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22282 Company Sergeant Major
WILLIAM JOHN NORTHEAST
Royal Engineers

by
Lieutenant Colonel Edward De Santis
Copyright 2018.  All Rights Reserved.

 PART 1: NARRATIVE

 1.  INTRODUCTION  

            The principal references used in the preparation of this narrative were from a number of sources.  They include the soldier’s service papers, census records, official registries in the United Kingdom, medal rolls and family trees.  All sources are cited in the REFERENCE section at the end of the narrative and also in the ENDNOTES.  Every effort has been made to accurately portray the life and military service of Company Sergeant Major Northeast.               

2.  EARLY LIFE AND FAMILY INFORMATION

             John Northeast, the grandfather of William John Northeast, was born on the 18^th of May 1784 in Funtington, a village and civil parish in the Chichester district of what today is West Sussex.  His grandmother, Phoebe Sturt, was born in 1785 in Westbourne, a village, civil parish and electoral ward in the Chichester District of West Sussex.  John and Phoebe lived in Sussex for many years and Phoebe gave birth to William’s father, John Thomas Northeast, in 1813 in Funtington.  Phoebe died in May of 1919 in Funtington at the age of 34.

            William’s mother, Frances Blackman, was born in 1823 in Emsworth, Hampshire, a small town on the south coast of England, near the border of West Sussex. It lies at the north end of an arm of Chichester Harbour, a large and shallow inlet from the English Channel.

            William’s grandfather left the Funtington area, perhaps shortly after the death of his wife Phoebe, and moved to Yardley Hastings in Northamptonshire where he died on the 3^rd of October 1858 at the age of 74.       

            William John Northeast was born on the 17^th of December 1866 in the parish of Portsea, near the town of Plymouth, in the county of Hampshire.  A year and a half after his birth, in May of 1868, his father died in Portsea at the age of 55, leaving his wife a widow with four children; Edwin Thomas, Frances Ellen, Harriet and young William.  William was baptized at St. Mary’s Church in Portsea on the 28^th of November 1869.[1]  His baptism took place almost three years after his birth, which one must consider to be rather unusual even in the Victorian era. 

            The 1871 Census of England and Wales shows Frances Northeast and her children residing at 116 Wingfield Street in Portsea.[2]

             The 1881 Census of England and Wales shows three of Frances Northeast’s children living in the household of Henry and Frances Madgwick in Portsmouth.  Frances and her daughter Harriet are not shown in this household.

TABLE NOTES:

1. Frances Madgwick was Francis Northeast.  She married Henry Madgwick in 1873 at Portsea Island, Hampshire five years after the death of her first husband John Thomas Northeast. 
2. The children should more properly be listed as step-sons and step-daughter of the head of the household rather than sons-in-law and daughter-in-law.
3. Harriet does not appear in this household in the 1881 census.  She would have been 17 years old in 1881.  The Rice(Wye) Family Tree shows her as married in July of 1881 in Brighton, Sussex.
4. Edwin Thomas Northeast, 1858-1942.
5. Frances Ellen Northeast, 1860-1911.

 3. ENLISTMENT

William John Northeast enlisted in the Royal Engineers at Portsmouth on the 8^th of September 1887.  He was 20 years and 10 months old at the time of his enlistment.  On his Short Service Attestation (Army Form B.265) he indicated the following:
            His civilian trade was Plumber and he had been residing in his father’s house at the time of his enlistment.  Actually he had been residing in the house of his step-father, Henry Madgwick in Portsmouth.  Northeast indicated that he had been employed as an Apprentice (probably an Apprentice Plumber) at Her Majesty’s Dockyard in Portsea.  He was not married and had never been sentenced to imprisonment.  At the time of his enlistment he was not serving in Her Majesty’s naval or military forces and had never been discharged from her Majesty’s Forces nor had he ever been declared unfit for service in the naval or military forces.  He indicated that he was willing to be vaccinated or re-vaccinated and that he had been recruited by one Thomas Welsh.  These typically were the questions put to a new recruit on enlistment.

            Northeast’s Certificate of Final Medical Examination was issued on the 8^th of September 1887 at Portsmouth and he was found fit for service in the Army.  His Certificate of Primary Military Examination was issued at Portsmouth on the 10^th of September 1887 and he was found fit for service in the Royal Engineers.  This certificate was signed by a Captain at the 37^th Regimental District, the regimental district of the Hampshire Regiment.  The Certificate of the Approving Field Officer for Northeast’s enlistment also was issued on the 10^th of September and on this date he was appointed a Sapper in the Royal Engineers with Regimental Number 22282.

4.  PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION[4]
            The table below provides a description of William John Northeast at the time of his enlistment in 1887.  These data were recorded in his enlistment papers at the time of his Primary Military Examination. 

             The table below provides a description of William John Northeast at the time of his discharge from the Army in 1908. 

 5.  ASSIGNMENTS AND CAMPAIGN SERVICE

Home Service (1887-1892)

            Immediately following the approval of his enlistment, Sapper Northeast was posted to the School of Military Engineering at Chatham, Kent.  Here it is of interest to point out that the minimum height requirement for a Sapper in 1887 was 5 feet 6 inches.  Northeast was 5 feet 6½ inches tall.  The minimum weight requirement was 115 pounds.  Northeast was 115½ pounds.  The minimum chest measurement was 34 inches.  Northeast was measured at 34½ inches.  One must wonder if all those “halves” were added to his size and weight to ensure that his enlistment was approved at a time when men were required in the Royal Engineers.

            Although this is not specifically stated in his service papers, it was the normal procedure for all new recruits to be posted to Chatham to learn the basic skills of an engineer soldier.[5]  His apprenticeship as a plumber with the Royal Dockyards apparently helped him during his initial training and was certainly instrumental in his being selected to serve in the Corps of Royal Engineers rather than some other regiment or corps.  On the 13^th of September 1887, just three days after his enlistment was approved, he was awarded a Third Class Certificate of Education.  The third-class certificate enabled him to be promoted to the rank of Corporal after a specified period of time.  This certificate indicated that soldier could  read aloud, could write from dictation passages from an easy narrative and could work examples in the four compound rules of arithmetic and the reduction of money.  As an Apprentice Plumber he certainly would have been required to do these things prior to entering the Army; hence, his ability to quickly qualify for the third-class certificate.

            In addition to his basic training as an engineer soldier, Northeast also may have received specialized training in engine driving.  On the 7^th of December 1889 he was rated a Superior Engine Driver in a Submarine Mining unit.  His service papers do not indicate if he received this training at Chatham or in the Coast Battalion, R.E. to which he subsequently was assigned.  His papers show that from December of 1890 to October of 1892 he was serving in a Coast Battalion.    At about this time there was one Coast battalion organised into 11 sections and comprised of 14 officers and 190 men stationed at those ports which only had militia or volunteer submarine mining sections; specifically, the battalion had charge and maintenance of the submarine mining defence and the instruction of Volunteer Submarine Miners at commercial ports.  Unfortunately the specific port to which Northeast was posted is not indicated in his papers. 

Figure 1.  A Young Submarine Miner, Royal Engineers at Weymouth.
(Note the naval design of the uniform worn by these men of the Royal Engineers)

            The Royal Engineers Corps History (Volume 4) indicates that in 1886 there were sections of the Coast Battalion located at Liverpool, Devonport, Glasgow, Newcastle-on-Tyne and Alderney.  The 16^th Coast Battalion Company was employed on the Northeast Coast Defences in the Newcastle-on-Tyne District and the 49^th Coast Battalion Company was employed on Scottish coast defences.  In 1888, just about the time that Northeast was posted to the Coast Battalion, two more submarine mining companies were formed, the 39^th and 40^th thereby increasing the strength of the battalion.  The companies of the Coast Battalion were deployed to ports, normally in sections.  Unfortunately the specific company, section or port to which Northeast was posted at this time is not indicated in his papers.    

            On the 19^th of December 1890, while serving in the Coast Battalion, Northeast was appointed an unpaid Lance Corporal.  He served for just over two years in this rank when on the 1^st of January 1892 he was appointed a paid Lance Corporal.[6]

            Lance Corporal Northeast was rated a Very Superior Engine Driver on the 25^th of April 1892 while engaged with submarine mining duties.  The work of an engine driver involved the operation of the engine of a submarine mining boat that was used to lay mines in ports and harbors.  He continued in this capacity and was promoted to the rank of 2^nd Corporal in the battalion on the 1^st of October 1892.  The officer who made the entry of his promotion in his service papers was Lieutenant J. Organ, R.E.[7]  With this promotion and with an apparent liking for military service, 2^nd Corporal Northeast extended to complete 12 years with the Colours on the 19^th of October 1892.[8]

Singapore (1892-1896)

            2^nd Corporal Northeast’s first period of service abroad began on the 14^th of December 1892 when he departed for Singapore, presumably to serve as an engine driver in a Submarine Mining unit.  The organization of the Submarine Mining unit in Singapore underwent many changes over the years, so a short history of this unit would help to understand what awaited Northeast when he arrived there.

            In 1881 a battalion of Submarine Miners, consisting of 4 companies of Malays and 43 officers and men of the Royal Engineers was formed in Singapore.  On the 1^st of April 1882 the 23rd Company, Royal Engineers at Chatham was converted into the Submarine Mining Depot and took over the detachments not only at Singapore but also at Hong Kong, Ceylon, Mauritius and Jamaica.  In 1885 the threat of war with Russia presented the opportunity to put into practical effect improvements in the Submarine Mining Services.  As a result of this threat the mine defences at Singapore and other ports were prepared ready for immediate laying out and the mines were all loaded and primed, although they were deactivated once the threat of war had passed.

            A battalion of Submarine Miners was formed in November of 1886 with Major M.D. Whitmore the Commandant stationed at Singapore. Other officers stationed with him were Captain W.G. Shellabear, Honorary Lieutenant J. Bull (Quartermaster) and Sergeant Major J. Organ.  Northeast would have direct contact with the latter two men later in his military career. 

            At the time that Northeast joined the unit in 1892 it had been formed into what was known as the Singapore Company of the Eastern Battalion of Submarine Miners.  This re-designation had taken place in 1887 and it would remain as such throughout Northeast’s term of service in Singapore with the first Malays enlisted in the unit that same year.  The confusing part about Northeast’s service papers is that entries made in his Statement of Services during his time in Singapore show him assigned to the Coast Battalion and no mention is made of the Eastern Battalion of Submarine Miners or the Singapore Company.  As a engine driver he surely would have been serving on one of the Submarine Miner boats in Singapore, so this anomaly in his service papers is probably nothing more than an administrative error. 

            His service record shows that while in Singapore 2^nd Corporal Northeast was awarded a Second Class Certificate of Education.  He must have been continuing his education in preparation for future promotions, as a second-class certificate was necessary for promotion to sergeant and it entailed writing and dictation from a more difficult work, familiarity with all forms of regimental accounting, and facility with proportions and interest, fractions and averages.

Figure 2.  A Submarine Miners Boat Deploying Mines.
(Note the position of the Engine Driver just forward of the forward mast)

            As a item of interest, Lieutenant Colonel John Rouse Merriott Chard, V.C., R.E., the hero of Rorke’s Drift during the Zulu War, was serving in Singapore as the Commander Royal Engineers during the same time as Northeast; that is 1892 to 1896.[9]  It is quite possible that Northeast may have seen or met Chard during their time in Singapore.

Figure 3.  John Rouse Merriott Chard, V.C., R.E.

Home Service (1896-1897)

            Northeast arrived home from Singapore on the 31^st of January 1896 and on the 1^st of July of that year he was promoted to the rank of Corporal.  The entry regarding his promotion was made by the same Captain James Organ, R.E. who had been a Sergeant Major with the Submarine Miners Battalion in Singapore in 1886.[10]  At the time of his promotion he was serving with a Coast Battalion detachment in Weymouth, where on the 13^th of April 1897 he re-engaged for the Royal Engineers to complete 21 years of service.[11]

Sierra Leone (1897-1898)

            With the spread of more a more orderly government in the British Protectorate of Sierra Leone, the expenses of governing increased and a house-tax was imposed on the native tribes, to be collected by the chiefs. The tax was to amount to 5 shillings per hut for towns with more than 20 huts.  This led, in January of 1898, to an organized rebellion which lasted some months, in the course of which over 1,000 British subjects, including some British missionaries, were killed. The rebellion was quelled by a series of military expeditions under Colonel E. Woodgate and Colonel G.G. Cunningham, in the course of which the British lost 161 killed. The operations were completed by the march of two expeditions through the Protectorate involving native troops and a naval brigade.  These columns covered 800 miles, beginning on the 18^th of February 1898 and ending on the 9^th of March 1899 when the British forces returned to Freetown.  One of these operations was known at the Kassi Expedition and this was the operation in which Northeast took part.

            Corporal Northeast departed for Sierra Leone on the 18^th of November 1897 and arrived in Sierra Leone on the 2^nd of December.  It had become apparent to the British government prior to Northeast’s departure from the U.K. that a rebellion was about to begin and that troops would be required to put down this rebellion.  The Royal Engineers were represented in these operations by two units; the West India Fortress Company, Royal Engineers supporting the West India Regiment, and a detachment of Royal Engineers officers which included Lieutenants Alfred Herbert Tyler, Charles Howard Foulkes,[12] John Pierce Mackesy[13] and Robert Henry Thomas.[14]  At the time Tyler was the most senior of the lieutenants who took part in the Kassi Expedition and as such he held the local rank of captain and was the Commander Royal Engineers for the expedition.  The detachment of Royal Engineers serving under these officers appears to have been an ad hoc unit with no official designation such as a field company might have.  In fact the medal roll awarding the East and West Africa Medal 1887-1900 to the men who took part in operations in Sierra Leone lists their units as “West India Fortress Company, Royal Engineers,” and “Royal Engineers,” the latter without any specific unit designation.[15]   

            The primary mission of the forces in the Kassi Expedition was to subdue the rebellion of the tribes in the Kassi region of Sierra Leone by attacking their towns, attacking and destroying numerous defensive stockades constructed by the rebel forces and destroying road blocks.  During the operation in which Captain Tyler’s force took part, a flying column set out along the Katenta and Mabele roads.  The enemy was expected to be in force at Mabele, a town of between 200 and 300 huts, located approximately 15 miles south of Port Loko (see map below).  The town of Mabele was in a position easy to defend and difficult to attack. Wide, deep ravines, lined with impenetrable bush, commanded the approach to this town and it was an ideal situation for the tactics of the rebels who used ambushed to constantly harass the advancing troops.  As soon as the column appeared within sight of the town the enemy opened a heavy fire, but they were driven out after sustaining some losses. In this engagement two men of the West India Regiment and four carriers were killed, and four men and nine carriers slightly wounded. Captain Tyler, commanding the Royal Engineers, also was wounded.  Apparently he was only slightly wounded, as he was able to continue immediately in the advance.

            Columns were pushed out in all directions from Mabele.  Owing to the density of the forests in the area it had been found that a command of ten men was all that could be managed by one officer when actually engaged with the enemy.  When this was possible each column was split up into sections of ten men each. The Winti road, which had been blocked by the enemy, was successfully opened by Captain Tyler, after several engagements, and on arriving on the banks of the Little Skarcies and Mabole Rivers the enemy were turned out of a strong stockaded position on the further bank.  Whether Northeast was involved in these actions is unknown as such details are not provided in his service papers.  A review of books and published papers describing the Kassi Expedition make few if any comments regarding the men of lesser rank who took part in the operations.

Home Service (1898-1901)

            Although operations in the Kassi Expedition lasted until the 9^th of March 1899 the intensity of the actions against the rebellious tribesmen decreased dramatically.  Many soldiers involved in the campaign began to leave Sierra Leone, including Corporal Northeast, who departed on the 14^th of December 1898 and arrived home on the 26^th of December.  It appears that after returning to England he was again posted to a section of the Coast Battalion, this time at Tynemouth.  On the 1^st of July 1898 his service papers show that he elected to come under the new rules regarding messing, promulgated in Army Orders Numbers 65 and 66 of 1898.   In these Army Orders deferred pay of 2d per diem was stopped (reducing the amount of money a soldier received on transfer to the reserve after his engagement with the Colours from £21, to a gratuity of £1 for each year served with the colours).  Soldiers entitled to the deferred pay could choose to continue to receive it, or elect to take it as a messing allowance, reducing their (compulsory) grocery deductions.  This gave those who elected for the messing allowance 2d per day more pay, but reduced by two thirds the lump sum they would receive on leaving the regular army.[16]

Figure 4.  Map of Sierra Leone in 1898-1899.  The Kassi Expedition took place in the area east of Freetown and south of Port Loko

            On the 14^th of October 1899 Corporal Northeast passed a course in Submarine Mining Signalling and qualified as an “Ordinary” Signaller.  On the 5^th of February he was awarded the East and West Africa Medal with clasp [SIERRA LEONE 1898-99] for his service in the Kassi Expedition and on the 1^st of March he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant.

Ceylon (1901-1903)

            Northeast was married in 1900 and his first child was born in 1901.  He left a pregnant wife behind at Tynemouth on the 9^th of November 1901 when he was posted, according to his service papers, to “Trincomali.”  His wife gave birth to their second child at Tynemouth eight months after Northeast departed England (see Section 9 below for family details).  This posting perhaps was fortunate for him as the war against the Boers in South Africa was raging at this time, but Northeast would not see service there.

            We have a dilemma regarding the location of his actual posting according to his service papers.  There is a Trincomali in British Columbia, Canada.  Trincomali Channel was a channel or strait in the Gulf Islands of British Columbia, located between Saltspring Island and Galiano Island.  The channel is a location where a section of a Coast Battalion and Submarine Miners could well have been used for the defence of the shore of Canada.  However, there also was a “Trincomali,” sometimes spelled “Trincomalee,” located on Ceylon and this Trincomali contained a Royal Navy Dockyard.  The Trincomalee on Ceylon also was home to a number of Royal Engineers Fortress Companies.  In all probability Sergeant Northeast was posted to Ceylon and the word “Trincomali” was simply misspelled in his papers.

Home Service (1903-1908)

            Northeast arrived home from this posting abroad on the 1^st of February 1903 and he was posted to the Tyne Section, 16^th Company of the Coast Battalion.  This unit was headquartered at Clifford’s Fort in North Shields, Northumberland.

Figure 5.  Clifford’s Fort, North Shields, Northumberland.

            On the 1^st of April 1904 Sergeant Northeast was granted Service Pay, Class 1 in accordance with Army Order Number 193 of December 1903.  Service pay, in addition to their regular pay, was granted to men in the Royal Engineers who demonstrated proficiency in their military trades.  Service pay was awarded in seven classes, with Class 1 being the highest.  He was awarded the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (EVIIR) with gratuity on the 15^th of July 1905.

            William John Northeast was promoted to the rank of Company Sergeant Major in the 16^th Company, Coast Battalion on the 7^th of January 1907.  He was discharged at North Shields on the 7^th of September 1908 on the termination of his second period of engagement.

            His commander, Lieutenant H.E. Burton, R.E. rated his conduct and character indicating that Northeast was an “Exemplary Warrant Officer in whole service of twenty one years.”  For his special qualifications for employment in civil life Burton wrote that he was “A Very Superior Engine Driver and a good Plumber.  A trustworthy and reliable N.C.O.”  Lieutenant Burton added that Northeast had not received any Good Conduct Badges due to his N.C.O. status.[17]  Burton did indicate that Northeast had received the medal for the “Kassi Expedition, 1898-9’ and the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.  Company Sergeant Major Northeast completed his military service with a Second Class Certificate of Education.  Northeast’s signature on his discharge documents was witnessed by one Sergeant E.H. Bolton, R.E.[18] and was confirmed at Newcastle-on-Tyne by the Commander Royal Engineers at Newcastle.

            Company Sergeant Major Northeast was admitted to the Royal Hospital Chelsea on the 10^th of September 1908 for a physical examination in conjunction with his discharge.  He was discharged from hospital on the 17^th of September 1908.  His records do not indicate any ailment or disability as a result of his military service.  

PART 2: SUMMARY

6.  PROMOTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS

a.  Promotions:  CSM Northeast received the following promotions during his time in service:

 b.      Appointments:  CSM Northeast received the following appointments during his time in service:  

7. MILITARY TRAINING, EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS

a.  Military Training: CSM Northeast received the following military training during his time in service:

 b.      Education and Qualifications:  CSM Northeast earned the following qualifications during his time in service.

 8.  MEDALS, AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

             CSM Northeast received the following medals, awards and decorations during his time in service:[20]

   Figure 6.  The Obverse of an East and West Africa Medal with Clasp [SIERRA LEONE 1898-99].  This medal is not in the author’s collection.
Figure 7.  The Obverse and Reverse of CSM Northeast’s Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in the Author’s Collection.

9.  MARRIAGE AND PERSONAL INFORMATION

              William John Northeast married Mary Ann Hedley at Tynemouth, Northumberland on 15^th of August 1900.  He was a Sergeant at the time of his marriage so his marriage was “with leave” and he was brought on the married roll on this date.[22]  Mary Ann Northeast gave birth to their first child, William John Northeast,[23] at Tynemouth on the 13^th of June 1901.  Young William obviously was named after his father and he was baptized at Tynemouth on the 15^th of September 1901.  Their second child, Sarah Frances Northeast also was born at Tynemouth on the 8^th of July 1902 and she was baptized there on the 30^th of July.  Since Sergeant Northeast was at Ceylon from the 9^th of November 1901 until the 1^st of February 1903, it is obvious that his wife did not accompany him to his Ceylon.

            William and Mary Ann Northeast had one more child, Edwin Thomas Northeast, born at North Shields in 1909.  He was named after CSM Northeast’s brother.

10.  RELEASE FROM SERVICE

             Company Sergeant Major William John Northeast was discharged at North Shields on the termination of his second period of engagement on the 7^th of September 1908.  His total service was reckoned as shown in the tables below:

(*) Author’s Note: With all the research that I have done regarding the service of British soldiers, this is the first Military History Sheet I have ever seen where passage between postings has ever been listed separately.  Foreign service normally was recorded as of the date the soldier left the U.K. and home service was started when he arrived back in the U.K.; therefore, travel time to stations abroad was normally included in the foreign service periods.

 11.  POST SERVICE LIFE

            After leaving the Army Northeast took a position as a Range Warden at a rifle range near Whitley Bay in Northumberland. Rifle ranges became a common feature of the nineteenth century landscape as the numerous units of the Territorial Army required facilities to develop and hone the marksmanship which became a trademark of the British infantry. Many were constructed on common or marginal land on the edge of built-up areas. Rifle ranges were often constructed with two sets of targets in parallel perhaps for the purpose of running inter-company shooting competitions. Unit rivalry was believed to be one of the best means of spurring on the troops to achieve high performance.  It was at such a range that Northeast was employed.  How long he worked there is unknown.  No further information could be found about CSM Northeast after his discharge.

            Edwin Thomas Northeast, the brother of CSM Northeast, died in Portsmouth in March of 1942.  There is some evidence to indicate that CSM Northeast’s oldest son, William, died in 1964.  The probate register for that year indicates that a William John Northeast of 17 Bondfield Road, Teesville, Middlesbrough died on the 9^th of October 1964 at Hemlington Hospital in Yorkshire.  He was 63 years old.  His will was probated in London on the 14^th of December leaving his effects of £541 to one Sarah Frances Brown, a widow.  This surely must be his sister, Sarah Frances Northeast, who had married a man named Brown.

            CSM Northeast’s youngest son, Edwin, may only have lived to age 6 years, dying in 1915 at Middlesbrough, North Riding of Yorkshire.  This information is not certain. 

12.  EPILOGUE

            The military career of William John Northeast is an unusual one.  Immediately following his recruit training it appears that he was posted to the Coastal Battalion, Royal Engineers and that he remained with this unit for his entire career, except for a couple of interludes when he served in other units.  All of his home service was with the Coastal Battalion; that is, a period of almost 12 years.  His service abroad in Singapore and Ceylon also was associated with coastal defense work, either with a detachment of the Coast Battalion or with Royal Engineers fortress companies and submarine mining units.  But the most remarkable posting was his service in Sierra Leone, West Africa during the Kassi Expedition, for which he received his one and only campaign medal.

            The East and West Africa Medal, 1899 was awarded to only 107 men of the Royal Engineers.  The following is a breakdown of the medals issued.

• 26 men of the West India Fortress Company, Royal Engineers received the medal with the clasp [SIERRA LEONE 1898-99].  One man of this company received the medal without the Sierra Leone clasp.
• 34 men of the regular Royal Engineers establishment received the medal with no clasp or with a clasp(s) other than that for Sierra Leone.
• 13 men of the Telegraph Battalion, Royal Engineers received the medal with the clasp [1897-98].
• 33 men of the regular Royal Engineers establishment (5 officers and 28 Non-Commissioned Officers and Other Ranks) received the medal with the clasp [SIERRA LEONE 1898-99].

            On the medal roll, no unit is specified for this last group of officers and men.  The roll simply lists them as “Royal Engineers.”  This leads one to believe that they were in an ad hoc unit, as previously mentioned, composed of men drawn from various units and for various duties.  The officers who appear on the roll include the following men, with their ranks as shown on the roll:

Captain Bertie Harold Oliver Armstrong, R.E.

Lieutenant Charles Howard Foulkes, R.E.

Captain John Pierce Mackesy, R.E.

Lieutenant Robert Lyle McClintock, R.E.

Lieutenant Alfred Herbert Tyler, R.E.

            Foulkes, Mackesy and Tyler are mentioned in the historical narrative of the campaign.  Armstrong and McClintock are not mentioned in the narrative, but they did receive the medal and clasp for the campaign. 

            Another interesting aspect of the medal roll is the ranks of some of the senior Non-Commissioned officers who appear on it and who were awarded the clasp for service in Sierra Leone.  The following are of particular interest:

            25552 Company Sergeant Major (Foreman of Works) H.A. Ashbrook, R.E.

            20833 Company Sergeant Major (Foreman of Works) H. Broughton, R.E.

            16794 Company Sergeant Major (Foreman of Works) T.E. Hargreave, R.E.

            25891 Company Sergeant Major (Foreman of Works) H. Lawford, R.E.

            20574 Company Sergeant Major (Foreman of Works) R.D. Taylor, R.E.

            22000 Staff Sergeant (Foreman of Works) W. Minion, R.E.

            26154 Sergeant (Engineer Clerk) J.H. Haan, R.E.

            There are two points of interest regarding this list of senior NCOs.  The first is the presence of five Company Sergeant Majors in a unit consisting of only 33 officers and men.  The second point of interest is the ranks of all of these men, Foreman of Works and Engineer Clerk.  At the time of the Kassi Expedition these ranks were included in the Regimental List of the Royal Engineers along with all other ranks.  In the early part of the 20^th century men holding these ranks were broken out of the Regimental List and were placed on the list of the Establishment for Engineer Services.  This establishment dealt with the construction of fortifications, but by and large its greatest responsibility was in the area of the construction and maintenance of barracks.  This work included not only the buildings themselves, but also the provision and maintenance of fixed machinery and the construction and maintenance of magazines and buildings for the storage of explosives, with special attention to precautions against fire and protection against lightning.  It is difficult to understand how senior non-commissioned officers whose main function was to construct and operate things in camp areas were selected to serve in a jungle environment for the purpose of destroying villages and stockades.  Furthermore, it also is difficult to understand how the men were chosen for this detachment that operated in the Kassi Expedition.  Northeast, who was a Corporal at the time, had been serving in detachments of the Coast Battalion.  How and why was he chosen as one of the men to go to Sierra Leone in 1897?  This is a subject in need of more research and is beyond the scope of this narrative of Northeast’s service.  It is presented here only as a curiosity and the author may, at some later date, attempt to answer this question and post it as an Addendum to this work.

            In contrast to the formation of this ad hoc detachment of Royal Engineers, the use of men of the West India Fortress Company for the Kassi Expedition is somewhat easier to understand.  Coming from the West Indies these men could be more easily and quickly acclimated to the jungles of West Africa.  But why use a Fortress Company for this work and not a Field Company?  That was probably an expedient on the part of the War Office based on the resources available at the time. 

            The company underwent a change of designation in 1899.  Under Army Order 201 of that year the Sierra Leone (Fortress) Company, Royal Engineers came into being.  The following is taken from page 1398 of Army List of November 1899:

            Her Majesty the Queen has been graciously pleased to approve of the Sierra Leone Section of the West India (Fortress) Company, Royal Engineers, being in future styled the “Sierra Leone (Fortress) Company, Royal Engineers.”

            Her Majesty has been further pleased to direct that the natives of the West Indies composing that company shall gradually be replaced by natives of West Africa.” 

APPENDIX 1.

OFFICERS OF THE COAST BATTALION, ROYAL ENGINEERS, from 1885-1897
(Re: CONNOLLY, T.W.J.  Roll of Officers of the Corps of Royal Engineers from 1660 to 1898)
[Listed in Order of Precedence]  

NOTES:

1.      The officers of the Coast Battalion appear on a different list that the officers of the regular Royal Engineers Establishment.  Officers of the Coast Battalion would sign their names with CB between their rank and R.E.  For example: James Organ, Lt, CB, R.E.

2.      The first notation on Northeast’s service papers showing him as a member of the Coast Battalion was dated December 1890 and was made by Lieutenant James Organ.  Northeast continued to serve in Lieutenant Organ’s section until 1897 while he was at Weymouth when he was transferred to the section of Lieutenant James Ruse prior to going to Sierra Leone.

3.      In 1907 Northeast was assigned to the section of Lieutenant H.E. Burton in North Shields.  Burton joined the Coast Battalion after 1898, so his name does not appear in Connolly’s book.

4.      On Northeast’s Proceedings on Discharge Lieutenant Burton stamped his rank next to his signature as  Lieut. C. Bn. R.E. to indicate Coast Battalion.

REFERENCES

Army List

November 1899.

Books

1. BAKER BROWN, W.  History of Submarine Mining in the British Army.  D. Van Nostrand Company, New York, 1910.

2. BALL, R.W.D.  Collector’s Guide to British Army Campaign Medals, Antique Trader Books, Dubuque, Iowa, 1996, p. 59.

3. CONNOLLY, T.W.J.  Roll of Officers of the Corps of Royal Engineers from 1660 to 1898.  W. & J. Mackay & Co., Limited, Chatham, Kent, 1898.

4. Royal Engineers Corps History, Volume 3, pp. 17, 18,27-29, 35, 37 and 39.

5. Royal Engineers Corps History, Volume 4, pp. 6, 9 and 48.

6. WALLIS, C.B.  The Advance of Our West African Empire.  T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1903.

Census

1. 1871 Census of England
2. 1881 Census of England
3. 1911 Census of England

Family Trees  

Rice (Wye) Family Tree: https://www.ancestry.com/search/categories/42/?name=William+John_Northeast&birth=1866&gender=m&priority=united-kingdom  

Internet Web Sites  

1. Empire in Your Back Yard.

www.britishempire.co.uk/article/plymouth/johnchard.htm  

2. Lieutenant John Rouse Merriott Chard.

www.Rorkesdriftvc.com  

Medal Rolls  

1. Royal Engineers Medal Roll Book, East and West Africa Medal.
   
2. Medal Roll, WO92/48.

Official Documents  

1.      1.    War Office, Great Britain, 1899.  Royal Warrant for the Pay, Appointment, Promotion, and Non-effective Pay of the Army, 1899.

2. ANONYMOUS.  The Sierra Leone Protectorate Expedition, 1898-1899.  Journal of the Royal United Service Institution, Volume XLIII, January to June 1899, pp. 534-542.

Registers  

1.   Births Registered in January, February and March 1867. 
2.   Marriages Registered in July, August and September 1900. 
3.  Royal Hospital Chelsea Pensioner Admissions and Discharges, 1715-1925.  

4.   England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966, 1973-1995.     

 Reports

 REPORT, 30 August, 1898, LT.-COL. MARSHALL, Commanding, Karene Expeditionary Force—Operations in Timini Country.  GARRISON OFFICE, 30 August 1898, SIERRA LEONE.

 Soldiers Service Papers

 Service Papers: WO97/5604

a.       Short Service Attestation (Army Form B.265).

b.      Description on Enlistment.

c.       Statement of Service.

d.      Military History Sheet.

e.       Proceedings on Discharge (Army Form B.268).

ENDNOTES