TOPIC:

Dave - The clasps mentioned rule out him serving in the 2nd Battalion West Riding Regiment as they were involved in the Relief of Ladysmith and it appears I had a senior moment when looking at the 1901 Census Return.



Next is the page of the 1st Battalion Yorkshire Regiment medal roll he should appear on showing they were involved in the Relief of Kimberley:



As you can see he is not listed and it is interesting to note that nobody listed qualified for only the five clasps claimed in the newspaper article.

Reverting to the false name hypothesis there was a George Moore who served in 1st Yorkshires but he was a Nottingham lad who did not attest until January 1901 and thus did not qualify for the clasps mentioned. I guess one could go right through the 1st Yorkshire Medal Roll looking for soldiers who only qualified for the five clasps mentioned and then look for their attestation papers - this would require you to have membership of Ancestry & Find My Past or to attend The National Archives in person.

The five clasps to his QSA indicates his KSA only had one clasp - assuming all the relevant newspaper reports have no mistakes.

Regards, David.

btw you appear to be hitting the insert button more than you need to.

Hi David if his KSA only had one clasp I presume that would be 1902, does the mean his QSA medal would be 1901? and according to the news paper article he was 4 months over being 15, years of age when he enlisted, Behan was born in 1879, so would have enlisted 1894 the article mentions the King commenting on Behans medals which suggests him having a few medals already. I wonder if the Newcastle papers covered the presentation and perhaps have a photo for Behan which might show is medal ribbons? Regards Dave

This note on WW1 papers references the silver war badge and King's Certificate awarded on Behan's discharge from the army.
It has nothing to do with award of South Africa medals.

www.angloboerwar.com/media/kunena/attach..._20251122_031746.jpg

Pete

Thanks Pete - another "obvious when somebody else points it out to you" but you always were cleverer than me (source for the last remark - Holly Lodge Grammar School, Smethwick).

So the only evidence we have that Bernard Behan served in the ABW is to be found in newspaper reports. Hmmm.

I have now been through the 1st Yorkshire's medal roll looking for soldiers who won only the Paardeburg, Driefontein, Diamond Hill, Belfast & Relief of Kimberley clasps. For reasons I won't bother to explain, I did not expect to find many but I did find two:

2744 J Cartwright - no extant attestation papers & service records but he did appear on another medal roll which told me his QSA also bore the SA1901 clasp and he did not qualify for the KSA. So J Cartwright was not an alias for B Behan.

5685 J Rimmington - again no extant attestation papers & service records but he also appeared on the battalion's KSA medal roll with a KSA with both the SA1901 & SA1902 clasps - so he ended up with one too many clasps to be an alias for B Behan. A transcription record shows he was wounded at the Battle of Driefontein and newspaper casualty reports support this. He obviously was not badly wounded as he saw the war through into 1902. I suspect if he had not been wounded he would also have qualified for the Johannesburg clasp.

Further comments to come regarding B Behan's 1907 trial and thoughts on his non-appearance on both the 1911 & 1921 Censuses when his siblings can easily be found.

Halifax Guardian 6 February 1907:



Points to note:
Age not right – should be 25 – but the address proves beyond doubt it is “our” man.
“had served in the Army” but no mention of having served in the recent war.
“It was stated that prisoner had made several previous appearances at the Court. He was a single man and had been living away from his parents.” So not just a one-off indiscretion by somebody of no fixed abode. These days the police might be considered to have been a bit heavy handed, the assault mild and its effects unfortunate. I suspect the custodial sentence was down to his repeat offending and without the previous offences he would have got away with a fine.

There is a prison record (HMP Wakefield) for a Bernard Behan released in November 1911. His age is given as 30 which would be correct for “our man”. The offence involved indecent language and possibly assault for which I think he got 7 days for the first and 14 days for the second. Not quite enough to say definitely our man but probably so.

I have just done another newspaper check to see if there are any reported post Great War offences – there are not – perhaps his Great War injuries limited his ability to go out and cause trouble and did they contribute to his early death about 5 years after the war ended?

He cannot be found on the 1911 Census – 4 Allerton Yard is still the residence of his parents and one of his sisters. By the time of the 1921 Census both his parents were dead and again Bernard cannot be located. 4 Allerton Yard is now occupied by his elder brother William, also a bachelor. The address given for Bernard on the 1923 funeral report, 176 New Bank, in 1921 was occupied by his eldest brother John, his wife and their two children, Bernard & Doris. John was employed as a “Steam Lorry Steerer”, which I presume means driver, for a firm based in Halifax. His 21 year old nephew and namesake was employed as a “Plasterer’s Labourer”, again working for a Halifax based firm. In the funeral report you see all those just mentioned in attendance except Doris who would only have been 6 at the time.

There is absolutely no doubt that Bernard was a Great War Hero but I do seriously wonder about his participation in the South African (Boer) War of 1899-1902. We also need to play down his Russian Cross – from the Worcestershire Regiment website it would appear that all the line battalion’s were asked to recommend somebody to receive this award and the 2nd Worcester’s chose who they considered their bravest soldier – so you could view Bernard’s Russian Cross as an endorsement of his DCM and the Croix De Guerre was probably in the same vein.

I don’t think I have any more to add on Bernard Behan. Regards, David.

Behans Cause of death

Tuesday 03/07/1923 of Ruptured Duodenal ulcer and Bronchial Pneumonia at Halifax, Taylor’s Buildings St. Lukes, Hospital Halifax, Yorkshire


DEATHS

BEHAN. – On Tuesday, July 3rd at St. Luke’s Hospital Bernard Behan, D.C.M., Late Duke of Wellingtons Regt., aged 41 years. Cortege leaves house, 128 New Bank, Halifax, at 2-20 p.m. on Saturday, July 7th, for internment at Stoney Royd Cemetery at three p.m.. – Friends please accept this (the only)| intimation. – R.I.P.
(The Halifax Courier & Guardian Thursday 05/07/1923 P. 4.)



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

BEHAN. – The brothers and sisters of Bernard Behan, D.C.M. desire to tender their sincere thanks to all relatives, friends and neighbours, also the Officer Commanding at the Depot and Drill Hall, and members of the British Legion, for their kind expressions of sympathy and beautiful floral tributes received during their recent sad bereavement, R.I.P. – 178 New Bank, Halifax.
(The Halifax Daily Courier & Guardian Monday 09/07/1923 P. 6.)

People who are interned with Pte Behan
Ann Behan 02/01/ 1911 Aged 41
Patrick Horan 28/03/1916 Aged 71
Bernard Behan 03/07/1923 Aged 41
John Thomas Behan 25/03/1938 Aged 67