Boer General Louis Botha was born on 27 September 1862 in Greytown Natal and spent his early life there before his family relocated to the Orange Free State.
He saw action in the early battles of Natal, taking over command of the forces after the death of Piet Joubert.
After the fall of Pretoria in June 1900, Louis Botha led the guerrilla campaign against the British.
After two years of guerrilla warfare, Botha was prominent in efforts to settle the war with the British, representing the Boers at the peace negotiations in 1902, and was signatory to the Treaty of Vereeniging.
In the period of reconstruction under British rule, Botha went to Europe with de Wet and de la Rey to raise funds to enable the Boers to help reconstruct the damage caused by the British scorched earth policy and concentration camps.
