‘None of this is completely new to me. I also have given much thought to these matters, and consulted many of my old companions in arms.’ De la Rey stroked his beard thoughtfully. ‘However, Smuts and Botha have gone over heart and soul to the British. They have a grip on the reins of power. A firm but not unshakeable grip. A large part of the South African population is of British descent and their hearts and loyalties lie with Britain.’
‘What is the state of the South African Army?’ Graf Otto asked. ‘What are the numbers and who is in command?’
‘Without exception, all the senior officers are Afrikaner and fought against the British,’ de la Rey replied. ‘That includes Smuts and Botha, who have gone over to them. However, there are many who have not followed their lead.’
‘The war ended almost twelve years ago,’ von Lettow Vorbeck pointed out. ‘Much has changed since then. All four of the old South African republics have been amalgamated into the Union of South Africa. The Boers have twice the power and influence they had before. Will they be satisfied with this, or will they risk it all by siding with Germany? Are the Boers not tired of war? They are now part of the British Empire. Would Smuts and Botha succeed in turning their old comrades away from Germany?’ Von Lettow and Graf Otto waited for the old Boer to respond.
‘You may be right,’ he said at last. ‘Perhaps time has healed some of the wounds of the Afrikaner
‘If you decided to ride against the British again, which way would your old comrades go? We know Botha and Smuts would support Britain, but what of the other old commando leaders? Which way would de Wet, Maritz, Kemp, Beyers and the others go? Would they be with you or with Botha?’
‘I know these men,’ de la Rey said softly. ‘I have fought with them and seen into their hearts. It was a long time ago, but they have not forgotten the terrible things that the British did to them, their women and children, and to the land we love. In my heart I know they would ride out on commando with me against the enemy, and for me the enemy is still Britain.’
‘That is what I hoped to hear you say, General. I have been given total authority by the Kaiser and by my government to promise you whatever you require in the way of supplies, arms and money.’
‘We will need all of those things,’ de la Rey agreed, ‘especially in the beginning, before we have been able to wrest control from Botha and before we have seized the army arsenals and the vaults of the Reserve Bank in Pretoria where the money is.’
‘Tell me what you will need, General. I will get it for you from Berlin.’
‘We will not need food or uniforms. We are the farmers who grow the crops so we will feed ourselves. We will fight, as we did before, in our workaday clothes. We will not need small arms. Every man of us still has his Mauser.’
‘What will you need, then?’ Graf Otto persisted.
‘For a start, I will need one hundred and fifty heavy machine-guns and twenty trench mortars, with the ammunition and bombs for them. Say, one million rounds of ammunition and five hundred mortar bombs. Then we will need medical supplies . . .’ Graf Otto made shorthand notes on his pad, as de la Rey enumerated his requirements.
‘Heavy cannon?’ von Lettow Vorbeck suggested.
‘No. Our first attacks will rely on speed and surprise. If they succeed we will capture the government arsenals and the heavy artillery will fall into our hands.’
‘What else do you need?’
‘Money,’ de la Rey replied simply.
‘How much?’
‘Two million pounds in gold sovereigns.’
For a minute they were all silenced by the enormity of the request. Then Graf Otto said, ‘That is a great deal of money.’
‘That is the price of the richest land in the southern hemisphere. It is the price of an army of sixty thousand trained and battle-hardened men. It is the price of victory over the British. Do you really believe it to be too high, Graf?’
‘No!’ Graf Otto shook his head emphatically. ‘When you put it like that, it’s a fair price. You shall have the full two million. I will see to it.’
