TOPIC:

James Brackenbury Marshall

Inspector, Natal Police – Anglo Boer War
Major, Natal Police, Bambatha Rebellion
Major and 2nd in Command of 2nd South African Mounted Rifles, German South West Africa – WWI

- QSA to Inspector J.B. Marshall, Natal Police with clasps Natal and Transvaal and SA 1901 & 1902 (last two are loose)
- Natal Medal with 1906 clasp to Major JB Marshall, Natal Police
- 1914/15 Star to Major JB Marshall, 2nd S.A.M.R.
- British War Medal to Major JB Marshall, 2nd S.A.M.R.
- Victory Medal to Major JB Marshall, 2nd S.A.M.R.





Major J.B. Marshall

James Marshall was quite a man, born in the Fort Beaufort area of the Eastern Cape on 6 February 1861 he was the son of Major Charles Brackenbury Marshall, late of the 7th Dragoon Guards, 2nd West India Regiment and the Imperial Cape Mounted Riflemen and a man who was at one time the Acting Governor of Sierra Leone in West Africa.

Marshall first saw service in a civilian capacity at the age of 17 when he accompanied Captain Mitchell and the F.A.M.P. on a reconnaissance to the Kabousi River during the Gaika campaign of 1878. He later joined Her Majesty’s Commissariat and Transport Staff and was subsequently employed in bringing remounts overland from the Cape to Natal during the Zulu War of 1879.

At the outbreak of the 1st South Africa War of 1880 Marshall, on his way to the Transvaal, was offered and accepted, an appointment with his former chief, Major Sir Woodhouse Dillon Richardson, as remount officer at Newcastle, Natal, under Sir George Colley. In charge of the Intelligence Scouts under Major Poole, R.A., and Lieutenant Colonel Boskell, M.R.R., he brought in the wounded from Laing’s Nek to Newcastle and rode with despatches from Newcastle to Ladysmith to hasten mounted troops to the front.

He was on reconnaissance with Sir Evelyn Wood to Wakkerstroom and back and was placed in charge of a party escorting Lady Colley and Mrs Montague from Pietermaritzburg to Majuba and back in 1882. He was also Transport Officer for the Natal Egyptian Contingent under Colonel Le Mesurier A.S.C. On his return to Natal he established the Commissariat Depot at Fort Pearson and at Eshowe in advance of the column proceeding to Zululand under Colonel Montgomery of the 41st Regiment.

In 1883 he accompanied the column under Sir Theophilus Shepstone to Port Durnford and was present at the Restoration of Cetewayo at Emtonganeni. The following year he was with Colonel Curtis’s column, the 6th Inniskillings. Two years later he escorted Sir Charles Mitchell to Zululand and was with the column, acting as escort to Sir Melmoth Osborne in 1887, when that worthy was sent to annex Northern Zululand.

His career with the Police commenced at Eshowe on 28 January 1888 when he accepted a commission in the Zululand Police under Colonel Mansell as a Sub Inspector. His physical appearance at the time of his enlistment was described as 5 feet 8 inches in height with grey hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion. He commanded the Zululand Police in the defence of Fort Andries against an Impi of 4000 Zulus in June 1888 with only 40 men at his disposal who were garrisoned there, beating off the attack. Thereafter he operated under the column led by Colonel McKean and received the submission of Somekeli and sixteen other chiefs.

At the cessation of hostilities he commanded a strong force of Zululand Police in 1891. Four years later he was appointed Inspector of Gold Mines and Rinderpest Commissioner in addition to his Police duties. In 1896 he was at various times the Acting Magistrate at Nqutu, Ubombo, Nongoma and Hlabisa – all very rural Zululand hamlets – he also accompanied Natal Governor Sir Walter Hely- Hutchinson on his trips to Zululand. On 30 December 1897 whilst still a Sub Inspector he transferred to the Natal Police and was tasked with receiving Dinizulu on his return from St. Helena. He also took command of the Natal Police Field Force and the Zululand and Natal Police stationed in Northern Zululand.

On 1 July 1899 he was promoted to Inspector commanding the Natal Police in Zululand and with a force of 3 guns of the Natal Field Artillery and 150 policemen led the reinstatement of Magistrates at Nkandla and Nqutu.

October 1899 saw the outbreak of the Anglo Boer War and Marshall already as can be seen, fully involved on all fronts, was ready to plunge into yet more action. Having been mobilised on 10 October 1899 (just days before the war broke out) he was prominent in the action at Scheeper’s Nek and was on Buller’s right flank in his march on Dundee. Scheeper’s Nek or the Battle of Blood River Poort as it was otherwise known, occurred on 14 December 1900 when Gough led his MI from Dundee to De Jaeger's Drift, a ford on the Buffalo River. Dismissing the intelligence report as exaggerated; he led three companies on a reconnaissance across the river. Through his field glasses, he spotted 300 Boers who dismounted at a farm near Blood River Poort. Leaving his colleague Lieutenant-Colonel H. K. Stewart with 450 MI in the rear, Gough moved forward into a plain in the early afternoon, planning to surprise the Boers at the farm. Unknown to Gough, Botha was moving around his right flank with 700 men.

Botha's mounted attack completely swamped Gough's outnumbered force. Lieutenant Llewellyn Price-Davies of the King's Royal Rifle Corps won the Victoria Cross for valiantly defending the field guns. Gough was captured, escaped, captured again and finally escaped on foot in the darkness. On the British side, four officers and 19 other ranks were killed or mortally wounded, 2 officers and 19 men wounded, and 6 officers and 235 men captured. According to Boer policy, the captured were stripped of their weapons and any useful gear, and most of their clothing, and were allowed to walk to the nearest British post. The Boers seized two field guns, 180 rifles and a large quantity of small arms ammunition. The 200 captured horses turned out to be in poor condition and of little use to the raiders. Boer losses were light.

After this Marshall joined the Natal Volunteer Brigade under Sir John Dartnell and, on their withdrawal from Dundee, resumed with the Natal Carbineers under Colonel Evans forming the only mounted troops in the Dundee Sub-District. At this point he was seconded from the Natal Police and appointed to command the Utrecht and Vryheid Mounted Police, six hundred strong, as a temporary Major. He also operated with various columns in the Eastern Transvaal and was in actions at Elandsberg, Kright’s Farm and Beacon Hill.

On the disbandment of the Utrecht and Vryheid Police he served on General Lyttelton’s staff (also under Burn Murdoch) and was involved in the Newcastle South West District and Intelligence operations on the Eastern borders of the Orange Free State. Having been released from active duty on the cessation of hostilities on 31 May 1902 Marshall resumed service with the Natal Police becoming the District Officer stationed at Newcastle. For his efforts Marshall was awarded the Queens South Africa medal with the clasps Natal, Transvaal, South Africa 1901 & 1902.

Despite what could only be describes as a hectic schedule he found time for the “softer” things in life marrying Winifred Isobel Lawrence at the Holy Trinity Church in Newcastle on 17 December 1902. Daughter Marian Dagmar was born on 5 February 1904 followed by Eileen Winifred on 7 January 1906 and Gerald Lawrence Heathcote Marshall on 25 March 1911. All were born whilst he was stationed at Newcastle.

On 17 March 1903 he wrote to the Colonial Secretary in his capacity as Immigrant Restriction Officer on the subject of the expulsion from the Transvaal of persons who became Prohibited Immigrants on crossing the Border into Natal. The background to this was that the Transvaal, so recently liberated from the Boers, was suspected of dumping their criminal element (mainly Indians) on the border with Natal. He wrote as follows:

“In submitting the enclosed letter for consideration I beg to refer you to my telegram of the 11th ultimo as follows, “Allow me to refer you to paragraph 4 column 2 page eleven of today’s Mercury (Durban based newspaper) May I please ask if you are aware of how the men are being disposed of. Deportation of undesirable characters is likely to be repugnant to the interests of this Colony unless shipment from South Africa is contemplated by the order for deportation”

I was not aware what steps you may have taken in this matter, but I may be allowed to repeat a suggestion that the Transvaal government be referred to our Act and to recommend that they be informed that it is intended to enforce the Act with the purpose of preventing the continuation of practices which is of serious prejudice to Natal.

This dumping down of Asians and the rascal element of the Transvaal is becoming serious and I venture to say constitutes an unfriendly act on the part of the Transvaal Government.

I beg that I may have instructions as regards the disposal of such of the Prohibited Immigrants from the Transvaal as may fall into my hands. There are already some Indians in gaol and I should like to hear whether it is the wish of the Government that I should exercise Section 10 of the law. There is a sum of 250 pounds on the estimates for this service, but I am afraid it will not go far.”

The enclosed letter referred to above read, “Sir, As a great number of Asiatics and Europeans are being turned out of the adjoining colonies as “Undesirables” and are finding their way to the Border of this Colony and entering it by rail and road I shall be glad to receive definite instructions how to deal with these people especially those Indians who have landed in South Africa as passengers or on military service and have found their way to the Transvaal whether with or without permits”

The Mercury article read in typical sensationalist fashion as follows,

“INVASION OF NATAL – By Rand Refuse

The port of Durban, writes a correspondent is at present being threatened with a danger to her social community, equal to the state of affairs at the declaration of war. The Transvaal are putting their undesirables over the Border, and we are receiving them. Of the first batch of 28 ordered out of Pretoria, some are already prominent in West Street, while others will arrive in a day or two. The matter is a difficult one. What we need is strong representation to the Transvaal Administration to let that body clearly understand that it is not fair to Natal to receive their filthand doubtful residents. The strict nature of their law is being stringently enforced so that Durban remains the only haven for these people.

The Transvaal is being cleared at the expense of social Natal, a state of affairs that must be stopped. It would be far better were the law so altered that these worthless ones would be placed on board ship, and sent away from South Africa – the country would be the gainer – but is manifestly unfair to make Natal the dumping ground of the refuse of the Rand and Pretoria. As matters stand now the authorities can only arrest suspicious persons as vagrants. In the meantime they can follow their trade or profession without let or hindrance owing to the difficulty of securing evidence sufficient for a conviction.”

In reply Marshall was informed that, “As the Transvaal Government has recognised their obligation to accept the return of their questionable characters as fall into our hands there is no need to pursue the subject in these papers, which may now therefore be filed.”





In 1906 Natal was embroiled in what became known as the Bambatha Rebellion. The Natal authorities faced with a depressed local economy on the back of an expensive Boer War were desperate to raise additional taxes and they happened upon an idea to extract a poll or hut tax from the African population in order to add to their depleted coffers. This idea didn’t go down too well and Chief Bambatha, the main instigator, rallied several of the Zulu chiefs and their supporters to his cause. Natal was placed on high alert and, not wishing to apply to Britain for Military support, the Natal Government made use of the Colonial Militia and Natal Police to suppress the uprising. Marshall saw service in this conflict with the rank of Major and was awarded the Natal Medal with 1906 clasp.

In 1907 he was sent to escort the Crown Prince of Portugal who came out on a visit to the region.

The days of the old Police Forces’ were numbered and, with the advent of Union in 1910, it made sense to combine the various scattered forces. This change came about in April 1913 when the South African Mounted Rifles, a Para-military force came into existence. The majority of policemen came together under this banner and Marshall was promoted to Captain of the 3rd Regiment S.A.M.R.

The war to end all wars erupted onto the international stage on 4 August 1914 and Marshall, despite being 52 years old, was to play his part. Placed as Second in Command of the 2nd S.A.M.R. and, having been mobilised on 14 August 1914, he headed for German South West Africa on Urgent Imperial Service. He was to be evacuated to Wynberg Hospital in Cape Town from the front where he had taken ill, on 24 February 1915. His war over Marshall was made acting Divisional Inspector of police in Natal on his return in 1915 after the cessation of hostilities there. He was also made a Justice of the Peace for Natal. He earned the 1914/15 Star, British War Medal and the Victory Medal for his efforts.




Marshall is seated on the extreme right of this photo

After a long and distinguished career Marshall retired from the Police and took up the gentlemanly pursuit of farming in the Hilton Road area outside Pietermaritzburg. He passed away at the age of 84 on 15 November 1945 at Grey’s Hospital in Pietermaritzburg survived by his wife and children.

Thank You Rory.....

Another fantastic history lesson.....

Great Article......

Mike

Rory

Thank you for sharing a great addition to your collection, and for your characteristically thorough research.

The medals of more prominent officers of the Natal Mounted Police/Natal Police are fairly well represented in collections, or are known still to be with their descendants. Their documentation means that the history of the NMP/NP is known in great detail, although the records remain scattered. It is now over 100 years since the publication of Holt's history of the NMP/NP, and an update would be a welcome addition to the military histories of South Africa.

Regards
Brett

Rory,

A splendid addition to your collection, well done sir!
A superb write up as always

Paul