John Lowers, Western Province Mounted Rifles.

  

Queen's South Africa Medal with Clasp "Cape Colony".

441 R.Q.M. Sergeant John William Lowers, Western Province Mounted Rifles.

John William Lowers was born on 21st January 1868 but was living in South Africa at least as early as February 1895 when he married 20-year-old Ester (Hester) Fonten at the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Woodstock, Cape Town. According to the marriage record he was 27 years old and working as a coachman.

 

Five years later in January 1901, following the outbreak of war with the Boers, John attested for three months service with the Western Province Mounted Rifles. His Attestation Paper states that he was employed as a carpenter at the maintenance department of the Cape Government Railways at Salt River. His next-of-kin was named as his wife, Hester, who was living at Diep River.

For his service in the South African War, John Lowers was awarded the medal pictured here with clasp for "Cape Colony". According to the supplementary medal roll issued in October 1904, he was also entitled to the clasp "South Africa 1901".

 

 

The Western Province Mounted Rifles, with a strength of over 500, was one of several new bodies of volunteers or irregulars raised at Cape Town following the second invasion of Cape Colony in December 1900. As soon as a squadron was ready it took the field, because the enemy in the first week of January 1901 had reached within a day's ride of Cape Town. During January and February the corps was constantly in action. In a telegram from Clanwilliam, dated 31st January, the Press Association correspondent remarked that a detachment under Lieutenant Hellawell had driven 150 Boers from the Pakhuis Pass.

 

Throughout 1901 and 1902 the corps did an immense amount of arduous work in the extreme south-west of the Colony. They were often far from support and in a district much favoured by the enemy, and one almost impossible for regular troops. The corps had endless little engagements, frequently involving sharp casualties, and if they had a good many patrols captured this may be attributed to their being more than usually split up into little detachments at the request of the officer who commanded the district.

 

 

John William Lowers lived the last part of his life at 48 Halford Road, Durban and died at the age of 86 at Addington Hospital, Durban, on 10th December 1954.