The Boer Prisoners
Apart from Napoleon, St Helena is also best known as the place to which about 6000 Boer prisoners of war who were captured during the Anglo-Boer War were interned from 1900 to 1904. They were housed in tents on Deadwood Plain and Broad Bottom. After the war several Boers decided to stay on the island and married local women. Prisoners who died on the island were buried at Knollcombes. The graves were tiered down a steep slope and have numbers instead of names - the names are listed on the cenotaphs.
Visitor's are welcomed to visit the Boer Cemetery located at Knollcombes in the St. Paul's district, at any time of day. At Knollcombes, there is also a Baptist Chapel whose cemetery has the grave of St. Helena's first local Governor, Governor Janisch.
In 1890 Dinuzulu kaCetshwayo was exiled to St Helena for seven years for leading a Zulu army against the British from 1883 to 1884.
In 1907, 25 Zulu Chiefs were sent to St Helena after the Poll Tax rebellion. 7 died here before they left in 1910; 1957 saw the arrival of 3 prisoners from Bahrain and between 1957 and 1961, a pretender to the throne of the Sultan of Zanzibar was also imprisoned here with his entourage.
