TOPIC:

Steve - Ref. 7301 Pte. John Davies.

Service papers were maintained for pension purposes after a man left the army. When the pensioner died his papers were stamped 'Deceased' and his file was closed and archived. I've come across many such cases but never one when a man died in service.

I can confirm that Davies was invalided to pension (most likely a medical case) and has an extensive file in the PIN 71 series at the NA. This series isn't available online so to dig it out you'd have to visit the NA or get a researcher to do it for you. I can confirm that he died in 1937.

David

Thank you David. This is all part of the learning curve.
I have seen a few attestation documents with 'DECEASED' stamped across them. I should think if they had died in service the paperwork would have been destroyed as with the majority of the soldiers who were KIA/DOW/DOD.

Yes Steve. Papers to deceased Royal Artillery men have a high rate of survival so they must have escaped the cull. Occasionally papers to deceased men from other units survive, sometimes in WO 97 but more often in the WW1 series including the burnt records, but it's very much hit and miss. I have some to various regiments.

The PIN 71 file is definitely worth getting hold of. In my experience they run from 40 to 300 pages but the average is around 120. These contain a lot of pension increase documents but typically also enlistment details, defaulter sheets, courts of enquiry details (when a man was injured in service), medical history, medical reports, correspondence and death certificate. They're especially valuable when the man's WO 97 papers haven't survived.

David

Battlefield of Belmont: On the 23rd of November Lord Methuen with over 7,000 men, fought his first decisive engagement with the Boers. The chief point of interest during the battle was a series of low kopjes, none of which was more than 500 feet high. On the summit of these the enemy had built breastworks, whence they maintained a galling fire, but they were eventually forced to retreat before the bayonets of our troops. In storming the enemy's trenches the Grenadiers lost heavily, over 120 men being put out of action in a few minutes.

Source: www.angloboerwar.com/forum/11-research/3...-war-1899-1900#88756

Guard Room, Royal Canadian Regiment at Belmont. Owing to the restless and unsettled state of some of the natives, who resorted to sheep stealing and other crimes, many of our volunteers had to patrol the country districts and keep order generally.

Source: www.angloboerwar.com/forum/11-research/3...-war-1899-1900#88756

Recently acquired, a magic lantern slide of the Battle of Belmont.
I assume the 3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards bravely taking the Boer position on the kopje.