Winston Churchill's 1899 Escape from Boer Prison in Pretoria

In 1899, Winston Churchill, then a war correspondent for The Morning Post, was captured by Boer forces after an ambush on an armored train near the Blaauwkrantz River. He was imprisoned at the Staats Model School in Pretoria, Transvaal. On December 12, he escaped through a gap in the fence, traveling 300 miles on foot and by train to reach Delagoa Bay in Portuguese Mozambique. He was hidden by Englishman John Howard at a coal mine in Witbank for six days before being smuggled aboard a freight train. Upon reaching Lourenço Marques on December 21, he presented himself at the British Consulate. His escape made him a hero; he was celebrated in Durban on December 23 and later used the fame to launch his political career, winning a seat in the 1900 Khaki Election.