TOPIC: Named Kimberley Stars

This thread is in response to the suggestion for a topic on the naming of Stars. The Star was issued unnamed but many were privately engraved. This thread celebrates this work.

Usually, the Stars were named on the reverse but I will start this thread with a Star which has its top bar engraved. There are two A Laws on the roll, one in the Town Guard and another in KLH. The medal to the latter was last seen at Walland in September 1987 when the single QSA was sold.


Picture courtesy of DNW

Thank you for starting this topic David. Here are my two groups from the last Warwick and Warwick sale.

C W Johnson, Kimberley Town Guard, No II Section, C Company, Pickering's Redoubt No 2.




502 J Radcliffe Kimberley Volunteer Regiment. His service history is confusing. He appears on three Kimberley Regiment rolls and these show his entitlement to the QSA with DOK and OFS clasps and KSA with 2 date clasps and his discharge date from the KRV as 26/09/02. The OFS clasps appears to have been issued separately which is consistent with it not being attached to the DOK. They also refer to his service in the Kimberley Light Horse with regimental no 195. Reference to the KLH roll shows an unexpected entitlement to the Relief of Mafeking clasp earned whilst with the KLH from 9/03/00 until 5/06/00. The roll states "medal and clasp issued 18/06/02". There is no ROM clasp with the medal and no sign of any clasps having been removed so I guess this refers to the issue of the medal and DOK with the OFS and ROM issued later off of the KLH roll. Interestingly, although he is shown as "J" Radcliffe on all of the rolls and on the medals he appears to have attested to the KLH under the name "Lewis" Radcliffe and appears as such in the nominal roll (see recent forum discussion under the "QSAs with clasp Defence of Kimberley topic).

Pte Charles Harold Austen, No III Section, A Company, Beaconsfield Town Guard (mis-spelt on rolls as Austin). After the siege he returned to New Zealand with the 4th 5th and sixth New Zealand Contingents in March 1901 "for a holiday"! Subsequently returned to South Africa in February 1902 with the 8th Contingent. He ultimately settled in New Zealand where he died in 1921. His obituary from the Evening Star records
"Mr Charles Harold Austen, who died at a private hospital after an operation last week, was the eldest son of the late Samuel Austen, first Mayor of Beaconsfield, Kimberley, South Africa. The deceased served in the Boer War, first in the Siege of Kimberley, after which he came to New Zealand, and later joined up with the 8th Contingent and returned to the war. Peace being declared, Mr Austen returned and set up in business in the building trade, finally opening up as a furniture dealer and land and estate agent in Frederick Street. He was highly esteemed and sympathy goes out to his widow and family."

Lovely examples, Paul.

Here is an old image of a named Star to W Roberts of KTG and, I believe, Damant's Horse.

Private E W Channer, Kimberley Town Guard, Cycle Corps A Company.

QSA named to Mr W W Scott, Post Office Corps and on medal roll for the Telegraph Department. Star named to Diamond Fields Horse.