TOPIC:

The 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers are notable for their involvement in the only real cavalry charge of the Second Boer War and their incarceration in Ladysmith. In the list of units which received the “Defence of Ladysmith” clasp, drawn up by Dr David Biggins, the 5th Lancers with 885 come second only to the Liverpool Regiment. Simeon Whitehouse was not one of the 885, in fact he was one of the 22 officers (6) and men (16) of the 5th Lancers to receive the “Relief of Ladysmith” clasp.

Simeon had enlisted in the 5th Lancers back in 1890 and having done more than his seven years of active service was discharged to the Army Reserve in 1897. He did not receive his recall to the colours until 13th November 1899 by when the 5th Lancers, in the war from the very start, had made their charge and the siege of Ladysmith was 11 days old.

Going back to the beginning, the first record that can be found for Simeon is his baptism in Smethwick on the 7th February 1869. By the time of the 1871 Census the family had moved to neighbouring Tipton in the Black Country. The 1871 & 1881 census returns confirm, along with his attestation papers, that Simeon had been born in Smethwick.

The 1871 census shows the family living at 43 Railway Street, Tipton. His father was also called Simeon and had been born in Langley near Smethwick but his mother came from St Neot’s in Huntingdonshire and started out life as Elizabeth Pettifor. Samuel senior was working as a “metal roller” and 2 year old Simeon had an elder brother George (7) and sister Jane Elizabeth (6).

By the time of the 1881 Census Simeon’s mother had died. The date of her death is not recorded but it must have been in the previous couple of years when Simeon was aged about 10 as in 1881 he also had a younger brother, Charles (7) and sister Elizabeth (2). To cope with the death the family had split up and Simeon senior and his 3 youngest children were lodging with a widow and her family at 45 Railway Street, Tipton i.e. possibly next door to where they were living a decade earlier. The two eldest children were living elsewhere. Simeon senior was still a “metal roller”

On 26th August 1890 Simeon attested at Worcester for service in the army and signed up for the usual 7 years of active service followed by 5 years in the army reserve. We know it is “our” Simeon as he gave his father Simeon living at 29 Railway Street, Tipton as his next of kin and the recruiting officer also noted he had an elder brother George and an elder sister Jane.

Simeon measured 5ft 8inches tall – so two to three inches above average height at the time. He weighed in at a healthy 125lbs (8st 13lbs), had a “fresh” complexion, eyes of blue, brown hair and no tattoos with just a scar on his left thumb. He gave his age as 19 years and 8 months, which is odd as he was actually 21 years old. His occupation was “copper maker”.

Six days later, on 2nd September 1890 he joined his unit at Canterbury where he was given the regimental number of 3863. So why was a West Midlands metal worker and son of a metal worker who would probably have not known one end of a horse from another assigned to the 5th (Royal Irish) Lancers, an Irish cavalry regiment? Was it his above average height and healthy physique?

Simeon spent the first year of his time in the army on home service but on 2nd September 1891 embarked for India. Whilst there he received his first and second Good Conduct Badges and pay rises at the usual times, the second and fourth anniversary of his joining the regiment. After six years in India he stepped on English soil again on 20th September 1897 and was discharged to the army reserve on 23rd November 1897.

What Simeon did with the next couple of years of his life we do not know but we do know his sister Jane had married a metal worker and was providing a home in West Bromwich for their still working father and the joint income ran to a domestic live-in servant.

Simeon received his recall on 13th November 1899 and on 2nd December 1899 embarked for South Africa. Consultation with the shipping records show the Dilwara left Southampton on that day with a draft of 5th Lancers and two officers of the regiment – 2nd Lieutenants Chance & Tyrell – both these officers were also to receive the “Relief of Ladysmith” clasp. The Dilwara arrived at St Vincent on 10th December 1899 to fill up her coal bunkers and continued the next day for Cape Town where she arrived on Christmas Day.

Simeon’s medal clasps show he was involved in the battle of Tugela Heights in the second half of February 1900. Presumably after the relief of Ladysmith at the end of February the draft of which Simeon was part united with the regiment who then accompanied General Buller to Lydenburg. On this march the 5th Lancers were very frequently engaged and between the middle of July and the end of September they were fighting practically every day.

At the start of November 1900 about 250 men of the regiment were with Smith-Dorrien, south of Belfast, when he had very hard fighting and difficulty in saving his guns. As Simeon received the “Belfast” clasp it can be assumed he was one of the 250.

After this Simeon remained another 15 months in S Africa and during this time the 5th Lancers were mainly in the Eastern Transvaal operating under Smith-Dorrien, Spens, and other commanders. They took part in the sweep into the Vryheid district. A portion of the regiment was in Cape Colony in 1901 and 1902, and had rather an unhappy time on the Zeekoe River near Aberdeen on 6th April 1901, when they lost 2 killed, 9 wounded, and 23 taken prisoners.

The Regiment won one of the 78 VC’s awarded to British soldiers during the Second Boer War when on 3rd March 1901 Lieutenant Frederic Brooks Dugdale brought two wounded men to safety under heavy fire. Dugdale sailed out to South Africa two months earlier than Simeon but still received the “Relief of Ladysmith” clasp. His other clasps also mirror Simeon’s except Dugdale also received the “Laing’s Nek” clasp - so their wars’ were similar but not identical especially as Dugdale was hospitalised with enteric in early 1902. He survived this only to be killed in a hunting accident in the Cotswolds a few months after he arrived home.

Simeon returned home during February 1902, setting foot on English soil on 5th March 1902. On 25th August 1902 he was fully discharged from the army after exactly 12 years of service with 10 of them on active service – rather more than he had originally bargained for.

Medals rolls drawn up after he had left South Africa show he was awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal with 5 clasps – “Cape Colony”, “Belfast”, “Orange Free State”, “Tugela Heights” & “Relief of Ladysmith” – and the King’s South Africa Medal with both date clasps. On 25th August 1902 he was awarded a £5 War Gratuity plus a special gratuity of 10 shillings (the reason for the special gratuity is not given).

What happened to Simeon next? – I really have no idea because as far as census and other records go he appeared to vanish off the face of the earth. There is no doubt his father, Simeon senior died in 1904. His elder sister, Jane Elizabeth can be found on 1911 & 1921 census returns for West Bromwich & Tipton respectively and they show her “metal roller” husband had become a publican and they had three children.