In Burma With The 1st Rifle Brigade.

India General Service Medal 1854 with clasps "Burma 1885 - 7" & "Burma 1887 - 89".
7052 Pte. J. Foy, 1st Rifle Brigade.

James Foy appears on the 1871 Census as the illegitimate two year old son of Bridget Foy, a 23 year old spoon polisher living in her parents' house at Vale Court, Birmingham. By the time of the 1881 Census, Bridget was living in Digbeth with James, now aged eleven, and Mary, his six year old sister. On leaving school, James found work as a labourer but on 9th October 1884 he met Sergeant Cox of the Coldstream Guards and was persuaded to enlist in the army, agreeing to serve for seven years with the Colours and five years in the 1st Class Army Reserve. James probably lied about his age as, assuming that the information in the Census records is reasonably correct, he can have been barely 15 years old at this point. His Attestation Papers, however, record his age as 18, his religion as Roman Catholic, and describe him as 5' 4" tall with blue eyes, brown hair and a fresh complexion.

On 13th October 1884, James joined the Rifle Brigade at the Regimental Depot in Winchester. After a period of basic training, he was assigned to the 3rd Battalion and spent the next two years on home service. In April 1885, he obtained his 4th Class Certificate of Education.

In October 1886, James was posted to the 1st Battalion of the Rifle Brigade, which was stationed at Belgaum in India. James would stay with the 1st Battalion for the next five years, during which time he would serve over two years in Burma involved in the military operations to bring the country under British rule and earning entitlement to the India General Service Medal. You can read more about the 3rd Anglo-Burmese War here. In addition, he was awarded his 1st and 2nd Good Conduct Pay, advanced to Lance Corporal (June 1888) and then Corporal (May 1889), and obtained his 3rd and 2nd Class Certificates of Education (August 1889 & February 1890).

James Foy returned to England in December 1891 and was transferred to the Army Reserve, his seven years of service having been completed. In April 1893, he married Mary McHale at St Michael's Catholic Church in Birmingham. After five years in Section "A" of the Reserve, James re-engaged for four years in Section "D" and, as a result of this, found himself mobilised for service in the Boer War in May 1900. He served one year and 128 days in South Africa with the 1st Rifle Brigade, his old Battalion, and was appointed Acting Sergeant on 23rd July 1900. He was awarded the Queen's South Africa Medal with three clasps. You can read more about the Rifle Brigade in the Boer War here.

Late in 1901, James was sent back to the UK and was finally dischargd from the army on 18th October at Gosport. His character was described as "very good" and his intended place of residence was given as Bradford Street, Birmingham. He had served a total of 17 years and 10 days, but his military career was far from over.

In September 1902, at the age of 36, James attested for the Royal Garrison Regiment, enlisting as no: 5662 with the rank of Private, and agreeing to serve for two years garrison duty with the Colours. He was quickly appointed Lance Corporal and, in March 1903, sent to Malta to serve with the garrison at Mtarfa. Soon after arriving, he spent six days in hospital because of a hernia, resulting from a rupture suffered in South Africa in 1901. He would have heard of the birth of his son, James Michael, back in Birmingham on 1st August 1903. He was promoted to Corporal in October of the same year.

In March 1904, James was on his way back to England and was discharged on completion of his two years' service on 17th September. His character on discharge was again described as "very good" and his intended place of residence was now Trent Street, Birmingham.

On 29th December 1904, James again enlisted in the Rifle Brigade in order to serve as a volunteer in the Reserve Division of the Militia. His attestation Papers record the fact that he was working as a clerk for the Birmingham City Gas Office at the time. Four years later, on completion of his term of engagement, he was discharged.

Following the outbreak of the First World War, James Foy once more came forward to serve his country. On 9th September 1914, at the age of 48, he again enlisted as a rifleman in the Rifle Brigade at Winchester. He was immediately promoted to Sergeant and posted to the Depot. In September 1915, he was posted to the 14th (Reserve) Battalion of the Rifle Brigade and appointed Acting Company Quarter Master Sergeant. Early in 1916, he was attached to the 21st KRRC and later in the same year joined the 25th (Reserve) Garrison Battalion of the Rifle Brigade. This unit was employed on coastal defence in the Falmouth area and also supplied drafts for the Territorial Battalions of the Rifle Brigade. It was disbanded on 26th March 1919 and on the same day James Foy was discharged from the army for the last time. He had served in the UK for the duration of the war, his service being recognised by the award of a Meritorious Service Medal, which was announced in the Peace Gazette of 3rd June 1919.

A Catalogue Of Misdemeanours.

India Medal 1895 - 1902 with clasp "Relief of Chitral 1895".
3073 Pte. A. O'Hara, King's Own Scottish Borderers.

Alexander O'Hara, a Roman Catholic Irishman, attested for the King's Own Scottish Borderers on 15th December 1888, agreeing to serve for seven years with the Colours and five years in the Reserve. He was already serving in the 4th (Volunteer) Battalion of the Scottish Rifles. His Attestation Papers give his trade as "labourer" and describe him as 18 years and 2 months old, just over 5' 5" tall, weighing 128lbs and with a fresh complexion, blue eyes and light brown hair.
Two days after enlisting, Alexander went absent and was apprehended by the civil power in Glasgow on 20th January 1889, dressed in plain clothes. Returned to the Depot at Berwick, he was tried on 5th February on the charge of "deserting her Majesty's service", found guilty, and sentenced to 21 days imprisonment with hard labour. This was only the start of a long series of conflicts with military authority. On 8th August 1889, Alexander was deprived of 5 days' pay and confined to barracks fo 16 days after being found guilty of absenting himself from 31st July until brought back under escort a week later.

In January 1891, Alexander was transferred to the 1st Battalion of the KOSB at Raglan Barracks in Devonport. Here he succeeded in getting more entries in the Regimental Defaulter Book: 2nd April 1891 - Not obeying an order & having an untidy berth - 14 days confined to barracks; 6th April 1891 - Absent from answering his name at 8.00pm (when a defaulter till 11.30pm) - 96 hours imprisonment with hard labour; 7th April 1891 - Attempting to smuggle tobacco into prison & inattention in the ranks - 24 hours punishment diet. 8th April 1891 - Not complying with an order & having his cell irregular - 24 hours bread and water and deprived of bedding.
Less than two weeks later on 19th April, Pte O'Hara was arrested by the civil power and convicted the following day at the Petty Sessions Court of three charges of wilful damage. This time he got one month in H.M. Prison Plymouth, 14 days of which were with hard labour. Once released it was only a few months before he was again up before the CO on various charges: 31st August 1891 - Absent from gymnasium at 2.00pm, returned to barracks at 8.00am 1/9/91 improperly dressed - deprived 1 days pay and 14 days confined to barracks; 2nd September 1891 - Having a rusty rifle & taking Pte Edwards' rifle on parade - 14 days confined to barracks.
On 11th November, Alexander O'Hara left Devonport to start over five years foreign service with the 2nd Battalion KOSB at Rawalpindi in India. Army life abroad seems to have suited him better; on 2nd September 1893, for example, he was granted his 1st Good Conduct Pay. In 1895, Pte O'Hara earned the India Medal with clasp "Relief of Chitral 1895" as the 2nd Battalion KOSB were part of the relief column under Lieutenant General Sir R. C. Low GCB, which fought its way north via the Malakand Pass to the besieged garrison at Chitral. Interestingly, the clasps "Defence of Chitral 1895" and "Relief of Chitral 1895" were issued without lugs as it was not envisioned at the time that the India Medal would be awarded with other clasps for further campaigns. In September, Pte O'Hara was awarded his 2nd Good Conduct Pay but this was forfeited almost immediately when he was absent from tattoo on 29th September 1895. He seems to have slipped back into his old ways, getting 8 days CB for breaking out of hospital whilst a patient and being found in the Rawalpindi bazaar after tattoo improperly dressed in November 1895, and getting a further 10 days CB for leaving his guard without permission in February 1896.

On 14th January 1897, Alexander arrived back in the UK and was transferred to the 1st Class Army Reserve a week later. On 28th April the following year, he married Ellen Murray at the Sacred Heart Chapel in Glasgow. His address at this time was 21 Abercromby Street and he was working as a labourer. But such a state of affairs could not last long; following the outbreak of the Boer war, Alexander was recalled from the Reserve in October 1899 and rejoined the KOSB Depot on 18th December 1899.
Posted to the 1st Battalion, he sailed with them on the Braemar Castle, arriving at the Cape around 26th January. In February, the 1st KOSB fought in the Battle of Paardeberg and various other engagements up to the surrender of Cronje on the 27th. On 29th of March, the Battalion were in action at Karee Siding, clearing some hills held by the Boers north of Bloemfontein. Here the KOSB lost 1 officer and 14 men killed, and had 3 officers and 42 men wounded, one of whom was Pte O'Hara, who was wounded severely. For his service in the Boer War, Pte O'Hara received the Queen's South Africa Medal with clasps for "Cape Colony" and "Paardeberg".
In July 1900, Alexander was on his way home. His discharge from the army came on 4th February 1902. He had served a total of 13 years.