TOPIC:

Today, on the 'Durban' thread, Mike reproduced a 1901 report from 'The Times' that refers in part to the fact that the Natal Government Railways were "carrying a larger quantity of goods than at any previous period." The performance of the NGR during the Boer War was remarkable indeed, and below are extracts from its publication 'Battlefields of Natal Revisited' that refer to the NGR's record during the period of the Natal Campaign (1899-1900).

Brett

Excellent information Brett. Many thanks.

Afternoon Brett,
The figures seem huge on the face of it, but, this war had dragged on rather longer than the War Office would have liked and indeed, expected.
The medals earned by members of the NGR are well worth having in my opinion, they had to be earned the hard way, in particular, those give to the locomotive crews of armoured trains.
Kind regards Frank

Frank
When I read the report before posting it, I noticed that the first of the reinforcements dealt with by the NGR in Durban was the Manchester Regiment. I thought you would be proud to know that 'your' regiment took the lead in showing the locals that Britain intended to meet force with force. My grandfather might have joined other Maritzburgers cheering the regiment as it passed through their town on its way to Ladysmith and more battle honours.
Regards
Brett

Morning Brett,
Yes, indeed, I made mention of armoured trains, but, it is very important to remember all those specials that had to be provided by the NGR too.
I do hope your grandfather was not disappointed if he was present in Pietermaritzburg on the 20th of September 1899, the lads were along way from home, they had actually been ordered down to the Cape from their station at the Grand Casemate Barracks on Gibraltar where they had been since the close of 1897.

You are quite right, they were certainly the first troops into Natal to back up the colonies rather depleted garrison, interestingly, they had been placed at readiness in August 1899, Arthur Curran received a telegram on the 5th of August 1899 from the War Office whilst the negotiations were still continuing with the Transvaal government.
The regiment sailed on the 23rd of August and arrived of Cape Town on the 15th of September, doubtless, Table Bay must have appeared very interesting and perhaps not what many were expecting.
They landed the following day and paraded in front of the GOC Cape Colony and were then ordered to Natal, they re-embarked and arrived at Durban on the 20th of September, the NGR provided three specials to take them to Pietermaritzburg that very same day.

I wonder if your grandfather actually saw them march past on their way to Fort Napier and if so what he thought at the time?
It must have been quite a sight, in particular, their magnificent Drummers!
Kind regards Frank

Frank
Thank you for filling out details of the Manchester Regiment's arrival in Natal. British regiments had been garrisoned at Fort Napier for decades, so the inhabitants of Maritzburg would not necessarily have been excited by a new arrival. However, the situation in September 1899 was very different. War with the Boer Republics was imminent. The Natal Police sent pickets to the border, the Natal Carbineers were mobilised, the Imperial Light Horse came into being and 'Uitlanders' from the Transvaal filled its ranks, and much more besides. I think the arrival of the Manchester Regiment would have caused both excitement and relief amongst the inhabitants of the town, including my grandfather, a recent immigrant from the New Forest in Hampshire.
I commemorate the Manchester Regiment with the medals of one of the men who arrived in Maritzburg on that day, 5175 Pte M Reid, who went on to serve in the Battles of Elandslaagte and Belfast, and in the Defence of Ladysmith, perhaps including the Battle of Caesar's Camp.
Regards
Brett