Abstract

On January 3, 1896, Wilhelm II approved the dispatch of a telegram to Paulus Ohm Krüger (1825–1904), who led the Boer Republic of Transvaal against the British, after the latter had attempted to incite an uprising with the Jameson Raid. The dispatch, which criticized the British for launching the Jameson Raid, unleashed a flurry of anti-German sentiment in Great Britain.

The Krüger Telegram (1896)

Source

Berlin, January 3, 1896

[sent on January 3, 11:20 a.m.]

I express my sincere congratulations that you and your people, without appealing to friendly powers for help, by dint of your own vigor, have been able to restore the peace against the armed hordes that invaded your country as disturbers of the peace, and to preserve the independence of the country against outside attacks.

Wilhelm I.R.

Source: Johannes Lepsius, et al., eds., Die Große Politik der europäischen Kabinette 1871–1914. 40 Volumes. Berlin, 1922-1927. Vol. 11, pp. 31–32; reprinted in Rüdiger vom Bruch and Björn Hofmeister, eds., Kaiserreich und Erster Weltkrieg 1871–1918. Deutsche Geschichte in Quellen und Darstellung, edited by Rainer A. Müller, vol. 8. Stuttgart: P. Reclam, 2000, p. 271.

Translation: Thomas Dunlap

Recommended Citation

The Krüger Telegram (1896), published in: German History in Documents and Images, <https://germanhistorydocs.org/en/wilhelmine-germany-and-the-first-world-war-1890-1918/ghdi:document-754> [September 26, 2025].