Major William Joseph Myers

Major William Joseph Myers, 7th Batt. King's Royal Rifle Corps, was killed in
action near Ladysmith, Oct. 30th, 1899. He was the son of the late T. B. Myers, Esq., of Porters, Shenley, Herts, born in Aug., 1858, and educated at Eton (Mr. Wolley Dod's).
He entered the 16th Foot in May, 1878, being transferred to the 60th Rifles, Feb., 1879, and was promoted lieut. Nov., 1880, and capt. March, 1888. He subsequently joined the Reserve of Officers, and entered the 7th Batt. King's Royal Rifle Corps, was promoted major Feb., 1899, having been given the honorary rank two years previously. He was acting adjutant of the 4th Eton College Volunteer Batt. Oxfordshire Light Infantry. Major Myers served with the 3rd battalion of the 60th Rifles in the Zulu War, April to Sept., 1879 (medal with clasp). He took part in the operations of the Soudan Frontier Field Force, 1885-86, as A.D.C. to Sir Frederick Stephenson, and was present at the engagement at Giniss (medal, Fourth Class of the Order of the Medjidie, and the Khedive's star). He served in the Hazara Expedition, 1891, with the 1st Batt. King's Royal Rifle Corps (medal with clasp) ; in the Miranzai Expedition in the same year with the same battalion, including the engagements at Sangar and Mastan (clasp), and with the Isazai Expedition in 1892. Major Myers left the regular army in order to satisfy his taste for travel and Eastern art.

He had succeeded in obtaining a fine collection of Saracenese lamps and armour Wherever there were remains of ancient Persian or Saracenic culture he was a constant visitor and purchaser. His collection is in the South Kensington Museum.

An agreement was signed between Johns Hopkins University, Eton College, and the University of Birmingham, UK that has brought nearly 2000 ancient Egyptian objects from the Eton College Myers Collection to the Archaeological Museum for a fifteen-year period. In concert with the University of Birmingham, Johns Hopkins’ faculty and students will catalogue and study these artifacts as part of the curriculum in in a variety of departments. Several hundred will be displayed in the Museum’s cases and many more in our display/study drawers within the Museum proper.

The website for Eton College introduces the Myers Collection as follows: “Eton possesses one of the world’s finest private collections of Egyptian Art. The collection was bequeathed in 1899 by Major William Joseph Myers, who was educated at Eton between 1871 and 1875. Myers first went to Egypt in 1882 as Aide-de-Camp to the General commanding in Cairo. An incorrigible collector with a fine eye, the young soldier soon discovered the delights of Egyptian art: it was a passion that came to dominate his life.

Myers returned to Eton in 1899 as Adjutant to the Eton boys’. Soon, however, he enrolled again in his old regiment to fight in South Africa. On 30th October 1899, at the battle of Ladysmith, Myers was shot through the head by a Boer sniper’s bullet and killed outright. He bequeathed his collection to Eton.”

Myers was particularly interested in smaller colorful glazed works often made of the medium called faience (although having nothing to do with the French glazed earthenware for which it is named) that was used for vessels, jewelry, and inlays. He was also attracted to finely crafted bronze items and the human face in all media. He collected plaster heads from Egyptian Roman-era coffins, molded and painted with great vitality. The overall collection is representative of a broad range of ancient Egyptian objects spanning the neolithic (ca. 4000 B.C.) to medieval (ca. 1000 A.D.) eras. The distinctive quality of Myers’ collection has been recognized in exhibitions at major museum world wide, including those in New York, Madrid, Leiden, Hildesheim, Bordeaux, and Japan.

The Eton objects will be on display fully from December 4, 2010.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/major-myers-confidential-hoard-of-egyptian-plunder-finally-goes-on-show-1121401.html

Click Here:

http://barber.org.uk/sacred-and-profane-2/

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Images of an article on Major Myers, KRRC, that was published a few years ago in the magazine of the Durban Natural Science Museum.
Photo’s by Brett Hendey

Thanks Brett. Is his grave near Farquhar's Farm ?

John

Myers is buried in the Ladysmith Town Cemetery. I do not know anything about the state of his grave, but it may be good, since the CWGC now has the responsibility of caring for such graves.

Regards
Brett

Thanks Brett. I have alook on the web to see if I can find it.

John

The link below is to a memorial in Ladysmith on which Major Myers' name is recorded. This memorial may replace actual graves in Ladysmith. I hope this helps.

http://www.eggsa.org/library/main.php?g2_itemId=646138

Regards
Brett

I suppose the image could be add to the Grave section. He fought in the Zulu War.

Thanks Brett.