Our First Foreign War (Paperback)

Nigel Robson

ISBN 10: 0995140707 / ISBN 13: 9780995140707

Published by Massey University Press, Auckland, 2021

About this Item

Paperback. Foreshadowing our unseemly haste to fight for King and Country in 1914, New Zealanders were enthusiastic supporters of the colonial war between Britain and the Boers when it was declared in 1899. The country welcomed the chance to prove itself and its loyalty to the British Empire on an international stage. Our contribution was small - just 6500 troops sent to fight - but our response to the conflict was on a grander scale. In an outpouring of patriotic sentiment, many thousands followed the stories of the sieges of Mafeking, Kimberley and Ladysmith. There was memorabilia everywhere, and it seemed as if everyone was either raising funds or joining cadet corps, including many women and girls. Little has been written of this important period in New Zealand's history. This is the first book to offer a finely grained analysis of the nation's perceptions and expectations of the war, Maori responses to the conflict, the effect of war-related deaths, injuries and disease on the country, and its economic impact. It also demonstrates that the building of our national identity through military engagement began well before Gallipoli and the Western Front. The fascinating account of an often overlooked war. Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780995140707

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Our First Foreign War (Paperback)
• Publisher: Massey University Press, Auckland
• Publication Date: 2021
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0995140707
• ISBN 13: 9780995140707
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

When war broke out between the British Empire and the Boer republics in 1899, New Zealand was among Britain’s most enthusiastic supporters. Many welcomed the opportunity to prove their nation’s military capabilities and its loyalty to the Empire.

Although the numbers sent to South Africa were small, the response at home was on a grander scale. Contributions to the war effort flooded in and New Zealanders closely followed the fortunes of their contingents in the field and the drama of the sieges of Mafeking, Kimberley and Ladysmith. Patriotic men, women and children packed fund-raising events and joined military volunteer and school cadet corps.

This is the first book to examine a phenomenon that has few parallels in New Zealand history. It offers a finely grained analysis of the nation’s response to the South African War, and the conflict’s enduring impact on New Zealand.

About the Author

Nigel Robson is a senior historian at the Office of Maori Crown Relations ― Te Arawhiti. This, his first book, comes out of his master’s thesis (2013) supervised by Associate Professor James Watson, Massey University. Robson has contributed articles to journals, including ‘A Warrior Chief: Tuta Nihoniho, Porourangi and Maori in the Second Boer War 1899–1902’, The Volunteers: The Journal of the New Zealand Military Historical Society (2012), and presented conference papers, including ‘Chinaman and Trooper’, a paper examining the impact of the South African War on New Zealand’s Chinese community (2019 Dragon Tails ‘Transformation and Transformation’ conference held at Victoria University) and ‘What a Trophy for One Christian to Loot from Another!’, at the New Zealand Historians Association conference (2019), a paper which examined the looting of religious items by New Zealand soldiers in South Africa during the South African War.