Delville Wood

by Ian Uys

  During the SWA Campaign Tanner served with Brig-Gen D McKenzie’s staff. In September 1915 he was appointed a brevet lieutenant-colonel commanding the 2nd SAI. His four companies’ senior officers were:

  A Company (Commander Captain D R Heenan; Second-in-Command —)

  B Company (Captain J D Walsh; Capt E S Barlow)

  C Company (Captain H E Clifford ; Capt W Gray)

  D Company (Major H H A Gee; Capt W Hoptroff)

  Major Gee served as the battalion second-in-command.

  *

  The battalion commander, Edward Francis Thackeray, 45, was the eldest son of Col Sir E T Thackeray VC KCB.

  On 16 September 1857 his father, Sec-Lieut Edward Talbot Thackeray, 20, of the Bengal Engineers “had extinguished a fire in the Delhi Magazine enclosure under a close and heavy musketry fire from the enemy, at the imminent risk of his life from the explosion of combustible stores in the shed in which the fire occurred.” His Victoria Cross award was gazetted on 29 April 1862.

  In 1886, at the age of 16, Thackeray went to America where he became a cowboy and spent four years ranching. When he lost all his possessions in a disastrous fire he gave up his western lifestyle to accept a Queen’s cadetship and joined the East Surreys. This decision would turn defeat into victory at Delville Wood 26 years later.

  Thackeray was commissioned in the East Surrey Regt in 1890. Two years later he enlisted as a corporal in the 11th Hussars, then was stationed in Pietermaritzburg, before being sent to India for service in the Chitral Campaign. Thackeray bought himself out in 1896 and sailed for South Africa where he served as sergeant-major in the Matabeleland Relief Force during the Matabele Rebellion.

  During the South African War Thackeray served as a trooper in the Southern Rhodesian Volunteers and was present at the Relief of Mafeking. From May 1901 to July 1902 he was an officer in Kitchener’s Fighting Scouts and took part in operations in the Cape, OFS and the Transvaal.

  From 1902 to 1905 Thackeray served in the SA Constabulary, then was appointed as captain and adjutant of the Witwatersrand Rifles. In 1912 Thackeray joined the staff of the Union Defence Force as a captain and two years later was appointed district staff officer and promoted to major.

  In SWA Major Thackeray served as chief staff officer, Eastern Force, under Brig-Gen C Berrange and staff officer to the GOC Northern Lines of communication. After the SWA Campaign he became district staff officer of Kimberley. In August 1915 Thackeray was appointed officer commanding the 3rd SAI Regiment, which consisted of the following four companies:

  A Company (Representative of —; Commanded by Capt E Vivian)

  B Company (Witwatersrand Rifles; Capt R F Medlicott)

  C Company (Rand Light Infantry (Railway); Capt J W Jackson, Capt D R McLachlan)

  D Company (—; Capt L W Tomlinson)

  After Major Hemming of A Coy was wounded in Egypt, Acting-Major J W Jackson became the battalion second-in-command.

  The regiment’s mascot “Jackie” was a baboon which belonged to Pte Albert Marr, 26, a Pretoria plumber. When he was mobilised Pte Marr was allowed to keep his pet, which later accompanied the battalion to France.

  *

  The South African Scottish Regiment was commanded by Lieut-Col Frank Aubrey (Fatty) Jones DSO, 42, the district staff officer of Johannesburg. He was born at Bristol, England, and was to serve with the Welsh Regiment in the South African War, where as a lieutenant he was awarded the DSO. In German SWA he had been brigade-major to the 1st Infantry Brigade. His men loved him for his humour as well as his coolness and gallantry.

  The battalion’s mascot was a springbok named “Nancy”. It had been presented to the regiment in August 1915 by Mr D McLaren Kennedy of Vierfontein, OFS. The regiment wore the tartan of the Atholl Murrays, as it descended from the 77th (Atholl) Highlanders through the Scottish Horse and the Transvaal Scottish regiments.

  The South African Scottish Regiment was affectionately known in the brigade as “Our Jocks”. Some of the Afrikaners who joined were called “real Scotsmen” because they could not speak English. Later some Gaelic-speaking Scotsmen of the 9th Division thought that the Afrikaans they spoke was a form of Gaelic.

  The second-in-command was Major Donald MacLeod who took charge of A and D Coys. Major Donald Hunt commanded B and C Coys, which were originally the 1st and 2nd Transvaal Scottish battalions. The various companies of the SA Scottish were:

  A Company (Representative of Cape Province partly from Cape Town Highlanders; Commanded by Capt S C Russell)

  B Company (Largely from 1st Transvaal Scottish; Capt T H Ross)

  C Company (Largely from 2nd Transvaal Scottish; Capt G E W Marshall)

  D Company (Natal and Caledonian Societies throughout the Union; Capt E G Clerk)

  *

  In many cases the camaraderie among the South Africans arose from their having served together in SWA. In addition some had attended the same school. Many of the 3rd SAI men were old Johannians from St John’s College, Johannesburg.

  Probably the most loved man in the brigade was Father Eustace Hill, 43, who had left his teaching post at St John’s to serve with his “boys”, first in SWA then in France. As the son of Major-General J T Hill and the grandson of a Peninsula and Waterloo veteran he was no stranger to the army. At the age of 22 he came from a curacy at Wrexham to become chaplain to the Grahamstown Sisters (St Peters House) in 1895.

  Hill served as army chaplain during the South African War and became notorious for his unconventional behaviour. One of the rules he flouted was one which compelled volunteer chaplains to purchase their own uniforms. Hill resented this and refused to do so. When he was discovered in civilian clothes among the troops, he was dramatically arrested as a spy. When matters were eventually settled Padre Hill had a uniform, though one suspects not at his expense. He was later commended for his bravery in action.

  Hill became associated with St John’s College in 1906 and during the next eight years grew to know intimately the boys he would serve with. In August 1914 he was attached to the Rand Light Infantry and Wits Rifles for service in the SWA Campaign.

  In October 1914 Hill wrote to Rev Nash, a colleague at the school, about a discussion he had with 16 old boys “… I told them I hoped none had any white handkerchiefs. I loathe war, but if it is on I don’t want its redeeming feature of self-sacrifice to be robbed by any unnecessary surrenders. One man should never surrender even to 2,000, if he can knock one out before he dies. Our time is coming. When we’ve finished this (SWA operations), a reward has been suggested, viz going as one force to Europe. They won’t find these fellows lack pluck, even if they’ve not the parade snap.”

  On joining the brigade Padre Hill was attached to the 1st SAI, as the Rev George Cook of King William’s Town was the 3rd Regiment’s padre.

  Two school friends who were reunited at Potchefstroom were Dudley Beresford Fynn, 20, and Dudley Meredith, 19. Fynn had served in the Transvaal Scottish Rhodesia contingent in SWA. Meredith was nicknamed Moses for his religious convictions. On Fynn’s recommendations Meredith joined the 3rd SAI, where he found himself with many more old Johannians in C Company.

  *

  Dudley Meredith found his new life to be strange, yet exciting.

  “The transformation of the motley crowd of civilians into soldiers now began to move apace: uniforms and rifles were issued, and exercises and drill assisted in the organisation of what was without doubt a fine body of men. All types were represented; miners, farmers, tradesmen, old soldiers who had seen service in the South African War, men who had endured the campaign in South West Africa, and raw recruits such as ourselves.

  “At first the rough life was strange and we did not take kindly to army cooking, to sleeping on the floors without mattresses, and to the mixing with men from all strata of society, but the very evident spirit of comradeship and good humour and the prospect of an almost immediate trip to England, followed by a period of training there, soon resulted in our feeling at ease and very much intere
sted in our new life.

  “It soon became apparent that we should be leaving almost immediately for England, so Mother, Dad and Edith came down from Johannesburg by taxi to say goodbye.

  “The leave taking came all too soon, and we all felt very sad when the time came to part. As I turned away there were tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat, while the feeling lingered that enlisting for active service was a bitter trial for parents.

  “There was not much time for reflection, however, for rumour turned out to be truth, and after an inspection by Gen Smuts, A and C companies left for the Cape. Exactly one week after joining the brigade, we left for Cape Town, arriving at the dockside in the late afternoon of the Friday. The mountains were clothed in mist as we left, but the delicious freshness of the green grass and cool atmosphere, were most refreshing after the journey through the Karroo, and it was with light hearts that we filed on board the Dunvegan Castle.”

  *

  The brigade arrived in England early in November 1915. The infantry consisted of 160 officers and 5,648 other ranks. They were initially quartered at Halton Camp in Buckinghamshire, then moved to Bordon in Hampshire where for two months they were busy with training and inspections! Notable events there were:

  3 November — The brigade was reviewed by Gen Sir Archibald Hunter

  9 November — A detachment was sent to the Lord Mayor’s show

  19 November — The 4th Bn was visited by the Duke of Atholl and Gen Hunter

  21 November — Senior officers went to France for three days’ duty

  2 December — The brigade was reviewed by HM the Queen.

  A certain amount of sorting out was also done. Many volunteers had changed their ages and names. Among them was Hugh Boustead, 20, who had deserted from the Royal Navy at Cape Town. Midshipman Boustead joined C Coy, the Transvaal Company, of the 4th SAI as Private “McLaren”.

  The first Sunday afternoon Sgt James Ainslie, a grizzled ex-sergeant of the Seaforths and a South African War veteran, called Boustead. “Private McLaren, you’re wanted in the orderly room — there’s been folk to see you. Aye, a man and a woman and they’re in black.” Boustead realised that they must be his parents.

  Capt Claude Browne, the adjutant, sat at his desk and stared stonily at Boustead, “Private McLaren, what is your real name?” Boustead dropped all subterfuge and answered, “Boustead!” Browne then told him that his parents were there and that Col Jones was sympathetic. Boustead was reunited with his parents after an absence of two-and-a-half years.

  The admiralty had a shrewd idea that Boustead had joined the South African Brigade. The Transvaal Scottish appeared most likely, so his father had gone through the nominal role of C Company. The home address, Annathwaite Hall in Cumberland, had been his father’s and a certain McLaren had been a gamekeeper on the Estate.

  His parents were aghast at the thought of him serving on the Western Front, however, they eventually agreed to it. Boustead’s mother’s cousin was secretary of the Imperial Defence Committee of the War Cabinet. He approached their Lordships, who were prepared to be lenient in view of Boustead’s age. Col Jones was inscrutable when he asked Boustead under what name he wished to re-enlist. “Private John Edmund Hugh Boustead, Sir!” Jones laughed and told the adjutant to put it in orders.

  Another recruit with a false name was the runaway apprentice, L/Cpl Richard Unwin, 20, who was in fact Richard Postlethwaite, whose father had died in 1899. On the outbreak of the war he was told by the recruiting sergeant to continue with his electrical apprenticeship. Postlethwaite then used his stepfathers’ surname, Unwin, and was accepted into the Witwatersrand Rifles.

  After the SWA Campaign “Dick Unwin” re-enlisted in the 3rd SAI and was placed in Captain Medlicott’s B Company. He recalled that at the medical inspection Brig Lukin had turned men away who wore campaign ribbons, as he wanted young men.

  As 18 years was the minimum age, Victor Casson, 17, of the 1st Battalion C Coy gave his age as 18 and his name as Victor Clark! Henry Jones of the 3rd Battalion D Coy was in fact William Henry Shapcott.

  An Afrikaner enlisted in the 3rd SAI, D Coy, as Private Breytenbach. As he had fought against the British 14 years earlier his family and friends may have been appalled at his now fighting alongside them. Another recruit with a false name was J Sprenger Harrison of the 4th SAI. The Transvaal Scottish Regimental Museum has his medals named to Sgt J Beaumont. The number of false names used reminds one of the French Foreign Legion!

  *

  Private Edward Henry Fitz, 18, a learner electrician from East London drifted into the signalling section because of his experience with telephones and telegraphs. His father, Capt Edward Fitz, was an American sailing skipper from Portland, Maine. He became ill while off-loading cargo at the Kowie River mouth and was taken to hospital at Grahamstown. Meanwhile, his ship sailed before he recovered. Captain Fitz married Bessie Moore, an English immigrant, in 1896, and worked at Kowie River and the Buffalo River harbour (East London).

  Eddie Fitz joined the Kaffrarian Rifles for service in SWA, however, took no active part other than for being at Luderitzbucht. On formation of the brigade, he and other men from the border were drafted into the 2nd SAI.

  Fitz had visited England in 1909 and 1912 where he fell in love with his cousin, Edeline (Bessie) Moore, of Southampton. A return visit, albeit with the army, was welcomed. He was impressed by the British hospitality, especially after one of his friends met a young lady and her friend in London, then accompanied them home and spent the night being entertained in bed by both ladies.

  Eddie Fitz was philosophical about being sent to Egypt. “At Bordon the winter was cold and wet and in no time everyone was sick with bronchitis. The government very wisely sent us to Egypt.”

  *

  Dudley Meredith wrote that he and Dudley Fynn had volunteered for the “Grenadiers” (bomb-throwing section). “We didn’t know till after we joined that it is known as the Suicide Club. Still, it is very interesting work as there are about a dozen different kinds of bombs. The action in throwing them is the same as that of bowling in cricket, but I never pretended to be an extra good bowler! It’s nice to meet old St John’s boys among the companies. At present I know Allan Weir, Everett Murray, James Oddy and Egerton Bissett. Of course, Father Hill is with us, and has started work in his systematic way. We are very glad to have him with us.”

  At the same time Egerton Bissett wrote describing the inspection by Queen Mary on 2 December: “General Lukin read out a message from the King, short and sweet, wishing us ‘Good-bye and Good Luck’, which makes us think we shall soon be leaving here. Rumour has it we are going to Egypt: the 2nd Regiment, the Natal boys, have had helmets issued to them, which seems to point to a hot climate … Father Hill is still knocking around, doing good. He is a fine chap. The other day I was not feeling well, so I went to the quiet room at the Soldiers’ Home. He turned up and gave me a glass of milk and a bun. It was jolly decent of him.”

  *

  The South African Brigade was attached to the 16th (Irish) Division for service in France. On 7 December 1915, plans were altered as it became necessary to employ them in Egypt — work for which they seemed specially fitted in view of their experience in German SWA. The four battalions embarked from Devonport on 30 December.

  The situation in Egypt was that the Turks threatened the Suez Canal in the East and the Senussi Tribes had been stirred up in the West. Under Gaafer Pasha they intended to overrun Egypt.

  The British posts were drawn in to Mersa Matruh. Major-General Wallace, commander of the Western Egyptian Force, suffered severe losses in dispersing 1,200 Senussi near Beit Hussein. At the end of December he dispersed 5,000 Senussi under Gaafer Pasha himself, but early in January they reappeared near Mersa Matruh.

  The South African Brigade disembarked at Alexandria early in January 1916.

  *

  Dudley Meredith recalled that while at Mex Camp, Alexandria, the beer canteen was a large marquee. One of the barrels bulged o
ut of the rear canvas. A pioneer sergeant appeared with a brace and bit. Word spread like lightning and in no time the barrel had been emptied into all types of containers. When the theft was discovered the cost of the beer was deducted from the pay of all in the company.

  *

  While stationed at Mex Camp, the springbok mascot, “Nancy”, parted her rope leash and went AWOL. Bugler Alfred Edmund Peterson of D Coy, her official keeper, scoured the lines of the surrounding camps. The homes of Egyptians living nearby were also searched, but to no avail!

  In desperation skirling pipers were sent out in different directions into the desert in the hope that the wailing bagpipes would succeed in attracting Nancy. It worked like magic for Nancy reappeared and walked nonchalantly into camp. Jock Greggor, a drummer in the pipe band, clearly recalled the pandemonium when Nancy was officially AWOL.

  *

  The 2nd SAI were sent to Gen Wallace’s aid. They took part in his attack on 23 January on the Senussi camp at Halazin. The 15th Sikhs led the attack with the 2nd SAI in support. Fighting took place in swampy open ground with little cover against artillery and machine-gun fire. Despite heavy losses the attack succeeded and the Senussi fled. The South African casualties were severe, so no pursuit was undertaken.

  After this action, Gen Wallace, whose health gave way, was replaced by Major-Gen W E Peyton. The South Africans and the Royal Scots were the only infantry units left in the force.

  *

  Captain J D Walsh was killed during the action. He was succeeded as company commander by Capt Ernest Barlow, 38. Capt H C Creed became the second-in-command.

  Ernest (Billy) Barlow was born at Bury, England in 1877, the youngest son in an old Lancashire family of woollen manufacturers.

  Barlow was educated at Roxall School, near Blackpool, and matriculated at University College, Oxford. He was admitted to University College to take a degree, however the opportunity of participating in the South African War proved to be more attractive.