Well, going by Thomas Pakenham's version of the history, which I understand is largely accurate, Rhodes really was not the driving force. The blame for the war can be partially laid at Lord Milner's feet, although President Kruger certainly bears a measure of blame too. The "uitlander" issue was badly handled by the Transvaal. As to the deaths of people in the concentration camps, which did not previously exist, Rhodes could not have foreseen that while seeking business advantage in Transvaal. As with most things, it's all shades of grey. It is an achievement, though, to be hated equally by the Boers, liberals and the new South African elite. The ironies are many and Packenham mauls Rhodes for his behaviour in the siege. He made enemies freely, no doubt about that. However, the bequests he had the vision to make with the idea of furthering world peace through educating the best students shows a great positive and there only IS a  respected Rhodes University because of him