The Great AngloBoer War, Byron Farwell
The Great AngloBoer War, Byron Farwell
List: $29.99 | Sale: $21.00
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The Great Anglo-Boer War

Author: Byron Farwell

Narrator: Nigel Patterson

Unabridged: 23 hr 24 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 01/17/2019


Synopsis

The Great Boer War (1899–1902)—more properly the Great Anglo-Boer War—was one of the last romantic wars, pitting a sturdy, stubborn pioneer people fighting to establish the independence of their tiny nation against the British Empire at its peak of power and self-confidence. It was fought in the barren vastness of the South African veldt, and it produced in almost equal measure extraordinary feats of personal heroism, unbelievable examples of folly and stupidity, and many incidents of humor and tragedy. Byron Farwell traces the war's origins, the slow mounting of the British efforts to overthrow the Afrikaners, the bungling and bickering of the British command, the remarkable series of bloody battles that almost consistently ended in victory for the Boers over the much more numerous British forces, political developments in London and Pretoria, the sieges of Ladysmith, Mafeking and Kimberley, the concentration camps into which Boer families were herded and the exhausting guerrilla warfare of the last few years when the Boer armies were finally driven from the field.

The Great Boer War is a definitive history of a dramatic conflict by a master story teller and historian. Byron Farwell served as an officer in the North African and Italian campaigns in World War II and also in the Korean War. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1964, and is the author of Queen Victoria's Little Wars.

About Byron Farwell

Byron Farwell served as an officer in the North African and Italian campaigns in World War II and also in the Korean War. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1964.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Joel

This is an amazing book! I identify with the Boers in several things. In fact, one reason why I wanted to learn more about the Boer War is because I think there is much to learn about how and why a primarily Dutch Reformed, family-oriented, dominion-focused, and well-armed country went to war with o......more

Goodreads review by Joe

This is an absorbing, well written account of a neglected (by American readers anyway) war at the turn of the last century. Rather than being a dry academic text, Farwell's writing style serves to bring the war to life 100 years after the fact. Seamlessly mixing descriptions of tactical battlefield......more

Goodreads review by Blaine

I enjoyed this book. The Boer War is one I had read a lot about in fiction but did not know a lot of the details. Wonderful book that taught me a lot about South Africa and its people. Book did drag a bit when we got into siege warfare which is a pretty boring way to run a war, but which was success......more

Goodreads review by James

A well written book that gives a good overview of the Anglo-Boer War. A good first read for someone who is not overly familiar with this war and it certainly wet my appetite to read more on the subject.......more

Goodreads review by Davis

I was writing a generous review of this book, but then my internet crashed and I lost it all. Well, shucks. Suffice it to say that it’s bloody good.......more