TOPIC:

Like Doug said, it is actually a Town Guard medal for me. What started my TG focus was living in Prince Albert, and I have searched for YEARS to get a Prince Albert TG medal.

One is on its way, hopefully with me before the new year.

I have found rare and expensive things this year, but that Prince Albert medal is the capstone on my Town Guard collection.

Ryan

This year I was really pleased to recover a QSA "lost" in New Zealand in April 2008. The medal surfaced in South Africa and I was able to purchase it direct from the "owner" who emailed me when he saw it on the "Medals Wanted" page of my website.

I also reunited a 3 pence coin engraved in memory of Pte EE Tallis AOC with his QSA - seven years apart.

"Best" would have to be the Defence of Making medal to Cpl-SS H Kelland, 17th Lancers. One of two DoM clasps to the regiment and Kelland was later killed at Modderfontein 17-09-1901 when Smuts & Co annihilated C Squadron.

Regards
Meurig

Hi

I am adding a pic of my "pair of the year"!

Just a little bit of "medal trivia" it will be noted that the CORPS on the 1906 is engraved, this was carried out to all these medals after the medals had initially been engraved with only NATAL TELEGRAPH. One story has it that it was apparently presumed the NATAL TELEGRAPH was a newspaper and not military unit?

Anyone with further info regards this abnormality please can you post it.

Regards
Brian

Hi,

Here's my contribution to this thread: a scarce CGHGSM/QSA with a New Zealand connection. CGHGSM w/clasp Bechuanaland to Charles Hooper, Queenstown Rifle Volunteers (chisel engraved Pte C. HOOPER. QUEENStn R. VOL.), and his QSA named to him as a member of the 4th NZMR Contingent (impressed 1553 PTE C. HOOPER. 4TH N. Z’LAND R.R.). The third medallion is a King's Empire Veteran's Cross, a sucessor to the Empire Veteran's Association originally established by the then NZ Governor, Lord Ranfurly.

To my knowledge there were only two other CGHGSM's were awarded to subsequent members of the NZMR Contingents: Henry Harwood Browne (CGHGSM w/clasp Basutoland), later a Lt in the 7th NZMR Contingent and James Nathaniel Hamer (CGHGSM w/clasps Transkei and Basutoland), later also a Lt in the 7th NZMR Contingent. Hamer has been mentioned before, as a survivor of Isandlwana, with his SAGS medal as a single hammering for £15000 at DNW last year.

So with Hooper, that's the three but I'd like to think there were one or two more perhaps?

Cheers
Phil

Finding my grandads head stone on line, but now I know where he lies I'll be down in April? May time
I worked in Swaziland 1982/5 and tried to seek him out, but Google was a lot younger then
best regards
Micky Denne

Hi Everybody

My best acquisition of 2013: a Boer War group to a Grandfather plus a modern group to his Grandson. Both were “Spooks" but more than 70 years apart!




Grandpa: Veldkornet & Adjudant P Spaarwater, Wakkerstroom Cdo, was one of Krugers "Geheime Politie" (Secret Police). He was born in Stellenbosch(1868) but came to the ZAR in 1896 where he was appointed as a Roads Inspector. He received full ZAR Citizenship in 1897, having done Commando-service in putting down the Jameson Raid.




He was sworn in as “Geheime Speurder der ZAR / Secret Detective, ZAR”, on 27 September 1899 and issued with Geheime Politie badge No 15.





For his subsequent Boer War Service (Natal & Transvaal) he was awarded the DTD & ABO. In “Vorm A” (the DTD Application) he claimed to have saved his Commandant J A Joubert from capture by the British at Amersfoort on 22 May 1901: this is confirmed in Joubert’s entry in “Onze Krijgs-Officieren”.










I got copies of his Secret Police Attestation document (signed by Tjaart Kruger, son of Pres Kruger), his first report after spying on the Natal Frontier just before the war, as well as a number of copied photos and original war-time documents. The latter includes a number of Paspoorte (Travel Passes) and his appointment as Public Prosecutor for Wakkerstroom, signed by Comdt Gen Louis Botha on 29 March 1902.

There is also an original letter, dated 24 June 1900, in which he is formally instructed by Commandant Joubert to investigate a suspect Boer Officer. Freely translated, this reads as follows:

Confidential
Amersfoort
24 June 1900
The Esteemed Mr P Spaarwater
Wakkerstroom Commando

Dear Sir
Since Mr G J Beukes, Asst Fieldcornet,Wakkerstroom Ward 2, is under suspicion of having surrendered to the enemy, I instruct you as detective to immediately investigate the matter.
I have the honour, etc
J A Joubert
Act Asst General

Another letter forwarded to him by a friend (Jan Greyling) concerned an appeal made to a junior Boer Officer to surrender.
From : F Jooste To : Acting Asst VC P van Oudtshoorn, Ward 2, Ermelo Cdo

Dear Pieter
As a good friend I want to urge you come in and lay down your arms on the following conditions:
Bring with you as many as possible armed burghers to the fort at Springorums (?) house, Ermelo. Lay down your arms and surrender yourselves. You will get a receipt for your livestock (horses included). You will not be banished, the brought-in burghers will also not be sent away and you will all be free to live within the English lines with your families. The cause (on the Boer side) is hopelessly lost.
Ermelo 12.02.02 F Jooste

After the Boer War he farmed in the Amersfoort District but also held various appointments such as stock inspector and public prosecutor. He passed away at Piet Retief on 4 Aug 1929



Grandson: Jacobus Maritz Spaarwater. He served as a senior officer, reaching the rank of Commandant (Colonel) in the South African Defence Force (SADF), initially in the Special Forces and later in Military Intelligence. He then served as Chief Director: Operations in the National Intelligence Service (NIS). In this capacity, he was among the first in the National Party government to start official discussions on foreign soil with top officials in the exiled leadership of the ANC (one of 3 NIS men who had the first meeting with Mbeki and Zuma in Lucerne, Switzerland in Sept 1989). Later in his career, as a Chief Director in the former Department of Constitutional Development, he become involved in the CODESA negotiations and thus also played a role in the events that resulted in a new South African constitutional dispensation in 1994. His awards are NIS Decoration for Outstanding Leadership, NIS Medal for Distinguished Service, Pro Patria, SADF Good Service Medal (Bronze), NIS Medal for Faithful Service (Bronze), Chief of SADF Commendation Medal with colour copies of the Award Certificates. He also gave me a signed copy of his memoirs.

Although it is outside my usual collecting field, I consider this to be a rare (and possibly unique) group spanning the “Old” and “New” South Africa.

If you Google "Spaarwater Zuma" and “Spaarwater O’Malley” interesting material will turn up!

Henk

PS An anomaly: Pieter Spaarwater's badge is numbered 15, but he identifies himself in the report as Pieter No 14.

H