
Milner oversaw reconstruction efforts in southern Africa after the Boer War ended. He aimed to eliminate Boer influence entirely, but this proved impossible. Despite Britain's military victory, the nation had not achieved complete dominance in southern Africa. The new Afrikaner leaders in Transvaal proved more willing to cooperate with Britain than the Orange Free State, though Milner and the Conservative government had hoped to strengthen Britain's position in the region.
The Conservative government attempted to consolidate British control through large-scale immigration from Britain to increase the English-speaking population. This strategy failed because the Afrikaner birth rate remained too high.
Restoration of self-government (1906-1907)
Between 1906 and 1907, Britain restored self-government and free elections to white people in Transvaal and the Orange Free State. The Liberal government presented this as an act of reconciliation, extending trust and friendship to former enemies. Ministers lacked confidence that their policy would succeed, though it did achieve short-term results.
In the 1907 elections, Het Volk Party a political party committed to both a Union of South Africa and racial segregation, won a sweeping victory.
Formation of the Union of South Africa (1910)
The 1909 South African Act united Transvaal, the Orange Free State, Cape Colony and Natal into the Union of South Africa, which came into existence in 1910. The state adopted a unitary structure rather than a federal system like Canada or Australia. South African politicians wanted a powerful central government capable of dealing effectively with rebellions, such as the Natal uprising in 1906 which was brutally suppressed.
Louis Botha a former Boer soldier, became the country's first prime minister. When Botha brought South Africa into the First World War on Britain's side in 1914, it appeared the Liberal gamble had been vindicated, as South Africa proved a valuable ally.
The price for black South Africans
The cost of this arrangement fell entirely on the black population of South Africa. Only white people could sit in the Union Parliament and vote in Transvaal and the Orange Free State. Britain had sacrificed the political rights of black South Africans to secure the cooperation of white Afrikaners.
The political consequences of the war for Britain
Khaki fever
Initially, most Britons supported the Boer War, but by 1902 it became evident that not all Britons remained committed to the war or the Empire.
Between 1899 and 1900, khaki fever a wave of popular enthusiasm for the war raged throughout Britain. The term referred to the brown-coloured uniforms worn by British soldiers. This enthusiasm manifested in several ways:
- Popular jingoistic songs spread widely
- Half a million people cheered off the First Army Corps as it embarked at Southampton for Africa in 1899
- Men rushed to volunteer for the army
- Joyous reactions greeted news of the lifting of the sieges of Ladysmith and Mafeking
The Khaki election
In September 1900, believing the war had effectively ended, Salisbury called a general election. During the campaign, Chamberlain declared that 'every vote given against the government is a vote given to the Boers'. The Conservative/Unionist coalition returned with a majority of 134 over all opponents, eight seats fewer than won in 1895.
Opposition to the war
A sizeable minority of the population—radical Liberals, socialists, Irish Nationalists—strongly opposed the war from the outset. Newspapers like the Manchester Guardian and the Morning Star backed them, as did several influential anti-war groups, including the Stop the War Committee. The setbacks in the early stages of the war, and the unexpectedly prolonged closing stage, damaged imperial enthusiasm.
Financial problems
The Boer War cost over £200 million. Given that Britain appeared to be reaching the limits of tolerable taxation, questions arose about funding the war and much-needed social reform. The Conservative/Unionist government, led by Arthur Balfour after 1902, divided over what measures were necessary.
Charles Ritchie, the new chancellor of the exchequer, favoured reducing government spending rather than raising taxation. Joseph Chamberlain, by contrast, supported tariff reform. This division would have major political consequences.
Changes in foreign policy
During the war, 'splendid isolation' had seemed far from splendid. Given that international opinion sympathised with the Boers, fears of invasion emerged. Britain thus attempted to secure allies:
- Between 1901 and 1902, Chamberlain's efforts to secure an agreement with Germany failed. By 1902, the British public had become increasingly anti-German, largely because of Kaiser Wilhelm II's pro-Boer stance, his imperial ambitions and his construction of a large navy.
- Britain, worried by the Russian threat in the Far East, allied with Japan in 1902.
- In 1904, Britain made an entente a friendly agreement not involving a binding commitment, with France.
National efficiency
The fact that an imperial army of 450,000 men required 32 months to defeat 60,000 Boers shattered national complacency and helped to create a sense of danger. Many believed that the British Empire might be brought down, like the Roman Empire, by decadence and incompetence. Analysis of society's problems preoccupied the political class under the guiding principle of national efficiency.
The national efficiency 'movement', held together by an informal network of friends and acquaintances, generally wanted to:
- Institute a career system open to talent
- Ensure that all children received a good education
- Modernise Britain's secondary schooling and higher education systems, particularly by taking science and technology seriously, so that the country retained its economic competitiveness
- Harness all the Empire's resources—intelligence, capital, labour, even women's wombs
National efficiency appealed to many different groups. Some socialists supported it, hoping it would lead to social reform. Many Liberals and Conservatives welcomed it on the grounds that it seemed both patriotic and progressive.
National efficiency supporters insisted that the old battles between Conservatism and Liberalism, even those between capitalism and socialism, meant little compared with the more serious battle taking place between the forces of competence and incompetence in many areas of British life, including education, social reform and government administration. Germany was seen as a model for emulation but also as a rival whose efficiency threatened Britain.
The war seemed to provide evidence of both physical and moral decline. Doubts emerged about the continuing superiority of the imperial race, often regarded as the key element in Britain's greatness. The spectre of 'racial deterioration' stalked the land. Efforts to counter the fear included support for pauper emigration, birth control and the sterilisation of the unfit.
The impact of the war on the Empire
The Boer War indicated that many men within the Empire remained loyal to it. Some 30,000 men from British South Africa volunteered to fight. By 1902, 16,000 Australians, 6,000 Canadians and 6,500 New Zealanders had also seen service in Africa. This demonstration of imperial loyalty would prove important when Britain entered the First World War.
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
- Britain's military victory in South Africa did not destroy Boer influence; the Liberal government restored self-government (1906-7) and the Union of South Africa was created in 1910, though black South Africans were excluded from political rights.
- Initial enthusiasm for the war ('khaki fever') helped the Conservatives win the 1900 'Khaki election', but opposition from radicals, socialists and Irish Nationalists grew, particularly as the war dragged on.
- The war cost over £200 million, creating financial tensions within the government and prompting debates over taxation versus tariff reform.
- Britain abandoned 'splendid isolation', forming alliances with Japan (1902) and France (1904, Entente Cordiale) after international sympathy for the Boers revealed diplomatic vulnerability.
- The war sparked the 'national efficiency' movement, as the lengthy struggle against 60,000 Boers by 450,000 British troops raised concerns about national decline, educational inadequacy and imperial competitiveness, with Germany seen as both model and threat.