TOPIC:

Here is a good question: Were Mannlicher rifles used during the 2nd Anglo-Boer War?

This question has interested me since I first heard someone reference an apparent Boer carved Mannlicher, I think it was a M1888, in one of the Carvings from the Veld volumes. As I don't own any of the splendid books in the series, I can confirm nor deny this claim. My curiosity was re-ignited today after my purchase of a copy of "Die Boer se Roer tot Vandag" ( translating roughly to the Boer, or Afrikaner's, weapons of choice through the years ). This book contains an interesting chapter on the 2nd Anglo-Boer war in which I came across a collection photo in which two Mannlicher model rifles were pictured, a M1888 and some variant of the M95. The caption of this photo only refers to these rifles as the 8mm Mannlicher rifle and 8mm Mannlicher carbine. The rifles pictured in this photo belong to the Lategan-Collection in the Fort-Bloemfontein Museum.

I find the M95 rifle to be strange as it is refered to as a carbine, but does not seem to be as short as carbines of the model seen online. the backsight also appears to be longer than that of the standard M95 carbines seen online. Could this be some commercial variant?

Thank you;

J.I.W

As a result of my visit to the AWM back in 2019, I illustrated amongst other things, the M95 Mannlicher sporting rifle in 6.5mm Rimmed which was reputed to have been the property of Cronje and captured by a member of NSWMR at Paardeberg. That pattern of Mannlicher was clip loading and had a turning bolt.
From your pic, it is difficult to be certain about the two "8mm Mannlichers"; however the LHS long rifle looks to be an M1888 Austrian Mannlicher straight pull in calibre 8mm rimmed and the cut down job on the RHS looks to be based on the later M1895 version of the same straight pull Mannlicher system (also in calibre 8mm rimmed).
How the users ever thought they would be able to obtain ammunition supplies in non-standard calibres through the British blockade is a mystery.
IL.