TOPIC:

My Great Uncles research has taken me to this particular day. To have been there aged 19 most have been horrendous. When one scans over the causality figures for the Connaught Rangers during the 15th December 1899 it is very shocking; eg the number of wounded is staggering. What level of medical attention would these men have received in that environment, is there a cemetary where the fallen rest, and where any regimental memorials erected in their memory ?. If anyone can add further to what happened with the Connaught's that day feel free to elaborate as it is a confusing incident with so many accounts and view points.

D Ahern Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Aylward Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Bannister Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Barry Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Bell Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Blakeley Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
C Breen Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
Brooke Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
Brooke Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Brosnan Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
F Burke Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Burrows Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Butler Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Byrne Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Byrne Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Byrne Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Byrne Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
R Caheeran Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Cahill Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
O Carney Died 25 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Carsons Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Casey Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Cavanagh Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
H Chambers Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E Coglan Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Coleman Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
K Connell Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Conway Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Cooney Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Coughlin Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
A Crean Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Crummy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Daley Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Day Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Delaney Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
H Doherty Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Doherty Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Doherty Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Donaghue Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Dooley Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
A Dowd Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Duffy Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Dunne Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Dunne Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Dunne Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Enoch Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
A Farrell Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Farrell Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Farrell Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Farrell Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Finnerty Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Flynn Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Flynn Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Fogarty Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Foley Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Fox Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Fox Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Gallacher Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Gallagher Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Gilhooley Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Gormley Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
G Graham Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
G Greidus Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Harte Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Harte Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Hayes Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Heagney Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Healey Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Healy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Heavey Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Henaghan Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Herbert Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Hill Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
H Holden Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
F Hutchinson Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E Igoe Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
Jones Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Jordan Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
G W Joyce Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Kearney Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Kearney Died 25 Dec 1899 Colenso
L S Kelly Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Kelly Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
H Kennedy Died 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
H Kennedy Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Kennedy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
F Kent Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Keys Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M King Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
B Laffey Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Lafley Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Lally Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Leary Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Leonard Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Leonard Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
G Livingstone Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Long Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Madden Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Maher Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
C Manning Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Manning Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Manning Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
R Martin Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
V McBride Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M McCanliffe Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M McCarthy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
C McDonald Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J McDonald Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W McGowan Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J McGrath Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E McHugh Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M McInerney Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J McKenna Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M McKeone Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M McLoughlin Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M McMahon Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P McNally Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Mertan Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Molloy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Molloy Died 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Moore Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Moran Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E Mulhall Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Mulligen Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
G Murphy Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
O Murphy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Murray Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Myers Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Naughton Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
T Nolan Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Noon Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J O\'Roielly Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
P Parslow Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J M Payne Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
F Pepper Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E Perry Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Piggott Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E Pile Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
H Qualters Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Rahilly Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Reilly Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
R Reilly Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Ryan Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Shaw Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Sheehan Killed 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Sherlock Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Smethers Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
E Smith Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
M Smith Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
A Sprason Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
G Steele Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Tierney Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Troy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J Tubridy Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
W Tuhey Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
R Valentine Missing 15 Dec 1899 Colenso
J White Wounded 15 Dec 1899 Colenso

15 December 1899: The Battle of Colenso was fought on this day. The 5th Irish Brigade of the British Army under Major General Fitzroy Hart was engaged in action against the Boers and suffered heavy casualties. The above statistics when broken down with names is shocking but puts into perspective about how General Hart described what happened to his men in the loop.

'The infantry had advanced only a little way, when a tremendous rifle fire was poured into us from our front, and a considerable rifle fire from our left front. There was no smoke and not a sign of the enemy himself, or even a horse, but the streaks of dust as the Boer bullets showered in, grazing the ground, plainly showed where they were, by a process of interpolation. The infantry lay down flat. Fire was new to them…

I could see officers here and there urging on the advance; and all this was so far successful that a slow
advance was made. Here and there men with better nerves pushed on. There was no panic, and once when I said to a lot of men who were deaf to my commands to advance—
" If I give you a lead, if your General gives you a lead—will you come on? "
They answered quite cheerily with their brogues " We will, sir," and up they jumped and forward they went.
Time and experience are necessary to make men go well under fire.

Casualties as reported by Hart amounted to some 25 officers and 528 men, total 553, killed, wounded and missing.

Those killed in the "Loop" were initially buried there, but were later reinterred in a mass grave at Ambleside in the same area, due west of Colenso.

South of Colenso is the Clouston Garden of Remembrance, where many casualties have been reinterred, together with memorials that had been vandalised, or which were being overtaken by developments at Colenso.

Still further south is a cemetery that was adjacent to No. 4 Stationary Hospital. Its most famous occupant is Lt Freddie Roberts VC, who died of wounds there after trying to save the guns at Colenso. This cemetery is adjacent to a Zulu village and has been repeatedly vandalised. It was restored a few years ago, but I cannot comment on its present condition.

Regards
Brett

Thanks Brett for the above information.

I thought I had a photo of the Irish Brigade memorial at Ambleside, but it has vanished. Instead, I am posting a photo of a similar memorial at the Chieveley Cemetery. It replaces all the missing metal crosses and vandalised headstones at that cemetery.

Regards
Brett

Here are the medals of PAtrick Flynn wounded together with his brother Martin Flynn in Colenso, we believe. They both fought in WW1 and survived along with 5 other brothers. Also a photo of Martin with medals that are now lost.
regards
Anthony

Here are photos of the Irish Brigade memorial at Ambleside and the Connaught Rangers' memorial panel in All Saints Church, Ladysmith.

I first visited Chieveley cemetery in 1990 when there were few houses around and the cemetery was in good order. I visited again a few years later by which time the village had grown enormously and there were missing tiles from the roof of the entrance. It's sad to hear it's been badly vandalised since.