TOPIC:

I recently posed the question as to the scarcity or otherwise of a Trumpeter's rank on QSA's and the consensus of opinion was that they are quite hard to find.

Thomas William Harding Wilson

Trumpeter, Bethune’s Mounted Infantry – Anglo Boer War

- Queens South Africa Medal with clasps Tugela Heights, Relief of Ladysmith, Transvaal & Laing’s Nek to Tptr. T.W.H. Wilson, Bethune’s M.I.

Thomas Wilson was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire in 1877 the son of Samuel Wilson, a Bedstead Manufacturer and his wife Elizabeth. A notice in the London Gazette of 26 June 1877 proclaimed that, “the partnership heretofore existing between us the undersigned, Samuel Wilson, Thomas Wilson the younger, William Wilson and David Robinson, as Bed and Brass and Iron Bedstead Manufacturers, at the Metallic Bedstead Works, Ledsam Street, Ladywood, Birmingham, in the county of Warwick under the style or firm of Wilson Brothers and Company, has this day been dissolved, by mutual consent, so far as regards the said David Robinson”

According to the 1881 England census the family was a prosperous one with Mr Wilson employing 27 men and 6 boys in his factory which manufactured brass beds and other related items. The family lived at 62 Alston Street in Ladywood, Birmingham and, apart from a 4 year old Thomas the only other occupants were his parents and older sister Charlotte (11)

Ten years later, at the time of the 1891 England census a 14 year old Thomas was still at school (less fortunate children of his age would have been put to work by now). Charlotte had left home and he was at home alone with his parents and General Servant Lucy Nicknolls.

Quite when he decided to come to South Africa is not known. In October 1899 the Anglo Boer War broke out between the might of the British Empire on the one hand and two nondescript Boer Republics in far-away South Africa on the other. Wilson could well have been in South Africa at the time because, shortly after the outbreak of war, on 19 October 1899, he enlisted with Bethune’s Mounted Infantry for service as a Trumpeter with number 114. His address was provided as the Umbanga Hotel, Port Shepstone.

Being an early colonial recruit meant that he would have been one of the first who attested with the B.M.I for service from its inception in Durban by Major E C Bethune of the 16th Lancers. The regiment was present at General Hildyard's action at Willow Grange on the night of 22nd November 1899, and did good service. At Colenso on 15 December 1899, the regiment, 500 strong, was present but was detailed as portion of the baggage-guard.

When General Buller commenced the movement by which he attempted to turn the right of the Boer positions between himself and Ladysmith, Bethune's Mounted Infantry was split up, a squadron being left under General Barton at Frere and Chieveley, in which district they were constantly employed on reconnaissance duties, and had some sharp casualties. The remainder of the corps accompanied their commander to Potgieter's Drift, where they were attached to General Lyttelton's Brigade, and had skirmishing on various occasions.

On the 24th January, when the awful bloodshed was going on upon the summit of Spion Kop, General Lyttelton sent the 2nd Scottish Rifles, the 3rd King's Royal Rifles, and Colonel Bethune, with two of his squadrons, to assist. The 3rd King's Royal Rifles seized the Twin Peaks, north-east of the Spion; the Scottish Rifles ascended the latter mountain and were put into the firing-line on the summit, where they did very fine work, but although Colonel Bethune offered to lead his men on to the plateau, they were kept in reserve by General Talbot Coke, probably because the role of lining the trenches was rather that of the infantry present.

During the Vaal Krantz operations the corps continued to do patrol work, chiefly on General Buller's right and rear. On 11th February Colonel Bethune was ordered to take his men to Greytown, in order to watch the Boers near the Zululand border, and also with the view of ultimately co-operating from Greytown in any movement towards Dundee. The regiment thus missed the fierce fighting which took place near Colenso between 13th and 27th February.

It must be remembered that the Natal Army lay chiefly to the north of Ladysmith during March and April. On 7th May General Buller commenced his movement to turn the Boer position on the Biggarsberg. In his despatch of 24th May 1900, General Buller said:

"While we were at Ladysmith a force under Colonel Bethune had been holding Greytown and the line of the Tugela, that force being five squadrons Bethune's Mounted Infantry, one squadron Umvoti Mounted Rifles, two 12-pounders, RGA, two 7-pounders, Natal Field Artillery, two Hotchkiss, Natal Field Artillery, six companies Imperial Light Infantry. This force I had directed to advance concurrently with our advance on Vermaak's Kraal, and we established connection with it at eleven o'clock (on the 13th). Colonel Bethune's arrangements had been very good. He had seized during the night, with his left, the hills which commanded the southern sides of the pass up which we had to approach. At 11.20 we advanced up the pass".

The enemy made a poor defence and fled, pursued by the Colonial mounted troops. Natal was, almost without loss, cleared of the enemy, and Laing's Nek was turned by the battle of Alleman's Nek on 11th June.

Before Laing's Nek was turned Bethune's Mounted Infantry were to suffer a grievous mishap. In his telegram of 21st May 1900 General Buller said that he had detached Colonel Bethune with about 500 men from Dundee on the 19th, to march to N'qutu, and to rejoin at Newcastle. On the 20th one squadron was ambushed about six miles south of Vryheid, very few escaping. Captain Goff, 3rd Dragoon Guards, Lieutenants Lanham and M'Lachlan, and about 26 non-commissioned officers and men, were killed.

Bethune's Mounted Infantry was, during the remainder of 1900, mainly employed on patrol work in the south of the Transvaal and in the Utrecht district, with the view of protecting British posts and the railway line, and frequently they had some skirmishing and much very dangerous work. When Vryheid was occupied by General Hildyard on 19th September the strong position of the enemy was turned by the skilful work of Gough's and Bethune's Mounted Infantry.

Shortly thereafter, on 9 November 1900, Wilson took his leave of the regiment having served for more than a year with them and earning for himself the Queens Medal with clasps Tugela Heights, Relief of Ladysmith, Transvaal & Laing’s Nek.

His war effort over Wilson turned his attention to civilian pursuits with romance featuring high on his agenda. On 8 January 1902 he tied the knot at the White House in Marburg near Port Shepstone with Helene Caroline Catherina Ehlers a 29 year old spinster. At the age of 25 he was a Riksha Proprietor by occupation resident at Morris Lane, Moore Road, Durban.

Nothing much of Wilson’s later doings is known and we next encounter his name on his Death Notice when, on 6 May 1956 he passed away at the age of 79 years 7 months. His wife had predeceased him on 1 October 1944 and, at some stage he had moved to Johannesburg which is where he died at 142 Mowbray Road, Greenside. According to his Last Will and Testament signed in 1954 he was a retired Poultry Farmer still owning land in the Marburg area of the south coast of Natal. He was survived by his two children, Louis William Thomas Wilson and May Gertrude Helen Varro. By a strange but providential twist of fate I had acquired his son‘s medals many years ago.

Always a real pleasure to see that particular rank on a medal!

Hello, first time poster to this forum.
We have been researching a list of men listed on the Kensington and Chelsea District School '(later Beechholme in Banstead Surrey) 'ROLL OF HONOUR' and of the fifty names I have, seventeen were trumpeters and several others bandsmen. Most survived the Boer War. The school generally housed orphans from the workhouses in the Kensington and Chelsea areas, or children from broken homes etc. Maybe they were born survivors. It certainly seems that the school was excellent at teaching music. I now need to establish what a trumpeter did in the Boer War. All the research can be found on the website of the Banstead History Research Group.

Bansteadman
Many years ago in the late 50's, IL worked in a Hospital - and one of the Wardsmen (a quite elderly Gentlemen named A.Brown) knew IL had just joined a rifle club and quietly told me that he had served in the Boer War. We had quite a few chats - and he confided in me that he had been a Bugler for his unit. He also said that they did not use bugles in the field and that he became an ordinary trooper. Many years later, I looked him up and saw that he served in the NSW Citizen's Bushmen.
Of course, the problem with a bugle call is that it lets everyone within earshot (friend and foe alike) know what is going to be attempted/going to happen! Perhaps bugle calls might have been used during the early stages of the campaign (I had never thought of that before!) - but I don't think bugles would have been used much in the latter stages of the campaign. Buglers would have been useful around the camp (for sounding reveille, meal times, lights out and suchlike. Or for other non-tactical use. As a matter of interest, it is known that signalling between columns in the latter stages of the campaign was arranged by various sequences of rounds from a pom-pom. And, of course, heliographs were widely used for signalling.
IL would be interested to hear what other members have to say about the use of bugles.
Regards
IL.

IL
I mentioned recently that. during the Siege of Ladysmith,Trumpeter T B Bremner of the Border Mounted Rifles was appointed as Orderly Trumpeter to General Sir Archibald Hunter. I wonder how he was put to good use by the General?

Corporal Trumpeter A Stuart of the BMR was wounded in the skirmishing before the Siege started, so such men were used in the field.

The BMR was a small regiment (286 on mobilisation for the Boer War), with seemingly more than their fair share of Trumpeters - one Sergeant Trumpeter and four others. (Stuart was appointed Trumpeter after the mobilisation.) The explanation is that the BMR had four squadrons, with each based in towns scattered through southern Natal. The squadrons joined together only in times of conflict (Boer War, Natal Rebellion), and for the regiment's annual camps, so the Trumpeters were mostly solitary.

Regards
Brett

Brett
Yes, I should have picked up on that reference. Sorry about that! However, I still find the idea of a unit commander - in the face of an enemy as wily as the Boers - using bugle calls to transmit his commands to everyone within hearing as a bit unlikely. After all, a Bugler/orderly could also be used as a messenger. Earlier this day, I had a flick through a couple of accounts of early battles to see if I could find a reference to bugle calls being used; might have missed them but did not find any.
Many years ago, I saw a film called "The Horse Soldiers"; it was about a US Civil War cavalry operation behind enemy lines. At one point, with the enemy being very close, the Union cavalry commander turns to his 2IC and asks him to "do something". Said 2IC turns and calls "bugler!" - which occasions Colonel J.Wayne to snap:"Not Bugler, idiot!". Yes, I know the plot line dated some 40 years prior to the ABW! However, the little aside always stuck in my mind.
Best regards
IL.