The
Welsh Regiment Service: Christopher Frowen Albrow 3194
This
page tells Christopher's story of life in The Welsh Regiment
and The Army Service Corps. A full description of Christopher's
medals and the story behind the medals - here
Listen to "Men of Harlech". This version is
by the men of the Welsh Regiment and was recorded in the church
at Rorke's Drift, South Africa on the 120th anniversary of
the Battle of Rorke's Drift. The regiment that defended Rorke's
Drift ( The 24th Reiment of Foot) was a forerunner of The
Welsh Regiment.
The
picture to the left is the only one that we have to date.
See a full version lower on the page. I am working in 'Photoshop'
to clean it up. Not sure of where it dates from - any ideas? |
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Christopher
Albrow |
 2
December 1891: Christopher signs up for 'Short Service'
in The Welsh Regiment. Short Service was seven years ‘with
the colours’ followed by five in the reserve. ( He completes
all twelve years without reserve service) His recruitment medical
was on 30th November at St. George's Barracks, London and attestation
takes effect on that day. - He was born 1 Dec 1877 and was, therefore
only 14 years old. The attestation gives his age
as 18 but does not require him to state his birth date. His stature
indicates that he was VERY young too - His height was 5ft
3 in and chest was 32 inches. In contrast
to his medical for Short Service in the Great War with a height
of 5ft 91/2in.
He appears to be in the Army Reserve, already (3rd Middlesex Regiment)
See the attestation in a new window -
click
here or his medical description here
Allocated
Army no. 3194, Christopher is posted to the
2nd Battalion, The Welsh Regiment, where he served for two
years before what appears to be a misdemeanor (sleeping at
his post) resulting in two days confinement and ten day's
loss of pay. 1891-2 he is given various home postings: Cardiff,
Aldershot and Newport Monmouthshire. |
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The
Welsh Regiment at physical drill - 1898 |
Commencement
of Overseas Colonial Service. He
will spend the next three years overseas before returning
home to Gt. Britain
24
March 1893: Christopher embarks
on the ‘SS Oriental’ to Malta. (footnote
1). He is stationed there for six months,
until 23 Sept 1893, when he departs Malta for Malabar, Eastern
India
24
September 1893 He is posted to Malabar until 3 March
1896. Christopher is located in Deolali,
and
Secunderabad
India (footnote 2)
but seems to have earned a rest in Wellington in 1894 due
to recurring respiratory illness. Wellington is located in
Tamil Nadu State in Southern India. These locations were all
'Cantonements'
Check
out this Map of India (1857) fairly close to the time
that Christopher was there.It shows Malabar
and Hyderabad (Twin city of Secunderabad) |
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The
1885 flag of The Govenor of India
The Colours of The Welsh Regiment |
February
1896: Christopher's recurring bronchial problems require
more treatment before he departs India in on the ‘SS Britannia’,
bound for home - March 1896 disembarked Plymouth.
The London
Times of 4 March reports the SS Britannius?"is standing off
London, having traveled from Calcutta". He is posted to the
1st Battalion on 28 March 1896. Attains Lance Corporal in Oct 1896
but loses the stripe a year later, for misconduct. This posting
(from the second to the first battalion) will ensure his eventual
participation in the South African (Second Boer War) Campaign.
With the
respiratory problems which seem to have developed during all the
overseas service, he is admitted (for three weeks) to the The
Royal Victoria Hospital at Netley - a major military hospital
at Southampton. He resumes the Plymouth posting from 28 March. These
dates fit in well with a picture (below) that I found.
Turn-Out
of the Main Guard at the Gate of Plymouth Citadel. (1896)
I
thought that this picture was relevant as Christopher was
posted to Plymouth in 1896, after his return from India and
the year is a perfect match. Now we know how he would have
looked in his Welsh Regiment dress uniform. At the bottom
of this page there is a picture of the Regiment in field dress
taken during their service in South Africa.
The
picture, taken in 1896, shows the main guard of the 1st Battalion,
The Welsh Regiment, quartered in Plymouth, turned out before
the Citadel Gate. They are shown presenting arms and with
the bugler sounding. They are rendering full military honours,
as at guard-mounting or in the presence of a body of troops
under arms passing on The Hoe.
The
Gateway seen in the photograph is the principal entrance to
the Citadel, and dates from the time of Charles II, when the
present work was erected on the Hoe in the place of an old
Tudor entrenchment that had existed since Queen Elizabeth's
time.
Plymouth
Citadel is apparently, the best preserved specimen of the
seventeenth century - Vauban Bastion type - of fortification
existing in England, and it's gateway is a unique piece of
military architecture.
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2
September 1896: Christopher qualifies for Mounted
Infantry duties.
Nov
1898 Posted to Aldershot in preparation for more colonial
service.
4
November 1899 Christopher departs for
South Africa sailing on the 'Kildonan Castle', (see below) and arrives
at Port Elizabeth in the Cape on 22nd November 1899. He will be
in the Colony for two and a half years, until 12 July 1902. 'The
Welsh' were part of the 18th Brigade under command Brigadier-General
TE Stephenson, as part of 4th Division.
London
Times 23 November 1899
' We are informed by the Admiralty of the following movements
of transports: The Manchester Port, with 1st Dragoons (Burn-Murdoch);
the Kildonan Castle, with 1/Welsh Regt, 2/Northumberland
Fusiliers, #2 General Hospital, A Pontoon Troop, RE, and 1st
Balloon Section, RE; the Montezuma, with 1886 mules; and the
Carinthia, with 1180 mules, arrived at Cape Town yesterday.'
The
Kildonan Castle > |
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Click
here
to see the story of the Welsh Regiment in The Boer War and a full
description of Christopher's medals
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The
First Battalion, Welsh Regiment at rest - South Africa 1900 |
16
July 1902 to 10 Mar 1903: Christopher
is given 'Gratuity Furlough' (footnote
3) and discharged from the army on 29th November
1903. He completed 12 years 0 Days of service. The
'All Empire Man' - He now sports two forearm tattoos - One
is Britannia and the other the Royal Coat of Arms!.
Christopher's
service medals. See Christopher's
Welsh Regiment page for more details
Christopher
(seated) with an un-named army friend >
Thanks to Chris Albrow for this one and
only image that we have of Christopher
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First
World War Service
22
March 1915: Christopher re-enlisted in the Army at age
38. The attestation describes his enlistment as 'Short Service -
For the duration of the war' He allocates two shillings per day
from his pay to be allocated to Louisa to support
the family. He was, at that age and level of fitness (see his Welsh
Regiment history, above) past his prime for the front line and was
assigned to the Army Service Corps (Army No. 7466) with the rank
of Corporal.
He
was initially posted to Aldershot from where he joined the
Army Expeditionary Force, leaving Southampton 2 April 1915
aboard the SS Mona's Queen. Disembarking two days later
at Le Harvre, he served in France from 8 April 1915 to 19
Feb 1916. and appears to be based in or near Abaucourt.
In the 1915-16 period, The ASC primarily operated in Calais,
Audruicq (near St. Omer), Blargies and Grand Quévilly
(near Rouen) areas.
27
April 1916 This marks the end of Christopher's
Military life when he was medically discharged from war
service. He was due for his Army pension at 65 but after
giving his youth to his Country, he died in 1941 at Southend-on-Sea,
Essex age 63. Two years sort of his army
pension due date!
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Picture
postcard of the SS Monas Queen
The back of the postcard advises that she was
employed as a troop tansport between Southhampton and France
from January 1915 to April 1919 |
The
picture at right is a postcard that serving members of the
Army service Corps used.(Some
background about The Army Service Corps (ASC) in the early
part of the Great War is available here:)
footnote
1
SS Oriental - Ship Type:
Passenger / Cargo Vessel
Port of Registry: London
Propulsion: Steam triple expansion
Launched: Tuesday, 15 May 1888 Built: 1889
Tonnage: 4971 grt. - Length: 410 feet. - Beam: 48 feet
Owner History:Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation
Company
Status: Scrapped - 1924
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footnote 2
Secunderabad:
In 1798, a subsidiary alliance for military and political
cooperation was signed between the Hyderabad Nizam and the British
East India Company. Thereafter, an area north of what is now the Hussain
Sagar Lake was established as a cantonment. After the Nizam Sikander
Jah, the area was named as Secunderabad.
footnote
3
Furlough
SYLLABICATION: fur·lough PRONUNCIATION: fûrl
NOUN: 1a. A leave of absence or vacation, especially one granted
to a member of the armed forces. b. A usually temporary layoff from
work. c. A leave of absence from prison granted to a prisoner. 2.
The papers or documents authorizing a leave: The soldiers had their
furloughs in their breast pockets.
TRANSITIVE VERB: Inflected forms: fur·loughed, fur·lough·ing,
fur·loughs
1. To grant a leave to. 2. To lay off (workers).
ETYMOLOGY: Alteration of vorloffe, furlogh, from Dutch verlof, from
Middle Dutch.
Go
to Albrow Family Tree --
Go
to The Welsh Regiment Page --
Go to the Isbell
Family page
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