Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria, to include the Brian Ritchie Collection (Part II)

Pair: Private F. J. Kelly, 21st Lancers, who was killed in action in the famous charge at Omdurman on 2 September 1898

Queen’s Sudan 1896-98 (3727 Pte., 21/Lcrs.); Khedive’s Sudan 1896-1908, 1 clasp, Khartoum (3727 Pte., 21st Lcrs.), this with single initial ‘F.’, the first with refixed suspension claw and polished, fine, the second with edge bruising otherwise about very fine (2) £1600-180

Private F. J. Kelly was killed in action in the famous charge at Omdurman on 2 September 1898, while serving in ‘D’ Squadron, under the command of Captain F. H. Eadon. The Squadron entered the khor at its widest point and where the Dervishes were most densely packed, as a result of which it suffered the highest number of fatalities. Eadon afterwards wrote home to his father:

‘We wheeled into line to the right and galloped, when I at once saw lumps of them concealed in a nullah within 100 yards of us, and by that time bullets flew by in hundreds. I turned round to my squadron and said, “Now, men, get your lances down,” and off I galloped as hard as I could split, and strange to say I got through them with nothing worse than a blow on the head, which only crushed my helmet, and a sword cut, slight, on my horse’s quarters.

Not so the poor squadron, which suffered more than any of the others. I had 11 killed and 13 wounded out of the total casualties. When I got through I saw Nesham being run away with, and smothered in blood, and so weak he could hardly sit on his horse. I gave my sword to my Trumpeter and went after him, but he fell off from exhaustion and loss of blood before I could catch him, his left hand nearly severed and a bad gash on his leg. I sent him to the rear as soon as I could, and then rushed back to my squadron. I then met a man whom I could not recognise, as his nose was cut off and his face covered with blood. He was one of my sergeants, and having rallied his troop as far as he was able, rode up to me sitting at attention and asked if he might fall out and get his nose put on. After the rally we again attacked the enemy with dismounted fire, and finally drove them on to their own main body, where they were nicely caught by our infantry advancing.

We then collected all the dead and laid them in a row, and proceeding in the direction of Omdurman, kept heading off the retreating army from the river and Omdurman. So we carried out to the letter the Sirdar’s orders.’

See The Last Charge by Terry Brighton for further details.