George Witton George Ramsdale Witton ( 1874 – 1942 ) was a Lieutenant in the Bushveldt Carbineers in the Boer War in South Africa . He was sentenced to death for murder after the shooting of Boer prisoners . He was subsequently reprieved by Kitchener , although Lieutenants Peter Handcock and Harry " Breaker " Morant who had been court martialed with him were executed by a firing squad on 27 February 1902 . Early life and involvement in the Boer War . Witton was born near Warrnambool , Victoria , Australia , and was from a farming family ; prior to his VIB enlistment , he was a gunner in the Royal Australian Artillery . He enlisted in the Victorian Imperial Bushmen for the Boer War , and was promoted from Corporal to Squadron Quartermaster - Sergeant . Major Robert Lenehan enlisted him in the Bushveldt Carbineers with a commission as Lieutenant . After the killing of a number of Boer prisoners , Witton was one of four officers charged by the British Army with murder , and was convicted . However , he strongly protested and secured a legal opinion from Isaac Isaacs KC , an Australian member of parliament , who recommended that he should petition HM the King for a pardon . Kitchener commuted Witton ' s sentence to life imprisonment . After further protests , he was released on 11 August 1904 , although not pardoned . He had been ill twice in prison in England , once from arsenic fumes in a metal shop and once from typhoid fever . He returned to Australia on 12 November 1904 embittered after three years in prison and wrote a book giving his version of the events involving Morant , Handcock and the BVC . " Scapegoats of the Empire " book and later life . His book , " Scapegoats of the Empire " was originally published in 1907 by D . W . Paterson of Melbourne , but was long unavailable . Prior to its reprint in 1982 by the Australian publishing house Angus & Robertson , it is claimed that only seven copies of the book survived in various Australian state libraries and in the possession of Witton ' s family . Although unsubstantiated , it has long been claimed that the book was suppressed by the Australian government and most copies were destroyed ; another explanation is that most of the copies were destroyed by an accidental fire at the publisher ' s warehouse . The 1982 reprinting was inspired by the success of a film based on the book , entitled " Breaker Morant " . Witton ' s main assertion , as indicated by the book ' s provocative title , is that he , Morant , and Handcock were made scapegoats by the British authorities in South Africa — that they were made to take the blame for widespread British war crime s against the Boers , and that the trial and executions were carried out by the British for political reasons , partly to cover up a controversial and secret " no prisoners " policy promulgated by Lord Kitchener , and partly to appease the Boer government over the killing of Boer prisoners , in order to facilitate a peace treaty ; the Treaty of Vereeniging was signed on 31 May 1902 . Witton also claims that many of the accusations about them , which led to their arrest and trial , were made by disaffected members of their regiment whose rebellious behaviour had been suppressed by Morant and Handcock . An embittered Witton did not rush to enlist in World War I . After former and future Prime Minister Andrew Fisher pledged during the 1914 general election that Australia would defend Britain " to the last man and last shilling , " Witton intimated that he would be that last man . He lived in Gippsland , Victoria and in Queensland where he was a dairy farmer . He married twice , but did not have any children . He had a heart attack while cranking his car engine , and died in a hospital on 14 August 1942 . He was buried in Brisbane ' s Lutwyche Cemetery which , coincidentally , is located on the corner of Gympie and Kitchener Roads . Petitions for Review of Courts Martial Convictions . Australian lawyer Jim Unkles has submitted two petitions , one to Queen Elizabeth II , and the other to the House of Representatives Petitions Committee . The petitions have been referred to the British Crown by the Attorney - General of Australia . The British Government is considering the petition on behalf of the Queen and has yet to announce a review . The second petition was considered by the Petitions committee on 15 March 2010 . Unkles appeared before the committee , along with others including historian Craig Wilcox . Committee member Alex Hawke MP stated , " There is in my view serious and compelling evidence that some form of redress should be given all these years later to those men executed by the British " ( " Hansard " Transcript , House of Representatives Grievance Debate , 15 March 2010 ) .