Hello - this is my first visit to the forum. I recently discovered that according to the 1881 census my half brother's great grandfather was a Paymaster of HMS Boadicea. Previous to that he was an Assistant Paymaster, serving on MS Salamis in 1871. Is there a chance that there may be some photos of the crew and if so I would be grateful for some guidance. He married Letitia Mary Napier Heugh before 1882 who was from South Africa so it seems obvious that he met her during the 1st Boar War - would that be correct? Henry's father Henry Staines Gibson was also a Paymaster of the Royal Navy and was based in Malta where his son Henry was born in 1847.

Thank you.

Kind regards

Christopher

HMS Boadicea certainly saw action in the First Boer War.

"Men from her crew also took part in the 'Transvaal Affair' (First Boer War). On 6th January 1881, 4 officers, and 124 petty officers and men were landed from HMS Boadicea, along with two gatling guns and two 24-pounder rocket tubes. Led by Commander Romilly, they fought in the battle of Laing's Nek on 28th January. Lieutenant Cochran (of the Boadicea) and 40 seamen with the gatlings and two companies of Infantry remained at the laager. Four officers, including her captain, Commodore Richards and 84 seamen with the rocket tubes advanced with General Colley's column. The British advance was beaten back with heavy casualties due to the excellent Boer marksmanship. The Naval brigade fired rockets against the Boer counter attack to their right but had to withdraw after being engaged from three sides. Despite the high casualty rate in the infantry, the Navy only had two men killed as they were lucky enough to have the shelter of a stone wall around their position.

After 8th February, 50 more men from HMS Boadicea and HMS Dido equipped with two field guns were landed under the command of Lieutenant Ogle (of HMS Dido). On 27th February, Romilly's detachment fought at the battle of Majuba Hill, another defeat for the British. Like the rest of the British forces, the Naval Brigade suffered heavy casualties, the Boadicea lost Lieutenant Trower and 10 men and Commander Romilly and 5 men were fatally wounded and 10 others injured. Three men from HMS Dido were killed in this action and 3 more wounded. In total 33 of the 64 naval personnel present were casualties. General Colley, the commander of the force, was also killed"

cwyer. Just out of Interest. Henry Cecil William Gibson probaly knew the artic explorer.

Robert Falcon Scott:

1881: Joined the Naval ship H.M.S. Boadicea as a Midshipman and was transferred to other ships over the years to complete his training.

1886: As a Midshipman aboard H.M.S Rover he took part in a race between four English cutters in St. Kitts in the West Indies. Scott's boat won and he was invited aboard H.M.S. Active to dine with the Commodore. Present at this dinner was the cousin of the Commodore, Clements Markham who was so impressed with Scott that he wrote about him that he was "the destined man to command the Antarctic expedition." Scott continued serving in ships of the the Royal Navy until 1901.

1901: He commanded the National Antarctic Expedition ship "Discovery" which explored the Ross Sea area and King Edward Seventh Land and he ventured further south than any other ship thus far.

1904: He was promoted to Captain.

1910: He embarked on his second Antarctic expedition, this time in the ship "Terra Nova" with the intention of reaching the South Pole.

1912: After much bad luck on the voyage southwards his sledge party consisting of himself, Edward Wilson, Lawrence Oates, H.R. Bowers and Edgar Evans set out across the snow and ice. They finally reached the Pole on the 18th January 1912 but found that they had been beaten there by one month by the Norwegian Expedition led by Roald Amundsen. Disappointed they turned back but faced severe blizzards and the illness of Evans and Oates who both died en route. Finally the remaining members of the team including Scott perished near the One Ton Depot in March, all succumbing to starvation and severe cold. Their bodies and significant diaries were found by a search party eight months later. Scott was Knighted posthumously because of his bravery and the Scott Polar Research Institute was established at Cambridge in his memory. Despite their failure to arrive at the South Pole first much important scientific findings had been made during the expeditions.

Came across this photo.
Crew of HMS Boadicea, 1880's at Simonstown.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Someone might beable to identfy the ranks. You never know one of them could be him.

Source:battleships-cruisers

Hi

Many thanks indeed to those who have responsed to my message - it was fantastic reading and pretty gripping stuff too! I will be approaching the National Archive in London as I understand Henry SR and Henry JR are mentioned in the RN Officer's Service Records so lets hope more will be revealed!

Once again thank you for your time and trouble to assist.

Kind regards


Christopher