East Job South Uk

East Job South Uk

East Job South Uk

Churchill already had experience of war, garnered from his two years with the British Army in India and the Sudan. As the author of books on the campaigns in which he took part, he had achieved a certain fame and also proved himself a hero on the battlefield. However, he came to South Africa not as a soldier, but as correspondent for two British newspapers.

Encounter with Boer Guerrillas

The South African War, which began in 1899, was a struggle between Britain and Dutch Boer guerrillas who were fighting against the imposition of British rule. By the time Churchill reached Cape Town, the Boers had scored some significant victories, invading Natal and laying siege to Mafeking, Kimberley and Ladysmith.

Churchill’s involvement in the war began in the early morning of November 15, 1899, when he boarded an armored train a short way down the line from Ladysmith, together with 150 British soldiers. However, a party of fifty Boer guerrillas was spotted two stations further down the line and a few minutes later, the train ran straight into an ambush.