Wiki warning
As so many people seem to consider Wiki to be the fount of all knowledge, I was interested to see this story in the Daily Telegraph...
“In Victory, Magnanimity…”
Sir Winston Churchill famously stated his outlook as being: ‘In War, Resolution; In Defeat, Defiance; In Victory, Magnanimity; and in Peace, Good Will’. It is interesting to note the lasting impact that these very British values of ‘magnanimity...
Natal Police at Ladysmith
Of all the many myths which surround the Boer War, one of the most amusing is the idea that the conflict was fought between ‘Britain and South Africa’. As ‘South Africa’ did not exist at the time, this is self-evidently...
“I need 500,000 men…”
As the last few thousand British and American troops leave Afghanistan this month, after almost 20 years, there was an interesting comment in a letter to the Telegraph: ‘the alliance would do well to reflect on the words of the former coalition...
Advice for True Believers
I was recently told by one True Believer / Defender of the Myth that he would never read any of my books ‘on principle’. I asked him if that was the ‘principle of not wanting to learn anything about the Boer War’, and he...
‘The King of Special Pleading’
I’ve become aware of an amusing character who has taken to Facebook in a desperate attempt to rubbish my books. Why he doesn’t actually research and write a book of his own is unclear, but his efforts online are always worth a laugh. In a...
The True Believers are getting rattled…
I was recently made aware of an article in a South African history group newsletter, entitled: Who (and what) started the Anglo Boer War / South African War? Though the aim of this article is claimed to be to answer the question: ‘Was the ZAR...
Daring to challenge ‘group think’
There is a fascinating article by Sherelle Jacobs in today’s Telegraph, mainly about the never-ending drama of Covid etc, but also on the subject of free speech and the challenging of so-called ‘orthodox’ ideas: Although it...
A glimpse into the fevered mind of a True Believer…
I recently enjoyed an entertaining exchange of view with an entertainingly fanatical True Believer / Defender of the Myth, so I thought it might be interesting to explore the mindset of one who adopts such a position. Why, for example, do such...
More comedy gold from John Elsegood
Anything written by John Elsegood usually raises a laugh, as he never lets historical reality get in the way of maintaining Apartheid-era myths of Boer victimhood and British aggression. I was recently sent a link to this article of his...
Honouring our Heroes of Empire – Telegraph article
Honour Britain’s imperial troops as heroes of empire What the critics often ignore is the fact that many of the black and Asian troops who fought in both world wars were salaried volunteers ZAREER MASANI26 April 2021 • 7:50am Many people...
Stellaland Restitution: a study in stupidity
Though I avoid social media like the plague, I was recently sent this article which apparently appeared on Facebook...