Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Africa General Service 1902-56, 2 clasps, East Africa 1904, East Africa 1906 (46 Const. Mukoa B. Mohamed, E.A.P.) good very fine and rare £200-250

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Richard Magor Collection of Medals Relating to India and Africa, and other Fine Awards.

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The ‘East Africa 1904’ clasp was awarded to all those who served under Captain F. A. Dickinson, D.C.L.I., in operations in the Iraini country between February and March 1904 - only around 135 personnel qualified.

Magor states: ‘This was a punitive expedition against another section of the Kikuyu tribe called the Irryeni or Iraini and the Embu tribe as a result of frequent murders of friendly natives.

The expedition was commanded by Captain F. A. Dickinson and comprised 5 Officers, 135 rifles of the 3rd K.A.R., 60 police and 300 Masai levies. The force operated from bases at Nyeri and Fort Hall into the Gutu and Embu areas. Lieutenant R. Meinertzhagen’s ‘Kenya Diary’ is critical of the commander and quotes his instructions as “Never mind my orders, just carry on and don’t worry too much, I’ll back you up in anything you do.” Lieutenant Branker left Nyeri with Tate as Political Officer, and Meinertzhagen set out with a Political Officer called Humphrey from Fort Hall with 60 rifles and 250 Masai levies.

In all, over 11,000 stock were captured at a cost of 3 men killed and 33 wounded. The number of the enemy killed was estimated at 797 Kikuyu and about 250 Embu. These presumably included an Embu spy who was found disguised as a porter in one of the camps. Immediately he was tried by court martial, found guilty and shot, only fifteen minutes after capture.

Justice was swift, but women and children were spared. When the Masai levies got out of hand, Meinertzhagen records how he himself shot three levies for murdering women and children in a village. The general opinion was the Embu had not been taught a severe lesson.’

The ‘East Africa 1906’ clasp was awarded to all those who served under Lieutenant F. W. O. Maycock, D.S.O., Suffolk Regiment, in operations in the Embo country between June and July 1906. Around 290 personnel qualified, thus making it one of the scarcer clasps of the Africa General Medal series.

Withdrawn