As a student of the South African War, I was aware of the significant lack of WWW resources on this period. Research for my dissertation and a passionate interest in this fascinating era combined and the South African War Virtual Library was born.
War is a manifestation of much that is repulsive about our species.
The experience of war, however, often highlights the extraordinary resilience, bravery and sacrifice of the latter, willing and otherwise. This site, wherever possible, will attempt to lend itself to exploration of these 'moments'. It is probably a little perilous for me to delve too deeply into the historiography of the period, however, I feel I should at least define my position as regards the writing of history on the South African War. For the most part I tend toward the subtle revisionism of Sir Thomas Pakenham as found in his The Boer War. That is to say, I don't share entirely the view of the great majority of historians of Sir Redvers Buller , I am constantly astounded by the time it has taken to even begin to remedy the virtually wholesale omission of women and Black peoples from histories of the war, the widespread ignorance of their experience in concentration camps and the nonsensical notion of the war as 'a White man's war'.