Destruction and opportunism: firearms, violence and banditry among Khoe-San in the early 19th-century Cape Colony

Abstract

The conflicts along the colonial Cape frontier in the late 18th and early 19th centuries saw mixed groups of Khoe-San descent forming bandit communities to both resist the colony and to improve their own stations in life. Members within these communities often banded together after fleeing their positions as subservient workers in the colony, either on settlerowned
farms or in the military. Firearms had a significant impact on these communities. In some cases, like that of the bandit leader Draghonder, they sought to enact revenge and resistance towards their former masters. Draghonder’s attacks, however, ultimately led to a response from the colony. This response included a heavily armed commando and Khoe-San military unit, and resulted in the destruction of the bandit community. In other cases, such as that of the bandit leader Abraham Kruger, the bandits acquired firearms and turned on groups who were not able to defend themselves, including smaller Khoe-San communities. Kruger and his community sought to enrich themselves by preying on others. While they effectively used their guns for opportunistic measures, these opportunities ultimately came at the price of the destruction of other indigenous communities.