In March 1901 Lord Kitchener introduced a scorched earth policy which led to the destruction of about 30000 Boer farmhouses and the partial and complete destruction of more than forty towns. Thousands of women and children were removed from their homes by force.They had little or no time to remove valuables before the house was burnt down. They were then taken by oxwagon or in open cattle trucks to any one of the infamous concentration camps where in total 25,000 Boer civilians and 14,000 natives died. Extracts from http://www.awm.gov.au/wartime/21/article.asp Australian troops were deployed in sweeping the countryside and enforcing the British policy of cutting the Boer guerrillas off from the support of their farms and families. This meant the destruction of Boer farms, (Typical forms of destruction were the burning of Boer farms and the slaughtering of their animals (whole brigades of soldiers sometimes paused for a day to cut the throats of local sheep) and the dynamiting of entire rural towns), the confiscation of horses, cattle and wagons and the rounding up of the inhabitants, usually women and children. These civilian captives were taken to concentration camps where, weakened by malnutrition, thousands died of contagious diseases. "I hate the whole business," wrote Major Hubert Murray from Sydney. But even those who hated it usually thought it was just, or at least justifiable. "It seems a cruel thing to ride up to a farmhouse and give the inmates, always women and children, ten minutes to clear out what personal effects they can get together and then to set fire to the place," wrote another officer from Sydney, "but when their husbands and brothers are up on the hills behind sniping at us, what else can you expect?" In any case, most soldiers enjoyed looting and burning. "The best part of this game is sacking the houses," confessed Lieutenant Douglas Rich from Queensland, " although we poor devils of officers don't get much of the fun as in most cases it is forbidden and we have to keep the men back." David Sheldon Brisbane -----Original Message----- From: BOER-WAR-L-request@rootsweb.com [mailto:BOER-WAR-L-request@rootsweb.com]On Behalf Of Sidney Allinson Sent: Monday, 31 October 2005 3:28 AM To: BOER-WAR-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: [BOER-WAR] Australian's Burning Boer Farms ----- Original Message ----- From: "Anthony Bigelow" <anthonybigelow@hotmail.com> To: <BOER-WAR-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, October 30, 2005 3:39 AM Subject: [BOER-WAR] Australian's Burning Boer Farms > Hello, > > Can anyone identify the source to a reference in Wallace's book, from > Australian trooper Hiram Preston Thompson, of Australians burning boer > farms? > Regards, Anthony. The several thousand Australian volunteers serving in the ABW were involved in all aspects of British army anti-guerilla operations, including the burning of Boer farms. - Sidney. www.xlibris.com/krugersgold.html ==== BOER-WAR Mailing List ==== Boer War Links http://freespace.virgin.net/anglers.rest/BoerWarLinks.htm ============================== Census images 1901, 1891, 1881 and 1871, plus so much more. Ancestry.com's United Kingdom & Ireland Collection. Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13968/rd.ashx ************************************************************************************************* "This e-mail and its attachments are intended for the named addressee only and no liability is accepted for use or reliance on any part of this e-mail by any other person. It is confidential, may be subject to privilege and is also subject to copyright. No part of it should be reproduced, adapted or communicated without the written consent of the copyright owner. Any confidentiality or privilege is not waived or lost because this e-mail has been received by you and you are not the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient, please let us know by reply e-mail. Please note that e-mails can be interfered with, can contain computer viruses or other defects and may not be successfully replicated on other systems. This footnote confirms that this e-mail message has been swept for the presence of computer viruses. However whilst the sender has taken reasonable precautions to minimise the risk of this email and any attachment containing viruses, we cannot accept liability for any such viruses and we give no warranties in relation to any of the above matters. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of this e-mail please contact the sender immediately. No responsibility is accepted for any changes made to a document other than those made by the sender."