Bethulie

“We are so weak that we are unable to do our work properly. From time to time we have to move the small old tents aside just to rest.” – Translated from the diary of Rensche van der Walt.

The Anglo-Boer War had lasted 18 months when Rensche van der Walt and her family were removed from their farm near Reddersburg by British soldiers. At 23, she arrived at the Bethulie concentration camp and began keeping a diary. Her honest voice describes the harsh daily life among the tents: malnutrition, disease, overcrowding, and exposure to the elements. The camp’s high death rate gains deeper meaning through her frequent accounts of the deaths of loved ones and acquaintances.

Rensche van der Walt was sent to the Bethulie concentration camp in April 1901 together with her mother and three sisters. Two of her brothers were on commando but were later captured. The entire family miraculously survived the war.