TOPIC:

George Roper came from St Peters in Derby and joined there into the Leicestershire Regt (4812) on the 14th October 1896 then after several weeks being posted to the 17th Lancers (as 4168), but on the 29th December he was posted again into the Sherwood Foresters (5531) and joined "E" Company in the reorganisation of the Battalion on the formation of the 2nd Mounted Infantry Company on the 1st March 1900. George was wounded during the attack on the Boers at Diamond Hill on the 12th June 1900. He was discharged at Aldershot on the being found medically unfit for further service on the 31st January 1901 serving 4 years 110 days, most likely from the wounds he received at Diamond Hill and was later awarded the Queens South Africa Medal with clasps, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill, Cape Colony, Orange Free State.

George Roper, a 19 year old blacksmith, had actually already served in the 13th Hussars, but, clearly had a problem with that, on the 14th of October 1896 he re joined the Army, the Leicestershire Regiment, but, decided to transfer back into the Cavalry, the Corps of Lancers on the 1st of December 1896, he was posted from there to the 17th Duke of Cambridge's Own Lancers, the famous "death or glory boys" on the 8th of December 1896 and on the 29th of that month he decided to transfer back into the Infantry, I certainly know where I would have stayed had it been me!
Who knows, had he done so, he might have got to shoe "The Chief's" own horse!

A nice medal especially as Diamond Hill casualties are pretty scarce on the market. (Most of the men who qualified for the clasp saw little or no action but the Derbys were an exception).

I can tell you that Roper was invalided to pension and his pension file is in the PIN 71 series at the NA. (Not available online). These files commonly run to well over 100 pages so the only practical way is to get them put on to a CD-ROM. I have a lot of these file relating to men whose medals I have. I use a well known researcher who is a specialist on PIN 71 files and if you PM me I'll give you his details.

Roper's file number is 71/5067 and I can also tell you he died in 1956.

Regards

David