Louis Botha

Louis Botha (1862-1919), South African soldier and statesman, the son of a Voortrekker, born in Greytown. In 1884 he helped found the New Republic in the Vryheid district of what is now the province of KwaZulu-Natal, in eastern South Africa. When the new Republic became part of the South African Republic (1888), he became politically active and held a number of posts before being elected to parliament in 1897. Following the outbreak of the South African War (Boer War) in 1899, Botha joined the Boer army, becoming commander-in-chief in 1900. He helped negotiate the Treaty of Vereenigen that ended the conflict in 1902.

As the first premier of the Transvaal, Botha attended the constitutional convention (1908-1909) that led to the establishment of the Union (now Republic) of South Africa. He headed the South African government from 1910 until his death. At the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Botha committed South Africa to the Allied cause, a move that aroused violent opposition from some Afrikaners. He defeated the ensuing insurrection in February 1915 and launched the successful takeover of German South West Africa (now Namibia) that March.