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Peter Jordi wrote: Hi all

Some lovely medals are listed already. But an acquisition I was pleased with is that to B. Q. M. Sgt. J. J. Egerton.

He received the Afghanistan Medal, with the clasps for Peiwar Kotal, Charasia and Kabul (6802 Gr. J. J. Egerton. G/3rd. R.A.) [Engraved] and the Queen's Medal with the clasps Talana and Defence of Ladysmith (13284. B. Q. M. Sgt J. J. Egerton, 67th Bty., R.F.A.).

Rory mentioned casualties. Egerton served as a Gunner with the G/3rd, Royal Artillery, in Afghanistan in 1878-1880 until he was invalided home in 1881. In South Africa he saw action at the Battle of Talana in 1899, where the 67th Battery apparently fired some of the the first shells of the Boer War, as well as serving in the Defence of Ladysmith. He died of disease at Ladysmith during the siege on 27 January 1900.

Best regards Peter

That's a cracking pair Peter. I've been looking for an Afghan/QSA pair but all those I've seen are groups with other medals and an order or two to officers who achieved senior rank with prices commensurate.

David

Two candidates here, but for me this pips the QSA to a 2nd Lt awarded a fighting DSO for harrying the Boers on raids from his blockhouse and capturing lots of them.

Alfred Edward Grey

In March 1900 seven colonial soldiers and eight policemen from Nongqai (Zulu) headed north from Natal on mission behind enemy lines. They travelled north through the neutral territory of Swaziland heading for the Delegoa Bay railway line in the South African Republic (SAR). Their objective was to blow up the railway bridge at Komatipoort cutting the railway between the neutral port of Lourenco Marques and Pretoria. Britain was concerned at the volume of men and supplies entering the SAR to help the war effort. Reaching Komatipoort, the men saw the bridge was too heavily guarded so they headed east to Malelane 40 km away.

The bridge at Malelane was unguarded and explosives were laid on the bridge and pump house. On 17 June, the explosives were detonated bringing down the bridge and destroying the pump house. That night a SAR train was derailed by the destruction of the line killing two crew. The men retreated south to Nomahasha in Swaziland on the border with the SAR. From here recruits from refugees from the SAR and Swaziland joined the band and numerous skirmishes were fought against the Boers. On 20 July three boers, Commandant GMJ van Dam, Sgt-Mjr Lombard and Sgt Schribley called at a Swazi homestead enquiring after this troublesome band. They were ambushed by the colonials, Lombard drew his revolver and was shot dead, van Dam was saved from a mortal blow from a Swazi by one of the colonials.

After this, realising Swaziland was not a safe haven, the men returned to Natal to report on their expedition. The success of this expedition led to the British army authorising the creation of Steinaecker’s Corps (later known as Steinaecker’s Horse). The men were from the Colonial Scouts, a unit raised in Natal. Most of the men later served in Steinaecker’s Horse.

The leader of the expedition was Baron FCL von Steinaecker who, back in March had approached Major-General Buller with his plan to blow up bridges on the Delagoa Bay railway line. The man who saved life of Commandant Dam was AE Gray who did not serve in Steinaecker’s Horse but enlisted in the Prince of Wales Light Horse and was later commissioned. His medal, shown here, is engraved to the POWLH.

The QSA was recently sold in the UK without any of this story despite the medal having been on the market since 2002 at least. The story has been published many times; Biographical Register of Swaziland (Huw Jones, University of Natal Press 1993), two articles in the South Africa Military History Journal in 1996 (The Naming of Steinaecker’s Horse, Don Diespecker and The Delagoa Bay Railway and the Origin of Steinaecker’s Horse, Huw Jones) and in Bill Woolmore’s Steinaecker’s Horsemen (Country Life, South Africa 2006). The medal is illustrated in Woolmore’s book, but I don’t think it was part of his collection which was sold by Nobles Numismatics following his death. The map shown in from Woolmore's book.

Gray’s service in Steinaecker’s Horse is noted on the POWLH roll, but he was never a member of that unit which was formed after he left the group. The clue is there.

Just squeezing this in before year end, out of my top acquisitions for the year, this medal to Sister Ella
( www.angloboerwar.com/forum/women-in-the-...nurses?start=6#83502 )

and the medal to Pte A.L.F. Mandy of the Port Alfred Imperial Mounted Police
( www.angloboerwar.com/forum/2-introductio...mounted-police#84775 )

were both contenders, but Sister Ella must be at the forefront of the choice. Brought as a damaged disc, it has been restored to its former glory for a total outlay of about GBP200, and a recent Christmas present from my visiting brother from the UK in the form of a book (only available in South Africa in an electronic version, and the cost of carriage was almost double the cost of the book!!!), detailing the history of the Anglican Church of St Michael and All Angels has several references to Sister Ella. As an added bonus it is confirmed that Sister Ella and Sister Flora were the only two Nuns who were requested by the Free State authorities to assist with nursing wounded Boer soldiers at the Dames Instituut in Bloemfontein. Other than Sister Caroline and Sister Frances Louisa, who, at the request of the Free State authorities served at the Boer base hospital at Jacobsdal, these were the only 4 Nuns from the convent who attended to Boer wounded prior to the occupation of Bloemfontein by the British.

Regards
Jon

Beauties both Jon! Well done.

Regards and a Happy New Year to all.

Rory