An Aggregation of Lion Hunters

Abstract

The initial stages of the Second Anglo Boer War demonstrated the efficacy of the Boer tactical system, which produced some astounding results. Boer mobility, coupled with directive command, individual initiative, and logistical flexibility allowed the Boers to practice an effective form of manoeuvre warfare. The Boers neither reduced their way of war to writing nor produced manuals on their tactical or operational doctrine. Their doctrine existed as an institutional belief system evolved over centuries of conflict with the tribes of southern Africa and the British. The Boer military lacked insight at the strategic level, and early brilliant Boer successes at the tactical level were not enough to swing a strategic victory. This article aims to reveal the Boer way of war through its evolution and development at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels using the lens of the Second Anglo Boer War and the German South West African campaign 1915.