TOPIC:

During my early morning snooping I came across this wonderful 1902 photo in the National Library of New Zealand's website.



Further investigation led to:

ABW Forum in Victoria Cross section of Medals & Awards

HARDHAM, WILLIAM JAMES, Farrier Major, was born 31 July 1876, at Wellington, New Zealand, son of George Hardham (of Surrey, England) and of Ann Hardham (of Sussex, England). He joined the Cadets in 1891, and the Volunteers in 1894, serving with the New Zealand Contingent in the South African War, 1900-1902, taking part in the operations in the Transvaal, west of Pretoria, August to 29 November 1900; and in the operations in the Transvaal, 30 November 1900 to May 1901, and May 1902. He was mentioned in Despatches [London Gazette, 4 October 1901], and was awarded the Victoria Cross [London Gazette, 4 October 1901]: "W J Hardham, Farrier-Major, 4th New Zealand Contingent. On the 28th January 1901, near Naauwpoort, this non¬commissioned officer was with a section which was extended and hotly engaged with a party of about twenty Boers. Just before the force commenced to retire Trooper McCrae was wounded and his horse killed. Farrier Major Hardham at once went under a heavy fire to his assistance, dismounted, and placed him on his own horse, and ran alongside until he had guided him to a place of safety". He was decorated with the Victoria Cross by HM King Edward VII, in London, on 1 July 1902, and also received the Queen's Medal with five clasps, and King Edward's Coronation Medal. Captain Hardham served with the New Zealand Mounted Rifles in Gallipoli, and was wounded 30 May, 1915. He later became Military Commandant of the Queen Mary Hospital for Sick and Wounded Returned Soldiers, at Hanmer Springs, New Zealand. At Rugby Football he represented Wellington Province from 1897 to 1910 (except three years' absence in South Africa on service); on many occasions as captain. He also played against the All England Team (Harding's) in 1904. He played cricket, tennis, etc. He married, 11 March 1916, at Wellington, New Zealand, Constance Evelyn Parsonstown, daughter of John and Elizabeth Parsonstown, of Doncaster, England.

Wikipedia entry (I could only find this by first finding him on Wikipedia VC Recipients and clicking on his name). Below are two extracts & both photos were downloaded from Wikipedia.

Summary

William James Hardham, VC (31 July 1876 – 13 April 1928) was a New Zealand soldier who was a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that could be awarded at the time to military personnel of the British Empire.

Born in Wellington, Hardham was a blacksmith and part-time soldier in the local militia when he volunteered to serve with the New Zealand Military Forces in the Second Boer War. Posted to the 4th Contingent in 1900, he was on a patrol in the South African Transvaal when it was ambushed. He rode his horse to the rescue of a wounded soldier while under heavy fire and for this he was awarded the Victoria Cross. Discharged from the New Zealand Military Forces in 1901, he rejoined for another period of service in the Second Boer War but was only briefly in South Africa before being sent to England for the coronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.

Returning to civilian life, he became increasingly involved in rugby administration with the Wellington Rugby Football Union; he had played representative rugby for Wellington in his youth. He also continued to serve in the militia. When the First World War began, he volunteered for service abroad with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) and was posted to the Wellington Mounted Rifles (WMR) as a captain. Wounded during the Gallipoli Campaign, he was repatriated to New Zealand. On recovery he was made commandant of Queen Mary Hospital in Hanmer Springs but desired a return to the NZEF and a posting overseas. He rejoined the WMR, then in Palestine, in late 1917 but his health was poor and affected the remainder of his service in the military. Having reached the rank of major by the end of the war in 1918, he was discharged from the NZEF. Returning to civilian life, he worked for a newspaper and later the Public Works Department as well as being involved in veterans' affairs. He died in 1928 at the age of 51.


1916


South Africa 1900-1902

Hardham was among those who volunteered and he was posted to the 4th New Zealand Contingent as a farrier sergeant major. Landing in Portuguese East Africa in April 1900, the Fourth Contingent, nicknamed the "Rough Riders", were deployed as part of the Rhodesian Field Force around Mafeking.[5] Aside from a brief action at Ottoshoop in August, the Rough Riders spent the majority of their war service in the Transvaal, carrying out reconnaissance patrols and pursuing Boer commandos.[4] As part of the effort to deprive the Boers of resources, they also helped to destroy crops and round up civilians and cattle, during which they occasionally skirmished with armed commandos.[6] On 28 January 1901, Hardham was on a patrol near Naauwpoort, in the Transvaal, when it was ambushed by twenty Boers. Although the patrol was able to withdraw, one man was wounded and his horse was shot from under him. Seeing this, Hardham rode to his aid and extracted him to safety while under heavy gunfire.

For his actions, Hardham was recommended for the Victoria Cross (VC) by General Herbert Kitchener, commander of British forces in South Africa. The VC, instituted in 1856, was the highest award for valour that could be bestowed on military personnel of the British Empire. The local commander, Major-General Ian Hamilton, believed the Distinguished Conduct Medal, second only to the VC, was a more appropriate form of recognition for Hardham. However, the commander-in-chief of the British Army, Field Marshal Earl Roberts, concurred with Kitchener and the VC nomination was approved.

The citation for Hardham's VC, the first to be awarded to a New Zealander of a unit of the New Zealand Military Forces serving overseas, read:

On 28 January 1901, near Naauwpoort, this Non-Commissioned Officer was with a section which was extended and hotly engaged with a party of about 20 Boers. Just before the force commenced to retire Trooper McCrae was wounded and his horse killed. Farrier- Major Hardham at once went under a heavy fire to his assistance, dismounted and placed him on his own horse, and ran alongside until he had guided him to a place of safety. (The London Gazette, No. 27362, 4 October 1901)

Hardham was presented with the VC, the only such award made to a New Zealander in the Boer War, on 1 July 1901 by George, Prince of Wales, who was in South Africa on a visit. This event took place even before the award was officially announced in The London Gazette. At the time of the presentation of the VC, the back of the suspender bar and reverse face of the medal itself was not engraved with his name, rank, unit and date of the action that resulted in the award, in a departure from normal practice; Hardham presumably arranged the engraving himself later.[2][7] The Rough Riders spent the final weeks of their service in South Africa in operations to the north of Klerksdorp, patrolling and denying the Boer commandos food. They were also involved in the capture of a convoy of Koos de la Rey's commando in March 1901. The contingent left for New Zealand in June 1901[9] and Hardham was discharged two months later.

He volunteered to serve again in South Africa, this time with the Ninth Contingent and was commissioned as a lieutenant in February 1902. Soon after the Ninth Contingent's arrival in South Africa in late April, Hardham and over 50 other New Zealand mounted riflemen, serving in South Africa, were sent to England to join up with the official New Zealand party attending the coronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra and participated in a parade of colonial troops in London on 1 July 1902.


Victoria Cross Plaque - Queens Gardens, Dunedin