Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Four: Private C. B. Hearns, 5th South African Horse, late Natal Mounted Rifles and 4th Infantry

Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 7 clasps, Cape Colony, Elandslaagte, Defence of Ladysmith, Orange Free State, Transvaal, Laing’s Nek, South Africa 1901 (296 Tpr., Natal M.R.); 1914-15 Star (Pte., 4th Infantry); British War and Bilingual Victory Medals (Pte., 5th S.A.H.) very fine (4) £350-400

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Medals relating to the Boer War formed by two brothers.

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Charles Bertram Hearns was born in King Williamstown in 1875. During the Boer War he served in the Natal Mounted Rifles, Volunteer Composite Regiment and the Commander-in-Chief’s Bodyguard, for which he was awarded the Queen’s medal with seven clasps including those for Elandslaagte and the Defence of Ladysmith.

With the onset of the Great War he attested as Private 8004 in the 4th Infantry (’C’ Company, 1st Eastern Rifles) on 10 October 1914. He embarked on S.S. Colonial for Central Force on 2 March 1915 and was discharged on 9 July 1915. He re-attested as Rifleman 5367 in the South African Mounted Rifles (Training Depot, Tempe) on 30 June 1915 but was discharged on 9 July 1915. Hearns then re-attested as Private 3923 in the 7th South African Horse. He disembarked at Kilidini on 8 May 1916, transferred to the 5th South African Horse on 22 October 1916 and thence to the South African Engineering Corps at Morogoro on 13 November 1916. Receiving treatment for malaria at Dar es Salaam in April 1917, he was subsequently discharged at Robert’s Heights because of the disease on 4 November 1917, as being permanently unfit for tropical service and temporarily unfit for non-tropical service.

With copied service papers and roll extracts.