Post 1st boer war
The signing of the peace treaty in 1881 and the London convention of 1884 Britain accepted with reservations the Transvaal independence, the two states were able to live alongside one another without any major causes for conflict until the discovery of gold in the Transvaal in 1886.The gold rush in the Transvaal led to an influx of of foreigners largely consisting of British known as Uitlanders, the Boers who have always fought for their freedom felt that they would lose control of their country because of the large Uitlander influx out numbering Boer citizens, in order to keep control they started refusing Uitlanders citizenship.
This caused increasing tensions between the British and the Transvaal allied with the Orange free state
This caused increasing tensions between the British and the Transvaal allied with the Orange free state
- the Uitlanders largely British were demanding political,social and economical stability over their lives as they were not given an education, voting right, health care or judiciary system, accompanied by a large tax which was spent on explosives instead of Johannesburg or the uitlanders interests.
- Until gold was found the Transvaal was a struggling Boer republic, they now posed a political and economical threat to the British in South Africa at a time when Britain was being occupied with seizing African colonies against both France and Germany
In 1895 an attack into the Transvaal lead by DR L. Starr Jameson as a instigation to an uprising for Uitlanders to overthrow the Paul Kruger lead government,further increasing tensions between the two states as Boer nationalism flared up again as they felt that their freedom was being threatened yet again,This was true as many leaders of British colonies in South Africa including the high commissioner were determined to end Boer Independence.
By September 1899 Great Britain and the Boer republics were preparing for war, Britain started to reach out to its large colonies and settlements including Canada,India,Australia and New Zealand for supplies and manpower as they were determined to win the war quickly.
British troops were posted outside the Boer republican borders as both sides advanced towards each other, President Steyn of the British colonies was avoiding war unless no other alternative was available, whereas Kruger who was in power during the first war thought was very optimistic about the Boers army and the idea of Germany intervening, Kruger was cautioned by commanders that help would not arrive from Europe For the Boers only for the British but Kruger still remained hopeful.
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