Place Name
Named after the South African city, to mark the Second Boer War which ran from 1899 – 1902. The city was founded in 1855 by Marthinus Pretorius, a leader of the Voortrekkers, who named it after his father Andries Pretorius. Andries became a hero of the Dutch settlers following his victory over Dingane and the Zulus in the Battle of Blood River. It fell into British hands at the end of the war when the city surrendered to Field Marshal Frederick Sleigh Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts, on June 5, 1900. Such military achievements across the British Empire were a favourite topic to be commemorated by jingoistic developers.
