production and closer economic ties with European settlers. In the 1820s, the Basuto faced cattle raids from the Koranna and first encountered horses and guns in a combat setting. They obtained horses and guns of their own, and began stockpiling gunpowder. By 1843, Moshoeshoe had accumulated more horses and guns than any other chieftain in South Africa, but the guns were outdated flintlocks, which had flooded the South African market after the introduction of percussion lock muskets. In 1852, the British signed the Sand River Convention with the Boers, banning the sale of guns to Africans, while continuing to trade between themselves under the terms of the 1854 Bloemfontein Convention. The Boer Orange Free State was able to procure modern breech-loading rifles and a small amount of artillery. The Basuto were forced to rely on smuggled and locally-produced gunpowder, which was of inferior quality. In 1858, hostilities broke out between the Basuto and the Orange Free State. Inferior in both marksmanship and materiel, the Basuto suffered a series of defeats in wars that lasted until 1868. In 1866, the two sides signed the Treaty of Thaba Bosiu, whereby Moshoeshoe ceded most of his kingdom's arable land to the Boers. Hostilities resumed soon afterwards, and the Boers began employing a scorched earth policy, leading to starvation among the Basuto. The Basuto appealed to British High Commissioner for Southern Africa Sir Philip Edmond Wodehouse and the Colony of Natal for protection. Although, initially reluctant to intervene, on 12 March 1868 Wodehouse proclaimed Basutoland to be a royal dominion. The Basuto, who became part of the British Empire out of necessity, viewed any kind of colonial administration as “a snake in the house”. While the British, saw it as their responsibility to westernize their new subjects. Wodehouse therefore supported a gradual introduction of colonial laws, so as not to provoke backlash from the Basuto. Basutoland's legal status remained unclear, with the Colonial Office at various times calling it a crown colony and a protectorate. Letsie I, who succeeded Moshoeshoe in 1870, viewed the annexation as merely a treaty of alliance and protection. Basuto chiefs therefore actively challenged the efforts of British authorities to enact major reforms without prior consultations. On 31 December 1870, Sir Henry Barkly was appointed as the new High Commissioner for Southern Africa. The British had long entertained the idea of incorporating Basutoland into the Cape Colony, and Barkly immediately