The Bakgatla Baga Mmanaana (Part 3)

In the wake of the Sand River Convention, in which the British had agreed to cooperate with Pretorius in supressing the continued sale of firearms to Batswana, the only thing delaying armed confrontation was divisions in the Boer ranks.

In early February 1852, those Boers who wished to maintain peaceful trade with western Batswana merafe scored a small victory by ousting Adriaan Standers as Commandant-General in the Madikwe after he called for the arrest and execution Kgosi Mosielele. This occurred after Mosielele objected to supplying more of his men as free labour for a Boers irrigation project.