Between 1870 and 1877 James served with the 4th Battalion around Great Britain in the following stations: Colchester, Portland, Devonport, Dublin, Jersey and Winchester. He received a Good Conduct payment of an additional 1d a day in September 1872 but this was forfeited in June 1873. His Good Conduct pay was restored in June 1874 and a second Good Conduct payment was awarded in September 1876. James was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal.
The time James spent in the army was marred by his ill health. He was admitted to hospital at every station his battalion served at. His spells in hospital varied from between 7 and 14 days until his final stay in hospital whilst based at Dublin when he spent 180 days listed as "sick". He left Dublin and went to Jersey before being discharged at Winchester as "Medically Unfit - Hypertrophy of the Heart" on the 7th March 1877. He was in possession of 2 Good Conduct Badges and a 4th Class Education Certificate. His conduct was described as "Good" and his habits were "Temperate". His intended place of residence was 17 Norwood Street Plymouth.
Less than a year after his discharge from the army on the 12th February 1878 James enlisted in the Royal Navy at Devonport as a Stoker. His occupation was stated as "Lance Corporal 60th Rifles" the navy recorded his description as the army had done eight years before however James had grown half an inch. James signed on for 12 years with the Royal Navy and was immediately posted to HMS Indus which was then serving as the guardship at Devonport. James spent just six weeks on Indus and his character was noted as being "Fair Only".
On the 25th March 1878 James boarded HMS Tenedos an Eclipse Class Sloop launched on 13th May 1870. Tenedos arrived off the coast off Durban in South Africa on the 1st January 1879 and landed a Naval Brigade consisting of three officers and fifty eight men. They also had with them a Gatling Gun as well as a large anchor from the ship in order to assist in the river crossings for the imminent invasion of Zululand.
HMS Tenedos
Following a series of border disputes with white settlers and the neighbouring Zulu kingdom the High Commissioner for South Africa, Sir Henry Bartle Frere, had delivered a humiliating ultimatum to the Zulu King Cetewayo. The ultimatum, which was designed to be so harsh that the Zulu had no choice but to reject it, called for amongst other things the dismantling of the Zulu army and heavy fines in cattle to be paid by the King. Cetewayo, inevitably, rejected the terms of the ultimatum and Frere embarked upon the invasion of Zululand incidentally without the knowledge or consent of the home government in London.
The invasion of Zululand commenced on the 11th January. The British invaded by splitting their force into three columns which were to converge on the Zulu Royal Kraal at Ulundi where Cetewayo held power. The Naval Brigade from HMS Tenedos occupied Fort Pearson an earthwork fort built on the Natal side of the Tugela River in order to defend the prominent crossing place from Zulu attack and Natal from invasion. They replaced the Naval Brigade from HMS Active who had been in South Africa since 1877. The Active Naval Brigade left Fort Pearson and joined the right hand column commanded by Colonel Pearson in the invasion. It was felt that the men from HMS Active were seasoned South African campaigners and were more experienced than the men from Tenedos.
HMS Tendos - Naval Brigade
James had been rated as Stoker 2nd Class when he started his service aboard HMS Tenedos on 25th March 1878. On the 1st June 1878 he was rated as Stoker 1st Class. His character was rated as "Indifferent" for 1878 and at some point whilst serving on HMS Tenedos he was imprisoned for 28 day which was served on HMS Flora which was serving as the guardship stationed in Simon's Bay off the coast of South Africa. HMS Tenedos remained moored in the mouth of the Tugela River throughout the Zulu War. The crew went ashore often and helped build and maintain Fort Pearson and a separate fort built on the Zulu side of the river named Fort Tenedos. For his role in the Anglo - Zulu War of 1879 James was awarded the South African General Service medal.
HMS Tenedos and James arrived back in Britain on 8th November 1879. The day after they arrived in Devonport, the 9th November, James marries Louisa Ann Poole, the daughter of a "Shore Rigger" based at the HM Dockyard Plymouth, at the parish church in St. Pauls, Devonport. James spends the next two and a half years based on Training Ships and shore based establishments in Devonport before joining HMS Swiftsure, a Swiftsure Class Battleship, on the Pacific Station from March 1882 to May 1885 and then serving on HMS Triumph, another Swiftsure Class Battleship, which relieved HMS Swiftsure in the Pacific from May 1885 until December 1888.On the 5th September 1886 he was appointed as Leading Stoker the rate he was to remain in for the remainder of his naval career.
HMS Triumph most likely on the occasion of the official opening of the Canadian Pacific Railway in Vancouver harbour 1887 both for ceremonial reasons and protection against a rumoured Fenian attack - James was serving on Triumph at this time
James returned to Devonport on 5th December 1888 and joined HMS Indus the first ship he served on when he first joined the Royal Navy. His character, as mentioned previously, had been rated as "Indifferent" in 1878 and then "Fair Only" in 1879 he did however manage to be rated as either "Good" or "Very Good" throughout the 1880's. On the 12th February 1888 James signed on to complete his Continuous Service Engagement and committed to a further 10 years service with the Royal Navy.
James never went to sea again and remained stationed in Training Ships and was finally posted to a Shore Based Establishment in October 1891. He was "Shore Pensioned" on 30th April 1892 and was finally discharged on 22nd February 1893 probably as a result of the same medical condition that had seen him discharged from the 60th Rifles fifteen years before.
James had married Louisa Ann Poole in 1879 and the two of them are found living together along with Louisa's mother but with no children on the 1901 Census at 24 Walnut Road, Greenwich London. James is described as a "Pensioner - Royal Navy Man" By the time of the1911 Census they have moved to 98 Tyneham Road, Lavender Hill in London. Louisa's mother is no longer alive.Louisa dies in the first quarter of 1913 and James Henley dies in the first quarter of 1915 they never had any children.
James served for nearly 7 years in the 4/60th Rifles and for just over 15 years in the Royal Navy. He was awarded the South African General Service medal with no clasp for his time spent on HMS Tenedos during the Anglo - Zulu War of 1879.
South African General Service Medal - No Clasp - Awarded to James Henley
No comments:
Post a Comment