QUEEN'S SUDAN & BOER WAR MEDALS 2991 PTE H. J. HOLDAWAY CAMERON HIGHLANDERS

A well worn group of 4 medals to Private Harry Holdaway, who served 10 of his initial 12 years service overseas, fighting in the Sudan and the Boer War with the Cameron Highlanders. He further served some 35+ years as a Cadets servant at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

Queens Sudan Medal (1896 – 98) impressed named 2991. P^TE H. HOLDAWAY. 1 CAM.H.; Queens South Africa Medal (1899 – 1902), with 4 clasps CAPE COLONY, JOHANNESBURG, DIAMOND HILL, WITTEBERGEN, impressed named 2991 P^TE H. HOLDAWAY. 1 CAM’NHDRS: Kings South Africa Medal (1902), with 2 clasps SOUTH AFRICA 1901, SOUTH AFRICA 1902, impressed named 2991 P^TE  H. HOLDAWAY. CAMERON HIGHRS: Khedive's Sudan Medal (1896-98), with 2 clasps THE ATBARA, KHARTOUM, period engraved 2991 P^TE HOLDAWAY 1 CAMHIGHRS.  Swing mounted, with much wear, edge knocks and overall polishing and comes with copies of service papers, medal rolls, 1911 & 1939 census.

Harry James Holdaway was born in 1874 at Chalvey, Buckinghamshire.  A gardener by trade he enlisted into the Cameron Highlanders at Inverness on the 1/2/1892 (the 1939 census gives his date of birth as 9/5/1875, this would have made him 16). He had previously served with the 5^th Battalion Royal Sussex Regiment (Militia) but had purchased his discharge.

He was posted to a Provisional Battalion 20/5/1892 and to the 1^st Battalion 22/9/1892 serving with them until discharge 1/5/1908. During his time with the Battalion, he served in Malta 14/9/1892 – 18/2/1895, Gibraltar 19/2/1895 – 3/10/1897, Egypt 4/10/1897 – 2/3/1900, South Africa 3/3/1900 – 7/11/1902. All up he served over 10 years of his 12 years in service overseas.

Whilst serving in Egypt the Battalion was involved in the re conquest of the Sudan, fighting at the Battle of Atbara (loosing eighteen men including three officers) and at the famous Battle of Omdurman. During the Boer War the Battalion saw some stiff fighting and earned a good name for itself. On the 27/2/1902, a party from the Battalion formed a firing party at Pretoria Prison that executed Lieutenants Harry Morant and Peter Handcock, formerly of the Bushveldt Carbineers.

He returned to England with the Battalion on the 8/11/1902 and discharged 31/1/1904. He enrolled into Section ‘D’ Army Reserve2/5/1904 serving with them until 1/5/1908.

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst

He commenced to work at the Academy in 1904 as a Cadets servant & porter. The 1911 and 1939 census record him as still working at the Academy. He died in January 1956 at Camberwell, London.

Of note is the date calculations on the cover of his service papers coming to 46 years and 10 months? This is possibly in relation to his time in the Army and at Sandhurst.