Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Pair: Major Henry Pottinger Young, Indian Staff Corps, late Poona Horse - Head of Intelligence in Portuguese East Africa when Winston Churchill made his successful escape from Pretoria

Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 3 clasps, Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Transvaal (Major, Staff); King’s South Africa 1901-02, 2 clasps (Major, I.S,C.) second with some edge bruising, very fine (2) £500-600

‘... The late Major Young served with the Imperial forces, and was attached later to the Poona Horse and Bombay Cavalry. He rendered distinguished service in the Afghan and South African wars, being wounded several times. On one occasion his horse was shot under him. He was thanked in despatches by Lord Methuen for a most courageous attempt to blow up a bridge and train. From 1899 to 1900 he was head of the Intelligence Service at Lourenco Marques, Portuguese East Africa, and was thanked by the authorities for good work there. ...’ (Taken from his obituary that appeared in the Albany Advertiser, Western Australia, 13 August 1929).

Henry Pottinger Young, the son of Major C. C. Young, was educated at Wellington College and the Royal Military College. He received his first commission in 1867. As an officer in the Indian Army, he served with the Transport Train, Scinde Reserve Division, Southern Afghanistan Field Force during the Afghan War, 1878. Serving in India on Lines of Communication, he was neither entitled to or awarded the Afghanistan War Medal. In 1887 he commanded a party in long-distance trial rides - he rode 184 miles in 60 hours, with one horse bearing 14 stone. Major Young (Retired) was appointed Assistant Press Censor, graded as a Deputy Assistant Adjutant General in April 1900 (London Gazette 19 June 1900).

His heavily annotated Q.S.A. roll extract confirms that he was employed as Head of Intelligence at Delagoa Bay, December 1899-March 1900; Assistant Press Censor, April-November 1900; Chief Censor, Orange River Colony, November 1900-May 1901; with the Army Service Corps, May 1901-June 1902, when he served in several columns; latterly on Special Intelligence Duty in the Barkley East District.

Young was head of intelligence in Portuguese East Africa in the period that Winston Churchill and Aylmer Haldane made their successful escapes, by rail, from Pretoria.

With some copied research.