The 217-day siege at Mafeking finally ended on 17 May 1900, British forces led by Colonel Mahon fought their way through to the town.
When news of the relief reached the UK, there was a massive outpouring of joy (some writers say there was an outbreak of mass hysteria) on the streets. Indeed, the word ‘maffick’ emerged at the time to describe the type of spontaneous celebrations that took place in ON 17 May 1900.
Many of the newspapers at the time dedicated the entire front page to reporting the story, which illustrates just how big a story Mafeking was.
We particularly like the stories that report on the spontaneous street celebrations that took place in the UK at the time, such as the story below, which reports on how the news was received in the suburbs of Bristol.
Source: Western Daily Press – Saturday 19 May 1900
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000264/19000519/048/0010
