Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

The Central Africa medal awarded to Mr J. G. King, a civilian Volunteer from Port Herald who was severely wounded through the lungs in an attack against Chief Zarafi in February 1891

Central Africa 1891-98, ring suspension, no clasp (Volunteer: J: G: King.) officially engraved naming, good very fine and rare £1,400-£1,800

Approximately 23 medals without clasp issued to European Volunteers for service in Central Africa.

The following extract is taken from British Central Africa, by Sir Harry H. Johnston, K.C.B. (New York, Edward Arnold, 1897):

‘The death of Captain Maguire took place on the 15th December, 1891. No news of it reached me until Christmas Eve, just at the time when I was expecting him to arrive for Christmas day. I left at once for Blantyre, which I reached on the evening of Christmas day, and there conferred with Mr. John Buchanan and Mr. Fotheringham, the manager of the African Lakes Company. The latter at once proffered his co-operation in meeting the difficult situation on Lake Nyasa. We both started for the Upper Shire by different routes, and reached Fort Johnston at the end of December. Here we found that the chief Msamara who lived a little below Mponda on the west bank of the Shire, had turned against us and with Zarafi had sent a force of men to attack Fort Johnston, and although nothing more had come of the attack but a few wild shots, he had nevertheless been raiding all round the Fort.

The bad news had brought volunteers hurrying up from the south. Amongst them came Mr. J. G. King, from Port Herald; Dr. A. Blair Watson; the late Mr. Gilbert Stevenson; and, a little later on, Commander J. H. Keane, R.N. Fortunately Mponda had remained loyal, and although for a few days the Fort and its garrison of wounded and exhausted men lay at his mercy, he had not only been neutral but had assisted to defend the place against Zarafi's attacks. My arrival soon restored the morale of the Sikhs, who were literally in tears at the death of their commander, but the Muhammadan Indian soldiers had not rallied from the feeling of discouragement caused by this disaster. Soon afterwards they had, in fact, to be sent back to India, though there were men amongst them who had strikingly distinguished themselves. It must be remembered, however, that they were all cavalry men, and not used to fighting on foot, or on board a ship, and all things considered behaved as well as might be expected. The Sikhs, however, throughout all this crisis, never showed their sterling worth more effectually.

Another attack on Makanjira was impossible until we had got gunboats on the lake. So I decided to restore our prestige by subduing those enemies who were nearer at hand and more vulnerable, to wit, Msamara and Zarafi. The chief Msamara was captured and imprisoned in the fort, together with some of his headmen, whilst an enquiry was instituted into his culpability for the recent raids. I regret to say that whilst in prison he poisoned himself but it was fortunately done with the knowledge and connivance of his followers and consequently no slur was cast on the Administration for his death, his headmen themselves asserting that their chief had committed suicide because he believed he was going to be hanged, an eventuality, however, of which there was little probability. The war against Zarafi was a more difficult matter. I was able with the help of the volunteer officers and the Sikhs to capture all Zarafi's villages in the plains with relatively little loss of men; but to attack Zarafi in the hills was another matter. While on our way thither, all Mponda's men who were acting as our porters ran away, and we were therefore compelled to retreat to Fort Johnston. Under the circumstances the flight of our porters was the best thing that could have happened to us, since we were embarked on an enterprise far beyond our strength, although we did not know it at that time; for another march would have brought us to the base of Zarafi's hill, where we should probably have met with as serious a disaster as subsequently happened to another expedition.

During all this crisis we were much helped by the Angoni, under Chifisi, who dwelt at the back of Mponda's country. These men came down in hundreds to assist us in fighting Zarafi. Unfortunately the Angoni are not as brave as they look, and we subsequently found they were very broken reeds to depend on in hard fighting. Zarafi had, nevertheless, suffered so much at our hands by the loss of all his villages in the plains that he ceased his raids, and commenced negotiations for peace. No doubt these negotiations were only intended to gain time, but I welcomed them as a valuable respite, and did not intend to take any further steps against Zarafi until I could receive reinforcements of officers and men. By the capture of Zarafi's low lying towns I had prevented for some time to come any attempts on his part to obstruct the navigation of the Shire; this end was still further attained by the imprisonment of the chief Msamara who subsequently committed suicide at Fort Johnston.

I again returned to Zomba, determined to apply myself now to the consideration of our financial position, for since my arrival in British Central Africa in July, 1891, I had not had a spare day in which to turn to accounts. Up till this time it must be remembered that I had to be my own secretary and accountant, and the pressure of office work was almost more than I could stand. Captain Sclater was busily employed in making roads, and this work was so necessary I did not like to call him off it for other purpose; Mr. Sharpe was not yet back from leave of absence in England.

I had just begun to settle down once more to office work at Zomba when another message arrived with disastrous news. On the 24th February, 1892, I received a note from Dr. Watson informing me that after my departure a large force of Angoni had come down and placed their services at the disposal of Mr. J. G. King, whom I had left in charge of Fort Johnston as chief of that station, and Mr. King had resolved, then and there, to attack Zarafi, who had once more become troublesome; that the expedition had resulted in a very serious repulse at the foot of Zarafi's hill, in which but for the dogged bravery of a Naval Petty Officer, Mr. Henry Inge, lent by the river gunboats, nearly the whole of the expedition must have been annihilated. He went on to relate that at the beginning of the engagement Mr. King had been shot through the lungs, and that he himself (Dr. Watson) had been wounded in the fight; that some six Indian soldiers had been killed and several Swahilis; that another fourteen Indian soldiers were missing; and that the 7-pounder gun which Mr. Inge used till the ammunition was exhausted, to distract the enemy from following the defeated expedition, had had to be abandoned in the bush. Fortunately at this juncture Commander Keane, R.N., was staying with me, having only quitted Fort Johnston a short time before. On my invitation he returned there and restored the situation as well as possible.

I am glad to say that both Mr. King and Dr. Watson recovered from their wounds. The recovery of the former was quite extraordinary as he was practically shot through the lungs. For years afterwards he was Vice-Consul at Chinde; but to my deep regret died at that place on November 30, 1896.’