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Hi Jonathan......

It seems that FCO took his discharge from the Imperial Yeomanry at his own request and bought his way out of the army in 1901......

I am not a medical person but I do not think that Shell Shock / PTSD was an affliction during the Boer War but I may be wrong...... The war being so fluid there was artillery used but not to the extent of WW1 and also the Boers themselves used most of their artillery during the great siege's......

No I have never seen the photographs, they were taken by his friend and most likely he kept them......

Mike

That is good to know. The issue of PTSD in Boer War is interesting - there were cases and they were mostly put down to "disordered action of the heart" from long marches with heavy equipment and anemia - no actual heart disease but cardiovascular symptoms like tiredness and palpitations. Or "rheumatism" - joint pains ascribed to the damp. The term shell shock wasn't used until WW!. But they did have official reports such as that of Sir Anthony Bowlby on psychological effects of service in the Boer War. As you say, the extent of exposure to artillery was much less in comparison to WW1 and there would have been fewer cases of PTSD. The presentation of PTSD changes color depending on fashions of the time and what forms of symptom expression are in vogue!

Jonathan

Mike - If it is acceptable, I would like to include these materials - in whole or in part - in the Overmann family history which I am currently updating. Are there any copyright limitations and/or proper way to acknowledge the source of the diaries? Are the diaries in possession of a relative?

Best regards,

Jonathan

Hi Jonathan......

A P.M. sent.....

Mike

The following pictures of places named in the journal were provided by QSAKSA in the BMF for which I offer my thanks.......

Mike

The Galway Arms in Retford, its still there and a G2 Listed building also the Victoria Hotel now the Hilton an old Great Central Railway Hotel in the centre of Nottingham City.