The British Army in the Anglo-Boer War

South Africa, 11 October 1899 - 31 May 1902

  1st Battalion, Royal Scots, Northern Transvaal

The Boer War was a watershed event for the British Army, the Boers employed hit-and-run tactics that not only caused losses the British could not afford, they did not conform to the usual "gentlemanly" rules of war.

The British Army started off with 12,546 men in South Africa when the war began, but the number of officers and men actually employed from first to last, during the war, was officially given as 448,435.

It became clear to the British that they had to adopt new tactics to defeat the Boers. They needed to fight a series of battles over a long period of time covering wide areas of ground, this involved marching in long columns for days at a time across the vast plains or "veldt", often without proper uniforms or rations. The weather caused problems, with freezing temperatures and storms in the winter and very hot summers.

The Boer War, according to Rudyard Kipling, taught the British "no end of a lesson".. over 20,000 British Troops were laid to rest in the heat and dust of the South African veldt, with another 22,829 being wounded.

 

Casualties

 Removing the dead

 

There are discrepancies in the Casualty figures between the Official History and those recorded in 'The Times' Vol VII, whose figures are shown in brackets.

British Forces


Killed in Action or Died of Wounds
7,582 including 712 officers (7,894; 706 officers).

Died of Disease
13,139 including 406 officers (13,250; 339 officers).

Total Deaths 20,721 (21,942, includes accidental deaths).

The following Casualty figures have been extracted from 'With the Flag to Pretoria' and these cover the first part of the war. There was a comparison table compiled from official statistics which cover the entire war from the outbreak to the end of hostilities in South Africa

South African Field Force Casualties 11 Oct 1899 - Oct 1900  
  Officers Men  
Killed in Action 302 2,902  
Died of Wounds 89 893  
Died of Disease etc 155 6,115  
Prisoners who died in Captivity 3 90  
Accidental Deaths 4 145  
Total deaths in South Africa October 1899 - October 1900 553 10,145 10,698
Prisoners and Missing 7 822  
Sent home as invalids 1,422 33,077

(See end column)

 Wounded 5,196

Sick 26,800

Not specified 1,081
South African Field Force Casualties 11 Oct 1899 - 31 May 1902  
  Officers Men  
Killed in Action 518 5,256  5,774
Died of Wounds 183 1,835  2,018
Died of Disease etc 339 12,911  13,250
Prisoners who died in Captivity 5 97  102
Accidental Deaths 27 711  738
Total deaths in South Africa October 1899 - May 1902 1,072 20,810 21,882
Prisoners and Missing   105  
Sent home as invalids 3,116

(8 Died)

 72,314

(500 Died,

5,879 Discharged as unfit for further service)

[See end column]

 Of 72,314 men;

Wounded 8,221

Sick 63,644

Not specified 449
Total casualties in South Africa October 1899 - May 1902 4,188 93,229 97,417

 

 

  New Zealanders burying a casualty

 

Casualty Searches, for both British and Imperial forces, charged at £5.00 per name can be made using the following categories;

Surname, Initials or Regiment. Often it is possible to state where the grave is located

All enquiries should be made to

DAVID J. BARNES c/o 148 Parkinson Street, Burnley, Lancashire, England BB11 3LL

Please send a cheque, made payable to D J BARNES, along with your Stamped, Self Addressed Envelope.

 

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