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Thanks Ians/ Trev

Much more confident now a couple of experts seem to agree with my 'beliefs' and happy to announce him as a Spion Kop veteran.

Looks like the TH clasp was awarded later which ties in with it being attached to the R of L with some old wire rather than soldered!!

All good research - would have used up all my lives if he was WIA too but as we know most casualties were from disease etc and I expect he pick up something 'nasty' out there and returned home unfit (or 'worn out' - a Victorian phrase I love when I come across it!!)

Thanks again guys - I think this query is solved

Regards

Wayne

You're welcome, but an expert I am not.

I don't know much about the Battle so I enjoyed reading about it and I am happy to have helped.

Ian

SB, the likeliest cause of illness in South Africa in 1900 was enteric fever (typhoid).
85% of typhoid patients did survive, after a prolonged illness, but many were so weakened that they had to be sent home.
Of 556,653 men who served the Crown in the South African War, 57,684 contracted typhoid, of whom 8 225 died.
While those deaths are greatly exceeded by the thousands of Boer women, children, and Africans who died in concentration camps, it is sobering to realise that only 7 582 Imperial troops fell in battle.
The winner of the War was undoubtedly the bacterium Salmonella typhi.

A good friend of mine who happens to be ex Lancashire Fusiliers recommended the 4 Volumes of "A History of the Lancashire Fusiliers" and said that the chapter on Spion Kop makes for very tough reading.

He said that it does mention an Order of Battle, which is the whole of the 2nd Bn LF, 6 Companies of the Royal Lancashire Regiment, 180 of Thorneycrofts MI and a half Company of 17th Company RE. 2 Companies of the South Lancashire Regiment were added to the R Lancs Regt to make up their numbers.

This link might be of interest as it gives a lot of information and photos of the Battalion:

2nd Bn XX The Lancashire Fusiliers. South Africa (lancs-fusiliers.co.uk)

Pte Bicknell's name appears on the list of members of the 2nd Bn who fought in the Boer War. It is alphabetical so doesn't show what Company of Platoon he was with. However, he agrees that you should be happy to assume that he was indeed with the Battalion and fought at Spion Kop.

Ian