Over a century ago, a Scottish adventurer attempted to expand the British Empire in South Africa with the military backing of a mere 500 men. He was part of a conspiracy of entrepreneurs, gold magnates and politicians, each of whom had different motives for supporting and encouraging his actions. Dr Leander Starr Jameson’s Raid failed miserably. A failed attempt to expand the Empire on the cheap, it almost brought down the British Government, destroyed the career of one of the most eminent South African Statesmen, nearly caused a war with the South African Republic and exposed Britain to international ridicule.
Employing a number of contemporary sources, The Rescue They Called a Raid examines the motives for Jameson’s actions, the reasons for the Raid’s failure and the consequences for those involved. It attempts to answer the extent of involvement by the British Colonial Office and its Secretary of State, Joseph Chamberlain and how he, Cecil Rhodes, Paul Kruger and Jameson worked for their own and their countries best interests which were not necessarily one in the same. Furthermore, this volume considers the part played by Johannesburg’s dignitaries and the consequences of their lukewarm support for Jameson.
The Rescue They Called a Raid also contains a detailed examination of the two Inquiries which were held as a result of the failed Raid and a blow-by-blow account of the evidence given by the many witnesses. Reactions in the British Parliament and the fate of the Raiders are particular features of this work, as is how the actions of those swept up by the Raid were to affect their future careers.
Polecamy
