15929705970001312637261000Standard Recordobject-141517170534539897917053297440001705345377234fitz-onlineadlib-object-141517https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/14151761ed37ec-e544-3375-a42a-8b527fbf8c327referenceterm-42993adlib-term-4299393884c6f-c60c-39f7-a75d-f84d65288fe0medalreferenceterm-122711adlib-term-1227111db96904-a474-3b61-a8e5-6c2d9dd557abLester Watson CollectionCoins and MedalsDuring the 1830s and 1840s several Dutch republics had been established outside the British Cape Colony in South Africa, among which were Transvaal and the Orange Free State, all now in modern South Africa. Transvaal was annexed briefly by the British but its independence re-established in the First Boer War.
In the 1880s however the discovery of vast gold reserves in Transvaal brought large numbers of foreign settlers, largely British, across the border, and an attempted coup at the instigation of Cecil Rhodes in 1895. Military escalation followed, negotiations failed and the two Boer republics, convinced that the British intended annexation, declared war in the Cape Colony in October 1899.
The immediate result was the siege of British troops in Ladysmith, Mafeking and Kimberley, while field forces attempting to come to their relief were defeated in several open battles by Boer contingents. Kimberley, the first town to be relieved, could open its gates only in mid-February; Mafeking, famously, had to hold out until May. A relief force sent to Ladysmith was roundly defeated by Louis Botha at Colenso in January 1900, and again at Val Krantz on 5 February. Engagements in this war came to involve very high British casualties sacrificed to force a withdrawal on Boer units whose primary aim was to remain a fighting force, and one to which old-fashioned British tactics of frontal assault in formation were `easy meat'. By such bloody battles, nonetheless, the British rolled the Boer forces back into their own territory. These combats included a bitter close engagement at Driefontein on 10 March 1900, whose site has only recently been reinvestigated. After victory there, the British penned up a portion of the Boer forces in a siege at Paardeberg, which was captured by General Lord Horatio Kitchener, and Ladysmith was finally relieved on 15 February. The Boers were nonetheless not finally forced to a surrender until May 1902.
This medal was awarded to Corporal Wheeler W. White of the Army Service Corps, who was part of the force that fought at Driefontein, went on to Paardeberg and finally relieved Ladysmith, and who then apparently went on to serve with the forces clearing out guerillas in the Transvaal. His medal's inscription has been officially corrected. Also, the earliest issues of the medal indicate that the War was not expected to last as long as it did, as they bear the dates 1899-1900 in the reverse field. Very few were issued in this state, but a large number of the first issues show signs of the dates' erasure, often as in this case insufficiently thorough, so all-in-all the piece has suffered somewhat at the hands of the Royal Mint. Lester Watson acquired the medal at some point before 1928.CM.1423-20091accession numberCM.1423-2009141517priref141517Watson Catalogue335orderingM-0306previous object numberLW.0306urihttps://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/141517https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/141517Bust of Victoria facing left with veilobverseVICTORIA REGINA ET IMPERATRIXdesignBritannia in foreground facing right holding standard and waving wreath over army marching along shore, with ships offshore in backgroundreversedesignreferenceagent-149638adlib-agent-1496387376d833-d0a7-3be0-916e-9c892b7a24d8The Fitzwilliam MuseumGiven by Lester Watson through Cambridge in America, 2009referenceagent-206432adlib-agent-206432e0b1da8e-f9e4-30be-9257-f82c89d45afbWatson, Lester200920092009givenon loan to the Fitzwilliam Museum 2005-2009190219021902mintreferenceagent-149658adlib-agent-1496584cb81521-c6ef-3826-8224-de2a104139c5Londonrulerreferenceagent-151398adlib-agent-151398bb2cd0a1-0a27-3787-a684-475d3b199972Victoria (1837-1901)artistreferenceagent-174946adlib-agent-17494697851273-f820-36e3-970a-41d6d59650dfSaulles, George W. dewith the title ofrulerreferenceagent-174945adlib-agent-17494553c52c53-979d-3cdf-9a0b-6b7b691fe2ddVictoria regina et imperatrixreferenceterm-106216adlib-term-106216825b8379-ec94-388e-9a59-624e40c090d0Londonreferenceterm-39778adlib-term-397788bd60ed6-968d-3faf-8ad5-b4e4ee9bb245silverDiametermm36.3Weightg47.35referencemedia-116585adlib-media-116585d0ed198c-8d44-3e5c-af17-2bec5adac5a4jpegcm/cm15/LW_0306_281_29.jpg1heightpixels365widthpixels15016162789928401imagejpegcm/cm15/LW_0306_281_29.jpg1heightpixels365widthpixels15016162789928401imagejpegcm/cm15/LW_0306_281_29.jpg1heightpixels365widthpixels15016162789928401imagejpegcm/cm15/LW_0306_281_29.jpg1heightpixels365widthpixels15016162789928401image0media
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imagereferenceterm-123031adlib-term-123031b551dc41-4600-347e-aea2-3d6d1879cbc3Queen's South Africa Medal (second striking)denominationreferenceterm-98222adlib-term-98222b5ccc43a-7491-344e-b6ca-5df39a11c50emedalsseriesreferenceterm-108659adlib-term-108659cc732dec-4543-389e-a737-cf22bb7d2ee2Militarysubseriesreferenceterm-107681adlib-term-107681e80da827-45c6-3b71-a3ef-28794a05e4a8Britainsubsubseriesreferenceterm-122717adlib-term-122717140af9ad-d215-34d9-9d42-52ecb5d3feadBritish Armysubsubsubserieshistory noteGift of L. Hoyt Watson; ex Lester Watson Collection, acquired before 1928referenceagent-149638adlib-agent-1496387376d833-d0a7-3be0-916e-9c892b7a24d8The Fitzwilliam Museum430-433, 438, 439, 440, 443-453referencepublication-5886adlib-publication-5886a6056c29-399c-38dd-9710-5b3f2d44b8a6British Battles and Medals 7th ednreferencepublication-5910adlib-publication-59100d1d8526-5493-32bd-93b4-acd4cdcec7f9British and other Campaign and Gallantry Medals From the Collection of Lester Watson (d. 1959)referenceterm-123031adlib-term-123031b551dc41-4600-347e-aea2-3d6d1879cbc3Queen's South Africa Medal (second striking)Queen's South Africa Medal (second striking)referenceterm-119622adlib-term-119622dd6626e9-5822-307d-aa31-13c8813e7555struckobject
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