Today in history: Winston Churchill is captured by the Boers
Churchill was working as a war correspondent for The Morning Post, and was in South Africa to cover the Anglo-Boer War for the paper.
On 15 November 1899, Winston Churchill was captured in Chieveley, in what was then the province of Natal, and imprisoned in a Prisoner of War (POW) camp when the train he was travelling in was ambushed by the Boers.
He managed to escape, and with the assistance of an English mine manager, made his way to Delagoa Bay.
Churchill was working as a war correspondent for The Morning Post, and was in South Africa to cover the Anglo-Boer War for the paper.
Hailed as a hero in England, Churchill then joined the army that marched on Mafikeng.
On his return to England, he published a volume on his experiences during the war in South Africa.
Churchill was outspoken on a number of issues, such as the danger of German re-armament after World War I.
His warnings against Hitler were largely ignored, but at the outbreak of the Second World War, his foresight was acknowledged and he became the war-time Prime Minister.
Churchill was said to have a very close relationship with South African Prime Minister, Jan Smuts, who offered him great support during the Second World War.
Information sourced from: South African History Online.
