Collection POL27 - Photographic Album of the Connacht Rangers

167 items

Henry Edwyn King-Tenison, 9th Earl of Kingston was born on 19 September 1874 at Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland. He was the son of Lt.-Col. Henry Newcomen King-Tenison, 8th Earl of Kingston and Frances Margaret Christina King-Tenison. He married Ethel Lisette Walker, daughter of Sir Andrew Barclay Walker, 1st Bt. and Eliza Reid, on 3 February 1897 at St. Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, London, England. He died on 11 January 1946 at age 71. He was styled as Viscount Kingsborough between 1874 and 1896. He was educated between 1888 and 1892 at Eton College, Windsor, Berkshire, England. He succeeded to the title of 9th Baron Kingston of Rockingham, co. Roscommon [I., 1764] on 13 January 1896. He succeeded to the title of 9th Viscount Kingston of Kingsborough, co. Sligo [I., 1766] on 13 January 1896. He succeeded to the title of 9th Earl of Kingston [I., 1768] on 13 January 1896. He succeeded to the title of 13th Baronet King, of Boyle Abbey, co. Roscommon [I., 1682] on 13 January 1896. He succeeded to the title of 5th Viscount Lorton of Boyle, co. Roscommon [I., 1806] on 13 January 1896. He succeeded to the title of 5th Baron Kingston of Mitchelstown, co. Cork [I., 1800] on 13 January 1896. He gained the rank of Lieutenant in 1900 in the service of the Irish Guards. He fought in the Boer War between 1900 and 1902. He gained the rank of Lieutenant in 1903 in the service of the Reserve of Officers. He gained the rank of Captain in 1914 in the service of the Irish Guards. He fought in the First World War between 1914 and 1918. He gained the rank of Captain in the service of the 5th Battalion, Connaught Rangers. He was elected a representative peer of the House of Lords in 1917.

The Connaught Rangers took part in the Second Boer War. The 1st Battalion deployed to South Africa as part of 5th (Irish) Brigade which was commanded by Major-General Fitzroy Hart. The regiment took part in the Battle of Colenso on 15 December, part of the attempt to relieve the town of Ladysmith, besieged by Boer forces. The Rangers and the rest of the 5th (Hart's) Brigade, who were on the left flank, had been forced to perform over 20 minutes of drill before the advance. The Brigade suffered heavily during their participation in the battle, the Boers inflicting heavy casualties. The advance was met with a fire from three sides that forced them to withdraw. The battle ended in defeat for the British. That battle and two previous defeats at Magersfontein and Stormberg became known as 'Black Week'. The Rangers fought at Spion Kop and the Tugela Heights during further attempts by General Sir Redvers Buller to relieve the besieged town of Ladysmith. In late February the siege of Ladysmith finally came to an end after it was relieved by British forces. The regiment was awarded the battle honour Relief of Ladysmith in addition to South Africa 1899–1902. The 5th Brigade subsequently deployed to Kimberley and took part in further operations against the Boer guerillas. The Rangers finally departed South Africa for Ireland after the Boer War ended in 1902, and were also awarded the theatre honour.

The Irish Guards was formed on 1 April 1900 by order of Queen Victoria to commemorate the Irish people who fought in the Second Boer War for the British Empire. This followed an initial suggestion from the Irish-born British Army officer Field Marshal Viscount Wolseley to allow soldiers in Irish Regiments to wear the shamrock in their headdress on St. Patrick's Day.This developed into a suggestion that an Irish Guards regiment be created. The regiment's first Colours were presented by Edward VII in May 1902 at Horse Guards Parade. A few Irish Guardsmen saw action as mounted infantry in the final stages of the Boer War. Otherwise, the Irish Guards were stationed in the United Kingdom for the first fourteen years of its existence, performing ceremonial duties in London during that time until the beginning of World War I. The 5th (Service) Battalion of the Connaught Rangers was a battalion of Kitchener's Army. The 5th Battalion was part of the K1 Group, the first New Army to be formed, and it was formed in Dublin in August 1914. It subsequently joined the 29th Brigade, 10th (Irish) Division at County Cork and in 1915 it was dispatched to Gallipoli, where it fought alongside the Royal Dublin Fusiliers and the Royal Munster Fusiliers.
The album was acquired by the James Hardiman Library in December 2004.

Photographic Album featuring images and a small number of press cuttings relating to the Connaught Rangers tour during the Second Boer War. It was possibly kept by Henry Edwyn King-Tenison, 9th Earl of Kingston. The photographs featuring the British Army in the field in semi-arid territory, as well as a number of photographs taken on board an ocean-going vessel and featuring a colder climate. There are also a number featuring fishing expeditions, and a number of images possibly from the Irish countryside and elsewhere. The press cuttings at the end follow the career of the 9th Earl of Kingston with the Irish Guards in the early 1900s.

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Open

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Bound volume containing silver gelatin prints and a small number of press cuttings.

724

Digital copies of the items in this collection were created in May 2014 by Patricia Stapleton, a volunteer archival assistant, and are also available for consultation in the James Hardiman Library Archives.

Catalog

27/08/2014
26/06/2025