Boer War

American  

noun

1. a war in which Great Britain fought against the Transvaal and Orange Free State, 1899–1902.

2. a war between Great Britain and the Transvaal, 1880–81.

---

Boer War British  

noun

1. Also called: Anglo-Boer War.   South African War.  either of two conflicts between Britain and the South African Boers, the first (1880–1881) when the Boers sought to regain the independence given up for British aid against the Zulus, the second (1899–1902) when the Orange Free State and Transvaal declared war on Britain

---

Boer War Cultural  

1. A war between British and Dutch settlers (Boers) in what is now South Africa, fought from 1899 to 1902 and won by the British. The country was united in 1910.

---

Example Sentences

Lengthy appendices compare its versions of episodes such as the Battle of Omdurman and the Boer War with earlier accounts Churchill gave to newspapers and magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Strand.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 22, 2026

The power of machine guns, first seen at the turn of the century in the Boer War, also completely changed the battlefield experience in total war.

From Textbooks • Dec. 14, 2022

That was in 1900, when a 26-year-old Winston Churchill was on a lecture tour, recounting his exploits during the Boer War.

From Washington Post • Aug. 9, 2022

He also works at another medical practice a few streets away from the Edward VII - a private hospital in Mayfair, used by the royals, which originally treated wounded officers from the Boer War.

From BBC • Oct. 22, 2021

The bike slid round so the back faced front, clipped the Boer War Memorial, and Ross Wilcox got cartwheeled over the crossroads.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell