7th Dragoon Guards.
Royal Warwicks.
Scottish Rifles.
Inniskilling Fusiliers.
Royal Highlanders.
Sherwood Foresters.
Argyll Highlanders.
Rifle Brigade.
For some considerable time prior to the outbreak of hostilities our relations with the Gaikas, a powerful tribe on the Natal frontier, had been on the verge of breaking-point; and as no embargo was placed on the importation of arms, it was foretold that as soon as these gentry felt themselves strong enough a struggle for the mastery was inevitable. In the early spring of 1846 the storm broke by the Gaikas attacking a convoy of prisoners and releasing some of their own tribesmen, and for a time Grahamstown was practically besieged. There was but a small force in the Colony to make head against the insurrection, but as the Boers had as much, if not more, to lose at the hands of the Kaffirs, large numbers of them were enrolled for defence. The Governor of the Colony was General Sir Peregrine Maitland, and he promptly moved up to the front with all the available troops. Fortunately, a transport conveying the 90th (Scottish Rifles) from Ceylon to England had put into Port Elizabeth in distress, and the regiment was at once disembarked and sent up to the front.
In April, Colonel Somerset, of the Cape Mounted Rifles, took the field, with the 7th Dragoon Guards, the 91st (Argyll Highlanders), and his own regiment, strengthened by some Burghers and Hottentot levies, and on April 16 inflicted a sharp defeat on the enemy. The 6th (Royal Warwicks), 27th (Inniskilling Fusiliers), 45th (Sherwood Foresters), and the Rifle Brigade were successively sent out to reinforce Sir Peregrine. In the early part of 1847 an advance was made into the Amatole Bush, and after a few trifling skirmishes the Gaikas sued for peace, and our frontier was pushed up to the Kei River.
South Africa, 1851-52-53.
The following regiments are entitled to bear this distinction, for which a medal was granted by an Army Order of November 21, 1854
12th Lancers.
Queen's Royal West Surrey.
Royal Warwick.
Suffolks.
Royal Highlanders.
Oxford Light Infantry.
King's Royal Rifles.
Highland Light Infantry.
Argyll Highlanders.
Rifle Brigade.
Sandilli, the Gaika chief, had never reconciled himself to accepting loyally the terms of the treaty entered into after the war of 1847. In December, 1851, a party of the 45th (Sherwood Foresters) was surprised and cut up, although we were supposed to be at peace with the tribes. The Governor of the Colony, Sir Harry Smith, was a man of energy, and one who knew the country well, for he had been in actual command of the troops during the war of 1835. Since then he had added to his reputation in India, both in the Gwalior and Sikh Wars. He was not the man to sit down tamely under such an insult. He at once proceeded to Grahamstown to judge for himself the necessity of the case, and then wrote home for reinforcements. Without waiting for these, he commenced operations by an invasion of the Amatole Bush with two columns, the one commanded by Colonel Fordyce, of the 74th, the other by Colonel Mitchell; these operations were not unattended with loss, and further movements in the Waterkloof Mountains cost the 74th their Colonel and some thirty men.
In the autumn reinforcements commenced to arrive from England. These included the same battalion of the Rifle Brigade which had done so well in the previous campaign; but this time the Rifles were armed with the Minié, a weapon which ranged up to 1,000 yards. A few of the same weapons were served out to each company of the other regiments, and though perhaps in close Bush fighting the old Brown Bess was effective enough, yet, when it happened, which it often did, that the Kaffirs were holding a position with open country in its front, the long range of our weapons won the day before our men began to suffer any loss.
The policy of Sir Harry Smith did not commend itself to the Home Government, and in the early part of 1852 General Sir George Cathcart was sent out to the Cape to replace him. Sir George had earned a high reputation as a writer on military subjects, and was an officer of considerable experience. He had acted on the staff of his father, who was attached to the Russian army during the campaign of Leipsic, as well as in that of 1813-14 against Napoleon, and he had been Aide-de-Camp to the Duke of Wellington at Waterloo. It was not until the commencement of 1853 that Sandilli sued for peace, when Sir George Cathcart returned home. He subsequently became Adjutant-General of the army, but resigned that position to take command of a division in the Crimean War, and he fell gallantly leading on his men at the Battle of Inkerman on November 5, 1855.