Hungarians in the Anglo-Boer War

Gábor Szabó-Zsoldos

doi:10.17159/2309-8392/2021/v66n2a1

Abstract

The Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), also known as the South African War, had many Hungarian connections in the areas of economy, politics, and culture. Great Britain and the Boer Republics attempted to purchase agricultural products (especially horses and flour) in Hungary, to be used during the war. Hungarian journals and newspapers published a large number of articles and other features on the war, and outstanding Hungarian poets and novelists, as well as politicians and other public figures reflected on the conflict and expressed their pro-Boer, pro-British, or neutral opinions. Hungarians who served in the Boer commandos or who fought under the Union Jack in South Africa constitute the closest connection between the Carpathian Basin and the Anglo-Boer War. Seventeen Hungarians have been identified who took an active part in the war, the majority of them (twelve people), on the Boer side, while only five supported the British war effort. This article focuses on three of the Hungarian participants: Tibor Péchy, Albert Wass, and Albert Theophilus Duka. While Péchy and Wass were pro-Boer volunteers, Duka served in the British Army. After describing their South African activities, a comparison is made of the motivation for their participation in the Anglo-Boer War.

Highlights

Participation by foreign volunteers is a widely known feature of the Anglo-Boer War, which is called the South African War
While Ady responded to the fact that Hungarian newspapers at the time were filled with articles on South Africa, Kosztolányi the Boers during the war
Péchy named two factors that distinguished him from Félix Luzsénszky and the other Hungarian pro-Boer volunteers: the amount of time he had spent in southern Africa, and his knowledge of the Dutch/Afrikaans language and the culture of the Boers

Summary

Introduction

Participation by foreign volunteers is a widely known feature of the Anglo-Boer War, which is called the South African War. While Ady responded to the fact that Hungarian newspapers at the time were filled with articles on South Africa, Kosztolányi the Boers during the war. In contrast to the pro-Boer volunteers, the pro-British Hungarians garnered less interest, and only a few short news columns informed the contemporary Hungarian public about the South African military career of Pál Bornemisza, Albert Theophilus Duka, János Propper and Lajos Vadász. While Duka fought for the British, Péchy and Wass were pro-Boer volunteers Their wartime activity, motivation and the available sources on their South African military careers make these three men stand. Tibor Péchy (1868 1924) stands out among the group of Hungarian participants in many respects He had been living in South Africa for three years when the Anglo-Boer War broke out. This meant the end of his South African military career.

Motivation of the Hungarian volunteers

Conclusion