TOPIC:

This is the 7th revised copy based on previous editions by Major L L Gordon.
£80 for a new copy. Second hand edition's are from £28 to £40.

There are cheaper options on line if you are looking for a 4th or 5th edition.


The paperwork I posted and additional information on this occasion was from Ancestry Uk.
Subscription prices vary, and range from monthly membership, 6 months or a year. However, there are different criteria which only provides limited documentation. In my humble opinion if you want to research in depth? then the 1 year all access membership is worth considering.

[quote=With respect to the suggested book "British Battles and Medals"; I see three listed with that title on Amazon, three different authors...1) Simpkin, 2) Bishop, 3) Gordon Which is the one you'd suggest?[/quote]

Strongly suggest Gordons 7th edition.........

But there is a rumor that there will be an 8th edition in a year or two......

Mike

My apologies.....in my original post I typed KSA to Wright. Obviously my mistake, I had meant to type QSA. I confuse left and right at times as well.

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Now that the matter of "66446 Cpl. T. Wright 's" medal has been decided in favour of QSA, things may be taken a little further. In my opinion, the medal is not renamed; the naming looks to be what I would expect. Secondly, the rivets securing the clasps together are definitely not standard. Who knows, the clasps may have been sent later and Cpl. T. Wright could have had a local jeweller do the job. Riveted or unofficially joined, either state matters little concerning the medal's value.
Now, to the activities of 86 (Howitzer) Bty, RFA during the Boer War. While the details of a soldier's life before enlistment and after discharge can be fascinating to read and nice to have, I find researching a man's(or his unit's) activities during the ABW to be of more interest. After all, that is what the medal in front of us represents. Sometimes it can only be general details (especially during the Guerilla phase of the war). However, in Cpl. T. Wright's case, his entitlement to the "Laing's Nek" clasp narrows things down a bit.
Stirling's "Our Regiments in South Africa" gives a digest of the services of British Army regiments and Corps and in the case of 86th (Howitzer) Battery, RFA, we find the following:


In my experience, many collectors attach very little importance to the "Laing's Nek" clasp on a QSA - seemingly some think it is just an addition after the battles on the Tugela line. In fact, the LN clasp means service in a defined area between 2-9th June 1900 and - moreover - represents a man being a participant in the final battles to eject the enemy from Northern Natal. General Buller's handling of his force in the area around LN was masterful in that it demonstrated co-ordination between artillery cover and infantry assault to such effect that he was able to turn the enemy out of very strong fortifications with very small casualties on the British side.
Indeed, the Official History (Vol. 3), pages 283-285 tells us that - subsequent to the victory at LN,- the 86th (Howitzer) Bty., RFA was a component of an all-arms column commanded by Maj.Gen. Clery which marched Northwards to meet Maj. Gen. Hart at Zuikerbosch spruit join hands with the army of Lord Roberts. By the way, that all-arms column contained such crack mounted units as Thorneycroft's M.I. and Strathcona's Horse - so the 86th (Howitzer) battery, RFA was in pretty good company.
In conclusion, I think that Cpl. T. Wright's QSA is one I would not mind having in my collection. So, by all means try to track it's trekking through the resources on this site - and good luck to you.
Regards
IL.

Thank you very much for all the information. I had been trying to find more information on Laing's Nek. It seemed like if a clasp that was specifically for a 7 day window in time, something significant must have taken place. But all my searches seem to take me to the 1881 battle in the 1st Boer War.

What a great book! Thanks for the suggestion. I purchased an older edition (not sure which edition but it is from 1947) on eBay. I'm keeping my eyes open for a 7th edition, but when I looked they were all in the $100 range. I'm going to try to hold out for a less pricey copy. The older version I got was only $10.