TOPIC:

The "Mad Major"

Rory wrote: Is this Miller chap the one who recruited South Africans for the RFC in WWI?

If so I know where his medals are not that it does me much good...

Quite the lad by all accounts from the family.

Regards

Rory

Good morning Ian,
Lieutenant Miller did serve in the Lebombo Scouts, I suspect Buxton spent rather more time looking at WO100/301 than he did looking at WO100/354
Regards Frank

LinneyI wrote: Kerry and Frank
There as a Lt. A.M.Miller shown in the Buxton FID roll with QSA bar TV and KSA with 01/02. Interestingly, a Capt. David Forbes also features on the same roll page with the marginal notation
"late Commdt Lebombo Scts". No such notation next to Miller.
Hope this helps a little bit.
IL.

Hi all,
Thanks very much for your interesting responses. A few comments: Allister Miller wasn't involved in WWI, but his son was an RAF pilot (later to be the founder of what was to become SA Airways). Yes, he was active with the Lebombo Intelligent Scouts. You may know Huw Jones' article on this apparently little-known action during the war. As usual, he's extremely thorough with his research. Here's a link, if interested: samilitaryhistory.org/vol126hj.html

Thanks for the lead on Jones' Register. He does report in the entry that in 1893 Miller begged off of a meeting with the royal family in part by saying that he had "only imperfect knowledge of siSwati." Since he was trying to avoid them, this could be disingenuous. Booth's Historical Dictionary of SD is silent on this question.

In case you're interested, here's a bit more background to my initial question. Miller began a story which he serialized in his newspaper in 1898 called The Words of Mamisa, which was then self-published in 1933, and then by Shuter and Shooter in 1955 as Mamisa the Swazi Warrior. Prefacing each version, he claims to have heard the story directly from an elder named Mamisa. If this was the case (which is doubtful) he would have had to have been quite fluent in the language, unless he used an interpreter. By 1898 he would have been in the country for roughly 10 years.

Thanks again,
Kerry

Hello Kerry

Huw was my Dad - unfortunately he died last June. He would have enjoyed this thread!

I have looked through my Dad's notes on the printing of Mamisa but he does not say anything on its origins or Miller's ability with siSwati.

As the King's agent I would have thought he had a good knowledge of siSwati.

Regards
Meurig

Hi Meurig,

By a kind of happy coincidence, yesterday I picked up your father's The Boiling Cauldron, which I had ordered through inter-library loan, and am looking forward to reading it. I'm especially interested in the role SD played in this part of the war. Thanks for having a look at your father's papers on the language question. I did read John Leband's tribute to your father, which I stumbled across just before leaving for SD in August. I had hoped to meet with John Masson while I was there, but read in the Times of Swaziland very soon after I arrived that he had just died. I'm at work on a book project that looks at literary representations of the kingdom by early explorers, up to the present with contemporary visitors. Am also working with a Swazi colleague who is writing on siSwati fiction, while I look at anglophone creative expressions.

Apologies for straying from the main topic of the Anglo-Boer War (and my wordiness), but any advice on 19c travel writing, etc on SD would certainly be welcomed. Of course this is addressed to anyone interested.

Cheers
Kerry

Hello Kerry

Johnnie and Dad were great friends.

I would be interested to hear more about your work and connections with Swaziland if you don't mind, my email address is meurig@casus-belli.co.uk.

Regards
Meurig