Steve – two years ago you wrote “ I will investigate Timlock further. Interesting and scarcely seen rank of Trumpet Major.”
Assuming he is still on your to do list:
Wikipedia has this to say about the rank of Trumpet Major: “Trumpet Major is an appointment in British Army cavalry regiments or the Royal Horse Artillery, held by a sergeant (or corporal of horse in the Household Cavalry) or a staff sergeant (or staff corporal in the Household Cavalry) or warrant officer class 2. His job is to supervise the training and deployment of trumpeters who blow daily duty and ceremonial calls. Trumpet majors were first appointed to the establishment in 1811.”
So Harry was never an officer hence did not attract the attention of Mildred Dooner.
Full name Harry Parker Timlock, born in 1874 in the village of Ombersley (about 3 miles west of Droitwich). The 1881 Census shows the family had moved to Monmouth and Harry’s father was a coachman in domestic service.
His 1888 attestation papers and service records covering 13 years in the 1st Royal Dragoons have survived and are downloadable from Find My Past. They tell us he attested on 14 July 1888 in London aged 14 years 0 months old (so possibly his birthday) and agreed to 12 years service. He was assigned the regimental number of 3005 and rank of “Drummer”. At his medical he was assessed as having a physical age equivalent to 15 years despite only measuring 5ft 0¾in tall and weighing just 6st 2lbs with a chest measurement of only 28½ inches!
Harry spent the next 11 years and 109 days on home service reeling in 2 Good Conduct Badges (on the 2nd & 4th anniversaries of his enlistment) and three promotions – Lance-corporal on 22/01/1897 by when he would have 16 years of age, Corporal on 01/02/1898 and Sergeant Trumpeter on 23/04/1899. He proceeded to South Africa with the 1st Royal Dragoons on 31/10/1899 and just after he arrived was awarded a 3rd Good Conduct Badge and pay rise. He arrived back home on 10/09/1901 having spent 22 months (less journey there and back) on South African service. He was discharged on 24/09/1901 having completed 13 years 73 days service (the small print when he attested said that if the country was at war when he had completed 12 years he could be liable for up to another 12 months service).
Back in England Harry obviously answered BP’s request for men to serve in his new police force and Medal Rolls for the SAC show he served as a Trooper in E Division, based in the Orange Free Colony.
His death at the Vet River Hospital on 27th May 1902 was reported in newspapers and one medal roll as being due to dysentery.
He actually appears on 4 Medal Rolls – 2 for the 1st Royal Dragoons and 2 for the SAC. From these you can deduce he posthumously received both the QSAM & KSAM. The former with 6 clasps – Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal, Tugela Heights, Relief of Ladysmith & Laing’s Nek, the latter with both date clasps.
I would have entitled this piece “From Drummer Boy to Trumpet Major” except I can find no evidence beyond the memorial in St Mary’s that he was ever credited with the rank of Trumpet Major.
The Unit Information provided on this site has the following to say about the 1st Royal Dragoons:
The regiment sailed in the beginning of November 1899, and arrived at Durban about the 26th. They performed excellent service during the operations for the relief of Ladysmith. The regiment was present at Colenso, 15th December but was not heavily engaged.
When the turning movement by the west was attempted the regiment was in the Mounted Brigade under Lord Dundonald, along with the 13th Hussars, South African Light Horse, Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry, part of Bethune's Mounted Infantry, some regular Mounted Infantry, one squadron Imperial Light Horse, and one squadron Natal Carabiniers. Much good work was done by the Mounted Brigade, particularly about 19th January 1900, when they captured about 40 Boers and seized important positions near Acton Homes. So far as they were concerned everything was done to command success in the second attempt to relieve Ladysmith, and the seizure of the positions about Acton Homes was entirely in accordance with the scheme of General Buller, a scheme which Lord Roberts said was well devised and should have succeeded.
When General Buller retired after Spion Kop and Vaal Krantz, Colonel Burn-Murdoch of the 1st Royal Dragoons was left in command at Springfield to protect Buller's left flank. His force consisted of the 1st Royal Dragoons, 13th Hussars, two squadrons of the 14th Hussars, two naval 12-pounders, A Battery RHA, and two battalions of infantry. On and after 22nd February most of these troops were brought down to Colenso to take part in the last great effort. In his despatch of 14th March 1900, para 60, General Buller thus refers to the work of the mounted men: "During the whole of the fourteen days the 1st and 2nd Cavalry Brigades had kept our rear and flanks, their patrols extending from Greytown to Hongerspoort and Gourtown".
Seven officers and 2 non-commissioned officers of this regiment were mentioned in General Buller's despatch of 30th March 1900, and 2 officers and 2 privates were mentioned in General Warren's despatch of 1st February 1900.
When General Buller advanced north through the Transvaal Burn-Murdoch's brigade was left to watch the Natal border, and for a considerable time was chiefly employed about the south-east corner of the Transvaal. The brigade at that time was the 1st Royal Dragoons, 5th Dragoon Guards from the Ladysmith garrison, and 13th Hussars.
Seven officers and 6 non-commissioned officers and men of the regiment were mentioned in General Buller's final despatch of 9th November 1900, and 4 officers and 3 non-commissioned officers were mentioned in Lord Roberts' despatch of 4th September 1901.
In May and June 1901 the regiment, along with the 6th Inniskilling Dragoons, was in a column commanded by Colonel Pulteney which operated successfully in the Eastern Transvaal. In July "Lord Basing, with the Royal Dragoons, two guns, and a pom-pom, was engaged covering the construction of the Frederickstad and Breedtsnek line of blockhouses, and in keeping up communication thence to General Barton's column" west of Krugersdorp.
In consequence of a concentration of Boers in the south of the Orange River Colony, Lord Basing and his men were brought by rail to Springfontein in August 1901 – at this stage Harry left them to return to England.
