7247613153 John James Scott Chisholme (1 August 1851 – 21 October 1899) was a British cavalry officer who died heroically leading a charge that turned the

Battle of Elandslaagte The Battle of Elandslaagte (21 October 1899) was a battle of the Second Boer War, and one of the few clear-cut tactical victories won by the British during the conflict. However, the British force retreated afterwards, throwing away their advan ...

in the

Second Anglo-Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

Biography

Chisholme was the son of John Chisholme and Margaret Walker and was born at

Stirches Stirches is an area of Hawick in the Scottish Borders, mostly consisting of ex-council housing built in 1973. It is often considered to be one of the more desirable housing schemes in the town. See also *Wilton Dean *List of places in the Scottish ...

in Scotland. His father succeeded to the estate of his maternal uncle, James Scott of Whitehaugh, and under the terms of the latter's will, assumed the surname of Scott in addition to his own. Scott-Chisholme was educated at

Loretto School Loretto School, founded in 1827, is an independent boarding and day school for boys and girls aged 0 to 18. The campus occupies in Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland. History The school was founded by the Reverend Thomas Langhorne in 1827. L ...

, Musselburgh, and

Repton School Repton School is a 13–18 Mixed-sex education, co-educational, Independent school (United Kingdom), independent, Day school, day and boarding school in the English Public school (United Kingdom), public school tradition, in Repton, Derbyshire, ...

. He joined the

9th Queen's Royal Lancers The 9th Queen's Royal Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1715. It saw service for three centuries, including the First and Second World Wars. The regiment survived the immediate post-war reduction in forces, but w ...

in 1872, and was promoted to Captain in March, 1878. He served with the 9th Lancers in the

Second Anglo-Afghan War The Second Anglo-Afghan War (Dari: جنگ دوم افغان و انگلیس, ps, د افغان-انګرېز دويمه جګړه) was a military conflict fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1878 to 1880, when the l ...

of 1878-80, and was present at the capture of Ali Musjid, in the affair at Siah Sung where he was severely wounded. He also took part in the operations around Kabul in December 1879 and was again wounded. In 1881 he became Brevet-major in March being awarded the medal with two clasps, and became Major in December 1884. In May 1889, he was transferred to the

5th Royal Irish Lancers The 5th Royal Irish Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It saw service for three centuries, including the First World War. It amalgamated with the 16th The Queen's Lancers to become the 16th/5th Lancers in 1922. History Early wa ...

and was military secretary to

Lord Connemara Robert Bourke, 1st Baron Connemara, (; ; ; ; 11 June 1827 – 3 September 1902) was a British Conservative politician and colonial administrator who served as Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (1874–80, 1885–86) and Governor of ...

, who was governor of

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

from 1886 to 1890. Subsequently he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel in August 1894, and brevet-colonel in 1898. Although he retired in 1899 he then volunteered for service in the

. cited in As Colonel he became the first commander of the

Imperial Light Horse Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texas ...

formed of 444 men including officers, chosen from among 5,000 volunteers. He was killed at the regiment’s first battle at the

on 21 October 1899 leading from the front and waving a red scarf. Chisholme was the last in the male line of an ancient border family. Conan Doyle wrote:

Rayne Kruger Charles Rayne Kruger (29 January 1922 – 21 December 2002) was a South African author and property developer. Charles Rayne Kruger was born on 29 January 1922 in Queenstown, in the Eastern Cape, the son of an unmarried 17-year-old daughter o ...

wrote: Thomas Parkenham wrote:

References

External links

Photo of memorial in Ladysmith cemetery
listing Col Scott-Chisholme, from

Genealogical Society of South Africa The Genealogical Society of South Africa is a family history society. The society consists of 11 regional branches as well as an electronic branch accessible online. The society maintains a large archive of Genealogical material related to South ...

online library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Scott-Chisholme, John James 1851 births 1899 deaths People educated at Repton School 5th Royal Irish Lancers officers 9th Queen's Royal Lancers officers People from Hawick British military personnel of the Second Anglo-Afghan War British military personnel killed in the Second Boer War British Army personnel of the Second Boer War People educated at Loretto School, Musselburgh Imperial Light Horse officers