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Just when you think that all the medals have been unearthed and are sitting is museums or private collections, something pops up that has lain unrecognised for a long time. Such a group turned up today to really "make my day"
The group comprises a SAGS ( 1879) - Tpr. Addison. Stanger Mounted Rifles, QSA ( Defence of Ladysmith, Transvaal, Laings Nek ) Lt. Col. C B Addison Natal Carbineers and an unnamed Volunteer Long Service. The medals came with a number of family letters and photographs although none seemed to relate to CB. One was a typed copy of a letter from a survivor of the sinking of the Galway Castle . The letter details the last minutes of Miss Addison who had been a probationary nurse at the Richmond Hospital and died in the sea.
CB Addison was born in Natal in 1858 and was a brother of the more famous Friend Addison. He served as a trooper in the Stanger Mounted Rifles during the Zulu War. Seemingly he regularly took time out from farming to soldier with the Natal Carbineers. He had the rank of major when the Carbineers were mobilised on 29/9/99 for the Boer War. He was the OC of No. 3 squadron of the Carbineers and was involver in actions at Lombaards Kop and Wagon Hill, but his finest hour came when he led a party of Carbineers on the Gun Hill sortie. He was mentioned in Dispatches twice. He was also awarded the Volunteers Long Service on 22/1/1901. He was discharged in 1902 and was living in Empangeni. He died in 1910 at Dar -es- Salaam while on a shooting trip to Kenya.

A fantastic find. Yes there are great medals still hanging around out there the trouble is finding them. Many years ago I was shown a WW1 trio that was in an old beat up cigar box. Not only were there the medals but a number of newspaper clippings and letters and one more medal a VC. The family asked me to keep quiet about it and as far as I know it is still with the Grandson...….

Mike

P.S. Thought I had added this with the pictures but I guess not....

I am lost for words....

Quite frankly, Mike, I think that will probably turn out to be one of the best Defence of Ladysmith groups you are ever likely to own, very nice indeed, I like the South Africa War medal, in particular, the Stanger Mounted Rifles is certainly not a corps that turns up very often and you should consider it very scarce.

mike rowan wrote: Just when you think that all the medals have been unearthed and are sitting is museums or private collections, something pops up that has lain unrecognised for a long time. Such a group turned up today to really "make my day"
The group comprises a SAGS ( 1879) - Tpr. Addison. Stanger Mounted Rifles, QSA ( Defence of Ladysmith, Transvaal, Laings Nek ) Lt. Col. C B Addison Natal Carbineers and an unnamed Volunteer Long Service. The medals came with a number of family letters and photographs although none seemed to relate to CB. One was a typed copy of a letter from a survivor of the sinking of the Galway Castle . The letter details the last minutes of Miss Addison who had been a probationary nurse at the Richmond Hospital and died in the sea.
CB Addison was born in Natal in 1858 and was a brother of the more famous Friend Addison. He served as a trooper in the Stanger Mounted Rifles during the Zulu War. Seemingly he regularly took time out from farming to soldier with the Natal Carbineers. He had the rank of major when the Carbineers were mobilised on 29/9/99 for the Boer War. He was the OC of No. 3 squadron of the Carbineers and was involver in actions at Lombaards Kop and Wagon Hill, but his finest hour came when he led a party of Carbineers on the Gun Hill sortie. He was mentioned in Dispatches twice. He was also awarded the Volunteers Long Service on 22/1/1901. He was discharged in 1902 and was living in Empangeni. He died in 1910 at Dar -es- Salaam while on a shooting trip to Kenya.

What a day!