Second Anglo-Afghan War 1878-80

[Gunner1984]

James Jenkins
Driver, 6553
Royal Artillery

James Jenkins was born in the village of Churchstanton, Devon in around 1835, the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Jenkins. By the age of 16, James had left home and was working as an agricultural labourer in the nearby village of Otterford. A few years later, aged around 22, James enlisted in the Army at Taunton, joining the Royal Artillery (RA) on the 29th of December 1857, signing on for 12 years’ service.

Following his attestation, James was posted to 12th Battalion RA and then 8th Brigade (8 Bde) RA on the 1st of May 1859. During his time with 8 Bde, James spent time in Ireland, including in Connagh (County Cork), Cork, and Clonmel (County Tipperary) before returning to England and Devonport, Plymouth in June 1863. The following year, in March 1864, James returned to 2nd Division Depot Brigade before being posted to 22nd Bde RA who were based in Morar, India on the 1st of August 1864. Shortly thereafter, James sailed for India, arriving on the 15th of October 1864. This was to be the beginning of a total of 14 years and 290 days spent on overseas service in India.

A few months after arriving with 22nd Bde, on the 1st of March 1865, James was transferred to A Battery, 16th Bde (A/16) based in Barrackpore. He remained with A/16 for two and a half years before again being transferred, this time to E/8 in Lucknow on the 1st of October 1867. James was to remain with E/8 for the following 11 years and with whom he saw service during the Second Anglo-Afghan War. With his first period of service drawing to a close, James re-engaged for an additional 9 years on the 8th of May 1868.

At the end of 1875, having completed 18 years’ service and accumulating 5 good conduct badges, James was awarded the Long Service and Good Conduct medal. Shortly thereafter on the first of July 1877, as part of the Army’s reorganisation, 8th Bde was renumbered 3rd Bde. When war broke out in November 1878, James would have served with E/3 in their initial preparation and supported the advance of the 1st Division, Peshawar Valley Field Force under the command of General Sir Samuel Browne. He was not however recorded as having fought with E/3 at the Battle of Ali Musjid on the 21st of November 1878 and, most likely due to having only around 6 months left to serve with the Army, he did not see any more service in Afghanistan.

On the 1st of December James was transferred to K/5 in Bareilly, and subsequently returned to England in early 1879 to see out the final weeks of his time in the Army. James was finally discharged on the 27th of May 1879 having served a total of 21 years and 146 days.

James returned to his home village of Churchstanton and the 1891 Census records him as an Army Pensioner living in Taunton with his wife, Charlotte.

[Gunner1984]

George Sparks
Gunner, 3652
Royal Artillery

George Sparks was born in Northfleet near Gravesend, Kent in March 1847. Recorded as being a general labourer, George also was a member of the West Kent Light Infantry Militia, serving for just over a year before being discharged to join the regular Army. On the 22nd of December 1869 aged 22 years and 9 months, George enlisted into the Royal Artillery (RA) at Woolwich, signing up for a period of 12 years.

On enlistment, George joined the Depot Brigade RA to conduct his initial training before being posted to 25th Brigade (25 Bde) based in Allahabad, India and he departed England on the 21st of October 1870. Whilst in India George transferred between the 25th, 22nd and 24th Bdes and suffered repeatedly from Malaria and Dysentery. He appeared before a medical board in February 1874 which recommended that he return to England. On arrival back home, George was initially posted to the Depot Bde before being transferred to 22 Bde on the 1st of June 1874 with whom he served for 18 months. Having regained his health, George was transferred to 21 Bde who were subsequently posted to India, arriving back in the subcontinent on the 23rd of February 1876. On the 1st of July 1877 George transferred to 11 Battery 11 Bde (11/11) in Barrackpore and, in January 1878, re-engaged for a total of 21 years.

At the beginning of October 1878, 11/11 was warned for active service in Afghanistan, and marched from Jutogh where it was stationed, towards Kandahar through the Bolan Pass and via Quetta, arriving at Kandahar on the 8th of January 1879. From there four guns of the battery accompanied General Stewart to Kalat-i-Ghilzai, with the remaining guns being attached to the force under General Biddulph which marched to Girishk. The battery reunited in Kandahar in late February 1879 where they remained for the summer. At the end of August 11/11 and the rest of the Kandahar Field Force were prepared to return to India but, following the massacre of the British Embassy at Kabul, orders were received to remain at Kandahar.  The battery remained in the city for the winter and were then put under the command of General Sir Donald Stewart. At the end of March 1880, 11/11 accompanied Stewart’s force in its advance from Kandahar towards Kabul. On the 19th of April 11/11 was present at the battle of Ahmad Khel. Subsequently the battery advanced with the other units of the force into the Logar Valley, where is remained until July when it proceeded to Kabul. It remained in the Afghan capital until it was the evacuated by the British in August, when it began its return march by the Khyber Pass to India and arrived at Peshawar on the 9th of September 1880.

In April 1882, 11/11 was reformed as 1 Bde, Southern Irish Division RA. George served with both 5 and 6 Batteries, including a year spent in Aden between October 1884 and October 1885 before returning to India and transferring to 2 Lancashire Division RA. On the 1st of September 1886, George transferred to 1 Bde Northern Division. He appeared before a medical board for the second time in September 1887, this time suffering from general debility. The board again recommended he be posted back to England, and he landed back home on the 27th of January 1888. At his own request, George was discharged from the Army at Devonport on the 3rd of August 1888 having served a total of 18 years and 176 days.

[Gunner1984]

Frederick Evan Cowper-Smith
Lieutenant
Royal Artillery

Frederick Cowper-Smith was born on the 11th of July 1861 in Horncastle, Lincolnshire. He was the first of three sons born to the Reverend Thomas and Isabella (née Blathwayt) Cowper-Smith.

Frederick attended the prestigious Charterhouse School in Godalming, Surrey where he was a member of Girdlestonites and Daviesites boarding houses. He left Charterhouse in the ‘Oration Quarter’ (early September – mid-December) 1877 and commissioned into the Royal Artillery on the 30th of July 1879. Frederick was posted to 11 Battery, 9 Brigade RA (11/9) and deployed to India to join the battery in the Second Anglo-Afghan War.

Having taken part in the Battle of Ali Musjid in November 1878, 11/9 was part of the Kyber Field Force taking part in numerous expeditions in the Lughman Valley and operations in the Hissarak Valley in April 1880.

Frederick died of fever on the 26th of July 1880 at Safed Sung, Peshawar in Afghanistan. He was 19 years old.

His father was the Rector of All Saints Church in Horsington, Lincolnshire between 1856 and 1871. Within the church, a memorial plaque to Frederick has been placed reading:

"To the beloved memory of Frederick Evan Cowper Smith Lieutenant Royal Artillery eldest son of the late Revd. T F Smith formerly Rector of the parish.
He died of fever bought on by over exertion in the discharge of his duty in active service in Afghanistan with the Kyber Line Field Force on July 26th 1880 when he had just completed 19 years of earthly life. 'Jesus’ mercy'"

Frederick’s younger brother, Arthur Monroe de Lasalle Cowper-Smith also commissioned into the Royal Artillery, serving with the 21st Division Royal Field Artillery (RFA). Arthur died whilst serving with 67 Battery RFA in South Africa in September 1898. He is also memorialised at All Saints Church:

"Sacred to the memory of Arthur Munro Cowper Smith, Captain in the Royal Field Artillery and graduate of Trinity College Cambridge. He died at Beira, East Africa on September 28th 1898 in the 36th year of his age of injuries received in a grass fire whilst shooting game on the Pungwe River. He was the second son of the Revd. T F Smith B D Rector of this parish."

[Smutsey]

Garen - Your thread is very interesting!!! I've been doing genealogy for a long time and traced my family back to the early 1600's in Suffolk. I was born in London but am now in the US. I also have a strong parallel interest in the earlier Anglo-Afghan wars and wonder if I have any ancestors who participated. Separately I recently bought a medal attributed to a Pvt. T. Mathews with a clasp for the battle of El Musjid. He was supposed to be wounded and I've attached the corrected page from the seller with his entry. I'm wondering if this is a legitimate medal and page or fakes. I know from your post there are fakes. What do you think?

[Smutsey]

Here are the two photos that for some reason didn't make it with my last post.

[Garen]

Garen - Your thread is very interesting!!! I've been doing genealogy for a long time and traced my family back to the early 1600's in Suffolk. I was born in London but am now in the US. I also have a strong parallel interest in the earlier Anglo-Afghan wars and wonder if I have any ancestors who participated. Separately I recently bought a medal attributed to a Pvt. T. Mathews with a clasp for the battle of El Musjid. He was supposed to be wounded and I've attached the corrected page from the seller with his entry. I'm wondering if this is a legitimate medal and page or fakes. I know from your post there are fakes. What do you think?

Hello Smutsey - thanks for your message.

From a casual look at the medal photos you attached it looks good. What's the naming like? The medal roll is certainly the same as the copy I have, and the same as the copy available on Ancestry.

The casualty roll doesn't include a T Mathews in the 81st Foot - but then it only has two entries - and neither does the London Gazette. Neither are necessarily definitive. What's the source for him having been wounded?

Can't see a service record on FindMyPast from a quick first look. I wonder why the error on the medal roll ..?

Best - Garen

[Garen]

Thank you for these fantastic bios and research, Gunner1984 :-)

- Garen

[Smutsey]

Garen - the medal is en route to me. I will let you know more details when I get it. Yes the medal roll name correction seems legit....it is in the original. Perhaps the seller thought the medal roll was a wounded listing...Smutsey

[Smutsey]

Garen- you are right only two names are listed as wounded  in the "official" list for the 81st Foot  and neither is Mathews. Again I suspect the seller was mistaking the medal list for the wounded list. I still haven't received the medal from England yet. I will send more details when I get it.
Smutsey