Ancestor Details
Ancestor's Name: Edward Vinall
Ancestor's date of birth: 15/12/1879
Ancestor's date of death: 16/03/1961
Cause of Death: Age related
Service and Life Before the Boer War: He was born in the parish of Wisley near the town of Corshaw in the county of Wiltshire, UK. Enlisting in the Army in 1896, (He put his age up by 3 years to enlist) his profession was described as a mason.
Service Number: 4650
Colony or State of enlistment: Not Australia, Place of Enlistment: Taunton, Somerset, UK
Unit: 2nd Battalion Somerset Light Infantry
Rank attained in Boer War: PTE, Date Effective: 11/05/1896
Highest Rank attained (if served after war): TPR, Date Effective: 06/01/1915
Murray Page: Not applicable, did not serve in an Australian unit.
Contingent: Not applicable
Ship: Orcana, Date of Sailing: 05/12/1899 (from the UK)
Memorial details: Gunnedah, NSW
Awards/Decorations/Commendations: Queen's South Africa Medal with Cape Colony, Relief of Ladysmith, Tugela Heights, Orange Free State and Transvaal clasps. King's South Africa Medal with South Africa 1901, South Africa 1902 clasps. British War Medal.
Personal Characteristics: 168 cm tall, Blue eyes, Brown hair and a fresh complexion. Conduct was described as fair to very good.
Reasons to go and fight: A professional soldier
Details of service in war: The 2nd Battalion sailed on the Briton on 5 December 1899, and arrived at the Cape on the 20 December after a very quick passage; was sent round to Durban on the Orcana, and joined the 10th Brigade under Major General Talbot Coke, two of whose battalions had been landed in Cape Colony, the two remaining with the general being the 2nd Dorsets and 2nd Middlesex. The 10th Brigade formed part of the Vth Division under General Warren, and went with him to Springfield and Venter's Spruit.
The Somersets saw the heavy fighting between 20 and 24 January 1900 at Venter's Spruit and Spion Kop, but were not themselves seriously engaged. The Middlesex were on the summit all the afternoon of the 24th and lost heavily.
On 21 February, during the last and successful attempt to relieve Ladysmith, the Somersets had their first heavy fighting among the hills north of Colenso. The country was very difficult, and the battalion seems to have got into a place where they were subjected to fire from three sides.
During the fourteen days' fighting the battalion's casualties were approximately 3 officers and 11 men killed, 1 officer and 80 men wounded. Five officers and 6 non-commissioned officers and men were mentioned in despatches by General Buller, 2 of the latter being recommended for the distinguished conduct medal.
After the relief of Ladysmith the Somersets left Coke's brigade and joined that of Major General Hart, which consisted of the Somersets, 1st Border Regiment, 1st Connaught Rangers, and 2nd Dublin Fusiliers, the first-named having taken the place of the Inniskilling Fusiliers, who were left in Natal. Hart's brigade was brought round to Cape Colony, and along with Barton's Fusilier Brigade was put under Sir Archibald Hunter as general of division. Hart's Brigade was ordered to Aliwal North to co-operate with Brabant in the relief of Wepener. The relief was accomplished on 24 April, and the brigade then followed Barton's to the western border. Having defeated the enemy at Rooidam on 5 May with the Fusilier Brigade, Sir Archibald Hunter proceeded to march through the Western Transvaal. One wing of the Somersets was left to garrison Vryburg, the other was taken east of Pretoria, and along with the 2nd Dublins formed the garrison of Heidelberg under Hart. On 26 July Major General Cooper with the 3rd King's Royal Rifles and 1st Rifle Brigade relieved Hart, who with the 2nd Dublins and half-battalion of the Somersets was ordered to Rhenoster, on the Bloemfontein-Pretoria Railway. He arrived there on the 30th, and marching to Kopje Alleen, joined Major General C E Knox and Major General Broadwood, who were endeavouring to surround De Wet. The Boer general with about 2000 men was then occupying the hills south of Reitzburg, near the Vaal. De Wet crossed the Vaal on the night of 6 August, and was at once pursued by several columns under the direction of Lord Kitchener, including that of Lord Methuen. De Wet escaped north of the Megaliesberg after some of his waggons, guns, etc, had been captured, and some prisoners he had with him had been released. In this pursuit Hart's men did 197 kilometres in the first seven days. After they were 'whipped off' at Oliphant's Nek they went to help Hore at Elands River. Hart then moved into Krugersdorp about the middle of August. His column was shortly strengthened by the 2nd South Wales Borderers, 400 Imperial Yeomanry, and a 4.7 in (120 mm) Naval gun, and early in September he proceeded to Potchefstroom, having some fighting and extremely hard marching on the way. He then returned, reaching Krugersdorp on 30th September. During the march his column had disposed of a fair number of Boers, and had captured 96 prisoners, many cattle, wagons, etc.
After this the battalion was again taken to the Heidelberg district, and remained there a long time doing good work. In Lord Kitchener's despatch of 8 March 1901 Colonel Gallwey and two other officers were mentioned. On 25 May 1901 a convoy returning from Bethel to Standerton, the escort of which was a mixed force, under Colonel Gallwey of the Somersets, and including a portion of the battalion, was heavily attacked. 'The escort fought with great gallantry and completely foiled the enemy's repeated attempts to press into close quarters'. The Somersets lost 1 man killed and 3 wounded. Three officers and 6 non-commissioned officers and men of the battalion were mentioned in despatches for exceptional services that day, and the cause of mention after the name of Lieutenant and Quartermaster Moran is worth quoting: 'Seeing party of enemy creeping up under cover of a donga, headed the cooks and invalids and drove them off'. One can scarcely help associating cooks with kettles and invalids with crutches, but doubtless the gallant party left their impedimenta behind.
Service and life after the Boer War: He was discharged from the regular army on 10 May 1903 at Camp Bordon, Somerset and transferred to the Reserve. He married in 1906 having met his future brother in law in Africa. He completed his reserve service obligation 10 May 1912 having completed 16 years service including 3 years 178 days overseas. He then moved to Monmouth in Wales and worked in Welsh coalmines becoming a mine deputy. When World War One broke out putting his age down, he enlisted as no 521675 as a trooper in the Welsh Horse (a Yeomanry unit) at Oswestry on 6 January 1915. His horse fell on him during training smashing his hip. No longer fit for operational service he was transferred to the 394th Agricultural Support Company as a shoeing smith and tractor driver, for the remainder of the war being discharged at Nottingham 10 January 1919. He migrated with his family to Collie, Western Australia in 1923. The death of his brother in law (who had migrated to Gunnedah) at the Black Jack mine at Gunnedah in 1924 caused him to move his family to Gunnedah and take up work at the mine. Later he worked as a boilerman at Gunnedah Hospital. He was made a life member of Gunnedah RSL in 1955.
Descendant Details
Name of Descendant: Terence Vinall, Gunnedah NSW
Relationship to Ancestor: Grand Son
