Who Captured Winston Churchill During The Boer War?

Winston Churchill & The Boers - the making of a Prime Minister.

Chris Green is The History Chap; telling stories that brings the past to life.

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When the second Boer War broke out on the 11th October 1899, a young journalist eagerly set off to cover the story.

His name was Winston Churchill.

This is the story of how he ended up captured by the Boers and the daring escape which propelled him into the political career that would last over 60 long years and culminate in his leading Britain and the free-world during World War Two.

But it also tells another story.

A almost story of the foreigners who fought on behalf of the Boer Republics, of some larger than life characters, and how one of them claimed to have crossed swords with Churchill himself.

#winstonchurchill #boerwar #militaryhistory

WINSTON CHURCHILL AND THE BOER WAR

Having resigned from the army earlier in 1899, Churchill accepted a commission to cover the Boer War for the “Morning Post”.

On the 15th November 1899, just 2 weeks after war had broken out, Churchill was captured when the train that he was travelling on was abushed.

In later years, the British wartime Prime Minister insisted that he had been captured by Boer general, but other names have been suggested including Kommandant Dolf de la Rey (a future leader of the Torch Commando) and an Italian Adventurer, Camillo Ricchiardi.

Ricchiardi commanded the Italian Volunteer Legion, who were fighting for the Boers.
Over 3,000 foreigner sympathisers joined the Boer army including the Scandinavian Corps who fought heroically at the Battle of Magersfontein, and two Irish brigades.

WINSTON CHURCHILL - PRISONER OF WAR

Having played a very active role in trying to free the train and directing the fire of the British troops, the Boers refused to accept him as a mere civilian journalist and made Churchill a Prisoner of War.

He was transported to a POW camp in Pretoria, the capital of the Transvaal (South African Republic), one of the two Boer republics fighting against the British Empire.

WINSTON CHURCHILL - BOER WAR ESCAPE

Less than a month later, having spent his 25th birthday in captivity, Churchill escaped from the prison and made a daring 300 mile journey to safety.

News of his escape capture the newspaper headlines in Britain, whilst the Boers issued a reward of £25 for Winston Churchill - alive or dead!

Successfully reaching neutral Portuguese territory in Mozambique, Churchill returned to Britain a hero.

His new found celebrity status enabled him to be elected to the House of Commons at the General Election in 1900 - the beginning of a parliamentary career that would last over 60 years.

The story is almost like something out of the “Boy’s Own” magazine but it raises two intriguing questions:

First, who really captured Winston Churchill?
Was it future South African Premier, Louis Botha? Or was it an Italian adventurer who lived almost as colourful life as Churchill himself?

The second question is a intriguing “what if?”

What if Churchill had not been captured or had not escaped?Would he have found entered parliament in 1900 (or at all)?

And what if the Boers at some stage in this adventure had shot and killed him?

In either scenario, history would have turned out very differently.

Chapters

0:00 The Boer War
0:48 Winston Churchill
3:06 Train Ambushed
5:24 Churchill - Boer Prisoner
7:03 Who captured Winston Churchill?
7:17 Louis Botha
9:00 Foreign Brigades
13:50 Italian claims
17:40 Winston Churchill Escapes
20:55 Churchill The Hero
22:49 What if? History
23:45 The History Chap

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My name is Chris Green ("The History Chap") and I am on a mission to share the amazing history of Britain so that we can appreciate where we have come from and why we are here.

History should not be stuffy or a long list of dates or kings & queens.
So rather than lectures or Youtube animations, I tell stories that bring the past to life.
Just for the record, I do have a history degree and continue to have a passion for the subject I studied.

Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Chris Green Communication Ltd t/a The History Chap. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Chris Green Communication Ltd does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.

[dewetmaartens]

Great channel. I'm a Boer from Natal, South Africa. It pains me to let you know that since 1994 not a single monument, battlefield or grave site has been maintained by the state, but guys like me take care of them as well as we can (Boer and Brit). I helped fence off the capture sight of Churchill near Frere. It was disappearing into the veld by the road side. Thanks again for this channel!

[soidog]

You forgot to add to your story that when Churchill was captured by the Boers, Churchill strongly protested that he should be treated as a POW and set free because he was a civilian War Correspondent. The Boer General Jan Smuts, who was also the Attorny General of the Transvaal at the time and a friend of Churchill’s father, Lord Randolph Churchill, stepped in and told Churchill that he had better change his tune and accept that he was a POW because if he did not accept that, he would be shot by the Boers as a spy. In later years Churchill confessed that was the best legal advice he had ever received.

[haroldgodwinson]

Two points of note. Firstly, it's true the British abandoned expanding rifle projectiles (exposed lead tip or hollow point) following the adoption of the Hague Convention. However, that was hardly an end to the matter. The reality is that expanding projectiles are simply much more effective at stopping enemy combatants than conventional full metal jacket projectiles. So, to correct this deficit in stopping power, (and skirt the provisions of the Hague Convention) the British Army introduced the Mk VII .303 cartridge in 1910. This cartridge incorporated a lightweight tip (aluminum, compressed paper or cellulose) beneath the projectile's (phosphor bronze) metal jacket which transferred the projectile's center of gravity further aft. This change in weight distribution caused the projectile to 'tumble' under rapid deceleration resulting in a much-increased wound canal, not greatly dissimilar to that caused by an expanding bullet!! lol. And secondly, I think we should take a moment to reflect on the sheer majesty of Herbert Kitchener's Omdurman mustache. It is, without doubt, one of the great military mustaches of all time.

[douglasclerk]

I grew up in Pretoria in the '60s and was familiar with the Staatsmodelskool. One story we were told about Churchill's escape was that he had to swim across the Apies river. This was always met with some hilarity as the Apies river is only about 6 inches deep.

[robg]

Thank you for this video Chris. An excellent story, told by an excellent teller, your good self! Keep 'em coming!

[Palivfed]

Great story! My great-great-grandfather Louis Baumann was a friend of Camillo Ricchiardi. They founded a Boer Colony in Argentine Patagonia in 1902. My great-grandfather Luis de Wet told me about them. Greetings from Argentina.

[soidog]

Very good account of South African history. Thank you.

[augustvonmackensen]

“Hero of the Empire” by Candice Millard is a brilliant detailed account of Churchill’s capture and escape from Pretoria which aided in securing his seat for Oldham on his second attempt.

His books covering the Boer War: “London to Ladysmith via Pretoria”, “Ian Hamilton’s March” and “My Early Life” are priceless pieces of literature.

Simon Ward should have received a film award for his performance in Richard Attenborough’s Young Winston.

[samrodian]

Chris that was bloody Brilliant ! You are one of the most natural story tellers ever to have been on YouTube. I was hanging on every word of it. Thank you.

[johnphillips]

Excellent video again, Chris!
Yep, great points about the nuances of war; the best illustrations of that are the Irish involvement on both sides, and indeed the Cape Afrikaners who fought on the Empire side.

[sameyers]

Thank you, this was a fascinating video

[briandubois-gilbert]

Fascinating historical narrative full of gems of details and questions for history to ponder of “who did it?” and “what if’s..?” But in the end, as fate would have it, Churchill would not be denied to fulfill his destiny for Britain in WW2.

[chrisdebeyer]

Very good !!
So important.
Details are brilliant.

[svetovidarkonsky]

Excellent doco and thank you for introducing me to Arthur Lynch. I looked him up and what an absolutely fascinating Australian character.

[lokischildren]

History is full of different shades of grey

[tpbiofv]

Enjoyed your presentation a great deal! Refreshes my memory of the history of that time period. Please do a presentation on John Churchill with his use of the broad sword and archery against the Germans in World War 2. I think he was captured as well (twice as I remember). What an interesting story presented today. I appreciate your presentations and keep them coming!

[lahma]

I think this is my favorite video you've produced thus far. Simply brilliant story telling!

[Michael-wsrc]

Wow. You know, I’ve heard and read a hundred times that Churchill was captured in the Boer War, and never once before heard the actual story of what happened. What a nice video.

[johnsmith-ikuz]

Fascinating.War is never black and white.Thankfully with a great analysis to show us the intrcacies it is transformed from something dull into something absolutely essential to study.Thank you for grabbing my attention and keeping me rivetted to the story.

[nigeltimms]

Extremely entertaining, interesting and above all fascinating!