17 December 1899 - the burial of Freddy Roberts
Lieutenant Freddy Roberts, the son of Field Marshal Lord Roberts, volunteered to retrieve the guns of the 14th and 66th Batteries at Colenso.
Captain Walter Congreve had tried to retrieve one of the abandoned guns, but his horse was shot in three places and he fell wounded. Congreve took shelter in a donga about 500m away.
Congreve saw Freddy Roberts ride up and fall wounded. He went out into the open and carried Freddy back to the donga. Congreve was shot through the leg, elbow and shoulder and through the toe of his boot.
Freddy Roberts was wounded in three places. He was brought to the field hospital at Chieveley, and examined that night by surgeons Sir Frederick Treves and Major Hamilton. Freddy was free from pain and anxiety, and sleeping. Though his wounds are nowhere described, it is likely he was shot in the head. ‘From a surgical point of view the case was hopeless, and had been hopeless from the first’.
Freddy Roberts died at midnight of 16 December, and he was buried at 4:00 p.m. the next afternoon, 200m south of Chieveley station (now Chieveley Military Cemetery). A large number of officers came to pay their last respects to Lord Roberts's son, including General Clery, General Hildyard, and Lord Dundonald; but not Buller.
The bearers included Colonel Buchanan Riddell, Colonel Stuart Wortley, Prince Christian Victor, and Major Bewick Copley. After the funeral service by the Bishop of Natal, the firing party went through their movements, but did not fire, as this might be misunderstood by the enemy, who were within artillery range on the hills across the Tugela.
Freddy Roberts, Walter Congreve, Corporal George Nurse and Captain Harry Schofield were all awarded the Victoria Cross for their courage in trying to save the guns.
