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Did You Know?

Norvalspont was a railway junction on the Cape-Northern Cape border, established as a British military base during the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902). The concentration camp at Norvalspont was one of the earliest such camps, opened in late 1900 to house Boer civilians, primarily women and children, who had been removed from farms in the surrounding districts. The site was chosen for its proximity to the railway line, which facilitated supply and transport, but the camp suffered from overcrowding, poor sanitation, and outbreaks of measles and enteric fever, leading to a high mortality rate, particularly among children. The camp also held a separate section for black Africans, who were interned under similarly harsh conditions, though their numbers and death toll are less well documented. Norvalspont is historically significant as an example of the British 'concentration camp' system, which by the war's end held over 100,000 Boers and approximately 115,000 black Africans across the two republics and parts of the Cape Colony. The camp cemetery at Norvalspont remains a tangible reminder of the civilian suffering, with graves marked for many of the deceased, and the site is now a heritage location, though little physical infrastructure from the camp survives above ground.

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