A general history of the concentration camps of the Anglo-Boer War, and the first to make an in-depth use of the very rich and extensive official documents in the South African and British archives, this book provides a fresh perspective on a topic that understandably arouses emotions because of the great numbers of Afrikaners--especially women and children--who died in the camps. Set in the larger context of colonialism at the end of the 19th century, this fascinating account overturns many previously held assumptions and conclusions. Arguing that British views on poverty, poor relief, and the management of colonial societies all shaped administration, this social history also attempts to explain why the camps were so badly administered in the first place and why reform was so slow--suggesting that divided responsibility, ignorance, political opportunism, and a failure to understand the needs of such institutions all played a part.
Dr Elizabeth van Heyningen taught in the Department of Historical Studies at the University of Cape Town for many years. Her main research interests are the history of Cape Town, the social history of medicine and the history of colonial women. Previous publications include a two-volume social history of Cape Town (with N. Worden and V. Bickford-Smith) and a history of the Cape medical profession in the nineteenth century (with H. Deacon and H. Phillips).
A masterly exercise in the writing of social history, extremely wellinformed, utilising all the recent research - Professor Iain Smith, formerly of the University of Warwick
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