About this book
Native Races and the War by Josephine Butler is a powerful Victorian indictment of colonial injustice that probes the treatment of South Africa’s indigenous peoples during the South African conflicts. Combining history, non-fiction analysis, and poignant war stories, Butler catalogues the annexation of the Transvaal, the Convention of 1881, testimony gathered by royal commissions, and the voices of native chiefs whose pleas were too often ignored.
Butler — a noted feminist and abolitionist — frames her argument around the distinction between legalized slavery and the everyday subjection of native races by colonial powers and individuals. The book reproduces speeches, letters (including appeals from figures like King Khama and relatives of Cetewayo), and eyewitness material to expose contempt for native peoples and to insist that lasting peace requires justice for both colored and white men. Her Victorian moral urgency resonates with contemporary debates about empire, human rights, and racial inequality.
Ideal for listeners of history, non-fiction, and war stories, this audiobook will appeal to students of British imperial history, human-rights readers, and anyone seeking a morally engaged, well-documented account of colonial South Africa and its enduring lessons.
