Petrus Wilhelmus Stoop

Burger, Wakkerstroom Kommando

- Anglo Boere Oorlog Medal to BURG. P.W. STOOP

Piet Stoop was born on the farm Oudehoutkloof in the Wakkerstroom district near Volksrust which, in turn, is just over the Natal border in the Transvaal, on 21 November 1882, the son of Hendrik Gerhardus Stoop, a farmer, and his wife Anna Jacoba, born Oosthuizen.

Life, growing up in these quiet pastoral surroundings, would have been idyllic for the young Piet and he would not have lacked for playmates – Afrikaans (or Dutch as they were then labelled) families being frequently large ones. Joining him on the farm were Susara Johanna Susanna; Maria Johanna Cornelia; Johanna Wilhelmina Catherina Joacheminia (quite a mouthful there); Martha Aletta Elizabeth Johanna; Hendrik Gerhardus and Johannes Wilhelmus. Seven children with Piet sandwiched in the middle.


Map detailing where Stoop farmed in proximity to where he worked and fought

As the 19th century hurtled to a close the rumblings and rumours of war became more prevalent, reaching even into the far-flung corners of the Transvaal – as far as sleepy Wakkerstroom. As far back as 1896 the ill-fated and poorly conceived Jameson Raid had finally fractured the delicate trust which President Paul Kruger had with regard to British intentions on his country’s sovereignty. Although acting as a maverick and without official sanction from London, Jameson and his Raid, which had as its objective, the overthrow of the Transvaal Government, was perceived by Kruger to be an act of aggression providing the stimulus needed to undergo a massive armament procurement.

Every Burger (citizen) of the Transvaal and its Orange Free State ally could buy a brand new Mauser rifle the Government for a few Pounds. In addition, several state-of-the-art artillery pieces were acquired from Krupp and Creusot for the Transvaal Staats Artillerie. The Republics were placed on a war footing.

Matters came to a head on 11 October 1899 when the ultimatum from Kruger for the British to remove their troops from his borders went, as expected, unanswered. Burgers had for many weeks in anticipation of this event, been mobilised and told to report from their farms to the Commando’s gathering in the various town markets squares throughout the land. Wakkerstroom was no exception and a 17 year old Piet Stroop, along with several of his cousins, answered the call and came into town with a weeks supply of biltong, his rifle and a bandolier or two of ammunition.

Thus it was that, with the dawn of 12 October 1899, the Commandos closest to the Natal border crossed over and headed for the locality of Dundee where Penn-Symons, with a garrison of 4000 men, awaited them. Fortunately for the collector, each and every Boer combatant desirous of a medal was required to complete an application Vorm B from 1921, the date the award of the medal was approved. This form, in the Burger’s own handwriting, complete with his signature (or that of his next of kin should he have been a fatality), provides not only the details of from when he served and under whom but, more importantly, where he was in action. All of the above had to be vouchsafed by a combination of his comrades who fought with him and his senior officers under whom he served.

Piet Stoop applied for his medal, completing Vorm B, on 11 March 1921. At that time he was living at Vlakpoort Siding in the Eastern Transvaal, not very far from his beloved Wakkerstroom. He claimed to have been in the field with the Wakkerstroom Commando under Veld Kornet G. Swart of nearby Amersfoort and a Veld Kornet L. Badenhorst. As witnesses he provided the signatures of Jan Simon Struweg and Sybrand Johannes Struwig (both of Wakkerstroom). G. Swart, who had advanced to Commandant, also confirmed that his version of events was true.


Vorm B

The Wakkerstroom Commando was known to have fought at the following engagements: Talana, Hlangwani, Ladysmith, Caesar’s Camp, Thukela, Karee Siding, Brandfort, Vet River, Lang’s Nek, Alleman’s Nek, Graskop, Amsterdam, Eastern Transvaal, Oshoek and Natal 1901. Twenty years later, when applying for his medal, Stroop fell into the habit so many adopted of writing down the first few engagements and then, almost as a caveat, stating “En veel ander plekken, te veel om te noem.” (“And many other places, too numerous to mention.”)

What he did confirm though, was that he was present at:

- Talana (Dundee)
- Through Natal (Colenso/Ladysmith/Thukela Heights)
- Elandsberg (District Wakkerstroom)

A “bitter einder” – one who fought through the entire three years of the war – from October 1899 until laying down their arms in June 1902 – he would have fought in a lot more engagements that are not mentioned above.

Talana – 20 October 1899

Talana was the first major engagement of the Second Anglo Boer War, taking place on 20 October 1899 on Talana hill, some two miles to the east of the town. It was fought between an under-strength brigade of some 4,000 British and colonial troops stationed in the town, commanded by William Penn-Symons, and an invading force of Boers under the command of Vecht Generaal Lukas Meyer. Under leaden skies, the Utrecht and Wakkerstroom Commandos occupied Talana Hill early that morning, together with three 75 mm guns of the Staatsartillerie. The Boers, having seized the initiative, now had to be knocked off the hill by a classic infantry fire-and-movement attack up the terraced slope, supported by artillery. The British force in the camp below, just outside of the town, had been caught by surprise but were quick to respond once they had been fired upon.

On Talana the commandos from Utrecht (under Commandant Joshua Joubert), Wakkerstroom (under Commandant Hattingh) and Krugersdorp (under General Potgieter), and a portion of the Ermelo commando, together with 3 guns (two 75mm Krupp field guns and one 75mm Creusot, under Major Wolmarans of the Transvaal Staats Artillerie) were ready and waiting, enfilading the advancing British troops with a withering fire as they tried to advance up the rocky slope with very little shelter.

Eventually, with support from artillery below, and a rush by the troops, the top was crested and the Boers were seen to be streaming away below, having taken to their horses. This was a Pyrrhic victory for the British as they evacuated Dundee a day or two later, leaving it at the mercy of the advancing Boers.

Ladysmith – the Siege

Having fallen back on Ladysmith from Dundee, General Yule joined General Sir George White’s garrison in Ladysmith. Despite a few efforts to stall the Boer advance, the Commandos from the Orange Free State linked up with those from the Transvaal and, encircling Ladysmith, laid siege to the town from 3 November 1899.

In Breytenbach’s Chapter 13 – The Siege of Ladysmith during 1899 (translated from the Afrikaans) – he provided details as to where in the ring of encampments surrounding Ladysmith the Wakkerstroom Commando was situated:

“ Further to the left on Bulwana and the neighbouring heights up to Fouriespruit was General Lucas Meyer’s commandos, Wakkerstroom, Vryheid, Utrecht, Krugersdorp and Middelburg, in addition to the Pretoria section of the German Corps together with a total of four Krupps, two French field cannon, a Pom-pom and a maxim which had been taken off the English at Talana.”

What followed now was a stalemate with there being no inclination from either side to break the deadlock. The Boer leadership seemed satisfied with the hope that a protracted siege would throttle the British garrison into starvation which would lead to their surrender. The British, on the other hand, attempted only a few “break out” initiatives, most of which were unsuccessful.

With Buller having arrived in Natal to take personal command of the efforts to relieve Ladysmith, it now became necessary to siphon off some of the Burgers lying inactive on the hills around Ladysmith. To this end some were sent to Stormberg in the Eastern Cape whilst others, under General Louis Botha, were deployed in and around Colenso – not only to halt the onward march of Buller’s men but to try and force a way through to the coast.


Wakkerstroom Commando

One of the incidents in which the Wakkerstroom Commando were involved was the famous Armoured Train Incident which took place on 15 November 1899.

An English-speaking Doctor with the Boers, G O Moorhead published an article in The Cornhill Magazine, which made direct reference to this incident:

"General Joubert joined the column near the drift through the Klip River, there was a brief halt for breakfast, and then their whole column streamed forward again, over the railway across Pieter’s Hill to Colenso, which had been for some days in the possession of the Free Staters. The idea was, I believe, to attack the British troops at Estcourt, about whose numbers very contradictory reports were current. The expedition was accompanied by two guns and a Maxim, as far as I know, and consisted of some three thousand Transvaalers: a thousand Free Staters were to join with artillery at Colenso. We arrived at the Tugela in the afternoon, and lay there all next day, encamping on a tiny green spot under an abandoned fort on Hart’s Hill near the railway bridge.

Outside the village we met a messenger dashing along, who told us they were fighting in front, but the fog was so thick and the rain so heavy that we could hear and see nothing, and the wagons plodded through the mud at a hopelessly slow rate. At Chieveley station we heard that an armoured train had been upset and was still fighting desperately, and after a very short halt we pressed on. Gleeful Boers whom we met returning told us that we were too late to see any fighting, and that the crew had surrendered, some fifty or more; and soon afterwards we saw trudging towards us in the rain and mud a little compact body of men on foot surrounded by mounted burghers. As they came near us we distinguished the sodden soiled khaki uniforms: a few officers marched stolidly in front, a man in mufti with an injured hand among them (Winston Churchill), the others plodded resignedly along—seamen some of them we could tell by their hats— marching back to Colenso.

One of the burgher guards stopped to tell us all about it. The train had been derailed by some of the Wakkerstroom men, who had ridden hurriedly down and placed stones on the line near a curve. They were now escorting the prisoners, and were beside themselves with delight. They told Dr. Watt, their doctor, who knew most of them, that there had been a stiff fight for it, and gave glowing details about Winston Churchill's gallantry, which they must have heard of from the soldiers. In the afternoon I rode over to look at the wrecked train: some of the trucks were on the line, two others were off, one of which was overturned and the other on its side. Battered helmets, empty cartridge cases lay about; the silent khaki-clad forms, their helmets over their faces, lay sheltered from the falling rain inside the half overturned track; curious burghers were continually riding up and hovering about. The trucks themselves showed very faint scratches where the Mauser bullets had struck the hard steel, but ugly holes gaped where the Boer shells had gone through and through. ‘They think they can boss us with their trains and inventions,’ a young Boer was saying, ‘but we Afrikanders are too much for them! ’

Again, to gain insight from a Boer perspective, we turn to Breytenbach who, in Chapter 15 – The Boer Campaign in Natal – wrote:-

Veld Kornet Swart van Wakkerstroom (it must be here remembered that Stoop fell directly under his command according to his Vorm and VK. Sarel Oosthuizen of Krugersdorp conducted themselves so well in this fight with Haldane’s troops that the Commandant General regarded it as his duty to specially bring this to the attention of the Government in a report which read thus: ‘In today's battle, VK. Swart from district 2, Wakkerstroom, and VK. C. Oosthuizen from Krugersdorp particularly distinguished themselves in active service as well as for obedience and courage, as reported to me and witnessed firsthand.”

In a telegram he sent to his wife the next day, General Botha provided the following information in connection with that incident:

“16 Nov. Yesterday an armored train from Estcourt came upon us. The Commandants of Wakkerstroom and Krugersdorp immediately detoured with their men with me and when they returned the front truck derailed where our Burgers had placed rocks on the tracks. Our guns were in order and quickly penetrated the armored trucks. The engine broke down and returned badly damaged. Loss of enemy 4 dead, 14 wounded and 58 captured, as well as a mountain gun was taken by us. From our side, 4 of the above-mentioned civilians were slightly injured. This took place in Blaauwkrantz. Later the enemy approached a patrol of Burgers from Ermelo in thick fog and rain and two of our men were killed. The commando rushed into the fray and shot the enemy back. Their loss unknown. Blood spots visible everywhere. A lot of rain.”

Buller’s army was now growing in size and strength by the day, with the influx of fresh troops from across the Empire and a growing number of Colonials joining the fray. Ladysmith was still a stalemate with hunger, sickness and disease, intensifying the pressure on Buller to get a move on. The first of a series of attempts to roll the Boers back and enter the town was the battle for Colenso.

Colenso – 15 December 1899

This was not Buller’s finest hour. With the Boer Commandos dug in on the northern bank of the Tugela River, the British, with woefully inadequate maps and field intelligence at their disposal, elected to try and ford the river where a loop had been created - at precisely the worst possible place. Add to that the decision by Colonel Long to take his artillery too far forward into this bend in the river and you have the recipe for a disaster – this was exactly what happened to the British at Colenso. As the men in close marching order approached the Boers concealed in their trenches, the Boers, who had been patiently awaiting their moment, opened fire from close range. It was an annihilation leading to the loss of many men and the capture of guns by the Boers.

General Botha, in a despatch to Pretoria wrote as follows (wherein the Wakkerstroom Commando is mentioned):

“A force consisting of infantry, cavalry and one battery moved in an easterly direction in support of the enemy's right (eastern) flank. A part of this force, so it proved later, had instructions to take possession, if possible, of the hill on the opposite side of the river, held by Comdt. Joubert (J.A.) of Wakkerstroom and Comdt. Muller of Standerton, assisted by Field-cornet Gouws of Olifants River, Middelburg district, Field-cornet Strydom of Soutpansberg and Acting Field-cornet Steyn of Ermelo with their men. Our burghers here allowed the enemy, who were apparently unaware that the hill was occupied by us, to approach to approximately 60 yards and then opened fire on them. It need hardly be said that this fire was highly effective and immediately put to flight what was still left of the enemy. At about three o'clock in the afternoon the enemy, having been repulsed at all points, began to retreat along the entire length of the front under cover of their big naval guns, leaving behind on the battlefield their dead and many of their wounded.”

Breytenbach, in Chapter 9 – the Build Up to the Battle of Colenso wrote: -

“On the left wing of Hlangwane Hill – the key to all the Boer positions — were, as already mentioned, the commandos Wakkerstroom (under Kmdt. J. A. Joubert) and Standerton (under Kmdt. Muller), reinforced by one Veld Cornet from each of the districts Middelburg, Soutpansberg and Ermelo — a total of 800 to 1,000 men — without artillery or even maxims. Their orders were to keep the hill at all costs and to attack the enemy as soon as they tried to flee across the Colenso bridge.

As the battle unfolded, Breytenbach in Chapter 10 – The battle of Colenso wrote that:

“ They (the British) advanced to within 60 yards, a distance at which born shots could make no mistake – they were disillusioned when the men of Kmdt. Josua Joubert of Wakkerstroom, Kmdt. Muller van Standerton, VK. Gouws van Middelburg, VK. Strydom van Soutpansberg and VK. Mey of Ermelo suddenly let loose on them with their Mausers whereupon they immediately fled. With that the attack was over and all the men could do was to lie in the warm sun in concealed trenches to the rear of Hlangwane wondering what the exact distance to the summit was, while the exhaustion began to overwhelm them.

…..Thorneycroft who was ordered by Dundonald, under the cover of fire from the 13th Hussars and three companies of the Royal Fusiliers, to slowly fall back alongside Gombaspruit in order to protect the South African Light Horse left flank, suffered the most. His movements to the left were seriously impeded by Burgers of the Wakkerstroom Commando, who had, on the eastern and northern side, crept closer through the thickets to outflank him and cut him off. Through the well-directed fire of the 7th Battery the attempts by the Burgers to cut him off failed, and after a battle which lasted three hours, the brigade was at last out of danger and in a position to fall back to their camp via a wide detour where the troops arrived at 4.30 p.m.”

Buller, having retreated back to his base camp at Frere, plotted and planned his next move. In the meanwhile the inhabitants of Ladysmith despaired of ever being relieved and the death toll mounted as Enteric Fever claimed many more in its foul embrace. The Wakkerstroom Commando returned to the hills around Ladysmith where, shortly after New Year in 1901, a Boer “krygsraad” (council of war) determined to put an end to the stalemate by launching a multi-pronged attack on the town.

Platrand (Waggon Hill) – 6 January 1900

By two o'clock on the morning of the 6th of January the burghers chosen for the assault had all reached their respective rendezvous. The Utrecht men, with some Standerton and Wakkerstroom burghers, under the east slope of the Platrand; the men from Heidelberg were round to their right, a mile from the English hospital; and 1,000 of the Vryheid commando and 100 German Uitlanders had marched from Colenso to the spruit below Bester's Farm, having the Free State contingent under Wagon Hill, to their left.


Boer Riflemen

The attack was made at the three points almost simultaneously, the Vryheiders leading and advancing up the slope of the hill from the south. The enemy was in no way taken by surprise, and the first burghers who cleared the crest fell before a well-directed fire from behind the outer lines of the British positions. But the burghers did not waver. They fired lying in many places within fifty yards of the Tommies, making gaps behind the chanzas wherever a head offered a target for an aim.

The Free Staters had likewise captured the west end of Wagon Hill, led by the brave De Villiers, of Harrismith, and by four o'clock, as the light began to make all things visible, the lower part of the Platrand from east to west was in possession of the burghers.

Thus the first line of the enemy's position on the hill was gallantly captured and held, but the English were by no means beaten off. They fell back to other entrenchments, nearer their guns, and clung to them with dogged tenacity until reinforcements came from the town below, and from other posts within the besieged area.

The flat top of the hill became a scene of the most determined fight which had taken place since the siege began, the combatants in several places being separated by only a few yards. The defenders of the hill had the service at close range of their naval and field guns, and it was this great advantage, coupled with a failure on the part of the Pretoria Commando to succour the Free Staters on Wagon Hill, which enabled White ultimately to beat off the determined assault of his opponents. The fight at this end of the Platrand had been hot and furious from the beginning, the Free Staters repulsing every attempt made to break their hold on the hill. White hurled several detachments of Highlanders, King's Royal Rifles, and Imperial Light Horse against Commandant Nel and his brave men but, though subjected to a terrific fire from two batteries, a naval gun, and fully 2,000 of White's garrison, the Harrismith, Heilbron, Vrede, and Kroonstad burghers heroically withstood the onslaught, and maintained their position for fully ten hours. Four times in succession during the continuous struggle on and around Wagon Hill did the English pluckily rush forward to recapture their ground, only to be shot back remorselessly by the intrepid burghers, until the hill in front of them was almost covered with dead and wounded Tommies.

The attempt to storm the Platrand was the last serious engagement in or around Ladysmith until its relief was effected in February. The official lists of Boer losses, as published in the " Volksstem " of January 10 and 12, 1900, give the killed as 55, and the wounded as 135. The lists are exhaustive in supplying the names, full home address, and the commandoes of the men killed and wounded. The Free Staters were the heaviest losers, the Utrecht, Wakkerstroom, and Heidelberg burghers coming next in proportionate losses.

From the Boer perspective, Breytenbach, in Chapter 1 – the Preparations for the Attack on Platrand wrote: -

The Boer force tasked with the assault on Platrand by the Krygrsraad, was comprised of only four commandos (Utrecht, Vryheid, Winburg en Harrismith), supported by a section (Field Cornet) from each of the commando’s Heilbron, Kroonstad, Wakkerstroom, Heidelberg and Krugersdorp. Genl. Louis Botha was also going to send a reinforcement of 300 men from Colenso, but these were to act as a reserve to those tasked with the assault and were not to take part in the storming of the ridge itself. According to Dominee J. D. Kestell who accompanied the Free State commando and was, consequently a witness to the proceedings, the entire Boer force comprised some 4000 men, half of whom were from the Transvaal and half from the Orange Free State.

According to a report from the Commandant General, that of the Burgers from Wakkerstroom, Heidelberg and Krugersdorp that should have taken part in the attack, some 450 to 500 men, i.e. 150 from Wakkerstroom, 200 from Heidelberg and 100 or 150 from Krugersdorp, only 350 man made their appearance.

From the Transvaal side, the force for the storming of Platrand consisted only of the commando’s Utrecht and Vryheid whose positions in the hills to the south and south east of Platrand, between Fouriespruit and Klip River, and 350 men from Wakkerstroom and Heidelberg who were sent from their positions to the east of Klip River to the west side of the river on 5 January to join up with the Utrecht and Vryheid men.

In Chapter 2 – The Battle of Platrand – he goes into more detail about the battle itself: -

“ A strong section of the commando’s from Heidelberg, Wakkerstroom and Utrecht climbed the eastern slope with the aim of attacking the English on the left flank. The Burgers from Vryheid, followed by the German Corps, climbed the southern slope. Last mentioned were not asked by the Krygsraad with any part in the assault and, as a result, only drew nearer so as to be in reserve at the foot of the hill should they be needed. They also, according to the Times History, did not depart before the break of dawn, because they first had to make emplacements for the cannons coming from Colenso.

In the meanwhile the Burgers of Utrecht, Heidelberg and Wakkerstroom under Kmdte. B. C. Hattingh and C. J. Spruyt took the British troops on the eastern point of Caesar’s Camp completely by surprise, cleverly outflanking them, in accordance with Kmdt. Gen. Joubert’s orders.”

Buller’s fourth and final attempt to relieve Ladysmith – the Tugela Heights campaign – was ultimately successful and Ladysmith was relieved on 1 March 1900 with the Boer Commandos seen streaming away from the town. What was wasn’t well know to Buller was that he wasn’t faced with the full might of the Boer forces in the weeks leading up to the relief. Why was this? The answer lies, in part, with a scurrilous rumour that taken hold and spread like wildfire among the men from Vryheid, Wakkerstroom, Piet Retief and Rustenburg; that Bantu’s (black Africans) were attacking their farms and assaulting their wives and children while they were at the front fighting. This caused so much panic among their ranks that large numbers of men drifted off homewards.

Stroop, by his own admission took part in many actions and skirmishes after this, in the lead-up to the Boer surrender on 31 May 1902. Many of these were in and around his home town of Wakkerstroom and many were under the command of General Louis Botha, including those in his second attempt to invade Natal. The Manchester Evening News 24 June 1901 provides the account of one such action: -

“At Elandsberg on the 13th Colonel Gallwey with 300 Bushmen, two companies of Munster Fusiliers, details of the Sharpshooters and two guns of “Q” Battery, was stopped by a party of 300 Boers, who were strongly entrenched at the Nek. The column had been subjected to heavy sniping for three days previously. Colonel Gallwey succeeded in bringing his column into laager and dispersed the Boers, three of whom being found dead and four wounded.”

Having lain down his arms in June 1902, Stoop attempted to take up farming again but, there was nothing left to farm with and no money to supply the means to do so. The Scorched Earth policy, designed to bring the Boers still out in the field to their knees, had seen to it that there was nothing but dry land to work with. Disillusioned and desperate, he joined his family members in the Volksrust concentration camp. Still only 20 years old he wasn’t able to support himself. On 13 December 1902 he left the camp.

That he was back on the farm trying to make a go of it is confirmed by his marriage certificate – Oudhoutskloof being the address he provided when marrying 16 year old Maria Magdalena Cary from Newcastle at Volksrust on 3 July 1906. She was to bare him a number of children before she passed away in 1931. Stoop the remarried – to the widow Johanna Susanna Magdalena Jordaan (born Coetzer) on 6 February 1933. He was 50 years old whilst she was 36. His address was Amersfoort District, Wakkerstroom.

By this time, Stoop had given up the land and found employment with the South African Railways. Thanks to the South African Railways & Harbours Magazine, his movements were easy to trace with his first entry being in October 1925 where he appears as a Labourer, promoted to acting Ganger, on probation. In April 1927 he was employed as a Junior European Labourer in, ironically, Ladysmith and, a few months later, in October 1927, he was a Probationer transferred to Mooi River. In January 1929 he was promoted to Shunter from learner Shunter whilst employed at Pietermaritzburg.in February 1930 he was transferred to Glencoe Junction as a Shunter and then, in July 1931 to Volksrust from Amersfoort. With each move he was moving closer to where his roots lay. His final posting was back to Amersfoort where he retired in November 1933.

Petrus Wilhelmus Stoop passed away on 15 February 1954 at the age of 71 at his home, 25 Schoon Street, Volksrust from a Coronary Thrombosis. He was a retired Railway Foreman and was receiving an “Oud Stryder’s Pension” (Veteran’s)

Acknowledgments:
- El Ne Watson for the Map of Wakkerstroom
- Breytenbach for the various inserts from the Boer side
- The Times History by Amery
- S.A.R. & H Magazine for post Boer War employment details
- S.A.N.D.F. Archives for Vorm B
- Familysearch. com for Marriage and Death deatils

Keeping their eyes open
A mounted infantry patrol of the Leicesters

Source: www.angloboerwar.com/forum/19-ephemera/3...-jack?start=36#91373

RDF camp at Dundee

Source: www.angloboerwar.com/forum/19-ephemera/3...-jack?start=36#91373

Robert Rutherford Hogg

Carpenter’s Crew, Royal Navy (H.M.S. Powerful) – Anglo Boer War
Cooper 1st Class, Royal Navy – WWI

- Queens South Africa Medal (Defence of Ladysmith) to R.R. HOGG, CAR: CR: H.M.S. POWERFUL
- British War Medal to 340625 R.R. HOGG. CPR. 1 R.N.
- Victory Medal to 340625 R.R. HOGG. CPR. 1 R.N.
- Naval Long Service & Good Conduct Medal to 340625 R.R. HOGG, COOPER, H.M.S. LATONA.

Robert Hogg was born in Melrose, Roxburgh, Scotland on 20 February 1876, the son of Thomas Hogg, a Joiner by trade, and his wife Rachel (maiden name Flint). Rachel had been married previously and at the age of 39 in the 1881 Scotland census, was considerably older than her 27 year old husband. She had brought with her into the marriage a son, James McKay, who was much beloved by Robert as will be revealed as developments in Robert’s life unfold.

At the time of the aforementioned census, Robert was a 5 year old school boy living in Abbey Street, Melrose along with his parents and James who was 17 years old – a mere 10 years younger than his stepfather.

Ten years later, at the time of the 1891 census, the family dynamic had altered drastically. Robert, now 15, was an Apprentice Joiner working for his stepbrother, James. James had married in the interim and had moved to Eaton Locon in Bedford with Robert following suit. What had happened to his parents is a matter of conjecture but, whatever the cause of their absence may have been, he had formed an unbreakable bond with the older James who he probably saw as a father figure.

On 23 April 1895 Hogg attested for 12 years service with the Royal Navy at Portsmouth. 5 feet 5 inches in height he had brown hair, gray eyes and a fresh complexion. He sported a tattoo of a crucifix on his chest and provided his occupation as Carpenter. Employed as Carpenter’s Crew, he was aboard Victory II from the day he signed up till 30 September 1895 – the next 3 days being spent in the cells. This would account for his Character rating only being Good – the remainder of his service being characterised as Very Good.


H.M.S. Powerful

His punishment served, he returned to Victory II until 7 June 1897, on which day he transferred to Powerful, the ship he was to serve on in the Anglo Boer War.

Much has been written about the role played by the Naval Brigade in the Anglo Boer War and it is not my intention to add to that already voluminous body of work – suffice it to say that, were it not for both the engineering innovation of Captain Percy Scott of the Terrible and the timely arrival of the modified guns, along with the Naval Contingent to man them, as the doors to Ladysmith were about to be shut, the outcome of the war could have been very different.

The war itself was a long time in the making – tensions between Kruger’s Transvaal and Great Britain had been rising for many years. These were accelerated by the ill-fated Jameson Raid at the end of 1896 which led to a massive armament procurement plan being put in place by the Boers. Inevitably, war was declared on 11 October 1899 with the Boers streaming into, among other places, the Colony of Natal with their ultimate objective being to reach the sea at Durban, placing them in a position to prevent any British forces from landing at the port there.

Talana and Elandslaagte came and went – both pyrrhic victories for the Imperial forces – with the remaining Regular Army and colonial volunteers falling back on Ladysmith which became the last line of defence were Natal to be saved.


Naval Gun on Convent Hill

Matters were finely poised at the very end of October 1899 – the Boer Commandos from the Orange Free State and the Transvaal had virtually encircled the small town with its garrison of 12 500 troops and a sizable civilian population. The noose was about to close and, in a last ditch effort to disrupt and repel the Boer forces, General Sir George White decided on a multi-pronged attack. This venture, known variously as the Battle of Ladysmith or Mournful Monday, was almost doomed to failure from the start – and were it not for the timely arrival of the Naval Brigade on almost the last train into Ladysmith, Ladysmith and Natal could have been lost to the Empire.

But I get ahead of myself – let me attempt, through the medium of various newspaper reports and articles written on the subject over the years – to try and provide a lucid account of how things developed. Add to this the fact that Hogg, the subject of this work, was not technically entitled to the Defence of Ladysmith clasp to his Queens Medal, and the account becomes more vivid seen through his own eyes.

As the Boers closed in on Ladysmith White found that the artillery he had at his disposal was paltry both in number of pieces and their range, to be able to provide an effective deterrent to the Boers. He sent off a hurried telegram to the Naval Officer Commanding the base at Simonstown, Cape Town with an urgent request for help. It was at this point that Percy Scott hit upon the idea to convert naval guns into land-based mobile units which could be deployed upcountry.

This was to prove a novel and effective counter to Boer artillery in a number of crucial battles that were still to be fought. The Globe newspaper, in an article published on 27 December 1899, informed its readers thus: -

“There have been a lot of conjectures in the papers about the guns of the Naval Brigade. The 4.7 inch guns at Ladysmith, taken there by H.M.S. Powerful, were put on board her from Simonstown depot, and makeshift carriages for these were made partly by our dockyard here, and partly by the engineers and carpenters of the “Powerful” on her way round to Durban from Simonstown, a two day trip.

The improvised carriages for the ships 12 pounders are also made of stout timbers and straps of iron, some by the ship and some by the dockyard, and mounted on wheels, the latter got from anywhere they could be purchased, the objective being to adapt the naval 12 pounder gun for land service by making it easy to trundle along. The conception of the makeshift carriage is, as you know, due to Captain Percy Scott of the “Terrible”, and his designs, or rather ideas, were given expression to by designs from the engineer officers and others of that ship.

There is no truth whatsoever in a statement in a West Country paper that the carriages of the guns taken to Ladysmith by the “Powerful” were made in a wheelwright’s shop at Durban. The guns and their gear went straight from the “Powerful” to Ladysmith and if they had had to wait while the carriages were being made at Durban they would never have reached Ladysmith.”

The above is not, strictly speaking true – in his own words, in his book, 50 Years in the Royal Navy, Percy Scott states clearly that – “It was heavy of course, but the guns on these heavy mountings could always keep up with any infantry regiment. At Durban, later on, when time was not so pressing, I had another carriage made, which was much lighter.”

The above is mentioned because, perhaps inexplicably, Hogg’s name was omitted from the roll containing over 280 names of the Powerful’s men who helped defend Ladysmith and yet he helped bring the gun mounts to Ladysmith. Was he there? - Remembering that in order to qualify for the clasp one had to be in Ladysmith from 3 November 1899 till 28 February 1900, both dates inclusive. No one can be sure despite a letter he wrote home to James McKay which was published in the Cambridge Independent Press of 19 January 1900. This letter, a précised version follows below, clearly puts him in Ladysmith – and in contention for the disputed clasp.

‘Letter by a Chesterton Man – Mr James McKay of Virginia House, Montague Road, De Freville Estate, Chesterton, has sent us a copy of two letters he has received lately from his stepbrother, Robert Hogg, who was an apprentice carpenter a few years ago with Messrs. Coulson and Lofts, Builders and is now doing his share of “trying to wipe the slate clean” in South Africa.’

The letter is as follows:

Naval Brigade, H.M.S. Powerful, South Africa, November 17th, 1899

“Dear Brother - I came to this ship in June 1897 and was at the Diamond Jubilee at Spithead. Then I went all round Ireland and left for China by the Cape of Good Hope, Mauritius, Ceylon, Straits of Malacca, Singapore to Hong Kong. We were cleared for battle six weeks over the Wei-Hei-Wei and Port Arthur bother with Russia, but it was settled otherwise, and a good job too.

I don’t expect to be home before the war is over, and I think that will be May or June next year. We have all had orders to make our wills out before landing. I believe this will be a proper slaughter match, because these Boers are not a lot of Johnny Raws nor Blacks. We may have more joy when Buller and his troops get out here.”

The second letter is the one wherein intimation is made that he had been in Ladysmith. It read as follows: -

“December 20th, 1899

I have been up to Ladysmith, but was sent back with more carpenters, to prepare more gun carriages for our guns. I am pleased that brother George was not among the Mountain Battery that was captured at Ladysmith. I have been very busy from five in the morning to half past ten at night making gun carriages for 12 pounders, and the work is all heavy stuff, 9 inches by 9 inches for limbers. They fire a projectile weighing 46 lbs for about seven miles and make very accurate shooting. The 4.7 gun is the gun that deals death among the Boers. They fire lyddite shells, and where they burst it means death for fifty yards around, the fumes are so deadly poisonous. We have got ten more 12 pounders and two 4.7 ready. They go up on Friday next.


Powerful’s men defending Ladysmith

You will be thinking I’m a proper old foghorn, always blowing. Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, - I remain, your loving brother, Bob.”

That Hogg, as Carpenter’s Crew, had a role to play in the adaptation and manufacture of the gun carriages is beyond dispute. What is less clear is when exactly he was “in Ladysmith” as claimed by him and when he left. Was it in the window period between the arrival of the Powerful’s Naval Contingent on the afternoon of Monday, 30 October 1899 and the official first day of the siege, in other words 3 November 1899? If this was the case then he fell out of the qualifying period for the Defence clasp although he might well have been under fire from the Boer guns!

Whatever the case may be, he felt that he should have been awarded the clasp.

Another hypothesis that presents itself is that, having been up to Ladysmith and then sent back down to make more gun carriages (as per Percy Scott’s comments) he would have been landed at Durban thereby qualifying for the award of the Natal clasp if the Defence of Ladysmith were to be denied him. Strangely there is no indication of that either leaving his clasp qualification a bit of a mystery.

Whatever the case may be, the Powerful’s Ladysmith contingent continued to distinguish themselves alongside their Regular Army and Colonial comrades in staving off a determined Boer attack at Wagon Hill on 6 January 1900, as well as taking a helping hand, despite the limited number of shells at their disposal, in numerous other sorties and skirmishes leading up to the lifting of the siege on 28 February 1900.
Their work done in South Africa, the Powerful and her Naval Brigade headed for home to a hero’s welcome. Perhaps it was “our Hogg” who was mentioned in an article in the Portsmouth Evening News of 31 May 1900. Under the banner “The Powerful’s W.O.’s – Entertained at the Naval Depot” it read (in part): -

“The Chief and Warrant Officers of the Portsmouth Naval Depot gave a banquet to officers of similar rank belonging to H.M.S. Powerful on Wednesday evening. Mr J.C. Haswell proposed the toast of the evening, “Our Guests.” He was sure, he said that every member of the Mess would not only express admiration for the services of their guests, but also for those others serving throughout South Africa.

Mr Hogg then submitted “Her Majesty’s Forces who are serving, and those who have served, in South Africa.” The splendid conduct of their comrades had proved, he said, that there still existed in the English race the fighting spirit which had animated their fathers.”

Hogg and Powerful parted company on 8 June 1900 – not long after his return to English waters. His next posting was to Duke of Wellington which is where, on 16 February 1901, he was promoted to 2nd Cooper. He served in many other ships and establishments in the years leading up to the Great War which burst onto the international stage on 4 August 1914, at which point he was aboard the Excellent as a fully-fledged Cooper. The 1911 England census has him at the house of his stepbrother, James McKay, 73 Montague Road, Chesterton. Aged 35 he is listed as a Cooper with the Royal Navy and still unmarried.

Hogg, as has been mentioned was aboard Excellent, a Royal Navy "stone frigate" (shore establishment) sited on Whale Island near Portsmouth in Hampshire, when war broke out. He was stationed there until being posted to Queen Elizabeth on 8 March 1916. The Queen Elizabeth was the lead ship of her class of five dreadnought battleships built for the Royal Navy in the early 1910s, and was often used as a flagship. She served in the First World War as part of the Grand Fleet, and participated in the inconclusive action of 19 August 1916. Her service during the war generally consisted of routine patrols and training in the North Sea.

Taking leave of Queen Elizabeth on 15 April 1919, Hogg’s final posting before being discharged, time expired on 16 December 1919, was the shore establishment President VII (Cambridge University.) For his many years of service he was awarded the Naval Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. Being still single, he returned to McKay’s house where he took up residence once more.

The following year, 1920, he wed Charlotte Cunningham in Dublin, Ireland – taking up residence at 82 Norwich Street, Cambridge on his return to England. It was here that we find him in the 1921 England census, as a Carpenter/Joiner in the employ of Stuart & Co. of Millwall in London. Aged 45 he was many years older than his 26 year old wife. Staying with them at the time of the census was his sister-in-law, 24 year old Elizabeth Cunningham.


The Haymaker’s Arms, Old Chesterton

The Cambridge Daily News of 9 March 1939 informed their readers of his passing. In an article entitled “The Late Mr R.R. Hogg” they wrote that: -

“The death is reported of Mr Robert Rutherford Hogg, landlord of the Haymaker’s Arms, Old Chesterton, at the age of 63. Born at Melrose, Scotland, he served his apprenticeship with Messrs. Coulson and Lofts as a joiner, after which he enlisted in the Royal Navy as a carpenter, and served 25 years as a Petty Officer, including the years of the Great War. He was under Admiral Beatty on the Queen Elizabeth when the German Navy surrendered. Returning to Cambridge he was associated with naval officers who came up for special education.”

Fortunately he didn’t live to see the death of his son Lance Corporal James Joseph Rutherford Hogg, who, at the age of 21, was Killed in Action with the 2nd The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment on 6 May 1943.

Acknowledgements:

- Ancestry for census data, naval record of service and medal rolls
- Wikipedia for information on the various ships in which Hogg sailed
- The Globe for article on HMS Powerful’s guns
- 50 Years in the Royal Navy by Admiral Sir Percy Scott
- Cambridge Independent Press for letters from Hogg
- Portsmouth Evening News for report on 1900 banquet
- Cambridge Daily News for his obituary

Entitled 'Captured at Dundee
B Squadron, 18th Hussars, which fell into the hands of the enemy.'

Source: www.angloboerwar.com/forum/19-ephemera/3...-jack?start=30#90607

William Bishop

Able Seaman, Royal Navy – Anglo Boer War
Leading Seaman, Royal Navy – WWI

- Queens South Africa Medal (Defence of Ladysmith) to 187117 A–B: W. BISHOP. H.M.S. POWERFUL
- 1914/15 Star to 187117 W. BISHOP. L.S. R.N.
- British War Medal to 187117 W. BISHOP. L.S. R.N.
- Victory Medal to 187117 W. BISHOP. L.S. R.N.

William Bishop, probably known to all in sundry as Bill or Billy, was born in Brighton, Sussex on 3 August 1879 the son of John Bishop, a Fisherman, and his wife Sarah, a Nurse by occupation. At the time of the 1881 England census the family, a large one, were living at 36 Essex Place, Brighton. William, aged 2, was low down the pecking order being preceded by Charles (17), Harry (15), George (13), Harriet (10), Alfred (6), Abraham (4) and succeeded by younger sibling James who was only 1 month old.

Ten years later, at the time of the 1891 England census, the Bishop family had moved across the road and were resident in 33 Essex Place. William was a 12 year old school boy and joined in the house by siblings Fred (22), Harriet (20), Alfred (16) Abraham (14) and James who was now 10. With the exception of Abraham, already out to work as a Watchmaker’s Assistant, all the boys in the family had followed in their father’s footsteps and were Fishermen.

We’ll never know why young Bill decided not to follow suit, opting instead for a career in the “Senior Service” – the Royal Navy. On 7 January 1896 he enlisted for 12 years service at Portsmouth. Physically he was 5 feet 4 inches in height with dark brown hair, brown eyes and a sallow complexion. He sported two tattoos – one of clasped hands on his left arm and one of a woman on his right arm. As was traditionally the case, not yet being of age, he entered service as a Boy II Class - aboard HMS Impregnable until 30 July 1896 before transferring to HMS St. Vincent. He was to spend until 21 November 1896 aboard her before moving on to Boscawen where he was until 27 April 1897. From 28 April to 7 June 1897 he was aboard Pembroke II whereafter, on the following day, he boarded HMS Powerful – the ship he was to serve on in the Boer War.


HMS Powerful

Having attained the requisite age he was elevated to the rank of Ordinary Seaman on his birthday – 3 August 1897. His ship, HMS Powerful, was built by Vickers of Barrow and when launched in June 1897 was, along with her sister ship Terrible, one of the largest cruisers afloat. Her main armament consisted of two 9.2 inch guns and 12 6 inch guns. Her compliment was 894 men commanded by Captain the Honourable Hedworth Lambton. Following her fitting out she was sent to the China station and was being brought back to the UK in September 1899 when she was diverted to the Cape.

There was a very good reason for this, long festering tensions between Great Britain and the two Boer Republics in South Africa had finally boiled to a head with war breaking out on 11 October 1899. Within 48 hours of the outbreak of the war, Terrible and Powerful had arrived at the Cape. They arrived at a critical time and were to play a pivotal role in the conflict. The naval brigades from both ships were to be involved in many actions of the Boer War and at Ladysmith, the navy's Gunners, very likely, determined the outcome of the siege.

Powerful and Terrible were to meet on 14 October at the British naval base at Simonstown, close to Cape Town where they then, expeditiously, began to prepare their guns for use on land. Luckily, the Captain of the Terrible was Percy Scott, the navy's leading gunnery expert, and it was he who supervised the building of carriages that would carry 12 pounder guns on land. These guns and their carriages were ready on 20 October, some of them being sent to Stormberg in the Eastern Cape where their presence was sorely required.

On 25 October, the Naval Commander at Simonstown received a telegram from General Sir George White asking for naval personnel and for long range guns to reinforce his own artillery at Ladysmith. Scott quickly improvised land mounts for two long range 4.7 inch guns to go with the already mounted 12 pounders.

General White, commanding the little field force, had split his force into two, sending a brigade of 4000 men to Dundee whilst keeping the main force of 8000 at Ladysmith. The brigade at Dundee fought the action at Talana Hill on 20 October where General Symons managed to drive the Boers off the hill but at huge cost, including that of his own life. The new commander, General Yule then decided to retire on Ladysmith. It was at this point that General White’s telegraph for artillery assistance was sent to the Commander of the Naval Base at Simonstown. By the 28th October the Boers had cut off Ladysmith’s water supply and surrounded the town within a few days, effectively laying siege to the occupants – both civil and military.

White waited for his men to recover from the ordeals they'd been involved in before attempting a counter attack on Monday 30 October. It was a huge gamble. Rather than retreat to south of the Tugela River, White believed that he could deliver one knockout blow on the encroaching Boer army and so on 30 October, forces were sent out to capture Nicholson's Nek, Long Hill, and Pepworth Hill. With mules stampeding with their artillery pieces, and men finding themselves out of position as well as the Boers, very inconsiderately, not being where they were supposed to be, the day was a calamitous one for the British. Carleton’s force of 1000 men at Nicholson's Nek was completely lost with 800 men being captured by the Boers and other targets not being gained. Had it not been for the timely arrival of the Naval Brigade, the day, which became known as Mournful Monday might have been a whole lot worse. With the arrival of HMS powerful 's naval brigade, General White now had the means to defend Ladysmith against the Boers Long Toms’ which outranged all the artillery that he had at his disposal.

The Powerful's Naval Brigade consisting of 283 officers and men, had arrived at the Port of Durban on 29 October and had travelled overnight by two trains to Ladysmith. The brigade had with them 2 x 4.7 pounder, 4 x 12 pounders and four maxim guns. The first detachment from the brigade arrived at 6:00 a.m. in Ladysmith in the middle of the battle for the town. It had taken them just six days to adapt the 4.7 inch guns and then transport them by ship and rail to Ladysmith – an astonishing feat. Unfortunately, in the quest for speed, the brigade did not bring sufficient ammunition. Scott had asked for 5000 rounds for the 4.7 inch guns but was only given 500 rounds - enough for 25 minutes of rapid firing. He was to receive no further ammunition.

As soon as the brigade arrived at Ladysmith Station it was under fire from the enemy. The 12 pounder guns being transported using oxen and manpower to their positions and it was not long before they were finding their range and silencing the enemies Long Tom, referred to as “Puffing Billy” by the British. One enemy shell did dismount one of the Naval 12 pounders, wounding 3 of the gun crew, the first casualties of the ship in South Africa.


Map of Ladysmith showing emplacements.

It took several days for the 4.7 inch guns to be pulled to their positions on Junction Hill and Cove Redoubt from where they could fire on the Boers long range guns named Long Toms by the British. On the first day that the 4.7 inch guns were in action, 2 November 1899, Lieutenant Edgerton was killed by a shell from Long Tom. On this day the Naval Brigades long guns were being fired on by at least 5 Boer positions and the town found itself finally cut off from the rest of the world.

With the arrival of the Naval Brigade and a battalion of the Rifle Brigade on the 30th of October the total force at lady Smith reached 12,500 officers and men. There was enough food for two months at normal consumption rates. The besieging of almost the entire Natal Field Force left the Colony virtually defenceless until the arrival from England of Buller’s Army Corps, the advance guard of which landed at Cape Town on 4 November.


Powerful gun emplacements

The Boers encircled the town within a six mile radius, mostly from hill positions, whilst the British maintained a smaller defensive ring. The Boers tactics were to try and starve and bombard Ladysmith into surrender whilst keeping Buller and his force of 18,000 men at bay south of the Tugela river. Both sides believed that the siege would be a short one. The Boers only made one serious attempt to breakthrough the defensive ring around Ladysmith - on Waggon Hill on 6 January 1900. For the remainder of the time the Boers were happy to tie up this large force of British soldiers with occasional shelling.

The role of the Naval Brigade was to keep at bay the Boers long range guns and minimise the damage they were doing, otherwise destroying the enemies emplacements or reducing their effectiveness. The Boers brought into action at Ladysmith four 155 millimetre Creusot guns, four 120 millimetre Krupp howitzers and 6 x 75 millimetre Creusot field guns as well as a dozen other guns. The range of these large guns was 10,000, 6000 and 5000 thousand yards respectively and they were positioned on the larger hills around the town – Pepworth Hill, Lombard’s Kop, Surprise Hill, Telegraph Hill, and Mount Bulwana. The Naval Brigade had a 4.7 inch gun mounted on Cove Redoubt, a second 4.7 inch gun on Junction Hill (later moved to Waggon Hill and Caesar’s Camp) and 12 pounders on Gordon Hill, Caesar's camp and Cove Redoubt.


Naval Gun

The 4.7 inch gun on Junction Hill was eventually able to knock out the Boer 6 inch gun on Pepworth Hill, and the 4.7 inch on Cove Redoubt was to repeatedly hit the Boer emplacement on Mount Bulwana at a range of between 8200 and 8900 yards. To help find their targets the Naval Brigade built a conning tower close to the 4.7 inch guns and whenever the enemy was seen to have fired its guns, its fire was returned with a shell that reached it 3 seconds before its shell reached its own targets. This gunnery duel was helped by the way in which the Boers conducted their campaign. They never fired before breakfast and never at night. They took time off regularly for meals with their Rifleman lunching between 11:30 and 12:00. Next came the Artillerists who lunched between 12:00 and 12:30. They hardly ever fired at tea-time and never when it rained. Sunday was a holy day for the Boers who attended church services so giving the British a day off from being shelled.

George W Steevens, a Daily Mail correspondent present in lady Smith, who died before the town was relieved, wrote an account of the siege including this piece about the value of the naval brigade-

“This handful of sailors have been the saving of Ladysmith. You don't know, till you have tried it, what a worm you feel when the enemy is plugging shells into you, and you can't possibly plug back. Even though they spared their shells, it made all the world of difference to know that the sailors could reach the big guns if the ever became unbearable. It makes all the difference to the Boers too, I suspect; for sure as Lady Anne or Bloody Mary gets onto them, they shut up in a round or two. To have the very men among you makes the difference between rainwater and brine.”


Powerful returning home

Following her exploits in South Africa HMS Powerful returned to her home port of Portsmouth arriving on 11 April 1900. The news of the participation of the Naval Brigade in the siege at Ladysmith was well known and the men were regarded as heroes. All the ships at dock in the harbour were decorated with flags to welcome Powerful home. There was to have been a celebratory dinner that evening but it was postponed until April 24th at which time the Mayor of Portsmouth presented a silver watch to every member of the crew. The watchers were engraved with the words siege of Ladysmith 118 days 1899 - 1900 followed by the name of the recipient and HMS Powerful.

Bishop was one of the men who defended Ladysmith – quite where he was positioned is unknown. He was also a recipient of the Silver Watch awarded to each member of the Naval Brigade. It has been alluded to earlier but the common belief was that, were the men of the Powerful not on hand to bombard the Boer positions on the day they arrived, all would have been lost and the Boers would not merely have besieged the town but would have had an open door to the town which they would have occupied and gone on to take Pietermaritzburg and the ultimate prize, the port of Durban.

For his effort Bishop was awarded the Queens Medal with Defence of Ladysmith clasp (this was sent to HMS Australia for handing over). He had been promoted to Abel Seaman on 3 August 1899, just months prior to the Ladysmith siege.

Back in the United Kingdom, Bishop remained with Powerful until a posting to the Duke Of Wellington on 9 June 1900. Although his Boer War service was effectively over, he continued to serve with the Royal Navy on a succession of ships – the Excellent from 16 September until 8 December 1900 followed by Vernon from the 9 December until 25 April 1901. From there it was to the Australia from 26 April 1901 until 7 January 1904 – by which time hostilities had long ceased and Great Britain was enjoying a period of relative peace.

A month-long stint on Firequeen saw him aboard until he joined the crew of Prince George from 1 February to 14 July 1904. This was followed by service on the Majestic until 1 October 1906 until he moved on to the Excellent until 23 March 1907. Whilst crewing aboard the Prince George he wed Mary Anne Elizabeth Jupp in St. Paul’s Church, Brighton on 21 December 1905. He was 26 years old at the time and a Sailor living at 6 Kent’s Court in Brighton. Mary Anne was 22.

He next spent almost two years on Victory – from 24 March 1907 until 18 January 1909 before moving to Revenge until 23 May 1909. Short spells on Illustrious and then Victory followed until, 4 August 1909, the date his 12 years was up and the date on which he transferred to the Royal Fleet Reserve.

The 1911 England census revealed to us what post-navy career he had carved out for himself – that of a Fish Dealer. He and his wife and two children, William John (3) and John Edward (9 months) were living at 18 George Street, Brighton at the time the enumerator called round.

The Great War broke out on 4 August 1914. In the build-up to it many men on the Reserve were called up, Bishop included. He resumed service on 2 August 1914 as an Able Seaman aboard Vindictive. On 7 October 1915 he was promoted to Leading Seaman, remaining on Vindictive until 30 June 1916 when he transferred to Victory I. Vindictive had been refitted in 1909–10 for service in the 3rd Division of the Home Fleet. In March 1912 she became a tender to the training establishment HMS Vernon. Obsolescent by the outbreak of First World War, in August 1914 she was assigned to the 9th Cruiser Squadron and captured the German merchantmen Schlesien and Slawentzitz on 7 August and 8 September respectively. In 1915 she was stationed on the southeast coast of South America. From 1916 to late 1917 she served in the White Sea.

On 12 September 1916 Bishop moved to Renown until 13 November 1918 when he joined Vernon. Renown was laid down by Fairfield at Govan, Glasgow, Scotland on 25 January 1915 and was launched on 4 March 1916 and completed on 20 September 1916, after the Battle of Jutland at the cost of £3,117,204. She served with the Grand Fleet in the North Sea during the remaining two years of the First World War. Assigned to the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron for the duration of the war, she never fired a shot in anger. On 12 December 1917 Renown put to sea with other elements of the fleet in an unsuccessful attempt to intercept the German 3rd Half-Flotilla of destroyers that had destroyed a Scandinavian convoy and most of its escorts off the coast of Norway. For the rest of the war the ships patrolled the North Sea uneventfully.

His service at an end, Bishop was out of uniform once more, taking his discharge on 28 March 1919. He was awarded the standard trio of medals for WWI. Reverting to his previous occupation of Fish Monger, Bishop resumed his life. The 1921 England census revealing that, now 42 years old, he was living at 10 George Street, Brighton, along with his wife and two children. He also had two lodgers staying with him – Harry Higgs and his wife Eleanor.

William Bishop passed away in Brighton in April 1958.

Picture courtesy of Noonan's

QSA (1) Talana (5321 Pte. M. Moran. Rl. Dublin Fus:);
[ KSA (2) ]

Provenance: Anglo-Boer War Anniversary Sale, Spink, October 1999.

Michael Moran was born in Dublin and attested there for the Royal Dublin Fusiliers on 24 December 1894, having previously served in the Regiment’s 4th (Militia) Battalion. He served with the 2nd Battalion in India from 15 May 1896 to 1 June 1897, and then in South Africa during the Boer War from 9 November 1899 to 1 March 1902. Posted missing on 22 October 1899 after the Battle of Talana Hill, he was not confirmed as having been taken Prisoner of War until the fate of Colonel Moller’s force became known, and he was released eight months later when Pretoria was taken.

Invalided to England but returned to SA in 1901-2.

He transferred to the Army Reserve on 23 November 1902, and was discharged on 23 December 1906, after 12 years’ service.

QSA: WO100/209p134 KSA: WO100/347p34

Jon,

Yes, I remember that now. My apologies.

David

I posted pictures of the naming on a previous post on this thread, the first 3 images are the SAGS, whilst the remaing are of the QSA and 1906, where intelligence is spelt intelligance

Jon

Not that fast David! They made it to Cape Town where a friend took a few photos for me - they will be working their way to the UK in a matter of weeks.