The memorial is to the soldiers of Ballarat who took part in the expeditions to South Africa in 1899 and after to fight in the Second Boer War, a murky and brutal conflict most famously remembered in Australia for the execution of Harry Harbord 'Breaker' Morant on charges of murdering prisoners.

It was also a wildly popular war at a time when the Australian colonies were in the last stages of federating, and jingoistic fervour was at its peak. Propaganda and spin meant stories such as the siege of Mafeking and the escape of Winston Churchill from captivity were promoted as triumphs of the Empire in the press of the day, driving recruiting numbers up.

Around 16,000 men enlisted in various units with such glamorous, enticing names as The Imperial Bushmen's Contingent, Cameron's Scouts, Hasler's Scouts, the NSW Mounted Lancers, the Victorian Mounted Rifles; and after 1901, the Commonwealth Horse. Almost as many Australians again joined Imperial (British Army) units.

The reality of warfare in the South African veldt was much different. After defeats in the First Boer War, the British and Colonial forces were determined to make the Boer militias submit. Concentration camps and the burning of homes took place as the war progressed. Under Lord Kitchener a scorched earth policy was enacted.

Nevertheless three times the number of Imperial troops died as Boer.

Six hundred Australian troops died during the three-year war, with around 250 killed in action and another 270 dying of various diseases. The Australian troops were regarded as perhaps the most effective colonial forces, mainly for their horsemanship and willingness to match the Boer defenders in engaging in guerrilla warfare. Six Australians were awarded Victoria Crosses during the conflict.

The Ballarat memorial depicts a moment in 1901 where an Australian soldier, 26-years-old Sergeant James Rogers, who was seconded to the paramilitary South African Constabulary force, turned from retreat in a firefight at a place called Thaba'Nchu to rescue his officer, Lt Dickinson, whose mount had been shot from under him.

Outnumbered 10 to one, Sgt Rogers delivered the officer to safety then returned to the fight repeatedly to rescue other men, all the while firing at the Boer guerrillas. For his bravery Rogers was awarded a VC.

Erected in 1906, the Ballarat memorial was designed by James White, the leading monumental sculptor of the time in Australia, and was dedicated by the Governor-General, Lord Northcote. It lists 239 names of soldiers who died in the war.

City of Ballarat public art co-ordinator Kate Gerritsen has been overseeing conservation works on the memorial for almost two years. She says while the statue gives the impression it is cast in bronze, it is in fact constructed of electroplated copper sheeting fixed to an internal skeletal armature.

The reason for this construction was not so much a cost-reducing exercise, Ms Gerritsen says, rather Australia did not have a foundry capable of regularly making bronze statues until the 1970s, when Meridian Foundry began in Fitzroy.

Until then, most bronze works were cast in the United Kingdom or elsewhere and shipped out at great expense. (An exception is the Burke and Wills statue in Melbourne, the first cast in Australia.)

The armature method of construction means the statue has many points which allow water and debris to enter, damaging the ferrous armature.

Ms Gerritsen told The Courier two conservation reports and minor repairs were commissioned in late 2019 and early 2020. The reports revealed loose parts and the need for an internal investigation to inspect degradation of the frame. A full radiography and internal videoscope investigation were commissioned and undertaken by International Conservation Services in June 2020.

From this report a brief was devised to undertake preventive conservation and stabilisation treatments. The Grimwade Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation (at Melbourne University) have now completed these stage one works, Ms Gerritsen says.

"The first stage was about securing any parts of the memorial that were vulnerable," Ms Gerritsen says.

"We do know some of the parts were loose. So hence why we had to have it secured off from the public; for the protection of the public and for the protection of the memorial, really, because if something falls down, you're likely to lose it. It's not good for the artwork and obviously it can be a risk to the community."

Ms Gerritsen says damage to the work in the past has included losing the horse's ears and a trooper's boot being broken off (later returned and reattached).

She says the removal of the statue will be a local job, as it has been taken down in the past.

"The work was previously removed for the cost of conservation project in the 80s. So we have a bit of an understanding of how that was done. Wilson's Memorials, a local company, worked on that, and I've spoken to them about it.

"Possibly the best way forward is to remove the artwork with a section of the plinth. So that first portion of stone is where you lift the memorial from, rather than just lifting the artwork."

Ms Gerritsen says he next stage of conservation works will be carried out in the coming years and will include major repairs to the degraded armature to secure the Boer War Memorial's long-term future.

"The importance of such a conservation project, undertaken by qualified conservation teams, for fragile and significant works such as the Boer War Memorial can not be understated," Ms Gerritsen says.

"Stage two is about removing the work and repairing that internal armature. At the moment, we'll instigate that project in the next three to five years, that's the time frame. This project will ensure the artwork is here for future generations to enjoy. We look forward to having this stunning work back on display."

The Second Boer War ended in 1902. The British and colonial forces had numbered a staggering 500,000 troops and 100,000 African auxiliaries to fight an enemy comprised of farmers and volunteers that collectively reached a total of 50,000.

Over 22,000 Imperial troops died, another 22,000 were wounded and over 75,000 were returned to their homes sick, invalided or wounded. The Boers suffered 6000 dead; 26,370 women and children died in concentration camps; 20,000 interned Africans also died.

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