Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Three: Captain J. B. K. Farrer, South African Native Labour Corps, late Nottingham Road Rifle Association, who was the officer in charge of troops on the S.S. Miltiades when they mutinied at sea in September 1917

Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, no clasp (J. B. K. Farrer, Nottingham Rd. R.A.); British War and Bilingual Victory Medals (Capt.), very fine and better (3) £400-500

John Bernard Knighton Farrer, J.P., R.M., was born in 1870 in Natal and was a member of the Nottingham Road Rifle Association in 1899, Nottingham Road being a town 59 kilometres north-west of Pietermaritzburg. When General Botha invaded Natal in November 1899, the local Rifle Associations were called out to defend their towns. The members of the small Rifle Associations were awarded the Queen’s South Africa Medal.

A Justice of the Peace for the Colony of Natal and a Magistrate of the Nqutu Division, Zululand, Farrer was nominated by General Botha, by this time Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa, for a Captaincy in the 3rd Battalion, South African Native Labour Contingent (S.A.N.L.C.) when it was raised for service during the Great War. He commanded the 10th Company in France 1916-17 until it was disbanded after its one year of service was completed (South Africa’s Who’s Who 1923-4 refers). The S.A.N.L.C. was composed of men from the different Southern African tribes but with white officers and N.C.Os. The tribal diversity can be evidenced by King George V’s inspection of the S.A.N.L.C. in France on 10 July 1917 when his speech was translated into si-Xhosa, Zulu and Sesuto.

The return of the S.A.N.L.C. to South Africa, once their one year contracts had expired, ended in one particular case, in a tragic mutiny at sea that resulted in loss of life of the troops under Captain Farrer’s command, as detailed in Black Valour – the South African Native Labour Contingent 1916-1918 and the Sinking of the ‘Mendi’ by Norman Clothier:

‘The Miltiades sailed in November [1917] from England. The General Officer Commanding West African Forces at Sierra Leone cabled to Cape Town:

“O.C. on arrival today reports mutiny at sea 15 Nov. 1917 one man 12th Co. S.A.N.L.C. killed one wounded. 8 ringleaders in cells. These I will transfer to another ship and consider further proceedings should take place in South Africa.”

This was received on 23 November ... The ringleaders were court martialled in Cape Town in December, after first making a petition to the Supreme Court claiming that they were not subject to military law as their contracts had expired. The judge ruled against them.

A letter sending the proceedings of the court martial to the Governor General said that Lt. Col. Emmett [brother-in-law of General Botha] who was selected to command troops on the ship did not sail and the senior officer, Captain Farrer, who was placed in command “did not trouble to keep up discipline and allowed the natives to get thoroughly out of hand”. Corporal Kleinbooi Mukubedi of 9 Company, described as a “petty chief” and the seven others exhibited gross insubordination “considering themselves absolved from discipline because of the expiry of their twelve months contract”. “Mutineers came from the Northern Transvaal, but claim to be of Basuto origin and objected to being given orders by Zulu police on Miltiades, a race they affect to despise”. There were other acts of insubordination and the men were sentenced to long terms of imprisonment with hard labour – Mukubedi to twelve years and the others to ten years.

The man who died – these reports did not say how he died – was probably Aaron Monliba, who appears on the roll as having died at sea on that day, though the cause of death is not stated. Shooting by white officers and N.C.Os in a confrontation with mutineers is a possibility.

... The Prime Minister [Botha] considered these sentences excessive and a move was soon afoot to have them remitted. The Governor General supported Botha in this, and though they had no authority to do this themselves, and though the Army Council in London considered that the sentences should stand at least for the time being, they persuaded Brigadier-General Martyn, the British Officer Commanding South Africa Military Command, to order the release of the prisoners. They used as an excuse the delay by the Army Council in replying to their representations and Lord Buxton [Governor-General] wrote to the Colonial Office saying that he and General Botha had pressed Martyn to give this order…in case the latter should be in trouble with the War Office. The eight men were released in May 1918.’