Hey guys, I've just picked up on your thread and think it's brilliant! I don't want to mess with your thread, but so many aspects mentioned in your discussion reminded me of the myriad interconnections that link our written history ... if the ABW is regarded as a layer, or chapter, in our history, ye gods, we have many, many others that will fill one fat volume. And the amazing thing is how these seemingly separate layers are all so inextraibly copnnected!
For me, the real joy is unearthing stuff that so often provides the missing link, or provides an explanation for an event or decision ...
Figure this one: The FS and Basutholand were niche destinations for a generation of Brits, with a strong Scottish presence. Many of them became traders, and most of them married Dutch (Afrikaans) women who often were inveighed upon to lose their heritage, and assimilate all that's British.
Numbers are hard to asses, but we're estimating at least 100 such unions in the five years leading up to the ABW. Can anyone imagine the kind of pressure, heartbreak and bitterness the ABW would have created? My interest lies in those couples and families who skipped the border into the then Basutoland, and saw out the war from across the Caledon River. Some entrepreneurial types built thriving trading operations, mainly on the back of a booming wool price that in turn fuelled an explosion of sheep farming in southern Africa ...
Such is the depth of our SHORT history, that one can put together any number of ultimate themed trips.
Topic: gravelroads and history (Read 4398 times)
