The Greenland Family: From Box to Falklands ….. via South Africa
Text and photos Ken Greenland June 2018
Text and photos Ken Greenland June 2018
Members of the Ladysmith garrison lining the streets to welcome some of the relieving cavalry, possibly
David's regiment, the 1st (Royal) Dragoon Guards (courtesy Tabitha Jackson, The Boer War, Macmillan,1999)
Quite by accident, I stumbled across your website, and out of idle curiosity began to browse its contents. Leaping out at me immediately came surnames that were familiar to me from my research into my ancestry, followed by a fabulous picture of a group taken in front of the Lamb Inn in 1908, and then, best of all, came Karen Fretwell's article about the Moody Family. My great grandfather was the licensee of the Lamb Inn between 1859 and 1871 and his wife, my great grandmother, was a Moody. I was surprised to find myself strangely moved reading all of this, and I felt I had to tell you of my family's connection with Box.
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My Introduction to Family History
My grandfather, Frederick Arthur Greenland, was born at the Lamb Inn in 1868. When he died in 1963, I was given his medals and his journal from the siege of Ladysmith, which took place between November 1899 and March 1900 during the Boer War. The journal was mostly written in pencil and had become seriously smudged as a result of flood damage. Whilst I had always treasured these items, it wasn't until after I retired from professional life that I was able to transcribe the diary. I was struck by how, on the one hand, my grandfather referred very formally to his colleagues and friends by their rank and surname, and on the other, by oddly intimate references to someone called only David. It seemed to me that David had to be a relative, but neither my father nor any of his brothers or his sister had any idea who David might be. With the help of an amateur genealogist, I set out to discover the mysterious David's identity, and in the process learned that my grandfather was number 11 of 12 children to survive childhood. David was number 12. They and their brother Albert, number 10, all joined cavalry regiments and served in India, South Africa and Ireland. With my immediate curiosity satisfied, I turned my attention to other interests. That was over 10 years ago. However, I am now fully retired, and with more time to devote to it and much easier internet access, my interest in family history has returned with a vengeance. |
My grandfather Frederick Arthur Greenland
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Thomas Francis Greenland 1828-1883
My great grandfather was Thomas Francis Greenland, born in Frome in 1828. In 1850 he married Mary Ann, daughter of Elijah Moody and Mary Ann (Williams?). I believe that Elijah was a brother of Elisha, who was the father of James Moody, the quarry graffiti artist and the subject of Karen Fretwell's article. The father of Elijah and Elisha, George Moody, is therefore an ancestor that I share with Karen. In the 1851 census, Thomas and Mary are recorded as living in Box village, possibly at the home of Mary's parents. Interestingly, their first child, Frank James, who was born that year, is recorded as being born and baptised in Frome where Thomas' parents, James Greenland and Lucy Holloway, had a house on the High Street. Thomas, like his father, was a stone mason and in 1851 was a journeyman mason, almost certainly working away from home. Mary was a laundress.
In 1859, Thomas became the licensee of the Lamb Inn, and it was here that all of his remaining children, apart from David, were born. At this time, the inn would have been relatively new, having been built to provide a service to travellers on the new Devizes Road, and Thomas was only its second licensee. He remained at the inn until 1871, at which time he moved to Devizes to resume his trade as a mason. During his tenure of the inn, Thomas and Mary had 11 children, of whom one died in infancy. My grandfather was the last to be born there. In 1872, the Lamb was purchased by Richard Shewring and until 1903 it was owned by Francis John Shewring.
By the time of the 1881 census, Thomas and Mary had moved to St Pancras in London, where he continued to work as a mason. Most of their children went with them, though only the youngest 3 boys, the ones who joined the army, continued to live at home. However, one of the children, and I believe he was the only one to do so, remained in Box.
Harry William Greenland 1857-1912
Harry William was child number 4 and was born at the Lamb Inn in 1857. In 1880 he married Ann Zebudah Hunt, born 1855. The marriage took place in Bath, but they set up home in Box. In 1891 they were living at 2 Tunnel End, Box Hill, and they remained there until Harry's death in 1912. For his entire working life, Harry appears to have been a soap boiler at Vezey's Candle Factory.
So far as I can tell, Harry and Ann had 6 children, all born in Box. They appear to have been quite mobile, travelling between Box and South Wales in search of work in the mines. One of them, for example, was Arthur William. He was born in 1883 and worked initially as a quarryman, but in 1901 as a very young man, he married Sarah Ann Wilkins. Their first two children were born in Box, but by 1906 they had moved to South Wales where he worked as a colliery repair man, and where at least the next four of their children were born. One of the children was Annie Elizabeth. Born in Box 1903, she grew up in South Wales and went on to marry John (Jack) Shewring in 1925 in Pontypridd, and whilst I haven't yet started to research Jack Shewring, I would be prepared to bet that he too had roots in Box. Another of Arthur and Sarah's children was Beatrice Maud, born in 1906 at Penygraig. She returned to Box as a child, and in 1911 was living at 4 Mill Lane with her maternal grandmother Mary Ann, formerly Wilkins, and her second husband Henry Phelps.
Another of Harry and Ann's children was Albert Henry. He married Frances Elizabeth Phelps in Box in 1909. One of their children, Harry Albert Thomas was born in 1912 in Pontypridd, and went on to become 5669482 Colour Sergeant Greenland of the Somerset Light Infantry, who was killed in Italy in 1944 and is buried in the Forli War Cemetery. Despite a huge difference in our ages, I am of the same generation as Colour Sergeant Harry, since we share great grandparents Thomas Francis Greenland and Mary Ann Moody.
Yet another of Harry and Ann's children, Francis William, born 1902, was a market gardener in Box and in 1939 was still living with his parents at 3 Berry Cottages next door to the Tunnel Inn house, along with his brother Cyril who was, I believe, a footballer of some renown and ran a car repair business in a garage in Mill Lane opposite the WOMAD sheds. I believe Cyril was the last Greenland living in Box, dying as recently as 1997.
Frederick Arthur Greenland 1868-1963
In the 1881 census, my grandfather is recorded as a 13 year old errand boy, living at St Pancras. A couple of years later, his hands and face were badly burned in a fireworks accident when he and some other boys set fire to half a pound of gunpowder.[1] They never told me that story, and I must confess that although my grandfather always had a craggy sort of a face, I was never aware of any burn scars. By 1891, he had served an apprenticeship as a silver chaser and was working at this trade, embossing ornate designs onto silver cups, salvers and so on. By 1893, however, he had enlisted in the 5th Dragoon Guards, joining his older brother Albert and his younger brother David, who were both already serving in the 1st (Royal) Dragoon Guards. I don't know what happened to Albert. At one point I understood that he had been killed in 1893 while serving with his regiment in Dundalk, but I subsequently found a much later registration of the death of an Albert Edward Greenland in 1955, and I haven't yet sorted out the true facts. I do know that both my grandfather and David served in the Boer War, with grandfather being besieged at Ladysmith, and David being part of the relief column that eventually broke the siege. After the war, David returned to India, but was invalided home in 1912 and discharged from the Army, being no longer fit for military duty. Sadly, he died the following year.
My great grandfather was Thomas Francis Greenland, born in Frome in 1828. In 1850 he married Mary Ann, daughter of Elijah Moody and Mary Ann (Williams?). I believe that Elijah was a brother of Elisha, who was the father of James Moody, the quarry graffiti artist and the subject of Karen Fretwell's article. The father of Elijah and Elisha, George Moody, is therefore an ancestor that I share with Karen. In the 1851 census, Thomas and Mary are recorded as living in Box village, possibly at the home of Mary's parents. Interestingly, their first child, Frank James, who was born that year, is recorded as being born and baptised in Frome where Thomas' parents, James Greenland and Lucy Holloway, had a house on the High Street. Thomas, like his father, was a stone mason and in 1851 was a journeyman mason, almost certainly working away from home. Mary was a laundress.
In 1859, Thomas became the licensee of the Lamb Inn, and it was here that all of his remaining children, apart from David, were born. At this time, the inn would have been relatively new, having been built to provide a service to travellers on the new Devizes Road, and Thomas was only its second licensee. He remained at the inn until 1871, at which time he moved to Devizes to resume his trade as a mason. During his tenure of the inn, Thomas and Mary had 11 children, of whom one died in infancy. My grandfather was the last to be born there. In 1872, the Lamb was purchased by Richard Shewring and until 1903 it was owned by Francis John Shewring.
By the time of the 1881 census, Thomas and Mary had moved to St Pancras in London, where he continued to work as a mason. Most of their children went with them, though only the youngest 3 boys, the ones who joined the army, continued to live at home. However, one of the children, and I believe he was the only one to do so, remained in Box.
Harry William Greenland 1857-1912
Harry William was child number 4 and was born at the Lamb Inn in 1857. In 1880 he married Ann Zebudah Hunt, born 1855. The marriage took place in Bath, but they set up home in Box. In 1891 they were living at 2 Tunnel End, Box Hill, and they remained there until Harry's death in 1912. For his entire working life, Harry appears to have been a soap boiler at Vezey's Candle Factory.
So far as I can tell, Harry and Ann had 6 children, all born in Box. They appear to have been quite mobile, travelling between Box and South Wales in search of work in the mines. One of them, for example, was Arthur William. He was born in 1883 and worked initially as a quarryman, but in 1901 as a very young man, he married Sarah Ann Wilkins. Their first two children were born in Box, but by 1906 they had moved to South Wales where he worked as a colliery repair man, and where at least the next four of their children were born. One of the children was Annie Elizabeth. Born in Box 1903, she grew up in South Wales and went on to marry John (Jack) Shewring in 1925 in Pontypridd, and whilst I haven't yet started to research Jack Shewring, I would be prepared to bet that he too had roots in Box. Another of Arthur and Sarah's children was Beatrice Maud, born in 1906 at Penygraig. She returned to Box as a child, and in 1911 was living at 4 Mill Lane with her maternal grandmother Mary Ann, formerly Wilkins, and her second husband Henry Phelps.
Another of Harry and Ann's children was Albert Henry. He married Frances Elizabeth Phelps in Box in 1909. One of their children, Harry Albert Thomas was born in 1912 in Pontypridd, and went on to become 5669482 Colour Sergeant Greenland of the Somerset Light Infantry, who was killed in Italy in 1944 and is buried in the Forli War Cemetery. Despite a huge difference in our ages, I am of the same generation as Colour Sergeant Harry, since we share great grandparents Thomas Francis Greenland and Mary Ann Moody.
Yet another of Harry and Ann's children, Francis William, born 1902, was a market gardener in Box and in 1939 was still living with his parents at 3 Berry Cottages next door to the Tunnel Inn house, along with his brother Cyril who was, I believe, a footballer of some renown and ran a car repair business in a garage in Mill Lane opposite the WOMAD sheds. I believe Cyril was the last Greenland living in Box, dying as recently as 1997.
Frederick Arthur Greenland 1868-1963
In the 1881 census, my grandfather is recorded as a 13 year old errand boy, living at St Pancras. A couple of years later, his hands and face were badly burned in a fireworks accident when he and some other boys set fire to half a pound of gunpowder.[1] They never told me that story, and I must confess that although my grandfather always had a craggy sort of a face, I was never aware of any burn scars. By 1891, he had served an apprenticeship as a silver chaser and was working at this trade, embossing ornate designs onto silver cups, salvers and so on. By 1893, however, he had enlisted in the 5th Dragoon Guards, joining his older brother Albert and his younger brother David, who were both already serving in the 1st (Royal) Dragoon Guards. I don't know what happened to Albert. At one point I understood that he had been killed in 1893 while serving with his regiment in Dundalk, but I subsequently found a much later registration of the death of an Albert Edward Greenland in 1955, and I haven't yet sorted out the true facts. I do know that both my grandfather and David served in the Boer War, with grandfather being besieged at Ladysmith, and David being part of the relief column that eventually broke the siege. After the war, David returned to India, but was invalided home in 1912 and discharged from the Army, being no longer fit for military duty. Sadly, he died the following year.
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The pictures above are taken from a book called The Green Horse in Ladysmith, edited by Lt Col St John Gore and published in 1901 for private circulation. The Green Horse was the nickname of the 5th Dragoon Guards, derived from the colour of their uniform trousers. Lt Col St John Gore was promoted to Lt Col during the siege and appointed Commanding Officer replacing
Lt Col R Baden-Powell, who was famously besieged at Mafeking, where he conceived of the formation of the Boy Scouts.
The first two photographs show members of the regiment while still fully operational as cavalry. The officer in the foreground of the first picture is Major Heneage, who was on the sick list from January until the end of the siege, and so the photograph was obviously taken in November or December 1899. The men are still in good order and wearing Field Service Marching Order (FSMO) which included sword, lance and carbine. The last picture shows some of the men in the infantry role towards the end of the siege. They are noticeably less well clothed and equipped.
Lt Col R Baden-Powell, who was famously besieged at Mafeking, where he conceived of the formation of the Boy Scouts.
The first two photographs show members of the regiment while still fully operational as cavalry. The officer in the foreground of the first picture is Major Heneage, who was on the sick list from January until the end of the siege, and so the photograph was obviously taken in November or December 1899. The men are still in good order and wearing Field Service Marching Order (FSMO) which included sword, lance and carbine. The last picture shows some of the men in the infantry role towards the end of the siege. They are noticeably less well clothed and equipped.
The Siege of Ladysmith
Three important townships, namely Kimberley, Ladysmith and Mafeking, were besieged during the Boer War, with the first two having strategic as well as tactical importance. In the case of Kimberley, the value was to do with wealth and financial resources. In the case of Ladysmith, the value was to do with holding and defending the Indian Ocean port of Durban. All of the townships were held initially by troops already in South Africa whose limited numbers were then boosted as reinforcements arrived first of all from India, and subsequently from the United Kingdom and from other parts of the Empire. My grandfather's regiment, the
5th Dragoon Guards, moved from Sialkot in modern day Pakistan on 20 September 1899. His squadron was delayed when a case of anthrax was discovered and they were ordered into quarantine at Deolali. On reaching Durban, however, the squadron entrained and were delivered to Ladysmith on 23 October, pretty much the last troops to arrive before the Boers completed their encirclement.
My grandfather's diary has an entry for every day of the siege, much of what he wrote being mundane and quite repetitive in terms of daily routines. However, below are extracts from his field notebook covering the final days of the siege and the first few days after the relief. They give an idea of the conditions endured and the routine nature of life under siege. They includethe point at which the regiment had to slaughter their horses for food, a story that always brought tears to my grandfather's eyes. Added to all the other duties of a cavalry NCO, he was a roughrider, a particularly good horseman whose task was to break-in and school new horses for cavalry work, and I know he cared deeply for them in a way that few of his troopers did.
Three important townships, namely Kimberley, Ladysmith and Mafeking, were besieged during the Boer War, with the first two having strategic as well as tactical importance. In the case of Kimberley, the value was to do with wealth and financial resources. In the case of Ladysmith, the value was to do with holding and defending the Indian Ocean port of Durban. All of the townships were held initially by troops already in South Africa whose limited numbers were then boosted as reinforcements arrived first of all from India, and subsequently from the United Kingdom and from other parts of the Empire. My grandfather's regiment, the
5th Dragoon Guards, moved from Sialkot in modern day Pakistan on 20 September 1899. His squadron was delayed when a case of anthrax was discovered and they were ordered into quarantine at Deolali. On reaching Durban, however, the squadron entrained and were delivered to Ladysmith on 23 October, pretty much the last troops to arrive before the Boers completed their encirclement.
My grandfather's diary has an entry for every day of the siege, much of what he wrote being mundane and quite repetitive in terms of daily routines. However, below are extracts from his field notebook covering the final days of the siege and the first few days after the relief. They give an idea of the conditions endured and the routine nature of life under siege. They includethe point at which the regiment had to slaughter their horses for food, a story that always brought tears to my grandfather's eyes. Added to all the other duties of a cavalry NCO, he was a roughrider, a particularly good horseman whose task was to break-in and school new horses for cavalry work, and I know he cared deeply for them in a way that few of his troopers did.
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At the end of these extracts, the 5th Dragoon Guards were in Colenso, a cavalry regiment without horses, and while many of the men were able to relax and recover from the privations of the siege, my grandfather and all of the regiment's other roughriders were receiving the remounts, many of which were from New South Wales (known as Walers), that had been sent by rail from Durban, and working flat out to turn them into troop horses. I remember him telling me that he was thin, utterly exhausted, and bitterly resentful of the men who were resting and enjoying some sport, but that he had the last laugh when many of them went down with enteric fever, the result of swimming in the TugelaRiver, whose waters were heavily contaminated with sewage from the various camps along the banks.
Part of the psychological pressure imposed by the siege was the constant rumour of imminent relief, followed right up until the very end by disappointment after disappointment. This is repeatedly reflected in the journal: No sign of relief, but lots of yarns,
No news of the column, Still hear the shells falling, Good news from the columns, they will not be long now (in fact they were still over two weeks away), Firing continues all day, Heavy artillery fire all morning. Besides recording the deaths of his colleagues and his own physical deterioration, my grandfather repeatedly refers to his younger brother David, who was, he knew, fighting to relieve the township. One very brief entry in particular, on the birthday of my grandmother, always moves me: I think, very much, of one at home. His use of commas speaks volumes I think.
In an auction on 21 February 1900 held by Joe Dyson, auctioneer of Ladysmith, prices for consumable goods reached the following levels:
Part of the psychological pressure imposed by the siege was the constant rumour of imminent relief, followed right up until the very end by disappointment after disappointment. This is repeatedly reflected in the journal: No sign of relief, but lots of yarns,
No news of the column, Still hear the shells falling, Good news from the columns, they will not be long now (in fact they were still over two weeks away), Firing continues all day, Heavy artillery fire all morning. Besides recording the deaths of his colleagues and his own physical deterioration, my grandfather repeatedly refers to his younger brother David, who was, he knew, fighting to relieve the township. One very brief entry in particular, on the birthday of my grandmother, always moves me: I think, very much, of one at home. His use of commas speaks volumes I think.
In an auction on 21 February 1900 held by Joe Dyson, auctioneer of Ladysmith, prices for consumable goods reached the following levels:
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Item
1lb coffee Eggs per dozen Plate of potatoes 1lb of jam 1 dozen matches 50 cigars ¼ tin Capstan Navy Cut (tobacco) |
Price in 1900
17s. 6d £2. 8s. 0d 19s. 0d £1.11s. 0d 13s. 6d £9. 5s. 0d £3. 0s. 0d |
Modern Equivalent
£105 £295 £117 £191 £ 83 £1,138 £370 |
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End of the Siege
The picture right shows the Boer General Cronje after his surrender to Lord Roberts. It was Cronje who had besieged Ladysmith. His force was totally destroyed by the British, but only after inflicting repeated and very significant delay upon the relief columns. Lord Roberts was affectionately known to his troops as Bobs, and it was his legendary concern for his men's well-being that gave rise to the expression Bob's your uncle. (Photo right courtesy W Baring Pemberton, Battles of the Boer War, 1964, BT Batsford Ltd and Pan Books Ltd, 1969) |
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Above: Lt Col St John Gore's flag in Green Horse Valley during the siege of Ladysmith.
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After the Siege
At the end of the war, my grandfather's regiment remained in South Africa to consolidate the victory, but he was allowed some home leave and in 1903 he married my grandmother, Emma Mary Spraggs, in London. They returned to South Africa and moved into married quarters in Bloemfontein, where their first two children were born. In due course the regiment was posted to Dublin, where the third of their children was born.
Eventually, after 20 years service, he retired from the Army in 1912. I don't know where he took his discharge, but I would love for it to have been at the cavalry barracks at Fulford, just outside York. I can imagine him turning smartly to the left at the barrack gate, marching down the road about 12 miles to Selby, putting down his kit and sayingThis'll do. He settled into civilian life, working for the British Oil & Cake Mills producing livestock feeds, and became a well known local figure. He was always known in Selby as The Sarn't Major and if you mentioned his name at the Selby toll bridge, you could always get across without paying !
He died at Selby in 1963.
At the end of the war, my grandfather's regiment remained in South Africa to consolidate the victory, but he was allowed some home leave and in 1903 he married my grandmother, Emma Mary Spraggs, in London. They returned to South Africa and moved into married quarters in Bloemfontein, where their first two children were born. In due course the regiment was posted to Dublin, where the third of their children was born.
Eventually, after 20 years service, he retired from the Army in 1912. I don't know where he took his discharge, but I would love for it to have been at the cavalry barracks at Fulford, just outside York. I can imagine him turning smartly to the left at the barrack gate, marching down the road about 12 miles to Selby, putting down his kit and sayingThis'll do. He settled into civilian life, working for the British Oil & Cake Mills producing livestock feeds, and became a well known local figure. He was always known in Selby as The Sarn't Major and if you mentioned his name at the Selby toll bridge, you could always get across without paying !
He died at Selby in 1963.
My Visit to Box, 2018
I followed in my grandfather's footsteps, and served in the Army for almost 20 years. When Her Majesty sent me to the Falkland Islands in 1983, I could not have imagined that I would make my home there, but that is exactly what happened. I was the territory's Chief Constable for 16 years before buying 50 acres of land at Darwin, where my wife, Bonnie, and I turned our house into a tourist lodge and ran a smallholding for 10 years before finally retiring. The demands of this lifestyle, with guests, livestock and property to look after, have meant that our recent holiday in the West Country was our first taken together in 18 years. Our main purpose was to carry out family history research, mostly in Somerset, but especially in Box. We were wonderfully and very generously entertained by village residents and I would especially like to express my gratitude to Katy Elliott, the present owner of the building that used to be the Lamb Inn. She made us so welcome to see the house where my grandfather was born and made me feel that I had come home in Box.
I followed in my grandfather's footsteps, and served in the Army for almost 20 years. When Her Majesty sent me to the Falkland Islands in 1983, I could not have imagined that I would make my home there, but that is exactly what happened. I was the territory's Chief Constable for 16 years before buying 50 acres of land at Darwin, where my wife, Bonnie, and I turned our house into a tourist lodge and ran a smallholding for 10 years before finally retiring. The demands of this lifestyle, with guests, livestock and property to look after, have meant that our recent holiday in the West Country was our first taken together in 18 years. Our main purpose was to carry out family history research, mostly in Somerset, but especially in Box. We were wonderfully and very generously entertained by village residents and I would especially like to express my gratitude to Katy Elliott, the present owner of the building that used to be the Lamb Inn. She made us so welcome to see the house where my grandfather was born and made me feel that I had come home in Box.
Reference
[1] The Islington Gazette, 7 November 1883
[1] The Islington Gazette, 7 November 1883