This lay down the foundation for a series of anti-colonial wars by the Xhosa who were driving large herds of their cattle across the border in search of grazing. Clashes between them and border farmers took place and by the end of 1779, many farmers have abandoned their farms on the Fish and Bushmans rivers. After two farmers' commandoes were organised in 1779 and 1780 to follow the Xhosa into their own country, Adriaan van Jaarsveld were instructed to implement the establishment of the eastern border of the Colony (Greater Fish and Bushman's Rivers) by enforcing a relocation of all Xhosa chiefdoms living to the west of the Greater Fish River. Under the pretense of bringing them a gift of goodwill, he ordered his commando to attack the Xhosa who were unsuspecting and unarmed. They defeated the Xhosa, and took 6 000 head of cattle which they divided themselves and other border farmers who had suffered losses during raids by the Xhosa. This series of attacks marks the First Frontier War, between the Xhosa and Dutch colonists. It is the first of a series of nine wars waged by the Xhosa against various colonial administrations.
The Second Frontier War in 1790 begun as commandos of the Graaff-Reinet area forced the Xhosa chiefdoms across the Fish River to colonial rule and stole their cattle. Their view was that that they were not stealing the cattle, but taking back what had belonged to them before raids by the Xhosa. The war ended three years later in a truce that did not appease the Dutch's demand for more land than they had already taken from the Xhosa. In March Of 1799, the Reverend Johannes Theodorus van der Kemp, physician and missionary of the London Missionary Society, arrived at the Cape from the Netherlands. He began his activities in collaboration with the Chief of the Xhosa, Ngqika, but established his settlement of Bethelsdorp in the Khoi-khoi region. This did not go down well with the Khoi-khoi, who managed to persuade Nggika to join forces with them and rise up against the missionaries.
