Officer in Foreign Service Dress, 1899. 2nd Lieutenant in
blue Patrol Jacket. He is wearing the Jubilee Medal 1899.
battle honour is borne on the Colours and appointments of nearly
every Infantry Regiment in the British Army and, in the cavalry,
only five regiments did not participate in the campaign. Nearly
400,000 men from the British Empire took part, including Militia
battalions and Volunteer companies. Both The Queen’s
(Royal West Surrey) Regiment and The East Surrey
Regiment earned the two battle honours of THE RELIEF
OF LADYSMITH and SOUTH AFRICA, 1899-1902.
Corporal in Marching Order, Home Service 1899.
War between the Boers and the British was declared on the 11th October
1899, following a deterioration of their relationship and the British
fear that the Boers were trying to establish a Dutch United States
of South Africa. The 2nd Battalions of both The Queen’s and
The East Surreys embarked for South Africa within a few weeks.
Both Battalions formed part of the 2nd Brigade of the 1st Division,
together with the 2nd Devons and the 2nd West Yorks. They trained
together, but it soon became apparent that this had not been appropriate
for dealing with the Boers, who knew the ground well and were expert
guerilla fighters. The British underestimated the strength of the
Boers and had 20,000 men spread over a 1000 mile front. Soon Ladysmith
was besieged and later Kimberley and Mafeking.
began to be besieged on the 9th November and the Boers were raiding
towards the Tugela River, threatening the whole of Natal. The
2nd Brigade moved from Pietermaritzburg to Frere and the Queen’s
first engagement was the attack on the village of Colenso on the
15th December. This was part of the period known as the “Black
Week” of British defeats. The Battalion was ordered to advance
across flat open country in open order and the Boers, in well-prepared
positions, put all the British artillery out of action by accurate
fire. The Queen’s, supported by the East Surreys, managed
to gain the village, but were then ordered to withdraw having
lost 100 men. For a further month, the troops remained in camp
watching the Boers strengthen their defences on the other side
of the Tugela River. The River was crossed eventually on the 18th January and on the 20th, two companies of The Queen’s were
ordered to make a frontal assault on a Boer position in order
to cover a flanking movement by other units. The result was not
good for the Battalion; one officer was killed and three out of
the remaining five were hit. One, Lieutenant Smith, was shot in
the chest, but managed to lead his men until he fell. He crawled
into cover and managed to sketch the enemy positions before he
dragged himself back to where the Company was taking cover.
About this time, The Queen’s and East Surreys were joined
by their 3rd (Militia) Battalions; the East Surreys also had their
4th (Extra Reserve) Battalion. The Volunteer Company of The Queen’s
joined them later. It was an historic event, when the Volunteers
joined the Regulars in battle.