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Robert Jones (VC)
Encyclopedia
Robert Jones VC
(19 August 1857 - 6 September 1898) was a Welsh recipient of the Victoria Cross
for his actions at the Battle of Rorke's Drift in January 1879, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth
forces.
He was born at Penrhos near Clytha between Raglan
and Abergavenny
in Monmouthshire
, Wales.
in the 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot (later The South Wales Borderers
), British Army
during the Zulu War. For their roles inside the hospital at Rorke's Drift
, he and Pte. 593 William Jones
were each awarded the VC by Sir Garnet Wolseley in Utrecht, Transvaal.
Privates Robert and William Jones were posted in a room of the hospital facing the hill. They kept up a steady fire against enormous odds. While one worked to cut a hole through the partition into the next room, the other shot Zulu after Zulu through the loophooled walls, using his own and his comrade's rifle alternately as the barrels became too hot to hold from the incessant firing. By their united efforts six out of the seven patients were saved by being carried through the broken partition. The seventh, Sgt. Maxfield, was delirious and refused to be helped. When Robert Jones returned to take the Sergeant to safety by force he found him in his bed being stabbed by the Zulus.
Robert Jones himself suffered four Assegai
spear wounds, was struck by a bullet and had minor burns.
where he became a farm labourer and married Elizabeth Hopkins having 5 children, Robert Jones jnr, Edith Emily East (née Jones), Alice Smith (née Jones) Lilly Rose Griffiths (née Jones) & Ellen Kelly (née Jones) called Nellie by the family.
He died in Peterchurch
, Herefordshire from gunshot wounds in 1898 aged 41 years. He had borrowed his employer's shotgun to go crow shooting. A verdict of suicide whilst temporarily insane was passed. The Coroner heard how he was plagued with recurring nightmares following his desperate hand to hand combat with Zulus
. His widow Elizabeth later re-married.
His body is interred in Peterchurch churchyard with the gravestone facing a different way to all the others. In 1998 a national newspaper started a campaign to have it realigned but this has not happened yet.
His Victoria Cross passed out of the family and was bought in 1996 for £80,000, defeating a bid from the regimental museum. It is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Galley at the Imperial War Museum
, London.
In the 1964 film Zulu
, he was portrayed by actor Denys Graham.
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
(19 August 1857 - 6 September 1898) was a Welsh recipient of the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
for his actions at the Battle of Rorke's Drift in January 1879, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
forces.
He was born at Penrhos near Clytha between Raglan
Raglan, Monmouthshire
Raglan is a village in Monmouthshire, south east Wales, United Kingdom. It is located some 9 miles south-west of Monmouth, midway between Monmouth and Abergavenny on the A40 road very near to the junction with the A449 road...
and Abergavenny
Abergavenny
Abergavenny , meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches...
in Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire (historic)
Monmouthshire , also known as the County of Monmouth , is one of thirteen ancient counties of Wales and a former administrative county....
, Wales.
Military achievements
He was 21 years old, and a privatePrivate (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
in the 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot (later The South Wales Borderers
The South Wales Borderers
The South Wales Borderers was an infantry regiment of the British Army. It first came into existence, as the 24th Regiment of Foot, in 1689, but was not called the South Wales Borderers until 1881. The regiment served in a great many conflicts, including the American Revolutionary War, various...
), British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
during the Zulu War. For their roles inside the hospital at Rorke's Drift
Rorke's Drift
The Battle of Rorke's Drift, also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was a battle in the Anglo-Zulu War. The defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenant John Chard of the Royal Engineers, immediately followed the British Army's defeat at the Battle of...
, he and Pte. 593 William Jones
William Jones (VC)
William Jones VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross for his action at the Battle of Rorke's Drift in January 1897, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.- Details :Jones was born and...
were each awarded the VC by Sir Garnet Wolseley in Utrecht, Transvaal.
Privates Robert and William Jones were posted in a room of the hospital facing the hill. They kept up a steady fire against enormous odds. While one worked to cut a hole through the partition into the next room, the other shot Zulu after Zulu through the loophooled walls, using his own and his comrade's rifle alternately as the barrels became too hot to hold from the incessant firing. By their united efforts six out of the seven patients were saved by being carried through the broken partition. The seventh, Sgt. Maxfield, was delirious and refused to be helped. When Robert Jones returned to take the Sergeant to safety by force he found him in his bed being stabbed by the Zulus.
Robert Jones himself suffered four Assegai
Assegai
An assegai or assagai is a pole weapon used for throwing or hurling, usually a light spear or javelin made of wood and pointed with iron.-Iklwa:...
spear wounds, was struck by a bullet and had minor burns.
Later life
After discharge Robert Jones settled in HerefordshireHerefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
where he became a farm labourer and married Elizabeth Hopkins having 5 children, Robert Jones jnr, Edith Emily East (née Jones), Alice Smith (née Jones) Lilly Rose Griffiths (née Jones) & Ellen Kelly (née Jones) called Nellie by the family.
He died in Peterchurch
Peterchurch
Peterchurch is a village and civil parish in the Golden Valley, Herefordshire, England, which has a Norman church, dedicated to St. Peter, built on the unusual basilica model with four, rather than three chambers. The church's foundations are thought to go back to 786, and parts of the Saxon walls...
, Herefordshire from gunshot wounds in 1898 aged 41 years. He had borrowed his employer's shotgun to go crow shooting. A verdict of suicide whilst temporarily insane was passed. The Coroner heard how he was plagued with recurring nightmares following his desperate hand to hand combat with Zulus
Zulu Kingdom
The Zulu Kingdom, sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire or, rather imprecisely, Zululand, was a monarchy in Southern Africa that extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to Pongola River in the north....
. His widow Elizabeth later re-married.
His body is interred in Peterchurch churchyard with the gravestone facing a different way to all the others. In 1998 a national newspaper started a campaign to have it realigned but this has not happened yet.
His Victoria Cross passed out of the family and was bought in 1996 for £80,000, defeating a bid from the regimental museum. It is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Galley at the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
, London.
In the 1964 film Zulu
Zulu (film)
Zulu is a 1964 historical war film depicting the Battle of Rorke's Drift between the British Army and the Zulus in January 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War....
, he was portrayed by actor Denys Graham.