THE AMANSURE-MEDAL

By Johan van Zyl

Abstract

A World War 1 medal issued to Pvt Anthony Henry Benjamin Amansure

Keywords

• British war medal 1914 – 1918
• Amansure, Anthony Henry Benjamin – Private
• 1st Battalion, Cape Corps
• Battle of Square Hill in Palestine
• Battle of Kh Jibeit

Prof Johan van Zyl

A war medal, officially known as the British war medal 1914 – 1918, came into my possession in the early 1960’s. There was an inscription along its edge: it had been awarded to “Pte. A. Amansure, 1st C.C.”

The abbreviation “1st C.C.” stands for “1st Cape Corps”. Later I would learn, more correctly, that it stands for “1st Battalion, Cape Corps”.

In my mind’s eye, the image of a real living person stood behind the cold metal, or at least the memory of one if indeed he might have already passed away, either as a casualty of war, or in the interim. I became convinced that the story of the life and valuable war contribution of this soldier deserved to be made available for posterity. I assumed that Private A. Amansure was a “coloured” South African, and that he had been, or still is, a resident of the Western Cape.

This British War Medal 1914 – 1918 (see photo) was awarded to all forces of the British Empire and was issued to anyone who had served in uniform.

Shortly after the outbreak of the Great War, the Cape Corps War Recruiting Committee was formed, with headquarters at Cape Town, for the purpose of enrolling Coloured men for active service with the Battalion of the Cape Corps. One active battalion (the 1st) was formed, and that is why Amansure’s medal is inscribed “1st C.C.”.

During the war, the men of the 1st Battalion, Cape Corps, made a great name for themselves. Their good and loyal conduct becomes apparent when one reads the many letters of praise written after the war by various senior officers.

It is not possible in this short article to tell of all the engagements in which the Cape Corps played a significant role. Their greatest success in any engagement was at the Battle of Square Hill in Palestine against the Turks (18-19 September 1918). The brilliant success at the Battle of Square Hill was clouded on 20 September at the Battle of Kh Jibeit, where 51 men made the supreme sacrifice, and a hundred were wounded.

After painstaking research spanning several months, I learned that the original recipient of my medal was Anthony Henry Benjamin Amansure (see photo). “Oom Tonie” was born in 1897 in the Western Cape. In August 1916, at the age of 19, spurred on by various calls for the involvement of Coloured persons in the defence of Britain, he joined the then newly formed Cape Corps in search of adventure and fulfilment. He took part in various actions on the African continent. After cessation of hostilities, he came back home, safe and sound.

I wanted to find out what kind of man he turned out to be after his stint in the war. Tonie married shortly after he returned and had two sons and five daughters. Family members recollect that Oom Tonie was a jack-of-all-trades: always fixing things for people. He became a carpenter and had a small business in Cape Town, employing one or two assistants to help him make items of furniture. Oom Tonie later retired and then passed away due to heart complications.

The young Tonie Amansure did not react immediately to the call to take up arms. When the Cape Corps was formed and the call went out for suitable Coloured men to join, he was only 18 years old. But certain concessions had in the meantime been made in response to very strong representations made to the Minister of Defence. At last Tonie was attested on 22 August 1916 into the 1st Battalion, Cape Corps. This occurred some ten months after the Corps was formed.

By this time the training of the first batch of volunteers had long been finished, and the latecomers had to be subjected to a follow-up stint of rigorous training to bring them to the high state of efficiency required. They were issued with the various items and equipment like helmets, boots and all the trappings required as part of the smart uniform of the Cape Corps. They were also issued with arms, in all probability the Mark III .303 Rifle with the Mod. 1907 bayonet, and did the necessary musketry course.

By the time they were ready to be transported, the first volunteers were already in the field, with the purpose of subjugating German East Africa. They would not only assist the regular Army forces under Gen. Smuts in confrontational action against the enemy but also serve in the building of bridges and the like. The new recruits would take the places of Cape Corps members who had paid the highest price in the service of their country.

Private Tonie Amansure must have arrived by troopship either on 12 October 1916 with a group of 53 men under Lieutenant Hallier, or on 7 November with a group of 54 men under Lieutenant Heaton. The troopship disembarked them not at a port in German East Africa, but at Kilindini, Mombasa, in British East Africa. From there they were taken south to the port of Tanga, German East Africa, and from there about 125 miles (about 200 km) further south, once again by troopship, to the port of Dar-es-Salaam. From there they were taken to Morogoro, a major town about 130 miles (about 210 km) from Dar-es-Salaam, by train. Under these tropical conditions many men succumbed to disease, for instance blackwater fever. Fortunately, Tonie was spared serious illness during his service in East Africa.

On 12-14 December 1916 the Battalion left Morogoro for the Rufiji River campaign.

By May of 1919 it became time for the 1st Battalion of the Cape Corps to finally return to South Africa. Embarkation, after many delays, eventually took place on 6 August 1919. The troopship was the Tambov, and it left the Suez in the afternoon, bound for Cape Town. They reached Durban on 29 August after an uneventful voyage during which the only stop had been a call of a few hours at Aden. Tambov remained at Durban for two days, during which a fine civic welcome was given to the Corps.

Tambov reached Cape Town on 4 September. On the next day the Battalion left the ship by train to Monument Station, from where they marched via Adderley Street and Darling Street to the Grand Parade. There a large, enthusiastic crowd had gathered to welcome the returned warriors. Tonie must have been thrilled to be reunited finally with his loved ones who had come to meet him, and relieved and grateful that death and disease had spared him.

Afterwards the Battalion was taken to the Dispersal Camp at Maitland. On arrival there no time was lost in demobilisation. Every man was paid £3 on arrival at the camp and £10 before he left by train to his home. Before leaving, the soldiers had to hand in their arms and equipment and then they were medically examined. Within a week after arrival at the camp every man had received his discharge papers and left for home. With this, the 1st Cape Corps now ceased to exist.

Tonie Amansure returned home to Signal Hill. In time, he was awarded three war medals. One of these is the British War Medal 1914 -1918 which is in my possession. The other two are the 1914 Star and the Victory medal.

During the great depression and harsh times of the early 1930’s, Tonie’s war medals were most likely sold.

The Cape Corps bore themselves with a steadfastness that did them infinite credit. To this end, men like Tonie Amansure were willing to make their contribution.