Newsletter No. 565
February 2026
The SAMHS is a non-profit society of enthusiasts dedicated to the study, recording and dissemination of military aspects of history
NOTICE OF FEBRUARY 2026 MEETING
The monthly meeting of the KZN Branch of the SAMHS will take place ON THE REVISED DATE OF 21st FEBRUARY 2026
The DDH introductory short talk will be by Roy Bowman and will cover: The sinking of HMS Glorious in the early days of WWII.
The sinking of Glorious together with her escorts led to the largest loss of life of the Royal Navy in WWII and has been controversial ever since with the findings of the Admiralty Board of enquiry sealed for 100 years. But much of the story has seeped out and Roy will provide us with the facts as known today.
The main talk will be by Col Brian Adams, who previously gave us the excellent presentation on his time as OC of the Bushmen Battalion in the Border War.
This time he will enlighten us on:
The Role and Function of a Military Attaché
and on his personal experiences as Military Attaché in Taipei (Taiwan) Republic of China during the period 1986/1989. This will be a unique and somewhat different presentation from our usuals, by an excellent speaker and should not be missed.
The meeting will take place on SATURDAY 21st February 2026 at 1.30 for 2.00pm.
The venue is the St Cyprians Church Hall off Umbilo Rd, with secure parking and liquid refreshments available for cash.
Entry is free and open to all, with visitors welcome, but a donation of R20 for the car guard and which also gives entry into the monthly raffle is requested from all attendees.
Enquiries to Phil Everitt,
Chair KZN Branch, SAMHS,
Cell or WhatsApp: 0844371636
NEWSLETTER
1. Past January Meeting
In January, the SA Military History Society featured two illustrated presentations. The first short talk was by Lt Col Laurence Palmer, former OC of Oribi Commando, who spoke on the “History of Oribi Commando and its Antecedent and Associated Units 1865 to 2007”.
He is the author of the book with the same name and signed copies were available for order along with copies of the newer history of the UMR and Col Palmer’s autobiography all at the reasonable price of R350 each.
For those who ordered, he has the books and will bring them to a meeting avoiding the cost of postage and packing. Unfortunately, he is not able to attend the February meeting due to the revised date but will bring them to the March meeting.
The second (main talk) was by Phil Everitt and was entitled,
“The Spirit of Man”
Dedicated to his father who was taken prisoner at Tobruk in 1942 and spent 3 years as a prisoner in Italy and especially Germany. It was based on his experiences but made extensive use of other prisoners’ narratives and especially pages and extracts from “The Observer” a wall newspaper consisting of single issues produced by hand and circulated through the barrack huts. The narrative showed how the captives indomitable spirit developed and adapted to the harsh life and helped by Red Cross food parcels they managed to survive.
2. Looking Forward to MARCH 2026
PLEASE NOTE: The March meeting will, as usual, take place on the SECOND Saturday, 14th March, meetings will revert unless otherwise advised to our usual 2nd Saturday of the month.
The main talk for March will be on the call-up and deployment of the tanks of the NMR to the border. It will be given by WOl (Ret) Johan Bodenstein.
This will be preceded by a PowerPoint and video on the Centurion Tank from its original design brief through its operational history with many countries, until its debut as the Oliphant tank in South Africa.
3 The Event which knocked us from our scheduled 14th February to the 21st February.
Noting that the 14th is Valentine’s Day and that many of our members who do not travel at night but may still want to spoil the love of their life, it is possible that they will find this show of interest!
Please note this event is independent of SAMHS and St Cyprian’s but as the church hall is used St Cyprians will derive benefit from the hire charge and refreshments. Booking as per the advert above.
4 Journals
Note that I have received the latest SAMHS Journals and will bring them to the meeting to distribute.
5 Presenters wanted.
Note that we do still have openings for short (20-minute) DDHs and 45-minute main talks and are always looking for speakers in terms of volunteers, or suggestions. Please approach the Chair or a committee member should you know of any possibles.
That’s all for now folks, please do your best to attend on Saturday 21st February and if possible, bring a friend to boost numbers and help recruit new members!
Regards
Phil
P R Everitt,
Chair KZN Branch, SAMHS,
Cell or WhatsApp: 0844371636
South African Military History Society / scribe@samilitaryhistory.org