Sarie Marais
It continues about the fear of being removed far, "over the sea" (in fact, of the 28,000 Boer men taken prisoner by the ruling British authorities, over 25,000 were transported overseas).
An account on the National Anthems forum supports J.P. Toerien as author and his wife Sarie Maré as the subject of the song.
The claim is that this song was sung by Americans working in the Transvaal gold mines, and heard there by Afrikaans journalist and poet Jacobus Petrus Toerien, who re-wrote the song in Afrikaans, replacing the name of Ellie Rhee with that of his own beloved Sarie Maré (Susara Margaretha Maré).
The burghers supposedly wanted to honour their field chaplain Dominee Paul Nel, who often told stories around the campfires about his childhood and his beautiful mother Sarie Maré, who died young.
It is also worth noting that the melody was appropriated by the Soviet Navy as the basis for their Naval Infantry anthem "Forward, Red Marines".
It is also the official song of the Girl Guides of Sri Lanka ( Ceylon ) who heard the Boerekrygsgevangenes (af – Boer prisoners of war) performing it during the beginning of the 20th century.
Germans cultivated a pink rose called Sarie Maries, which is planted in the School of Armour in Tempe, Bloemfontein.
Sarie Marais was also the title of the first South African talking picture, directed by Joseph Albrecht (af) and made in 1931.
One of the internees, played by Billy Mathews, lifts his voice in song with the popular Afrikaans patriotic tune "My Sarie Marais".
Maré died at the age of 37 after giving birth to her 11th child, and was buried near the old homestead on their farm Welgegund, near Greytown, KwaZulu-Natal.
As noted above, one of her sons was field chaplain Dominee (Pastor) Paul Nel, who served in the First Anglo-Boer War and supposedly often told stories around the campfires about his childhood and his beautiful mother Sarie Maré, who died young.
When she was 16 years old, she met Jacobus Petrus Toerien – journalist (and later a well-known poet) who wrote under the pseudonym of Jepete in "Ons Kleintje" and was editor of "Di Patriot".
She is buried in an unmarked grave in the Memoriam-begraafplaas (memorium burying place) by the Vrouemonument (woman's monument) The American folk song, "Ellie Rhee", (or "Carry me back to Tennessee" written in 1865 by Septimus Winner (1827–1902), is widely considered to have influenced the South African song.
Sweet Ellie Rhee, so dear to me Is lost forever more Our home was down in Tennessee Before this cruel war[4] Then carry me back to Tennessee Back where I long to be Amid the fields of yellow corn To my darling Ellie Rhee Originally in the Afrikaans version it was Sarie Maré which then became Marais.
Dutch: Mijn lieve Sarah Marais is ver weg van mij, maar ik hoop om haar weer te zien.
Afrikaans: My Sarie Marais is so ver van my hart, Maar ek hoop om haar weer te sien.
Chorus Die Kakies is mos net soos 'n krokodil, 'n pes, Hulle sleep jou altyd water toe; Hul gooi jou op 'n skip vir 'n lange, lange trip, Die josie weet waarnatoe.
