The History of Concentration Camps

What do you think of when you hear: "Concentration Camps"


If Jews, WW2 or Hitler come to mind.. Good job.

I think smiling would have helped his mental  condition...

Pretty fetching picture, don't you think? Ahaha No.


Anyways...


So now we can just blame the idea of them on this dude and move on with life.


But are you sure about that...?


Let's go back a few years.. Back to the 1800's.


What happened during this time?


Well we have the:


- Napoleonic Wars
- World Population reaches 1 billion
- Beethoven plays his Fifth Symphony
- Jane Austen publishes Pride &Prejudice
- Argentina-Brazil War Uruguay(woot!)
- Spanish Inquisition officially ends
- California Gold Rush
- Suez Canal constructed
- Hmmmm.... First Boer War..
- Tsar Alexander ll assassinated


And last but not least..... The 2nd Boer War...


Soooo...? What's so important about that?


Well this war during 1899 - 1902 was between the British and the Afrikaans speaking Dutch settlers.


Why? Basically it was the Brits, as always trying to take anything and everything away from everybody else.. Which in this case was land. 


So, like any other war, things got ugly. 


People got killed for no particular reason cause war just seems to be a nice word to allow you to kill anyone.


Anyways, so the war goes on and then the British starts to get POWs (Prisoner's of War) and since they didn't feel like keeping them near by from the fear of nice people freeing them.


They put them in Concentration Camps! 


MIND BLOWN!!!!


Yet this is no laughing matter... Look for yourself.

Her name was Lizzy Van Zyl.. Only a child.

Well, now after that depressing photo you must be thinking.. "Well then, the Brits made the camps up and that's the end of this conversation."

Yeah......

That's what I thought too.. Guess what.... It's not :(

I debated for a few months now to actually publish this un-famous information on the history of "Mi Gente" AKA, my Spaniard Peeps from the Mother Country...


But, for ignorance to be eradicated from our lives.. I have to.


In 1898, one year before the "Second Boer War", Spain and the US of A went to war..
&
Cuba wanted independence from Spain.

Also, a whole bunch of other things were happening but w/e that ain't the point.


THE POINT IS:


During this ridiculous war (like I said, all wars are ridiculous) the Spanish were worried about this whole revolution the little Cubanitos were going through.. 


So they grabbed all the rebels and isolated them... Or if you want to make a stretch.. Put them in "Concentration Camps"


I flipped when I realized this!!! How could my ancestors be the one to do this!? I was going to resign my Spanish heritage... But before I did anything drastic, I investigated. 


And this is what I found:


A. It is true that this one Spanish general dude of sorts decided to get all the rebels and isolate them so that they didn't get the others all excited and stuff... Ex. Kony 2012   <- getting dumb people excited for change! woo hoo -.-


B. Turns out, this guy didn't want to kill these rebels but nature and lack of materials took over... (Better then Hitler at least... He actually wanted the people dead!)


And!


C. The reason why I call them "Concentration Camps" is that: disease, starvation and death were everywhere in these places, even by "accident"


But at the end... this is what is left of those individuals:

That's a lot of rebels.....

Yeah.... (Looks away)

So if you're completely devastated from this realization like I am.. Please feel free to comment.. And if I said something wrong, please enlighten me, and be a peach about it.

Thank you! 

- C