63 Facts About Breaker Morant

Breaker Morant embarked as a corporal and ended his term of service as a sergeant, having spent much of his time as a despatch rider.

Breaker Morant then returned to England for six months while he unsuccessfully sought to clear some debts.

Breaker Morant was accused of the summary execution of Floris Visser, a wounded POW, and the slaying of four Afrikaners and four Dutch schoolteachers who had surrendered at the Elim Hospital, five of whom were members of the Soutpansberg Commando.

Breaker Morant's father died in August 1864, four months before Edwin Henry was born.

Breaker Morant received prizes for French, German, classics, dictation and elocution, but constantly misbehaved and influenced other boys to join him in his misdemeanours.

Breaker Morant arrived in Queensland aboard the SS Waroonga when it docked in Townsville on 5 June 1883.

Breaker Morant often claimed to have been born in 1865 in Devon, and to be the son of Admiral Sir George Digby Morant of the Royal Navy, a claim repeated as fact in a book published soon after his execution.

Admiral Breaker Morant released a statement in 1902 that the executed man was not his son and was not in any way related to him.

The author Nick Bleszynski uses circumstantial evidence to theorise that Admiral Breaker Morant could have been Edwin Murrant's biological father, predominantly citing geographic proximity and questions about the funding of Murrant's education.

Breaker Morant claimed to have studied at the Royal Naval College, but none of his names appear in naval records.

Breaker Morant gained a reputation for his horsemanship, including as a steeplechaser and polo player, and as drinker and womaniser.

Breaker Morant would encourage an Aboriginal stockman to fight a few rounds with him by initially hiding his true boxing skills, then reveal them by beating him severely.

One of the most well-known demonstrations of Breaker Morant's horsemanship occurred in 1897 at the Hawkesbury Show, north west of Sydney in New South Wales.

For over a minute, Morant rode the violently bucking horse into submission, popularising his nickname "The Breaker".

Breaker Morant had to flee Melbourne in Victoria after only a month, and travelled to Adelaide in South Australia where he quickly wore out his welcome.

Breaker Morant was employed directly by the newspaper, and his final pay from the British Army was on 31 July 1900.

Burleigh and Breaker Morant followed closely behind Lord Roberts' advance from Pretoria to the border with Portuguese East Africa, and Burleigh was present with Roberts in Durban when the latter had declared that the war was practically over.

For help with this task Breaker Morant looked to useful bureaucrats in the administration.

One of these was Lieutenant Percy Hunt, a regular British Army officer formerly of the 13th Hussars who, like Breaker Morant, was a lover of both horses and polo.

Breaker Morant claimed that he did not have the funds immediately available to pay his extensive hotel bill, but that it should be forwarded to Admiral Breaker Morant in Devon and would be promptly paid.

Breaker Morant then forwarded an account of the meeting to journalist friends in Adelaide, and the Adelaide Observer duly printed it a month later.

Harry Breaker Morant had further claimed to be a war correspondent for the Daily Telegraph and had "left without discharging his liability" of sixteen pounds and thirteen shillings.

The letter was received in early February 1901 by Flora Breaker Morant, whose late husband was a cousin of the admiral.

Breaker Morant consulted with her solicitor and replied with a formal note advising the hotel that the admiral did not know the man referred to in their letter, and would not be held liable for his debts.

Whatever his aims, Breaker Morant did not have a very successful visit to England.

Breaker Morant mostly stayed with his unmarried sister Annie, who resented his long absence with little communication, and beyond a few trips to London to mix with a few people who knew his exploits, his visit only served to remind him of his unimpressive personal circumstances.

Breaker Morant's second-in-command was Sergeant Frank Eland, a settler from the district who Breaker Morant considered an excellent non-commissioned officer and with whom he quickly established a warm friendship.

Eland recorded in a letter to his wife that Breaker Morant was very upset by the news of Best's death, as Best had been a friend of Breaker Morant.

Breaker Morant led a fruitless patrol that evening, and Eland wrote that "if we had come up with that party of Boers that night we would not have taken any prisoners".

Breaker Morant claimed to Eland that Best and his men had been shot in cold blood by the Boers.

Breaker Morant distrusted his men to the extent that he kept a loaded pistol at hand at all times.

Breaker Morant rewrote the report and forwarded it to Lenehan.

Breaker Morant told them of Lobedu people who were causing problems and would not provide any information about Boer movements.

Breaker Morant told them that there was a 300-strong Boer commando on the other side of the Groot Letaba River, and that Viljoen was active in the area.

Breaker Morant would be able to visit his farm, "Ravenshill" which was in the area, and visit his mother.

Breaker Morant received a briefing from one of Taylor's intelligence agents, and rode his personal horse which had no military brands.

When he reported to Hunt, the squadron commander chastised Breaker Morant for bringing them in, and said that if he brought in any more he could feed them with his own rations.

When news of Hunt's death reached the fort, Breaker Morant immediately ordered every available man out on patrol and broke down and cried while giving the news to the men.

Significantly, Breaker Morant did not see Hunt's body himself; according to Witton, Breaker Morant arrived about an hour after the burial.

Breaker Morant questioned the men about Hunt's death and, convinced that he had been murdered in cold blood, he again vowed to take no prisoners.

Witton alleges that Breaker Morant then declared that he had, on occasion, ignored Hunt's orders to this effect in the past, but that he would carry them out in the future.

Breaker Morant continued, leading a patrol consisting of both members of the Bushveldt Carbineers and warriors from the local Lobedu people.

Breaker Morant replied that he was killed in a fair fight, shot through the chest.

Breaker Morant said no; that Captain Hunt's tunic and trousers had been found in the Cape cart.

Wrench was reminded by BVC Corporal Albert van der Westhuizen, an Afrikaner "joiner", that Breaker Morant had ordered that no more prisoners were to be brought in, as the Troopers would then have to share their rations with them.

Breaker Morant claims to have been told by Henry Ledeboer after shooting the Dutchman that the man who lunged at him was "a most notorious scoundrel" and "the head of a band of marauders".

Breaker Morant persuaded Lenehan to let him command a strong patrol out to search for a small Boer unit commanded by Field-cornet Kelly, an Irish-Boer commando whose farm was in the district.

Breaker Morant's patrol left Fort Edward on 16 September 1901 with orders from Lenehan that Kelly and his men were to be captured and brought back alive if possible.

Breaker Morant came up to me and said that his trial for the shooting of the Missionary was a scandal and a disgrace to the Army, that he was innocent, and that he was selected as a victim because he had shot a few damned Boers.

Breaker Morant later told me that we had to play into his hands, or else they would know what to expect.

Breaker Morant claimed, at a Court of Enquiry in South Africa, to have become engaged to a woman in Devonshire, England, with Captain Percy Frederick Hunt becoming engaged to her sister.

Hunt had actually been in Pretoria during Breaker Morant's given timeline of these events, acting as a marriage commissioner.

Breaker Morant had come, he said, to complain bitterly about the indignity put upon three of his officers in that they had been sent to Pretoria in handcuffs.

Breaker Morant [Lenehan] was taken to Cape Town, under escort I believe, and shipped to Australia on the first available steamer.

Breaker Morant spent most of the night writing and then penned a final sardonic verse, which he titled, Butchered to Make a Dutchmen's Holiday.

Breaker Morant's release was announced before the British House of Commons on 10 August 1904.

Breaker Morant published it during 1907 with the provocative title Scapegoats of the Empire.

Breaker Morant lies buried with his first wife Mary Witton in Brisbane's Lutwyche Cemetery.

Breaker Morant died of cholecystitis and pneumonia at Bulawayo Memorial Hospital on 24 October 1941.

Breaker Morant became in later life a well known game ranger at Kruger National Park.

Breaker Morant became Resident Magistrate in Pietersburg and, as such, became involved with some of the descendants of the Bushveldt Carbineers victims.

Breaker Morant was deeply committed to the cause of justice by way of compensation for the families of those victims and he soon became well known in the town and surrounding district.

Breaker Morant's devotees argue that he and Handcock were unfairly singled out for punishment even though many other British soldiers were known to have committed summary executions of Boer prisoners.