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Smethwick, those are excellent photos. Here's my "take" on this one of soldiers "climbing Spion Kop":
The sun sets at 7:03 pm at Spion Kop on 23 January; there is only 35 mins of twilight, and it was pitch dark when the 1,700 men in the assault column assembled at the RE camp and began their climb.
However, there were thousands of men sent as reinforcements up the spur during daylight on 24 January: The ILI, Middlesex, and Scottish Rifles all reached the summit, and the Connaughts, BMI and Dorsets all moved onto the ascent spur. The photo could easily have been taken on the spur, the men are dressed as for an attack and at least three have fixed bayonets (circled). So I think this is a genuine "combat" photo. The terrain on the upper Tugela looks like this in many places, so this photo could also have been taken on the Maconochie Koppies, or Tabanyama, or even Vaalkrans.

The landscape shot of Spion Kop is taken from the steep southern part of SK summit, where the ILI and Middx repelled the Boer encircling movement to the south from Aloe Knoll; the camera is facing east towards Twin Peaks. The confusion as to what hill one is referring to (even after the battle) is very characterstic of this campaign. I attach an annotated screen shot from Google Earth, with the same area shown in the Blue Map which is all the officers had, and which Buller said was "good enough to fight by".

Rob many thanks for your expert and valued analysis of the two photographs.

One of the soldiers “climbing Spion Kop” on 24th January I think was a Smethwickian – 4641 Private John Grimstone, 1st Battalion Connaught Rangers.

John was born in Smethwick in early 1874 and baptised there in May 1874. By the time of the 1881 Census the family had moved to Birmingham. On 11th September 1893 he enlisted in the army in Birmingham, he gave his age as 19 years 10 months and was obviously proud of his home town. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion Connaught Rangers, he does not appear to have had any Irish blood in his veins as his father was a Cockney and his mother an Essex girl, but I suspect Birmingham was fertile recruiting territory for the Connaught Rangers because of its large Irish population. On 7th November 1897 he was promoted to Lance Sergeant and three weeks later celebrated by marrying Lilly Carlton in Sheffield. Then on 3rd July 1898 he was “reduced to the ranks for drunkenness on duty” and a month later he was prematurely transferred to the Army Reserve having completed only 4 years 11 months of active (all home) service rather than the 7 he had originally signed on for.

Four days before the start of the Second Boer War he was recalled to active service and reported for duty on 9th October 1899, leaving at home in Sheffield, Lilly and their six month old son, John Walter.

On 10th November 1899 John and his Battalion set sail for South Africa from Hornby Dock, Liverpool aboard SS Bavarian (Transport No.16). The Bavarian reached Cape Town on 5th December 1899 where she discharged all the troops she was carrying except the 30 officers & 974 men of the 1st Connaught Rangers who she took on to Durban.

I think I can claim John climbed Spion Kop on 24th January 1900 as one of the reinforcements because he was awarded the following clasps to adorn the medal ribbon of his Queen’s South Africa Medal – Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Tugela Heights & Relief of Ladysmith. What he made of the carnage he was to witness I have no idea as none of his undoubted letters home were immortalised by the Sheffield newspapers.

I am pleased to be able to report that on 21st May 1901 he was promoted to Corporal and on 19th November 1901, once again, to Lance Sergeant. He arrived safely home without blotting his copybook again on 28th August 1902 having completed 30 months active service on South African soil – thus he was also awarded the King’s South Africa Medal with both date clasps. He was discharged back to the Army Reserve on 24th October 1902 and fully discharged from the army on 10th September 1905 having completed his 12 years of service comprising 7 years 11 months on active service and 4 years 1 months in reserve.

The 1911 Census found John & Lilly living at 11 Minto Road, Hillstone, Sheffield. They now had 3 sons but the return shows during their 15 year marriage they had had another 2 children who had died – thus was John drowning his sorrows in July 1898 having just received bad news from home? The return shows John was working as a bricklayer building furnaces in one of Sheffield’s steel works. In 1893 when he attested he had given his occupation as labourer.

At the start of the Great War John was 41 years of age but he enlisted in the newly formed 6th (Service) Battalion of the The York & Lancaster Regiment on 14th September 1914 and was immediately made a Sergeant. His service records have survived but in a very badly damaged state and with a lot of crossings out. He definitely saw service on the Western Front between March 1916 and November 1917. This may have been preceded by a spell in Gallipoli and succeeded by a spell in Italy. He was finally discharged in March 1919 and awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.

The 1921 Census found the family living at 9 Burwell Road, Sheffield. John was still a bricklayer but helping to build the Brushes Housing Estate and his youngest son was working alongside him as an apprentice bricklayer. His eldest son had left home but the middle son was working in the offices of Vickers of munitions fame.

John’s death was registered in the second quarter of 1923. He was 49 years of age when he died but he must have been very close to his 50th birthday.

Sunset at Spioenkop last week.

Leafing through a scrapbook I came across this drawing, probably a cutout from Lloyds. It mentions the surprising fact that most wounded had been shot through the arms. Any theories on why was that?

EFV wrote: Leafing through a scrapbook I came across this drawing, probably a cutout from Lloyds. It mentions the surprising fact that most wounded had been shot through the arms. Any theories on why was that?

As it is April the 1st
Perhaps the Boer marksmen couldn't see their legs