KWAZULU-NATAL BRANCH

Newsletter No. 556
February 2025

NOTICE OF MONTHLY MEETING

This SATURDAY 15^th February 2025

There will be no short DDH talk as the February 2025 meeting will be devoted to the “History of the Natal Mounted Rifles (NMR) now renamed Queen Nandi Mounted Rifles(QNMR) from inception in 1854 to the present.”

The talk will be a PowerPoint presentation:
“Rough But Ready” on this history by Maj (Ret) Matthew Everitt.

This will utilise information from the newand updated history of the NMR/QNMR of which Matthew is a co-author. This impressive undertaking has 800 pages packed with information and is liberally illustrated with photographs and maps dealing with the activities of the unit from inception through the early activities in the turbulent province of Natal to the Anglo-Boer War, First and Second World Wars, and the Bush War. The activities during the periods of peace are also dealt with.Expect to be enthralled as he takes us through the story of what could be one of the oldest volunteer mounted regiments still in existence.

The first printing of 100 copies of the book was virtually sold out at a closed book launch at the unit on the 8^th February. The KZN Branch of SAMHS has thus arranged a special treat for our members to commemorate the event in the form of a few copies of the book which will be available for viewing while orders will be taken for a second print run. This can be paid for by EFT once confirmed with Matthew. Although the price of R950 may seem expensive, viewing the book and its contents and considering that the price per page is about the same as our local newspapers will confirm that it is good value for the money!

The starting time for the meeting is 1.30 for 2.00pm on SATURDAY 15th February 2025.

The venue remains the St Cyprians Church Hall off Umbilo Rd, with secure parking and liquid refreshments for cash
Entry is free and open to all with visitors welcome, but a donation of R10 for the raffle and R10 for the car guard are requested from all attendees.

NEWSLETTER

Past January meeting.
The January meeting consisted of both a DDH short talk and a longer main. The DDH was given by fellow-member Roy Bowman and was on the
“The Western Approaches Tactical Unit (WATU)”
Set up to develop strategy to combat the growing U-Boat menace to the UK during the early dark days of WW2, this unit was staffed mainly by young WRENS (Women’s Roy supervised by experienced Naval Officers. Utilising techniques of war gaming with some innovative training techniques for serving officers, the unit played a major role in helping to reduce U-boat sinkings in the vital convoys to manageable numbers, ultimately allowing Britain to survive during the critical stages of WW2.

The main talk was by another fellow member John Hart who has a major interest in the current Russia/Ukraine War. His talk was:
"The Chechen Wars: Nato and Putin" John described the First (1994-96) and second (1999-2009) Chechen Wars waged in a brutal fashion by Russia against a country which having endured an EU recognised genocide by Stalin in the 1940s, in which 1/3 of the population died after being deported, chose to declare independence when the cold war ended and the USSR collapsed. This was followed by a small Russian invasion force which was defeated by the Chechens. Russia then sponsored a civil war between pro-Russian and pro-independence forces, and finally in December 1994 invaded with 24,000 troops. These also encountered stiff resistance and led to artillery aerial bombings in which the Russians killed 27,000 civilians in the first 5 weeks and destroyed the city of Grozny in the heaviest bombing since Dresden in WW2. After more setbacks in their invasion the Russian forces finally took Grozny in March 1995. The Chechens then changed to guerilla warfare. This culminated in the Chechens actually defeating the Russians and retaking Grozny and Yeltsin agreeing to a peace treaty. 100,000 civilians had been killed in Chechnya. This war ultimately convinced the West that Russia had not changed, and emerging democracies of Central Europe felt threatened and a NATO Enlargement facilitation Act in the US now allowed Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic to join NATO in the first expansion since W Germany in 1955. The other consequence of Chechen “terrorist attacks” in Russia (staged?) which allowed Putin to unleash the full might of Russia and finally defeat the Chechens in February 2000. The two wars had led to deaths of 180,000 Chechens and thousands of Russian troops but it should be seen as a precursor to the invasion of Ukraine.

Thus, taking into account these actions, there is no way the Putin can justify the Ukrainian operations as “due to the expansion of NATO” as the expansion only occurred because of Russian aggression in Chechnya. This was a distinctly enlightening talk for members, few of whom knew anything of these events.

ADVANCE NOTICE OF MARCH 2025 MEETING

This will seea return to the usual SECOND Saturday ie 8^th March 2025. Although subject to change the DDH utilising PowerPoint and video will cover a brief history of Vietnam from the earliest times to the French Colonisation and the WW2 Japanese Occupation. The video will then cover the unique and little-known events which took place immediately after the surrender Japan.

The main talk will be a PowerPoint presentation by Phil Everitt:
“The Spirit of Man”
This will explore the life in POW camps in Germany during WW2 and especially how the indomitable spirit of humans will adapt to and triumph in extremely difficult circumstances.

This is also true of the German captors and the relationship between captor and captive.

It is based on the experiences in Stalag 4B where many South Africans captured at Tobruk were interned with all other Nationalities in a camp housing up to 30 000 POWs.

Full details of the meeting will be in the March Notice and Newsletter but remember to reserve the date Saturday, 8th March 2025.

Membership 2025

Please may I once again remind the few outstanding members to pay as soon as they are able, as we receive a percentage back as subsidy from National Office based on subscriptions paid.
Subscriptions:
Single R320
Family R340
NB Please do not pay in the difference if you have already paid. The amount of R20 will be carried forward - genuinely - to 2026 subscription invoices.”

Please pay via EFT, to account below to avoid Bank Charges below incurred by cash deposits as banks nowadays do not like cash!
If paying by cash deposit please add R100.00 for bank charges !

FIRST NATIONAL BANK EASTGATE,
Branch code 257705;
a/c no. 50391928346;
name S.A. Military History Society

REMEMBER your NAME as reference!!
A discount is given to members over 80 years. - contact scribe@samilitaryhistory.org if applicable

If you are attending meetings as a guest, please consider joining – details at National website:
http://samilitaryhistory.org/applic25.pdf

Journal

I have copies of the Journal for the following members and will bring them to the meeting where you may collect them:
Suberg, Rowe, Dubi, Clarke Smith, Hart, Bowman, Mills, Oliver, Trinder, G A Isacks, G R Isacks, de Souza, Cooke, Pickles, and Matthew Everitt.

Book

I have been sent an unpublished draft copy of an updated version of the now difficult to obtain book by Tylden on the “THE ARMED FORCES OF SOUTH AFRICA” by Gordon Angus Mackinlay, now resident in Australia. This is titled:
“FIGHTERS – SOLDIERS – WARRIORS - THE ARMED FORCES OFSOUTHERN AFRICA 1652 TO 2024”. Due to declining health and other circumstances the author is unable to publish but as he has put a great deal of work into it especially post 1950’s, (and this is obvious when it is consulted). This modern update is I think unique. He has asked that it be distributed as widely as possible. Interested members should email me and I will send the full pdf by return email.

That’s all for now folks, see you on THIS Saturday the 15th February 2025! Please spread the news of the meetings and encourage others to come along.

Regards
Phil
P R Everitt
Chair KZN Branch SAMHS
Cell or WhatsApp: 0844371636