Bloemfontein Conference

The Bloemfontein Conference was a meeting that took place in Bloemfontein, capital of the Orange Free State from May 31 until June 5, 1899. Bloemfontein (ˈbluːmfɒnteɪn Afrikaans and Dutch for "spring of Bloem (bloom" The Republic of the Orange Free State (Oranje-Vrystaat Dutch: Oranje-Vrijstaat) was an independent Boer republic in southern Africa The main issue dealt with the status of British migrant workers called "Uitlanders", who mined the gold fields in Transvaal. Uitlander, Afrikaans for 'outlander' was the name given to foreign Migrant workers during the initial exploitation of the Witwatersrand gold fields in For the Russian theme park see Transvaal Park. The Transvaal (Afrikaans lit

The conference was initiated by Orange Free State president Martinus Theunis Steyn, in order to settle differences between Transvaal President Paul Kruger and British High Commissioner Alfred Milner. Martinus (or Marthinus) Theunis Steyn ( October 2, 1857 &ndash 28 November 1916) was a South African Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger ( October 10, 1825 &ndash July 14, 1904) better known as Paul Kruger and fondly known as Oom Alfred Milner 1st Viscount Milner, KG, GCB, GCMG, PC (23 March 1854&ndash13 May 1925 was a controversial German-born British It was considered a last effort at reconciliation to prevent war between the two factions.

At the conference, Milner made three demands from Kruger:

Enactment by Transvaal a law that would immediately give Uitlanders enfranchisement and the right to vote.
Use of the English language in the Volksraad (Transvaal Parliament}. South Africa The Volksraad (English " People's Council " was the Parliament of the former South African Republic (ZAR (also sometimes
All laws of the Volksraad would need to be approved by the British Parliament.

Kruger considered these demands an impossiblility, however he was willing to reduce the period of Uitlander enfranchisement from the present fourteen years to seven years. Milner refused to compromise his original demands. And despite encouragement from British Colonial Secretary Joseph Chamberlain for him to continue the talks, Milner walked out of the conference on June 5, and no resolution concerning the fate of the Uitlanders was reached. Joseph Chamberlain ( 8 July 1836 &ndash 2 July 1914) was an influential British businessman politician and statesman

At this time, Milner composed a diatribe called the "Helot's Dispatch", which lambasted the Transvaal as a force that "menaces the peace and prosperity of the world". On October 11, 1899, the Second Boer War began. See also First Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The Second Boer War ( Dutch: Tweede Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: