TOPIC:

Picture courtesy of Dominic Winter

The Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, C.M.G. breast badge, silver-gilt and enamel;
DSO GV;
QSA (4) Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill;
KSA (2);
1914 Star;
British War and Victory Medals with MID;
Defence Medal;
France, Legion of Honour, 5th class, silver and enamels, some loss of enamel

George Charles Morphett (1878-1968) was commissioned Second Lieutenant with the Royal Sussex Regiment in 1899 and Lieutenant the following year. He served in the Boer War where he was “slightly wounded” and was present at various actions including Houtnek (Thoba Mountain), Vet River 5 / 6 May and Zand River.

He served on the Western Front as Staff and Mesopotamia from 1916-18. He was presented with the CMG in 1918, DSO in 1916 and the French award in 1917. Morphett was mentioned in despatches five times during his military service.

Picture courtesy of Noonan's

IGS 1895 (2) Punjab Frontier 1897-98, Tirah 1897-98 (3471 Pte. E. Braillard 2d. Bn. Ryl. Suss Regt.);
QSA (4) Cape Colony, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill, Wittebergen (3471 Pte. E. Braillllard, 1st. Rl. Sussex Regt.);
British War and Victory Medals (109687 Pte. E. C. Braillard. Durh. L.I.)

Picture courtesy of Aubrey's

IGS 1895 (2) Punjab Frontier 1897-98, Tirah 1897-98 (3781 Pte. J. Lambert, 2n. Bn. Ryl Sussex Regt.);
QSA (4) Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill (3781 Pte. J. Lambert, I: R; Sussex Regt.);
KSA (2) (3781 Pte. J. Lambert, Rl. Sussex Regt.).

Picture courtesy of Spink

[ IGS 1854 ]'
QSA (3) Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Johannesburg (1572 Pte. G. Nye, 1st Rl. Sussex Regt.), suspension slightly loose.

George Nye served in India with the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Sussex Regiment ahead of later serving with his Regiment in South Africa. Nye appears on the roll with entitlement to this South Africa medal and clasp combination, and is additionally entitled to the clasp 'South Africa 1901'.

Private A. Holder served with F Company, 1st Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment. After sailing from Malta, the battalion arrived at the Cape Colony around 20 March 1900, joining the newly formed 21st Brigade under Brigadier Bruce Hamilton. Alongside the 1st Derbyshire, 1st Cameron Highlanders, and City Imperial Volunteers, the Royal Sussex advanced through the Orange Free State, fighting at Doornkop (29 May) and Diamond Hill (11–12 June).

By mid-July, the battalion had pushed into the northeastern Orange Free State, occupying Meyer’s Kop on 16 July, ten miles west of Bethlehem. Their next objective was Retief’s Nek, a strategic mountain pass guarding the southern approaches to the Brandwater Basin, where Boer forces had begun to concentrate.

The Battle of Retief’s Nek – 23 July 1900

On 23 July, British forces under Lieutenant-General Archibald Hunter launched a coordinated assault on Boer positions at Retief’s Nek and Slabbert’s Nek. The Boers had fortified the high ground, using rocky kopjes and ridges to conceal sharpshooters and maximize their defensive advantage.



The night before the attack was marked by torrential rain, leaving Holder and his comrades soaked, cold, and exhausted. F Company, initially tasked with rear guard duties, was ordered forward to reinforce the firing line.

Advancing in half-company columns, they moved toward the left flank of the British assault, pressing toward a native kraal under intense rifle fire from Boer marksmen hidden in the hills.

The terrain offered little cover. Boer sharpshooters fired from elevated positions, and the kraal—little more than a cluster of huts—provided minimal protection. F Company returned fire and attempted to suppress the enemy, but the engagement was brutal and chaotic.

During this action, Private A. Holder was dangerously wounded in the chest, likely while advancing into the kraal or assisting comrades under fire. He was retrieved by stretcher bearers and taken to a dressing station, but later died of his wounds—one of 12 British soldiers killed and 81 wounded at Retief’s Nek that day. The Black Watch suffered even heavier losses, with 50 men wounded in the same engagement

Despite the cost, the British attack helped pin down Boer forces. Though the pass was not taken immediately, follow-up operations on 24 July led to its capture. Within days, over 1,300 Boers surrendered, marking a decisive moment in the campaign to encircle and neutralize Boer resistance in the Brandwater Basin.

Private Holder’s name was recorded in battalion orders and memorialized among those who fell in South Africa.

He is commemorated on the Sussex Regiment Boer War memorial in Regency Square, Kings Road, Brighton, East Sussex, England
North Face: References:
www.angloboerwar.com/forum/17-memorials-...ex-regiment-brighton
www.roll-of-honour.com/Sussex/BrightonBoerWar.html
www.angloboerwar.com/books/129-du-moulin-two-years-on-trek
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandwater_Basin