Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 4 clasps, Cape Colony, Wepener, Transvaal, Wittebergen (Lieut. W. Mearns, High’d. L.I.) light contact marks, very fine, ‘Wepener’ rare to unit £450-500

W. Mearns was born on 8 July 1876. Serving as Private 3294 in the Cape Mounted Rifles he was present at the defence of Wepener and was slightly wounded in action at Jammersberg Drift, Wepener, on 13 April 1900. He was appointed to a commission in the Highland Light Infantry on 27 July 1901; was attached to the Army Service Corps in October 1902 and was promoted to Lieutenant in the A.S.C. in July 1904. Mearns served in operations in Orange Free State, April-May 1900, including the defence of Wepener; was in the Orange River Colony, May-November 1900; in action at Wittebergen, 1-29 July 1900; served in operations in Cape Colony south of the Orange River, 1899-1900; operations in Transvaal and the Orange River Colony, November 1900-April 1901; and operations in Cape Colony, April 1901-May 1902. Awarded the Queen’s medal with four clasps and the King’s medal with two. With copied roll extract and research.