Given the total number of Victorians that volunteered and were accepted for the Boer War was only around 3,600, the enlistments from the-then Epping and Whittlesea Shires was not great (volunteering and
being accepted were two different things – most of the contingents raised had far more men offer their services than could actually be fitted into the restricted numbers available.
There is far less material available on Boer War service than for the First World War, but eleven (possibly twelve) volunteers have been identified as connected to the two local Shires.
The AWM Honour Roll lists 589 as having died during the conflict, plus another 96 on the Commemorative Roll who served with forces of another country, predominantly British units based in South Africa when
the conflict started, or those that joined units such as the 2nd Scottish Regiment XE
“Marquis of Tullabarine (2nd Scottish Regiment)” <!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–> formed during the war.
Based on the total embarkations (17,280), the 589 casualties represent a death rate of about 3.4%.
Perhaps as a point for comparison, the casualty rate amongst those that embarked during the Great War was roughly 18.3%, or slightly more than one in every six did not return.
All eleven of the local volunteers survived the campaign, most serving for around a year, although one, Albert Henry Reid was killed in the Great War and is included in the Honour Roll section.
The “maybe” twelfth man, Private Francis George Dau was also killed – whether he was truly linked to the area is difficult to ascertain – he was born in Wandong and his parents were still there, but he was
included on a Honour Roll by the Shire of Preston and a memorial plaque in his honour was erected at the Northcote Rechabite Hall.
Bundoora
PROWSE, Stephen Robert
40, Private (later Sergeant), 1st Mounted Infantry. Prowse was one of 12 men commemorated on a plaque unveiled at Preston Town Hall in 1903. He embarked as a Private, and later was promoted to Lance Corporal, 14 November, 1899, and to Sergeant, 1 May, 1900. Stephen was 28 years of age when he enlisted, he returned 4 December, 1900 uninjured. His brother William also enlisted, but was shown as South Morang.
There is a strong suggestion that the family were from the Lilydale area, but both brothers were born at Cororooke, a tiny hamlet just north of Colac. “S. Prouse” was shown in the Preston Health Inspector’s report in July, 1901 as milking 130 cows, the second highest in the Shire). Prowse would have been an automatic selection on volunteering – in 1897, he was selected in a batch of twenty Victorian volunteers to represent the colony at the 60th anniversary celebrations of the ascendancy to the throne of Queen Victoria. The party was later expanded to fifty, but Prowse was one of eight Victorians selected in the escort party for the Queen in the procession.
SLOAN, Hamilton Hughes
114, Private, 4th Victorian Imperial Bushmen. Born 1878, he embarked 1 May, 1900 and returned 12 July, 1901. He subsequently re-enlisted in the 6th Battalion Australian Horse (Victoria) and embarked 16 May, 1902. This was the last Australian force and it arrived eight days after the war had ended and returned almost immediately. He was listed as a farmer from Bundoora on the first Attestation, the second places
both his birth and current residence as Christmas Hills with his mother Sarah as next of kin.
Doreen
REID, Albert Henry
73, Sergeant, 3rd New South Wales Imperial Bushmen (see Honour Roll). Brother of William (below). Reid
also served in the First World War and is the only casualty noted from the Shires of Whittlesea and Epping, Eltham and Heidelberg that had earlier served in South Africa.
REID, William Arnold Vivian
246, Corporal, 4th Victorian Imperial Bushmen. Born 1877, listed as farmer from Hazel Glen, Doreen. See brother Albert Henry, above). A Welcome Home was noted in the Evelyn Observer, 23 August, 1901.
Epping
PAYNE, Joseph Henry
477, Trooper, New South Wales Bushmen. Listed as a stockman, born Epping, 1865. Embarked 28 February, 1900, returned 11 June, 1901. (The Citizen’s Bushmen were a regiment raised through public
subscription).
Morang
WITHERS, James
2401, Private, 4th Australian Commonwealth Horse. Born Ararat, he was 22 years of age when enlisted 11 February, 1902 while employed with the Railways at Kensington. His father Benjamin at South Morang was listed as next of kin and may have been the station-master there.
PROWSE, William Henry
141, Private, 2 Victorian Mounted Rifles. (Brother of Stephen under Bundoora). He was later promoted to Lance Corporal, 18 September, 1900 and returned 4 December, 1902. Rather than Bundoora, he is shown as South Morang and 27 years of age. He is listed in Victorian records as passing away in 1948 at 75 years of age; there is no local record of Stephen’s death.
Whittlesea
LOVERIDGE, Andrew Henry
175, Private, 4th Victorian Imperial Bushmen. Born Upper Plenty, 1868. On enlisting was shown as a farmer at Antwerp in the Riverina with next of kin in Whittlesea. Embarked as Private, 1 May, 1900, invalided back to Australia, 9 May, 1901. He later joined the 2nd Scottish Horse Regiment (39719) as a
Trooper and was promoted to Sergeant. Awarded King’s Medal with two clasps, Queen’s Medal with three clasps.
WILSON, John Henry
787, Private, 5th Victorian Mounted Rifles. Born 1874, a farmer from Whittlesea. Awarded Queen’s South Africa Medal and three clasps. Embarked 15 February, 1901, returned 25 April, 1902.
Yan Yean
BARRY, Ernest Francis
5th Mounted Victorian Rifles
Enlisted in World War One showing his place of birth as Yan Yean. Details are not clear of his Boer War enlistment, but the Healesville and Yarra Glen Guardian, 24 February, 1902 published a letter to his mother in Healesville. He re-enlisted in World War 1 and was invalided home wounded from Gallipoli; based on the age he gave on enlisting, he would have only been 17 when serving in South Africa.
TIGHE, Thomas Terence
1065, Private, 5th Victorian Mounted Rifles. Born 1879, a boundary rider from Yan Yean. Awarded Queen’s South Africa Medal with three clasps. The family were heavily involved with the Yan Yean Presbyterian Church for many years.
The Twelfth Man
Frederick George Dau<!–[if supportFields]> XE "Dau, Private Frederick (killed)" <![endif]–><!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–>
Given the number of errors that crept into the preparation of the Great War Memorial in later years the Shire of Preston got this spot on on their Boer War commemoration plaque!
He was born at Wandong, a son of Joachim and Martha (nee Rye) Dau, but he served as Frederick George
DOW, 795, Private, 5th Mounted Rifles Contingent and all records including the AWM Honour Roll are
under this spelling (whether this was a mistake by officialdom or whether he used this spelling in unknown).
He was killed in action at Schueveberg Hoek on 23 August, 1901. Records place him as a 20 year old labourer with next of kin still in Wandong, but there was a plaque commemorating his sacrifice
unveiled at the Northcote Independent Order of Rechabites hall.
The Queen’s South Africa Medal
Despite the rather grand title, the Queen’s Medal (pictured above) was a standard decoration issued to all British and colonial troops that served in South Africa between 11 October 1899 and 31 May, 1902.
The Oz-Boer Database Project lists the award for some servicemen and not for others; in reality, all would have received it in some form with the exception of the handful that enlisted with the Fourth and Sixth Australian Commonwealth Horse contingents, both of which arrived in South Africa too late to see action.
The clasps were awarded for either a general theatre of war (eight were defined) in which the soldier served, or alternatively for a specific battle; some 18 possible clasps were awarded within this latter category.
The awarding of clasps represented longevity of service rather than any particular act of bravery; in most cases, the award was consistent across an entire Contingent except for men who may have been exceptions through missing action through wounds, illnesses, etc.
