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The Boer War is known outside of Canada as the Second Boer War, and also as the South African War both in Canada and abroad (though not in South African Africa where it is known to some as the Anglo-Boer War, or in Afrikaans as the Anglo-Boereoorlog or Tweede Vryheidsoorlog (Second War of Independence). (The first Boer War had been fought from 16 Dec 1880 to 23 Mar 1881.)

The war was fought from 11 Oct 1899 to 31 May 1902 and marked the second overseas employment of soldiers of the Canadian Army (the first had been the Nile Expedition of 1884-1885, though these soldiers served in a combat support capacity rather than in a combat role). The war was fought between the British Empire and two independent Boer republics of the Orange Free State and the South African Republic (Transvaal Republic). The war resulted in the two independent republics being absorbed into the British Empire.

When the British government asked for Canadian help, the opposition party in Canada was strongly in favour, while French-Canadians were widely opposed. The Liberal government was split, and Prime Minister Wilfried Laurier eventually sent infantry and mounted units. While Canadians did not served in the earliest clashes of the war, they did develop a good reputation at Second Battle of Paardeberg and later at Liliefontein, where three Canadians were awarded the Victoria Cross and one the Queen's Scarf.

The war remained deeply unpopular in Quebec, where many people viewed it as crushing a democratic minority group reminiscent of French-Canadians themselves. The war would later become notorious for the inauguration of modern concentration camps.

Military Overview

When the second Boer War broke out in late 1899, Canadian Parliament was not in session, and the government of Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier refused to commit to a coherent position on the matter; opinions among the population were split as to whether the British use of force in South Africa was legitimate protection of democratic rights among individuals, or simply British imperialism. After a leak to the press of a mistaken telegram of thanks from the British government to Canada, for an offer of troops she had not made, Canada was forced to announce a contribution of 1,000 men to the cause in Oct 1899.

Beginning on 9 Dec 1899, British forces in South Africa had experienced what they called "Black Week", which prompted the British government to appeal for more troops. Two battalions of mounted rifles and three batteries of artillery were offered as a second contingent. A privately raised cavalry regiment was also mustered for service.

Canadian Contingents: South Africa and Halifax

First Contingent

Second (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry - 1000 men were raised under Lieutenant Colonel Otter (the senior soldier in Canada, with combat experience at the Battle of Ridgeway, the Fenian Raids of 1866, and command of a column in the North West Rebellion of 1885), sailing for south Africa sixteen days after formation. The battalion landed at Cape Town on 30 November 1899, and in mid-February 1900 The Royal Canadian Regiment, as it was becoming known, joined the British 19th Infantry Brigade. It saw action at Paardeberg, Israel's Poort, Thaba Mountain, Doorn Kop, and marched into Pretoria, the enemy capital on 29 May as part of Lord Roberts' conquering army. The war passed into a guerilla campaign, but the 2nd Battalion had signed enlistment papers for "six months, or one year if required." The Regiment embarked for home at Cape Town on 7 November 1900, reached England on 29 November, and returned to Canada on 23 December, where the battalion was promptly disbanded.

A troop of Strathcona's Horse pose in a studio in 1900. Public Archives of Canada Photo.

Second Contingent

Mounted Units - the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles and 2nd Canadian Mounted Rifles were raised, along with three batteries of artillery. The two mounted battalions (rebadged in August 1900 after arrival in South Africa as The Royal Canadian Dragoons, and the Canadian Mounted Rifles, respectively) numbered 371 men each, divided into two squadrons and a headquarters staff. The Royal Canadian Field Artillery sent three batteries designated "C", "D" and "E" in early 1900, each battery with six 12-pounder field guns. Finally, a privately raised cavalry regiment titled Lord Strathcona's Horse, with 600 men divided into three squadrons, arrived in Halifax in March 1900 to sail to South Africa.

These units served throughout 1900, with the Second Contingent leaving South Africa on 12 Dec 1900. The Strathcona's left the country in early Jan 1901.

In Jan 1902, a Second 2nd Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles, paid for by the British, would serve briefly in South Africa. In total, from 1900 to 1902, 7,368 men would serve in Canadian units in South Africa, of whom 89 were killed or died of wounds. Some 252 were wounded, 135 more died by accident and disease.

Third (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry - 1000 men were raised and sent to Halifax to replace the British garrison there and free them for war service; this battalion served from March 1900 to September 1902 when it was again relieved by a British battalion.