TOPIC:

I should expect and indeed hope that there was rather more on offer than tea when a guest of the Governor of Natal!
It is a super medal.

djb wrote: Brett,

I know what you mean about Choles' medal. he must have been in the thick of it in PMB and I can imagine him taking tea in the Governor's residence with the great and the good of Natal.

While on the subject of Natal's Volunteer Staff, I would appreciate comments on the epaulette shown below. It was given to me many years ago and I have assumed that it came off the dress uniform of one of the Majors on the Volunteer Staff (1902 - 1910).

Brett

Morning Brett,
I tend to agree with you, there is not that many other options really, during the war they wore a brass or silver NVS on their khaki drill tunic's whilst in the field.
Kind regards Frank

Brett Hendey wrote: While on the subject of Natal's Volunteer Staff, I would appreciate comments on the epaulette shown below. It was given to me many years ago and I have assumed that it came off the dress uniform of one of the Majors on the Volunteer Staff (1902 - 1910).

Brett

Another example of why we shouldn't ignore the Natal clasp.

Private Underwood, Gloucester regiment, injured at Rietfontein so didn't qualify for the usual clasps!




Nice addition to the collection, even bearing in mind why the Gloucester's got a little slaughtered on this occasion!

Doug.

Hello Doug,
I don't think anyone on here has ever ignored the Natal clasp, I certainly have not, nor, do I think that the Gloucester's were in anyway slaughtered on the 24th of October either, from memory, they only lost less than a dozen men actually killed.
It is important to remember what they were actually doing in the first place, they had set out for Jonono's Kop to cover General Yule and his remaining force by drawing the enemy away.

Certainly, for Henry Underwood, being wounded in the foot would have been
unpleasant, but, it did save him from the more disastrous event just six days later.
Regards Frank

Frank

I think I was using the royal we, not specifically us, but in general.

When you think that not one of the Gloucester's should have been killed or injured on that day, even if you look at the reason as good as it was, it was a little slaughtered to me:( I suppose what you evaluate as slaughtered, for whatever reason and I wouldn't like to put a number on it. I was thinking that because of one man in charge panicked, it could have and should have been avoided.

I bet Henry was hopping mad or as you say, not!!

Doug.