The war declared by the Boers on 11 October 1899 gave the British, as Kipling said, no end of a lesson'. The public expected it to be over by Christmas, but it proved to be the longest (two and three-quarter years), the costliest (over 200 million), the bloodiest (at least 22,000 British, 25,000 Boer and 12,000 African lives) and the most humiliating war that Britain fought between 1815 and 1914. Thomas Pakenham's was the first full-scale documentary history of the war to be attempted since 1910. His narrative is based on ...
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The war declared by the Boers on 11 October 1899 gave the British, as Kipling said, no end of a lesson'. The public expected it to be over by Christmas, but it proved to be the longest (two and three-quarter years), the costliest (over 200 million), the bloodiest (at least 22,000 British, 25,000 Boer and 12,000 African lives) and the most humiliating war that Britain fought between 1815 and 1914. Thomas Pakenham's was the first full-scale documentary history of the war to be attempted since 1910. His narrative is based on first-hand and largely unpublished sources, from British and South African archives to the private papers, letters and diaries of the protagonists and soldiers of both sides, and the tape-recorded memories of over fifty survivors. Out of this historical goldmine, Thomas Pakenham has constructed a narrative as vivid and fast-moving as a novel, and throws new light on the blunders and personal feuds of the British generals. He writes movingly of the plight of the 100,000 black Africans who served both armies, and explains the final political victory of the Boers - how they lost the war but won the peace - with far-reaching consequences for Europe and South Africa.
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Add this copy of The Boer War to cart. $4.76, fair condition, Sold by Jenhams rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dundee, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1979 by Weidenfeld and Nicholson.
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Fair. A hardback volume in Acceptable to Good condition, moderate wear to boards and spine, paper covering hinge at half-title page is split (hinge still quite intact), interior clean and bright, in a Good to Very Good dustjacket. This book is in stock now, in our UK premises. Photos of our books are available on request (the pictures you see on Alibris are NOT our own).
Add this copy of The Boer War to cart. $5.23, good condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1979 by Weidenfeld And Nicholson.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has hardback covers. In good all round condition. Dust jacket in good condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 1550grams, ISBN: 029777395X.
Add this copy of The Boer War to cart. $5.34, fair condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1979 by Weidenfeld And Nicholson.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has hardback covers. In fair condition, suitable as a study copy. Dust jacket in poor condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 1600grams, ISBN: 029777395X.
Add this copy of The Boer War to cart. $9.27, good condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1982 by Macdonald.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In good all round condition. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 700grams, ISBN: 0708818927.
Add this copy of The Boer War to cart. $9.45, poor condition, Sold by Anybook rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Lincoln, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1988 by Futura Publications.
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This is an ex-library book and may have the usual library/used-book markings inside. This book has soft covers. In poor condition, suitable as a reading copy. Please note the Image in this listing is a stock photo and may not match the covers of the actual item, 550grams, ISBN: 9780708818923.
Add this copy of The Boer War to cart. $16.08, very good condition, Sold by Roger Lucas rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Horncastle, Lincs, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1979 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
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Very Good in Very Good jacket. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. 2nd impression, large 8vo, 659pp, photo illustrations; VG Copy in mildly tanned VG DJ a little faded at spine.
Add this copy of The Boer War Pakenham, Thomas to cart. $19.15, very good condition, Sold by GUY'S BOOKS rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from LUTON, BEDFORDSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1993 by Weidenfeld Nicolson Illustrated.
Add this copy of The Boer War Pakenham, Thomas to cart. $24.71, like new condition, Sold by GUY'S BOOKS rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from LUTON, BEDFORDSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1993 by Weidenfeld Nicolson Illustrated.
Add this copy of The Boer War Pakenham, Thomas to cart. $25.54, very good condition, Sold by GUY'S BOOKS rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from LUTON, BEDFORDSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1993 by Weidenfeld Nicolson Illustrated.
Add this copy of Boer War, the to cart. $3.13, good condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1982 by Futura Publications.
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Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Grubby book may have mild dirt or some staining, mostly on the edges of pages. Aged book. Tanned pages and age spots, however, this will not interfere with reading. Damaged book. Slightly damaged in some way typically, a grazed corner or torn cover.
Recently, I had the opportunity to re-read (for the fourth time) Thomas Pakenham's magisterial history on the subject of, and titled, "The Boer War." This is an outstanding work at many levels: (i) great writing and use of primary sources including interviews of seventy (70) surviving Boer War veterans alive at the time of drafting; (ii) an excellent example of history as entertaining storytelling in the tradition of Thomas Carlyle; and (iii) gleaning insights from history as it relates to wars being fought more recently, indeed, even today.
I have recommended this work to students of Western military history (and used it myself as a source for research papers while as an undergraduate and graduate student), afficionados of British history and those studying insurgencies. It is a serious work for the military historian of the 1890-1914 period revealing the larger trends of war emerging in that era and providing parallels in the recent wars that the Superpowers have conducted in southwest Asia since 1979 (which incidentally is its year of publication). This book is also just plain fun to read and also recommended to the history enthusiast at large describing the oversized personalities of British and Boer political and military leaders, strategy and tactics and the life of the common soldier of both sides as well as the participation in this war of such future great leaders such as Mohandas Gandhi and Winston Churchill.
Read, learn and enjoy !
Wellington
Apr 19, 2012
Great overview
The book gives a comprehensive history of the Boer War. Great reading for those of us who want more background of the major players of the First World War.
Zippy
Dec 12, 2008
Great Book!
Wealth of information written as a novel. The author has obviously done his homework. We did not learn this in History class! Don't think you will finish this in one session. As an ex South African I was fascinated by this book. If you are interested in the history this is a must read.......
