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Thank you David. It would have been great to have had a re-unite at some stage if they were one and the same person; I was clutching at straws!
Nemo

Hi Mike,

Thanks for posting your writeup for a very nice medal.

An examination of the QSA medal rolls for the Volunteer Indian Ambulance Corps reveals that there were three different “medal rolls”. The first which included your recipient (without clasps) listed 19 names and to whom medals were issued on 26 January 1903. The second roll included a further 14 names These were recorded as being issued more than a year later on 18 April 1904. This second roll included authority for the late issue of the two clasps issued to your recipient Vinden, the first roll noting that these clasps were issued on 18 April 1904. I am not I handwriting expect but it seems to me that the later entry of the name of David Vinden on the second roll was entered in a different hand that that the date of issue of the clasp is perhaps incorrect. The third and final roll dated 23 May 1907 includes just the single name of Leader N.P. Dhunde.

It is perhaps interesting to note that the second medal roll was submitted by Joseph Royeppen, the brother of Leader Manikum Royeppen, whose medal is now I understand in the collection of the Boer War Museum in Bloemfontein. The story of Manikum is recorded on the Web in Dr Robin Pelteret’s fine article on the Corps. Joseph, his younger brother, is also well recorded. He studied law at Cambridge becoming a Barrister and I would guess that that is the reason which led him to being the conduit to submit the second medal roll listing the additional 14 names which incidentally included both of his and his brother’s names!

It is interesting to note that the European recipients of the Corps, that is the Superintendent Percy Clarence, Dr Booth and Overseer Kitchin all received the medal with the two clasps Tugela Heights and Relief of Ladysmith. Presumably clasps were denied to the rest of the members of the Corps as they were considered to be non-combatants and not in receipt of military or government pay. I would suspect that your recipient argued that as a civil servant he was in receipt of government pay throughout the War and that he was therefore entitled to the award of the two clasps.

Over the years I have been privileged to have been able to examine several medals of the Indian “Leaders”. I have noted that some, but not all the medals issued to members of the Corps, were officially re-impressed and I would therefore ask if your medal is also similarly re-impressed or whether the naming was impressed on the original rim.

RobM
Cape Town

I'm glad that the post has generated so much interest and debate.
Rob, I looked closely at the Vinden medal and it seems to be a normally named medal not a restrike.
I also did a little more online reading and came across an article in the Observation Post titled "The Battle of Spioenkop shaped 3 future leaders - Churchill , Botha and Gandhi " The writer quotes Vere Stent who wrote about the work of the Indians in the Illustrated Star of Johannesburg , July 1911 , " My first meeting with Mr M Gandhi was under strange circumstances. It was on the road from Spion Kop after the fateful retirement of the British troops in Jjanuary 1900.
The previous afternoon I saw the Induan mule-train moved up the slopes of the Kop carrying water to the distressed soldiers who had lain powerless on the plateau. The mules carried water in immense bags , one on each side, led by Indians at their heads. The galling rifle-fire , which herelded the ir arrival on the top , did not deter the strangely -looking cavalcade which moved slowly forward , and as an Indian fell , another quietly stepped forward to fill the vacant place. Afterwards the grim duty of the bearer corps, which Mr. Gandhi organised in Natal, began....." Stent goes on to say, "...I came across Gandhi in the early morning sitting by the roadside - eating a regulation army biscuit " There is more , but unless Stent was entirely deluded, it put Gandhi ( and by extension , some if not all of his unit ) on site for the battle. Maybe the casualty statistcs dont support his word picture of stoic Indian bearers filling the place of their fallen comrades but I dont know that after all this time anyone can make a definitive judgement.

I did go back to my original source. These are the pension books at the India Library that list the pensions due to Indian Soldiers due to death or disability. Unfortunately they are fairly mixed up & extend to 1903. Some of the dates do not correspond to any event reported by other sources - so for example Arujan Singh has a grave marker dated 4th May 1902 but his widow was pensioned from the 2nd January 1903. Others from Vaal Kranze have the date of commencement of the pension nearer the date of death. So I have this which may prove or disprove anything. Pensioned from the 30th January 1900. The thing with this casualty is that he does not appear on the medal roll. So maybe, since , the pension district is the "Western Command" he was an indentured worker from India & by deduction a member of Adv MK Gandhi's ambulance corps.Prehaps they were under fire. Vere Stent's Indian that fell I have taken to be a muleteer.- although I can find no muleteer's family that was given a pension about that time. To quote a sage "but I dont know that after all this time anyone can make a definitive judgement."

Folio 54 Temp Pension
42. 4932 Sumbhoo Thanoo – Dooly Bearer – C & T Dept.
Relative – Shewia – Son. Age 10
Pension from 30.1.00
Rs 2.0 = £1.6
Term 12 yrs.
Western Command – Pen Cir 24/1900
1284/01 S.A.

Mike Rowan makes interesting points, based on the article by Reddy. Here's my take:

- Yes, undoubtedly Indian Mule Corps did transport water to the summit of Spioenkop. These were brave men, but they were not the men of Gandhi's NVIAC.
- Yes, Gandhi's men did transport the severely wounded men from Spearman's Farm [No 4 Stationary Field Hospital] to Frere, about 20 miles away; they did this on foot, and they were careful and compassionate - they earned the praise of Treves in his wonderful book [see Ch XXIII, archive.org/details/taleoffieldhospi00trev/mode/2up ].
- However, I have not yet seen any indication that Gandhi's men were on the summit of Spioenkop at any stage of the battle. Nor even below the summit; nor even north of the Tugela.

Now, there is a latter day movement to acknowledge the role of non-white people in the South African War - previously seen as a "white man's war". This change is a sentiment I embrace. But history must be truthful.
There's now an established myth: "Gandhi-was-at-Spioenkop". I give examples of this in my earlier post.
- The recently-erected memorial to Indian and African participants of the South African War is welcome. It is on the summit of Spioenkop, and that is where tourists can see it. But it should not be taken to mean that the NVIAC, and African scouts, were on Spioenkop - they weren't.

Rob

Hmmm!!!!! Prehaps this is where the rumours started?