A H Fortescue
Source: Gulgong Pioneers Museum
Arthur Fortescue - son of Percy Fortescue, a civil servant - was born 14 March 1884 in the town of Freshwater on the Isle of Wight, UK. he fought in, and survived, the Boer War and both World Wars and lived to his eighties.
Arthur married Mabel Lillian Hollis towards the end of World War II on 7 July 1918. She was living at "Lymerstone" Brightstone on the Isle of Wight. She returned to Australia with him after the war on the ship "Orsova".
Arthur died at the age of 82 on 4 December 1965 and is buried in Gulgong Cemetery
Murray: 'C' Squadron.B5204: station hand born 1880 Isle of Wight Eng., Queen's South Africa Medal (SA01).Source:# 1076 lied about his age to enlist as not born until 1882, WWI served in Egypt, Gallipoli, France & Belgium, awarded Meritorious Service Medal for improvements to sledges used to remove the injured from the battlefields in France, promoted to Sergeant, Coy. Sergeant Major and Warrant Officer, later trained some of the land army during WWII, died in 1965 in Gulgong NSW.
NEWS ITEMS
1900 - Enthusiastic Volunteers.
When the second Victorian contingent was being chosen, two of the E company Rangers, Privates Arthur Fortescue and John C. Chanter volunteered and passed all the tests, but were rejected on account of short service in the force. Being determined to go by some means, they, as residents of Moama, volunteered for the New South Wales Bushmen's Corps. Yesterday they received word to proceed at once to Randwick and go into camp. They therefore left by the afternoon train yesterday for Deniliquin, en route to Sydney.
Source: The Riverine Herald (Echuca, Vic. : Moama, NSW : 1869 - 1954; 1998 - 2002) Thu 25 Jan 1900 Page 2
Source: The Riverine Herald (Echuca, Vic. : Moama, NSW : 1869 - 1954; 1998 - 2002) Thu 25 Jan 1900 Page 2
1900 - Moama Bushmen:— Private John Chanter (son of Mr. J. M. Chanter, M.P.). and Private Fortescue (son of Senior Constable Fortescue, Stationed at Moama), have been finally accepted in the Bushmen's Corps and have gone into camp.
Arthur Henry Fortescue, Moama;
Source: Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919) Sat 17 Feb 1900 Page 14
Trooper A H Fortescue
Number 277, NSW Citizen's Bushmen
Source: Gulgong Pioneers Museum
Arthur Henry Fortescue joined up when 17 years old, and served in South Africa during the Boer War 1899-1902. Medals awarded to him for this campaign were: Queen Victoria's - South African Medal and King Edward VII - South African Medal.A bar was given for each of the States in South Africa where a soldier served. Trooper Fortescue received Bars for Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal and South Africa.Arthur Henry Fortescue also served at Gallipoli and France during the First World War, rising to the rank of Seconf Lieutenant and was mentioned in Dispatches four times and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal.
AH Fortescue's Boer War medals
MOAMA, Monday.
A farewell was tendered to John Chanter, Arthur Fortescue, and V. Parr, members of the Bushmen's Corps, last Saturday night, in the School of Arts. The Mayor presided, and on behalf of the residents presented each member with a horse and a medal.
The Echuca Rangers, with the band, attended under the command of Captain M'Kenzie. The building was crowded. A large crowd assembled at the railway station this afternoon to wish the members bon voyage. The Mayor, on behalf of the Moama school children, presented the departing troopers each with a compass.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954) Tue 20 Feb 1900 Page 8
A troop of Bushmen's Contingent, NSW, c.1900
1900 - Letters from the Front.
Private J. Chanter, of the New South Wales Bushmen's Corps, writes to his mother as follows:
Atlantian, April 11th, 1900.—Just a line or two to let you know I am keeping in splendid health. We left Cape Town last Tuesday and are expected to reach Beira, which is a town on the coast the other side of Delagoa Bay, where we are ordered to. It must only be a small place, as Micro is no place to fcike the ship into, so we will have to swim our horses ashore and I suppose we will take all our other things ashore in small boats. We have been picked here for very good service. There will be a company of about 8,000 with us and we are ordered to relieve Mafeking, and when we have done that, as I have no doubt we will do, then we are to march on to Pretoria. From Beira, where we land, we have a journey by rail of about 600 miles, and then we have to march 300 to the next train at Salisbury, where we take rail again for Mafeking. I believe we have to go a good distance unarmed from Biera, as it is in Portuguese territory. We have all been served here with khakee jackets, as there is nothing eine used over here just now. We have had three or four men-of-war boats come up to us since passing Delagoa Bay. There is a big fleet cruising round there keeping a look out for any contraband goods going in that way. The Bushmen at the Cape seem to have a splendid name, and Lord Roberts happened to be in the Cape at the time of our landing, so we got our orders from him, although he gave the orders sealed, so as not even our officers knew where we were going till we were out to sea. The whole contingent is going together, so Arthur Fortescue and I will be together. We have all the arms and ammunition on our boat for them, so I suppose the MapJeiuoro will be in almost as soon as we will. I have had very little time for writing since leaving the Cape, as we have been very busy with our drills and one thing and another. Remember me to the Fortescue's and tell them Arthur and I will stick together, no matter where we have to go.
(April. 10th, 1900).—Beira— We arrived here last Wednesday and have been unloading ever since. The Maplemoro arrived here the same night, and we are anchored close together. The place here is infested with blacks, and they are not half civilised. The only dress they wear is a piece of cloth around their loins. All the work about here is carried on by them. They have no horses here, so the blacks have to do all the pulling, and when any of the officers of the Rail way department want to go up or down the line they are pushed along by the natives. The rails of the railway line here are only 2 feet 2 inches apart, but the trucks are the same size as ours. I believe we have to travel through some very bad country for flies, so all the trucks are covered in with very fine netting to keep the flies from getting at the hordes. The country about here is very low and swampy, and the veldt is covered with grass up to a man's waist, so we will be alright for horse feed. We are expected to leave here for Salisbury about Wednesday or Thursday, but the train will only take about 200 at a time, and all the Australians are here, and other troops expected. We may not get there for two or three weeks.
Bamboo Creek, April 22nd, 1900—We left Biera last Monday, and are now camped at Bamboo Creek, which is 60 miles from Biera. We came here by train, but it took us eleven hours to get here, owing to the heavy loads, and as the line is a very small gauge, they cannot travel very fast. Arthur Fortescue came here yesterday with the rest of his squadron, and is now camped with us. The West Australians, South Australians and Victorians are also here, but some of us keep getting sent on towards Salisbury. We are all camped here in a 20 acre paddock, and there is hardly room to turn round in it. We have to keep a strict guard on our horses, as there are a lot of wild animals here. There were three lions seen prowling about the other night, but they did not attempt to attack the horses. The country about here is very wild; the grass is about 1? feet high all over the place. I met Jim Rundió, à fiiomÍJor of the South Australian contingent, here. He knew me at once, and says he used to live at flfa- ; thoura. We have lost three horses, but mine is getting on splendidly, as also Arthur Fortescue's. The heat here is something dreadful. It is far worse than in Australia, but they say it will be much cooler as we go further inland. We lost a truck load of saddles through a spark from the engine setting it on fire. I have not yet had time to write to the Riverine Herald, as we are kept busy day and night either trucking or untrucking horses for the front, so I wish you would give them this and I will write as soon as I can find time. I must now close as we have to parade to church.
Source: The Riverine Herald (Echuca, Vic. : Moama, NSW : 1869 - 1954; 1998 - 2002) Wed 6 Jun 1900 Page 3
1900 - THE BUSHMEN AT ZEERUST - HOW THEY ESCAPED A BIG FORCE OF BOERS, AND RETIRED TO MAFEKING.Mr. J. M. Chanter, M.L.A., has received the following letter from his son, Trooper Chanter, of the Citizens' Bushmen's Con tingent, dated Mafeking, August 11, 1900—
Just a line or two to let you know we all got out of Zeerust all right. Doubtless before this reaches you the news will have been conveyed to you that there were 6000 Boers within a few miles of Zeerust, and only about 150 of our men to look after and defend the place. Luckily the Boers did not attack us and try and force an entrance; had they done so, I fear, we being so few, would have been either shot down, or taken prisoners. Gen. Carrington, with 3000 men, including the Royal Artillery, with which Arthur Fortescue is now serving, advanced to us at Zeerust on the 2nd inst., and on the day following he again left us to attack the Boers, leaving us poor unlucky ones behind to keep them out of Zeerust. On the following Sunday the Boers commenced to send shells from the kopjes, but they did not do much damage. On Monday our men were ordered to advance, but owing to the Boers being so strongly entrenched, had to retire, fortunately none being killed, but 15 wounded, including five of my own squadron. General Carringtan then sent a message to us to abandon Zeerust. We received this order at 2 o'clock on Tuesday morning, and turned out at once to load the five waggons we had. We were allowed to take anything out of the stores we liked in addition, but having only weak horses we could not carry anything with us, and the consequence was we were ordered to destroy by burning an immense quantity of stores, valued, I am informed, at a quanter of a million pounds sterling (£250,000). We were much surprised and disappointed at being ordered to retire before the Boers, and would have preferred to remain and fight; but our officers thought otherwise, and our duty was to obey. In our retreat from Zeerust we were called upon to endure very long and forced marches, occupying three days, before we reached Mafeking, and during that time we only had one meal issued to us. One of our squad did not hesitate under the circumstances to help himself to some biscuits from the waggons, and I think no one will blame him. The column, which was about five miles long, started from Zeerust at 8 o'clock on Wednesday morning, but about 50 of us who have been garrisoning the place did not leave until about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and then we had to leave at a gallop, as the Boers were reported to be entering the town on the other side. Yesterday we were again placed under Captain Baker's command, and we are now getting fixed up with better horses, as we have to march under General French, whose arrival is expected any moment. I think within a day or two we shall be engaged in a great battle, as there is a very large force of Boers. A comrade of mine and myself had an adventure the other day. We were sent out to patrol the Rustenburg road, and when we were returning to our camp in the evening about a dozen Boers fired upon us, but fortunately missed us altogether. We immediately sought cover, and galloped behind some rocks and rained fire upon them as well as we could. We could not see them, they also being well posted behind rocks. Finding they were attempting to surround us, we mounted and made a dash for liberty. They fired another volley at us, but their shooting was bad; and we both got away without a scratch. Arthur Fortescue is camped near us, and Willie Greggery has now joined our squadron.
Mafeking. August 13, 1900. I am taking this opportunity of adding a few lines before posting my letter. We have just been dismissed from church parade, and informed we are to march against the Boers near Zeerust as soon as our horses have been shod, which we expect will be finished on Tuesday; so I suppose we will start on Wednesday morning. There is a rumor that there is a force of 5000 Boers within a few miles, and the people of Mafeking are getting afraid they will have to stand another siege. I do not think they will try and take the place again.
Source: Sunday Times (Sydney, NSW : 1895 - 1930) Sun 16 Sep 1900 Page 4 THE RETURNED MEN.
The official list of the men who have returned by the Morayshire is as follows:—
'C' Squadron, 1st Australian Bushmen.— Sergeant-Major
Godfrey George Geary, Q.M.S. Richard John Holmes, Sergeants Clive Condor Weston,
Hubert Curr, William Antill M'Pherson (discharged at Adelaide), Frederick
Theodore Witts, Henry Francis Burne, Paul Jas. Guy, Frederick William Stewart,
Corporals Oscar Pa trick Staunton, William Joseph O'Connell, Chas. Frederick
Hales Monk, Theodore Alfred Woods, Trumpeter Arthur Thompson Brown,
Troopers Jas. William Aitken, Geo. Bailey, Thos. Bewers, George Carpenter,
Charles Cotterell, Frederick Clement Druitt, Arthur Emery, Leslie
Ferguson, Charles Foster, Arthur Henry Fortescue, John Smith
Fox, Neil Gillies, William Jas. Greggery, Hubert Hudson, Sadler Edward Patrick
Hickey, Troopers Thos. Kennedy, Chas. Laws, Samuel Lackie, William Alfred
Maling, William Miller Muir, Archibald James Middleton, Harry Stewart M'Donald,
William Jas. Pound, Albert Edward Quick, Shoeing-smith John Harry Quine, Troopers
Henry Roderick Reid, Richard William Spraggs, Frederick Stibbords, Henry George
Stephens, George Sutherland, William Edward John Thorpe, Jas. John Trewak,
Henry Tompson, William Albert Wise, Robert Young.
Source: Evening News (Sydney, NSW : 1869 - 1931) Wed 12 Jun 1901 Page 3
Arthur Henry Fortescue
NSW Bushmen's Contingent, C Squadron.
1905 - The Soldiers' Monument.
UNVEILING CEREMONY. SPEECHES BY FEDERAL AND STATE MEMBERS.
Yesterday [7.6.1905] Echuca witnessed the function of the unveiling of the monument, erected on the square in front of the Supreme Court, in commemoration of the soldiers from Echuca and Moama who volunteered and fought in battles of the Queen and the Empire in the South African war. ... One inscription reads "Presented by the residents to the Borough Council to commemorate the services of our citizen soldiers in the South African war, 1899-01." The following names are inscribed - Captain CJ WILSON, Sergeants JH RULE, HA KERANS, WK GRADY, Corporals R MCGROUTHER, T PITT, Privates E KERANS, CT EARNSHAW, E EARNSHAW, Troopers R JORDAN, D JORDAN, G HOWELL, JP TONER R SMITH, EA PHILP, JM DAVEY, D MCPHERSON, B ROFE, A TULLOCH, RO BELL, WH WALLIS, JM WHIDBURN, JO CHANTER, A FORTESCUE, WH TURNER, W PARR, W COLLINS & WJ LAWTON.
See: The Riverine Herald (Echuca, Vic. : Moama, NSW : 1869 - 1954; 1998 - 2002) View title infoThu 8 Jun 1905 Page 2
Source: Gulgong Pioneers Museum
