Who Captured Winston Churchill During The Boer War?

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Winston Churchill & The Boers - the making of a Prime Minister.
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When the second Boer War broke out on the 11th October 1899, a young journalist eagerly set off to cover the story.
His name was Winston Churchill.
This is the story of how he ended up captured by the Boers and the daring escape which propelled him into the political career that would last over 60 long years and culminate in his leading Britain and the free-world during World War Two.
But it also tells another story.
A almost story of the foreigners who fought on behalf of the Boer Republics, of some larger than life characters, and how one of them claimed to have crossed swords with Churchill himself.
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#winstonchurchill #boerwar #militaryhistory
WINSTON CHURCHILL AND THE BOER WAR
Having resigned from the army earlier in 1899, Churchill accepted a commission to cover the Boer War for the “Morning Post”.
On the 15th November 1899, just 2 weeks after war had broken out, Churchill was captured when the train that he was travelling on was abushed.
In later years, the British wartime Prime Minister insisted that he had been captured by Boer general, but other names have been suggested including Kommandant Dolf de la Rey (a future leader of the Torch Commando) and an Italian Adventurer, Camillo Ricchiardi.
Ricchiardi commanded the Italian Volunteer Legion, who were fighting for the Boers.
Over 3,000 foreigner sympathisers joined the Boer army including the Scandinavian Corps who fought heroically at the Battle of Magersfontein, and two Irish brigades.
WINSTON CHURCHILL - PRISONER OF WAR
Having played a very active role in trying to free the train and directing the fire of the British troops, the Boers refused to accept him as a mere civilian journalist and made Churchill a Prisoner of War.
He was transported to a POW camp in Pretoria, the capital of the Transvaal (South African Republic), one of the two Boer republics fighting against the British Empire.
WINSTON CHURCHILL - BOER WAR ESCAPE
Less than a month later, having spent his 25th birthday in captivity, Churchill escaped from the prison and made a daring 300 mile journey to safety.
News of his escape capture the newspaper headlines in Britain, whilst the Boers issued a reward of £25 for Winston Churchill - alive or dead!
Successfully reaching neutral Portuguese territory in Mozambique, Churchill returned to Britain a hero.
His new found celebrity status enabled him to be elected to the House of Commons at the General Election in 1900 - the beginning of a parliamentary career that would last over 60 years.
The story is almost like something out of the “Boy’s Own” magazine but it raises two intriguing questions:
First, who really captured Winston Churchill?
Was it future South African Premier, Louis Botha? Or was it an Italian adventurer who lived almost as colourful life as Churchill himself?
The second question is a intriguing “what if?”
What if Churchill had not been captured or had not escaped?Would he have found entered parliament in 1900 (or at all)?
And what if the Boers at some stage in this adventure had shot and killed him?
In either scenario, history would have turned out very differently.
Chapters
0:00 The Boer War
0:48 Winston Churchill
3:06 Train Ambushed
5:24 Churchill - Boer Prisoner
7:03 Who captured Winston Churchill?
7:17 Louis Botha
9:00 Foreign Brigades
13:50 Italian claims
17:40 Winston Churchill Escapes
20:55 Churchill The Hero
22:49 What if? History
23:45 The History Chap
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My name is Chris Green ("The History Chap") and I am on a mission to share the amazing history of Britain so that we can appreciate where we have come from and why we are here.
History should not be stuffy or a long list of dates or kings & queens.
So rather than lectures or RU-vid animations, I tell stories that bring the past to life.
Just for the record, I do have a history degree and continue to have a passion for the subject I studied.
Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Chris Green Communication Ltd t/a The History Chap. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Chris Green Communication Ltd does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.

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30 июл 2024

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Комментарии : 464

@dewetmaartens359 Год назад

Great channel. I'm a Boer from Natal, South Africa. It pains me to let you know that since 1994 not a single monument, battlefield or grave site has been maintained by the state, but guys like me take care of them as well as we can (Boer and Brit). I helped fence off the capture sight of Churchill near Frere. It was disappearing into the veld by the road side. Thanks again for this channel!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Sad to hear but doesn't surprise me. Thanks for all your hard work.

@zen4men 10 месяцев назад

Yes, I add my thanks too. My great-grandfather, then Captain William Bolitho, commanded 27th Company, 7th Battalion, Imperial Yeomanry, at the British defeat at Nooitgedacht in December 1900, where he was awarded the Distinuished Service Cross, which he later received personally from King Edward VII. With another company of yeomanry, he was ordered by Brigadier Clements to take his men up a steep 900 foot kloof, and engage the Boers on top of the cliffs of the Magaliesberg range. / Assaulting uphill after a 900 foot climb is likely to be to be something of a forlorn hope, and so it proved, for as Wikipedia puts it "Reinforcements climbing the mountain lost heavily when Beyers' men suddenly poured fire into them". William was wounded, and lay there for 2 days and 2 nights with his men, before being briefly taken prisoner. / I would love to see the story of that battle told in detail! And photographs of the battlefield taken from an infantryman's eyes. I would like to see the battlefield as my great-grandfather saw it that day, in as far as a camera's lens can do it justice. / Boer generals De La Rey and Beyers were there, as well as Jan Smuts, so some great leaders. Their plan was brilliant, as the British dispositions were fatally flawed. The British numbered 1,500, and thought there were insufficient Boers locally to risk an attack, but more Boers arrived. The Wily Boer knew both his ground and his enemy, and struck while the iron was hot, for which the Boers deserve rspect. / The story of this battle needs properly telling! / It always amazes me that within 8 years, Britain handed power back to Boers, and that Botha and Jan Smuts played such a great part in sunsequent events. /

@petercollingwood522 8 месяцев назад

@@zen4men Interesting. I'm a member of a group called OMRS which collects and researches the history of medals. I'm from South Africa originally though living in the USA. I gave a presentation on exactly that battle and the Boer awards for service in the Anglo Boer war last year and was able to metion the exact events you speak of. I'm not sure the exact battlefield is visible now as it was then. Much has chaned and while I'm not there and so had to rely on what pictures I could find online I suspect some of the area might now be covered by the Hendrik Vervoerd Dam.

@zen4men 8 месяцев назад

@@petercollingwood522 Hello Peter! Surely the HV / Gariep dam and Nooitgedacht are 350 or so miles apart? www.google.com/maps/@-25.8716095,27.5345544,7037m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en&entry=ttu I know there was a Nooitgedacht POW camp at another ( third ) location, but I do not know of a second battle by the same name. Your mention of this dam suggests we are talking of 2 separate battles? Please advise! /

@douglasclerk2764 Год назад

I grew up in Pretoria in the '60s and was familiar with the Staatsmodelskool. One story we were told about Churchill's escape was that he had to swim across the Apies river. This was always met with some hilarity as the Apies river is only about 6 inches deep.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Sounds like Churchill! Thanks for sharing

@aesop8694 Год назад

Douglas Clerk. What else would you expect from a self promoting liar? The truth??

@petercollingwood522 8 месяцев назад

That's correct. I'm from Durban but had maternal aunts living in Pretoria in Brecher street just walking distance from the Apies. I remember walking by it as a kid where ran in a concrete canal and never saw more than a trickle. And I recall one of my aunts who had read Churchills book where he apparently says "I crossed the mighty Apies" which caused her much amusement.

@haroldgodwinson832 Год назад

Two points of note. Firstly, it's true the British abandoned expanding rifle projectiles (exposed lead tip or hollow point) following the adoption of the Hague Convention. However, that was hardly an end to the matter. The reality is that expanding projectiles are simply much more effective at stopping enemy combatants than conventional full metal jacket projectiles. So, to correct this deficit in stopping power, (and skirt the provisions of the Hague Convention) the British Army introduced the Mk VII .303 cartridge in 1910. This cartridge incorporated a lightweight tip (aluminum, compressed paper or cellulose) beneath the projectile's (phosphor bronze) metal jacket which transferred the projectile's center of gravity further aft. This change in weight distribution caused the projectile to 'tumble' under rapid deceleration resulting in a much-increased wound canal, not greatly dissimilar to that caused by an expanding bullet!! lol. And secondly, I think we should take a moment to reflect on the sheer majesty of Herbert Kitchener's Omdurman mustache. It is, without doubt, one of the great military mustaches of all time.

@mikeycraig8970 Год назад

*Aluminium. We're not yanks 😉

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for that in-depth comment and I am pleased to see that others have contributed to it.

@caeserromero3013 Год назад

The Boers also used expanding bullets. The Boers were expert hunters and expanding bullets were useful in bringing down game. The nature of Boer commando units lent itself to ad hoc armament. It was much less feesible for a modern army like the British to deliberately supply non standard ammunition. If the British did use dum dum rounds, the likelihood is they were locally sourced and privately purchased. Therefore there is no evidence of a state sanctioned war crime. Also, the law around the Hague convention is hazy as the Boer Republics never signed it, though they were technically under the 'protection' of the British empire at the time. It could also be argued that many Boer units were not recognised military units, but civilian terrorist or insurgency groups, so it is unclear if the convention applied to them as traditional 'combatants'. Either way, it never went to court.

@sharonrigs7999 Год назад

The cellulose was autoclaved, interestingly

@AndrewSienx Год назад

The expanding bullets were useful in colonial wars, when British soldiers shot directly in the bodies of the adversaries. Same with hunting. It was a bad idea, when your enemy hides on the ground, in foliage or in the cities. It is better to use ammo with more punch-through power. Also, wounded soldiers were more a problem for logistics than dead ones - see 1WW. And all pointy bullets for Mausers or Enfields were supersonic - and these make temporary cavities in the body - much bigger than hollow-point rifle bullets. And then thumbling... Yeah. These honorable rules of war...

@augustvonmackensen1101 Год назад

“Hero of the Empire” by Candice Millard is a brilliant detailed account of Churchill’s capture and escape from Pretoria which aided in securing his seat for Oldham on his second attempt. His books covering the Boer War: “London to Ladysmith via Pretoria”, “Ian Hamilton’s March” and “My Early Life” are priceless pieces of literature. Simon Ward should have received a film award for his performance in Richard Attenborough’s Young Winston.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for sharing.

@julbro8451 Год назад

Absolutely! Love Simon Ward in "Young Winston." Great movie!

@larrysingleton2864 Год назад

Yep. Churchill was a war hero several times over. Participated in the last cavalry charge in British history. Predicted the "Gestapo" these "Socialists" would become. The River War by Winston Churchill. (Read both single and two-volume books) The Malakand Field Force by Winston Churchill. Churchill's Trial: Winston Churchill and the Salvation of Free Government by Larry P. Arnn. Thoughts and Adventures by Winston Churchill. The Man-Eaters of Tsavo by Lt. Colonel J.H. Patterson, D.S.O. The Seven Lives of Colonel Patterson: How an Irish Lion Hunter Led the Jewish Legion to Victory.

@augustvonmackensen1101 Год назад

@@larrysingleton2864 Read the bulk of Churchill’s works I happen to have first editions of his Great Contemporaries, the Second World War (6 vols) and A History of the English Speaking Peoples (4 vols). I also have an abridged edition of The World Crisis, 1911-1918. One of my favourite biographies of Churchill has got to be Andrew Roberts’ one which is up there with those of Martin Gilbert and William Manchester.

@larrysingleton2864 Год назад

@@augustvonmackensen1101 Damn you. Damn you to HELL! Just kidding. I'm kinda jealous. I've got Manchester's trilogy "The Last Lion" up on my bookshelf. "First editions...." You mutha.....

@Palivfed Год назад

Great story! My great-great-grandfather Louis Baumann was a friend of Camillo Ricchiardi. They founded a Boer Colony in Argentine Patagonia in 1902. My great-grandfather Luis de Wet told me about them. Greetings from Argentina.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Wow, I never knew that there was a Boer colony in Patagonia. I had heard of the Welsh one.

@Palivfed Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap Exactly, the Welsh colonization was before the Boer. In any case, the two communities mixed with the passing of the years.

@peterrooke5336 11 месяцев назад

Why did the boers sleep with their boots on ? To keep De Wet from de feet .

@robg5958 Год назад

Thank you for this video Chris. An excellent story, told by an excellent teller, your good self! Keep 'em coming!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

That's very kind of you, Rob. Glad you enjoyed it.

@edwardfrostickblois4191 10 месяцев назад

Except that it's nonsense.

@soidog659 8 месяцев назад

You forgot to add to your story that when Churchill was captured by the Boers, Churchill strongly protested that he should be treated as a POW and set free because he was a civilian War Correspondent. The Boer General Jan Smuts, who was also the Attorny General of the Transvaal at the time and a friend of Churchill’s father, Lord Randolph Churchill, stepped in and told Churchill that he had better change his tune and accept that he was a POW because if he did not accept that, he would be shot by the Boers as a spy. In later years Churchill confessed that was the best legal advice he had ever received.

@TheHistoryChap 8 месяцев назад

Thank you for adding that story. Interesting that they were to work together in later years.

@lahma69 Год назад

I think this is my favorite video you've produced thus far. Simply brilliant story telling!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Many thanks.

@samrodian919 Год назад

Chris that was bloody Brilliant ! You are one of the most natural story tellers ever to have been on RU-vid. I was hanging on every word of it. Thank you.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Very kind of you, thanks.

@Star_Lion_33 Год назад

Fascinating history. Great video. I thoroughly enjoyed this. Thank you.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

@kiwifruit27 Год назад

An excellent video and as always presented with such excitement and enthusiasm. Great stuff

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for your kind words.

@nigeltimms1374 Год назад

Extremely entertaining, interesting and above all fascinating!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Many thanks.

@chrisdebeyer1108 Год назад

Very good !! So important. Details are brilliant.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for watching.

@user-tp1bi6of3v Год назад

Enjoyed your presentation a great deal! Refreshes my memory of the history of that time period. Please do a presentation on John Churchill with his use of the broad sword and archery against the Germans in World War 2. I think he was captured as well (twice as I remember). What an interesting story presented today. I appreciate your presentations and keep them coming!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Strangely enough, someone suggested him last week. I think it would make for a great story.

@nigelcowie6883 Год назад

Great stuff, I am really enjoying this as always.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for taking the time to watch and to comment.

@michaelbooth8219 Год назад

Very interesting Chris keep up the good work

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you, Michael.

@EmergingEvents Год назад

You tell a great story. Thank you!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure! Thanks for watching.

@sameyers2670 Год назад

Thank you, this was a fascinating video

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for watching.

@dididave1000 Год назад

I do so look forward to each new video you post ☺ you are a grand historian and a story teller extraordinaire...thank you

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

David, you are very kind. Thanks for your support.

@ianknight2053 Год назад

Very enjoyable, thank you.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for watching. Glad you enjoyed.

@DeeplyStill Год назад

You tell these stories so well. Thank you

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for watching.

@svetovidarkonsky1670 Год назад

Excellent doco and thank you for introducing me to Arthur Lynch. I looked him up and what an absolutely fascinating Australian character.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Yes Lynch was.

@alrude2847 Год назад

As usual, well researched and entertaining. Yours is one of the few channels that I ring the bell for..

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for your kind support.

@AgentGB1 Год назад

That was brilliant! Thank you!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

@kevincocking8561 Год назад

always a joy to watch this channel

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

That's very kind of you. Thanks.

@theflyingfool Год назад

Excellent! Thank you!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Many thanks.

@briandubois-gilbert8182 Год назад

Fascinating historical narrative full of gems of details and questions for history to ponder of “who did it?” and “what if’s..?” But in the end, as fate would have it, Churchill would not be denied to fulfill his destiny for Britain in WW2.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you enjoyed. Maybe some people do walk with destiny.

@lahma69 Год назад

I simply cannot imagine our collective history without Winston Churchill. He played such a crucial role in World War 2, especially in keeping Britain in the fight against Germany. I do not believe there was ANY other British politician who could have accomplished what he did. With his intractable will, he was able to unite the country in a common belief that they could indeed resist the Nazi menace, and that it was worth the sacrifice. Again, I don't think any other politician would have been able to hold out against the fierce political opposition (even amongst those in his own party) who were ready to concede and make peace with Hitler. It also doesn't hurt that he gave some of the most inspiring, rousing speeches that even today still stir up emotions ("[...] We will never surrender!").

@kristianmoore6682 Год назад

Another fantastic videos

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Many thanks.

@konradstark3110 6 месяцев назад

Good man, like it! Interesting snippets.

@TheHistoryChap 2 месяца назад

Glad you enjoyed my video

@joeritchie4554 Год назад

That was a great story and analysis of history.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you. Although I do feel for Kitchener and Buller. It must have been a nightmare having him buzzing around!

@jennifergilbert9596 Год назад

Excellent video!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for watching.

@lokischildren8714 Год назад

History is full of different shades of grey

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Indeed. That's what makes it so fascinating.

@lokischildren8714 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap me too history is never clear cut

@pabmusic1 Год назад

Really good, interesting and balanced video. Thank you.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

@stevemolina8801 Год назад

Outstanding, what a story. Thank you Sir!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching.

@timfenton5153 Год назад

Excellent, thanks

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

@philipopperman7570 5 месяцев назад

What a fascinating piece of history. Thanks for an excellent channel

@TheHistoryChap 3 месяца назад

Glad you enjoyed it.

@rich_john Год назад

Fantastic episode 👏 👌 👍

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

many thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.

@rule3036 Год назад

Brilliant.Thanks for sharing your research.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

@WOLFROY47 Год назад

already knew, most of it, but, this version with photos, was well presented. you gave it life, so well done

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you.

@Jean-PierreBotha-qf9gu Месяц назад

Amazing video Sir

@TheHistoryChap 28 дней назад

Thanks for your comment.

@heinvanmaarschalkerwaart9799 Год назад

Great presentation

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you liked it.Thank you for taking the time to comment.

@polmick Год назад

Excellent thank you 👏

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

My pleasure. Thanks for watching.

@user-tp1bi6of3v Год назад

Thank you sir and thank you for what you do.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

And thank you for your support.

@accraboi1 5 месяцев назад

great narration

@TheHistoryChap 3 месяца назад

Thanks & thanks for watching my video

@fredazcarate4818 Год назад

Now that is true tale of valor, mental fitness, and old fashion gritty determination. Churchill was and is epitome of manly virtue. Thank you Sir for producing another brilliant video on the great man. Kudos!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks.

@davidwhite4874 Год назад

Pffffft!

@fredazcarate4818 Год назад

@@davidwhite4874 would that be the matting call of a puff. Since it is and I am not . I wish you well and may be you will find your Prince Charming.

@craftycriminalistwithms.z3053 Год назад

You deserve a lot more subscribers! ❤

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you. Getting closer and closer to 100k.

@johnsmith-ik6uz Год назад

Fascinating.War is never black and white.Thankfully with a great analysis to show us the intrcacies it is transformed from something dull into something absolutely essential to study.Thank you for grabbing my attention and keeping me rivetted to the story.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for watching. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

@eancola6111 Год назад

Loved hearing bits and pieces on Murdoch mystery’s and wanted the full story

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Hope this helped fill in some gaps.

@gobbledygook33 Год назад

Just found your channel which I'm enjoying very much. Do you intend to cover the Jacobites, battle of Culloden etc. That would be a great addition in my view. Thankyou for the great content.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you are enjoying channel and yes, I do intend to cover the Jacobites. Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss it.

@the5thmusketeer215 Год назад

Another excellent & very enjoyable account of stirring wartime escapades, Chris. 👏😊 And what **a fascinating coincidence** we have, with respect to Winston Churchill & Boris Johnson - who, we know, is a huge fan of Churchill, aspired to emulate him & PARTLY SUCCEEDED in doing so, by also becoming Prime Minister. But, IN ADDITION: WINSTON got himself fired at….. And BORIS also, um… got himself fired! 😉

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Chuckling away. Yes the similarities are uncanny and I thinkBoris has tried to emulate his hero.

@aesop8694 Год назад

Totally true, both Churchill and Johnson are self promoting liars.

@gregoryvigneault1824 11 месяцев назад

This was very informative and entertaining thank you. I am reading his Nobel prize winning work which is prefaced by his account of the escape.

@TheHistoryChap 11 месяцев назад

Thanks for taking the time to watch and to comment.

@edwardfalcus3227 Год назад

Great video Chris, seeing Winston sat in a rickshaw reminded me of my visit to Durban in 1956 on the way to Hong Kong (troopship Empire Fowey) with the Lady in White singing on the dockside, onshore we had a few rickshaw races pulled by Zulus! Happy days

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Gosh, the Rickshaw boys of Durban. I remember them when I was a child, growing up in the city.

@petercollingwood522 8 месяцев назад

@@TheHistoryChap So you're another Durbanite too eh?

@Michael-ws7rc Год назад

Wow. You know, I’ve heard and read a hundred times that Churchill was captured in the Boer War, and never once before heard the actual story of what happened. What a nice video.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for watching and for commenting too.

@jamesschaffner9414 Год назад

Breaking News: Churchill was recaptured in Ottawa in late 2021; captors and whereabouts of the captive, unknown. (One of Yousuf Karsh's original prints of his "British Bulldog" photo was stolen). Thanks for a great recounting of events and the context of the story, Chris. I didn't quite appreciate the nuances of the combatants. The fog of war. As always, you give balance and accuracy, context, bias free and with the enthusiasm that keeps me coming back for more stories. My childhood godmother's father was the Mr. Howard who helped WSC escape. In my teens during the 1970's as a summer student, I worked on the Durban-Johannesburg oil pipeline that passed through Colenso. One of the storage depots was near Chievely. My dad told me to find the marker where WSC was captured. Glad he told me and glad I found it (with the help of the local station master), "Here marks the spot where..." etc, etc on a white obelisk (If memory serves).

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

James, thanks for sharing your personal story. Appreciated.

@philstanton231 Год назад

Really enjoyed that - thanks Chris. I was hoping to "assist" the story as I have both volumes of "After Pretoria" which are additional to "With the flag to Pretoria". Unfortunately Vol 1 starts June/July 1900. 😞

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you enjoyed.

@williampinner1893 Год назад

Well done.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Many thanks.

@38dragoon38 Год назад

Ironically, if Churchill was to visit the Lancashire town of Oldham (where he stood for election) today, he might be left with the impression that he was back at Omdurman!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for taking the time to comment.

@ronti2492 Год назад

Dear Chris, another terrific video, thankyou so much. This s probably dating me ( and i have not read the entire comments list, so a viewer may have already mentioned it) but the film 'Young Winston', starring the (? late) Simon Ward told the story of Churchill's capture well. I think it dates from the late 70's. The scene is set in the film of the cutting and Churchill's bravery-and then his capture. They have re-created the scene well, as per your description. I beleive the Mauser pistol carired by Ward in the movie was Churchill's actual C9 (?) Mauser pistol.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Good film. I wasn't aware about the ~Mauser that Simon Ward carried being Churchill's very own weapon. Thanks for sharing.

@ronti2492 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap Dear Chris, well I'm not 100% certain- funny the things a teenager remembers however, I recall that from the publicity for this movie, at that time! I'll do a search now. Best

@ronti2492 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap Yes, Ward unfortunatley passed away in 2012 at the age of 70. The film is dated 1972!

@khizani Год назад

Discovered you channel recently and have been enjoying going through many of your videos! A quick, hopefully interesting bit re: foreign officers fighting on Boer side: there was one Niko Bagrationi, subject of Russian Empire, descendent of Georgian royal family. One of the first foreigners to arrive to fight. He made it to colonel in the Boer army but was captured and exiled to St Helena. He met with Lord Kitchener during his captivity (Apparently Kitchener wanted to know what on earth was a Georgian Prince doing fighting Great Britain in South Africa!), during this meeting he confronted Kitchener about the atrocities being committed by British troops… He even wrote a book about his experience in this war. Not sure that book is available in English through.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for sharing. Very interesting.

@mikenorton3294 9 месяцев назад

Brilliant. Great man.

@TheHistoryChap 9 месяцев назад

Thank you for watching

@whangsiu6465 6 месяцев назад

多謝！

@TheHistoryChap 6 месяцев назад

Thank you very much for your support. Much appreciated.

@joezephyr Год назад

Fabulous thank you! Would love a video on the story of the jeep in British service. Her Majesty the Queen was the last head of state to work on Jeeps. I wish she was still around to service my Jeep. I Love My Jeep!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

That's an interesting suggestion. Will add to my (never-ending) list.

@Knightstorm12 Год назад

What an awesome series of events in regards to a hero against darkness and totalitarianism

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for taking the time to comment

@sojourn6697 Год назад

Very interesting. I like how you treat history; that it’s not black and white. So true. I have been up to Spion Kop. An eerie place with the Afrikaans and British graves up there.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for sharing. I always find Culloden to be eerie too.

@jstepanek4181 Год назад

Dear Chris thanks wonderful story my favourite subject I have in my cullection a mouser rifle from the bore war if only it cube speak

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you enjoyed the story.

@slick_slicers Год назад

Someone once asked me to name three people, dead or alive that I would like to have at a dinner party. The first person I selected was Churchill. His life story could entertain for weeks, let alone the few hours of an evening!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Would be very interesting and I doubt you would have to contribute anything to the discussion. Like all great people, Churchill was probably inspiring and annoying in equal measures. But what a life!

@johnroche7541 Год назад

Crikey what another great high quality documentary. I would recommend subscribers to watch the movie "Young Winston" which gives an excellent account of Churchills South African adventure. Also just a little correction. Major John McBride did not command the Irish Brigade. It is known in Ireland as "McBrides Brigade" but it was actually commanded by Irish-American Colonel John Blake who was a former US Calvaryman and veteran of the Indian Wars including the campaign against Geronimo. When Major John McBride was executed by firing squad in 1916 for taking part in the Easter Rising he refused a blindfold stating "This is not the first time I have faced British guns". He was married to Maud Gonne who the Irish poet W B.Yeats was infatuated with and was an inspiration for a lot of his poetry. McBrides son would be a future president of the Republic of Ireland. I would recommend the book "McBrides Brigade-Irish Commandos in the Anglo-Boer War" by Donal P McCraken. Both McBride and John Blake would write about their experiences in the Boer War. Also it was not exclusively soldiers from the Royal Dublin Fusiliers that were on the armoured train as there was soldiers from the Durham Light Infantry and a contingent from the Royal Navy operated the mounted cannon. I personally think Churchill was captured by a rank and file Boer Burgher. For example it made a better story for both Churchill and Botha to give it some embellishment after what they both achieved in their respective careers. The bravery of the Irish regiments in the British Army was immortalized in R.C.Woodvilles painting "My Brave Irish" which is a quote from Queen Victoria. Due to the bravery of Irish regiments in the Boer War a new Irish regiment would be formed which was the Irish Guards in April 1900. There is a monument to the Irish fallen from the Royal Dublin Fusiliers at the entrance to St. Stephens Green in Dublin known as the "Fusiliers Arch". During the Treaty negotiations(October-December 1921) in London between the Irish Delegation led by Michael Collins and the British government there was a heated exchange and Collins stated that the British had put a £10,000 bounty on his head during the Irish War of Independence 1919-1921. Churchill said "One moment Mr Collins" and returned with the wanted poster issued by the Boers for his capture dead or alive. David Lloyd George gave a poignant moving speech in Manchester 1900 condemning the British policy of farm burning etc but just 20 years later in 1920 as Pime Minister his government deployed the notorious "Black &Tan" and Auxiliaries to Ireland who burned down houses as official reprisals and killed innocent civilians. Christain De Wet was the childhood hero of Michael Collins. Christain De Wet wtote to Collins to congratulate him in his fight against the British! I think I gave you a lot of the aforementioned information previously in a post months ago on one of your other excellent Boer War documentaries. As always wishing you continued success in all your future endeavours.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

John, thanks for those illuminating insights. Very much appreciated.

@shermangriffin4668 Год назад

You have done it again Old Chap. I love your channel. Churchill was indeed a controversial figure. You love him or hate him. I believe he was a man who used the times to his advantage.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

I reckon you are right...a man who was always willing to ride his luck.

@simonkevnorris Год назад

Another interesting and informative video. I think I was surprised by two things The British use of rum dune after they were banned and the different nationalities fighting on each side.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Glad you found it interesting.

@samrodian919 Год назад

No doubt some squaddies chopped the tips of the rifle rounds off with their bayonets, probably unofficially lol I know I would have done the same.

@JohnEboy73 Год назад

Very good video. Have you seen any RU-vid videos by the late actor Kenneth Griffiths? They were made in the early 1970's and include interviews with veterans of the Boer War.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

I'm glad you enjoyed. No I haven't seen those videos. Thanks for sharing.

@LeslieDevoe 4 месяца назад

Very interesting . My mother guided The Duke of Marlboro at The Nathaniel Chew House, Clivdon. It was the site of the Battle of Germantown. The next year we visited Blenheim Palace. It was one of my high points of our Oddesy.

@TheHistoryChap 4 месяца назад

Thank you for watching my video and for taking the time to share your family story.

@albieduplessis6783 Год назад

Dolf De la Rey is a distant relative of mine. I still have a newspaper clipping inherited from my grandfather titled "Churchill's captor dies " reporting on Uncle Dolf's passing.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

What a great relative to have in the family.

@jonnyj4827 Год назад

Great video, are their any books you would recommend on the Boer war please

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

The Boer War by Thomas Packham.

@EireGenX Год назад

Great story thanks. I personally don't like Churchill but have an avid interest in military history.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Bet he was a nightmare to work for and an even bigger nightmare to have under your command!

@dunec4039 Год назад

Great videos. Conventional wisdom has it that it was Witbank, rather than Middelburg, where he hid in a mine shaft. (OK, only 20 miles apart).

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for adding

@RajuDas-qu1li Год назад

Quite intriguing! Sir Winston Churchill was a man of deep wisdom. The then Donald Trump! I read how he escaped when I was a student in class five. But you know the art of how history should be presented to its audience. Great job, Chris!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment.

@anselmdanker9519 Год назад

Thank you very much for covering this episode in Winston Churchill 's life. Did he recover his missing Mauser and use it during the rest of the Boer war?

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Yes. It was left on the escaping train and when he arrived back in Natal after his escape, it was in storage.

@anselmdanker9519 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap thank you very much - did he keep until the end of his life.i wonder. I recall reading that he visited Greece during the war and had a pistol with him during the Communist insurrection.

@jeffwolcott7815 Год назад

I know he was a civilian but it wows me Churchill wasn't awarded some kind of award for his bravery on the train or daring escape.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for sharing that thought

@leggie65 Год назад

A lot of British football team's formed around the Boer war time have part's of stadium's are called the Kop( liverpool fc) or Spion kop (Sheffield Wednesday)as these terraces were so steep reminding veteran's of the slopes they fought on and saw so many men killed on.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Correct. In fact I refer to some of those stories in my video about Spion Kop. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-CUlHyOHvYgU.html

@cameronbrown9080 Год назад

Yet again a great video thanks for what you do I think Churchill was a great war leader but that's about it he was crazy like the one at Sidney Street and his shotguns

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Many flaws but when Britain really needed him he was there.

@cameronbrown9080 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap you are spot on he was the greatest man ever in the war and stopped the upper class from selling us out

@andysvehiclehistorychannel 5 месяцев назад

Oldham my home town his seat is now in our new Odeon cinema based in the old magnificent town hall !

@TheHistoryChap 5 месяцев назад

Thank you very much for sharing. I wasn’t aware of that.

@jayt7085 Год назад

Here's a what if..... When Winston first arrived in India to join the Malakand Field Force, he ripped his right shoulder climbing out of the boat below the Gateway to India monument in Bombay. He had his hand on the ladder when the boat dipped in the swell. He knew he was now unable, as a cavalry officer, to use his sword. At Omdurman you could argue his life was saved because during the charge of the Lancers he sheathed his sword and used the new Mauser pistol. It saved his life. So, no torn shoulder, no Winston, no WW2 leader.... PS thanks for your content. Fantastic. How about the desert column saving Gordon? Brits on camels and two extraordinary battles. Come on!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Desert column...? You are on! Just give me a little time.

@harryshriver6223 Год назад

An interesting tale of who captured Churchill, I was amazed by his service and superstar status. I think sometimes a hero is needed, to rally support for the crown 👑 Bravo, hermano 😊

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for watching.

@jeffsmith2022 Год назад

When I see that photo with the soldier bent over looking at the ground, I think of Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and the film, Gunga Din...

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Good point!

@leetaylor579 Год назад

Another Blinding one !

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for those kind words.

@MarkDenson-ld8bf 5 месяцев назад

He certainly did do “something in this world” whatever people may think about him the world would be a different place if he hadn’t been our PM during WW2 Thank you again for another great video

@TheHistoryChap 3 месяца назад

thanks for watching the video & taking the time to comment.

@stephenmcdonald7908 Год назад

I'm no lover of Churchill, but his reaction on the armoured train incident is classic. "When I escaped from the relative safety of a railway accident.......

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Stephen, I am sure that he could be extremely hard work, but he had an incredible knack of popping up in various stories.

@ianperryman1078 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap That's probably because he wrote most of them.

@lelandaucompaugh4827 Год назад

I am still looking for my great grandfather Charles Byrne. You mentioned the soldiers on the train with Churchill were the Dublin Irish Fusilers. Assume it was a company strength.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Without looking back through my notes I can';t confirm numbers.

@peacefulpleb Год назад

James Haldane of the Gordon Highlanders would later escape from Boer captivity and rise to be a corps commander in the Great War; he died in 1950 I believe.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for sharing. I knew that he managed to escape but didn't know what happened to him afterwards.

@perrydowd9285 Год назад

He sounds like he would have made a great archaeologists. 🤠 Honestly though, it seems as if everything you learn about Churchill is another surprise.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

He has an mazing ability to pop up in stories.

@julbro8451 Год назад

Could you do a video on Percy Fawcett sometime? He claimed to have seen Winston Churchill in disguise in the Western Front theatre after his Dardanelles disgrace. Percy Fawcett - very fascinating British explorer, worthy of a good vid.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Percy Fawcett is a new one on me. You have sparked my interest.

@julbro8451 Год назад

@@TheHistoryChap The book about him is called, "The Lost City of Z." I think Brad Pitt was in a recent movie based on this book. Percy Fawcett was an artillery man in WW I and then he became the great Amazon explorer whose mysterious disappearance in the deep jungle has fascinated people for generations, a little like Amelia Earhardt. Viewers would love his story!

@joebloggs4807 Год назад

“The most powerful person in the world is the story teller. The storyteller sets the vision, values and agenda of an entire generation that is to come”. Steve Jobs

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for sharing.

@peterrooke5336 Год назад

I visited the place where he was held in Pretoria, it was a school but is now a library. I also visited the sight of the train wreck where he was captured . There is an upturned carriage to mark the spot I'm not sure if it's original or not

@TheHistoryChap 11 месяцев назад

Interesting. Thank you for sharing.

@kmorton54 Год назад

Chris what did you think of the movie "Young Winston"? Also where is the book about Winston Churchill in the bookcase???

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Keith, it is a while since I have seen the film. It was very much based upon his book "My Early Life". As for my Churchill books they are down on the bottom left hand side, just out of shot.

@eric2685 Год назад

Churchill was an old fashioned warrior , with flaws . Then again , who amongst all of us has not got those ?!

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

I agree. All heroes have flaws.

@avnrulz8587 Год назад

Read 'Young Winston' bio and the C96 he's carrying in the biopic became my favorite pistol.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for commenting.

@robertdore9592 11 месяцев назад

We do not 'run' for office in England; we 'STAND' 🙂

@TheHistoryChap 11 месяцев назад

Strange because I stood for election to a county council 😀

@umvhu Год назад

In the early 1960s as a young child my family visited a friend in Cape Town, they cared for a very old man called Mr Elder who claimed to have been Churchill's batman.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thanks for sharing that interesting little snippet

@halfaquarter2308 Год назад

Good stuff, as usual, Chris. Was told years ago that Churchill, in case of Nazi invasion, had planned/agreed to the assassination of high ranking police as it was a given that they would collaborate. Is this true and if so could you provide a link to any info?

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

hadn't heard that one but it would be great to investigate.

@CB-fz3li Год назад

I saw a programme about the groups of civilians who were chosen to cause havoc behind enemy lines. I can't remember what they were called but it was claimed they had hit lists of notable figures in the community to be assasinated. Not through any fault of the people on the list it was just their position and authority in society would have potentially been of use to the invaders.

@johnroche7541 Год назад

@@CB-fz3li Auxiliaries were the name given to these British guerilla fighters if Operation Sealion came to fruition. British TV(Channel 4) made a fantastic documentary about this a number of years ago. The life expectancy for these fighters was short. Some of their underground bases are still being found around the UK today.

@Sam_BTT Год назад

Just wanted to give an opinion on a throwaway comment made during this excellent presentation. I should add that I am a history graduate (now a journalist). The script referenced the tearing down of statues in the context of people mistakenly believing history is clearcut, black and white, etc. Having interviewed people involved in some of these events, I think I can say with some authority that no one tears down a statue because they think history is clearcut. On the contrary, they would argue that they're tearing down statues precisely because history is more complex. To them, such a protest is saying, for example, 'yes this guy might have had a swashbuckling career, taken part in great battles and/or enriched British society in some way during their lifetime but they were also an important cog in the enslavement and/or murder of black people so I'd prefer there's not a statue celebrating them down the road from me.' I have to say, this seems pretty reasonable, to say the least. Tearing down statues certainly doesn't change history, as is often claimed. It's a silly thing to say. Only a time machine could do that. What we can do, however, is speak more honestly about events of the past. Refusing to ignore certain inconvenient aspects of history does not 'change history' but enriches our understanding of it and frees us up to write more accurately about our past and complete the record. All historians should embrace this, not fear it. Sure, one might have to dispense with some childhood heroes along the way and perhaps acknowledge that their father or favourite teacher misled them somewhat, but that's all part of being a grown-up. Facing reality is how our societies progress. We survive losing Santa Claus and Spiderman. I wager we'll get over the odd slave-trader or two also.

@TheHistoryChap Год назад

Thank you for taking the time to contribute your in-depth comment.

@Sam_BTT Год назад

@The History Chap No worries. I love your channel. I'm currently in the process of booking a trip to Durban in April to finally realise a lifelong ambition of visiting Isandlwana and Rorke's Drift. Any tips will be most welcome!