‘Stonie’ Ginger Beer bottle by Mortimer & Co., Eagle Works, Marsa.Following my article ‘Pembroke: from war symbol to spacious modern town’ (The Sunday Times of Malta, September 15), I received feedback from several readers keen on learning about further military exploits connected to Malta and especially with Pembroke, when it was still a British military establishment.
My favourite military subject has always been that which Major A. G. Chesney immortalised in the Maltese Corps of the British Army. Many can still recall by heart the names of these regiments, particular dates and events, their uniforms and countless associated historical facts. But they will be surprised to learn that there once was a unit called the Maltese Mounted Infantry that saw action in the Second Anglo-Boer War fought from October 11, 1899, until May 31, 1902.
The small town of Mafeking (Mahikeng) in the British Cape colony in South Africa was besieged by the Boer forces for 217 days from October 1899 to May 1900. The siege of Mafeking was finally lifted on May 17, 1900, in a decisive victory for the British and a crushing defeat for the Boers, that turned Robert Baden-Powell into a national hero. Newspapers carried the news and celebrations were held, including here in Malta, but let us go back to an event that occurred in Malta during 1899.
The conflict in South Africa had given birth to various forms of warfare and the introduction of new tactics. It had escalated to such an extent that the British authorities had not expected their casualties to be high. To cope with the need for fresh troops, units that previously were ineligible for overseas service were now authorised and other new ones were raised just for service in South Africa.
The large and wild terrain that needed to be covered demanded that troops be able to respond quickly to any enemy engagement and to be able to travel great distances, especially in the veldt. For this, the need for mounted troops was more than a necessity.
In response to the call For Queen and Country, many able-bodied men from all corners of the Empire, who had previously declined to volunteer for service, began to form units such as the Legion of Frontiersmen, The Queen’s Colonials comprising of many squadrons, and later The King Edward’s Horse. Common to all was the ability to ride as these were primarily all mounted infantry.
The large and wild terrain that needed to be covered demanded that troops be able to travel great distances. For this, the need for mounted troops was more than a necessity
This concept was not something new to the British Army, as the infantry was mounted, some even on mules and camels, for an attempted rapid relief of the ill-fated General Gordon and Khartoum. Not so long before and also in South Africa, the British Army had raised mounted units during the wars with the Zulu, and even as late as the last uprising in Natal in 1906. Obviously, there were many other mounted units in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and even in the British African colonies, due to the immensity of the terrain that needed to be covered by the troops. One of the particular units serving in South Africa during the conflict was designated the Malta Mounted Infantry.
Having seen much service in South Africa, Sir Francis Grenfell, Governor and Commander-in-Chief of British Troops in Malta, was convinced that war in South Africa was imminent. Every available mounted man or those who could ride would be needed there, so he suggested to the War Office that he should be permitted to establish a training school for mounted infantry in Malta.
The War Office gave the necessary sanctions and some time towards the end of December 1899, Captain W. R. Marshall of the 2nd Battalion, the Sherwood Foresters, was given orders to buy ponies and to take the necessary steps for the formation of a Mounted Infantry School. Although training was held in various locations on the island, the Musketry Depot at the Pembroke Camp was extensively used both for its ample barracks and vast open grounds and the unique rifle ranges.
The 1st and 2nd Sherwood Foresters were stationed in Malta and various records relate to the regiment’s stay and connection with the Malta Mounted Infantry. The British Army did not feed its officers – the bills for food, liquor and entertainment for the Officer’s Mess came out of their pay.
Consumables needed for the officers’ mess were bought from private firms that were contracted to supply these requirements on regular basis. One supplier was Messrs J. E. Mortimer & Co., Army and Navy Agents and Contractors. An entry in the company’s Recent Testimonials records that Captain P. Rigby of the 1st Battalion, The Sherwood Foresters, had written from his office at the Auberge de Baviere on November 20, 1899, to complement the firm for catering to the needs of the officers’ mess on their arrival in Malta and their departure.
As for the 2nd Battalion, all ranks were very disappointed to find they were not going to proceed home to England after a prolonged tour of foreign service, and still more so that as a battalion it was to take part in the South African Campaign that was then just about to start. It was well understood that the 2nd was the more mature battalion of the two, since it had had longer and more recent experience of active service.
However, if it was to be denied the good fortune of proceeding to the seat of the war as a complete unit, many of its officers and men had the good luck of being sent to South Africa with the different sections and companies of Mounted Infantry which were organised in Malta. Records compiled by some of those officers who had raised, commanded or served with these units in the field have helped us to learn more about the story of the stay of the battalion in Malta.
The company, 144 strong of all ranks, was made up of one section each from the 3rd Royal Warwickshire Regiment, 3rd Lancashire Fusiliers, 2nd Loyal North Lancashire, and 2nd Derbyshire Regiment, plus a mixed section under Lieut. H. K. Attfield of the 2nd Battalion The Sherwood Foresters. The entire contingent was under command of Captain (now Brevet-Major) J. E. Pine-Coffin of the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. Sergeant Dames of the 2nd Batallion was the Section Sergeant, and he alone had had some previous experience of the country, having served as a bugler with the late Major F. S. Evans’ Mounted Infantry company of the 1st Battalion during the Matablele trouble.
Although training was held in various locations on the island, the Musketry Depot at the Pembroke Camp was extensively used both for its ample barracks and vast open grounds and the unique rifle ranges
Two months after its formation, about the middle of February 1900, orders were received for No.1 Company, Malta Mounted Infantry, for service abroad and to sail in the S.S. Pavonia, which left Malta for South Africa on February 20.
Captain Pine-Coffin was a man who kept records of events and of how the title of Malta Mounted Infantry had originated. The following is a particular entry in his diary:
“Cape Town. March 20. Pavonia arrived and the M.I. [Mounted Infantry] ordered to proceed to East London. The Pay Office at Cape Town decided to christen us ‘the Malta M.I.’ – hence our name, and the result of this appears to have been that the authorities laboured for some time under the impression that the Company was composed of Maltese; and when later on, the Company was ordered to join the Colonial Division, then forming under General Brabant for the relief of Wepener, that commander expressed his regret to Captain Pine-Coffin that the only languages he knew were English and Dutch.”
The training camp in Malta must have been retained to supply fresh troops for the war in South Africa as records show that there were even 9th and 10th Battalions. Another letter addressed to Mr Mortimer, dated February 6, 1901, and was written by Captain W. L. Loring, with thanks and praises to his firm for having always supplied a mess for the officers of the Mounted Infantry with stores, including wines, cigars, and other luxuries when in camp in Malta during the last year. At this time, Captain Loring was the Commanding Officer of the Depot.
Elements of the Malta Mounted Infantry remained active right up to the end of hostilities, as the Australian newspaper from Adelaide, on February 18, 1902, reported that a battalion of the Malta Mounted Infantry, while reconnoitering in the vicinity of Zuikerboschland on Wednesday, February 12, were engaged in difficult country by a considerable force of Boers. During the fighting that ensued, 11 of the ‘Maltese’ were killed and 40 were wounded, including their officers, including Major Dowell, Captain Sheldon and five Lieutenants.