A poignant ceremony in Saltash marked the death 125 years ago of a gallant Cornishman who died serving his country in the second Boer war in 1899.

The commemoration service on Wednesday, October 23, at 11am paid tribute to Major General William Penn Symons KCB for the first time since the unveiling of a memorial in his honour in Victoria Gardens, Saltash two years after his death. 

Guests included direct descendants of the General, the Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall, Lord Mayor of Plymouth, and local Civic and professional dignitaries. The Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall attended the tribute alongside the Lord Mayor of Plymouth, mayor of Saltash, former MP Sheryll Murray, and Capt Chris Keegan on behalf of the South Wales Borders and Royal Welsh regiment, with cadets from HMS Raleigh.

The inscription on the tall granite monument which bears a depiction of the General and still takes pride of place in the gardens today states: This monument was erected by his countrymen at home and abroad to the memory of Major General Sir William Penn Symons KCB who fell while commanding the British troops at Talana Hill Natal on October 20, 1899.

The monument was unveiled by Earl of Mount Edgcumbe on Wednesday, September 18, 1901 in a well-attended ceremony as shown in old black and white photographs from the time; it goes some way to explaining the gratitude and the esteem in which he was held.

It’s said, the news of his death had stunned the nation. He had served the country for 36 years and died at just 57 years of age. He was the first General Officer to be killed in the Boer War and Winston Churchill gave a eulogy on his passing paying tribute to the Cornishman from Hatt.

The project to remember Penn Symons this October was, say the committee who organised it, ‘by the community and for the community’. The team of three led by RN veteran Barry Brooking alongside Beverly Gordon, and Saltash town councillor John Brady, found in their research that October 23, 2024 was the 125th anniversary of his death.

The team also discovered that there had been no other commemoration of Penn Symons since the unveiling of his memorial in Victoria Gardens in 1901. They decided to pay tribute to the General in a ceremony not dissimilar to that at the time of the monument’s unveiling.

Barry led the ceremony in front of the monument and spoke at length outlining the life of the Hatt man who was mortally wounded in the battle of Talana Hill, Natal in the bitterly fought colonial war in South Africa. It was a chance to pay respects to a family and man so prominent in the history of Saltash and the surrounding parish.

Sir William lived at Hatt House, just outside Saltash. He was educated at Crediton and Sandhurst, and commissioned as an Ensign in the 24th Regiment of Foot in 1863 which later became the South Wales Borderers and then the Royal Welsh Regiment. He was considered, Barry Brooking told those gathered, ‘brave, a 'firebrand' and mentioned in dispatches many times for his valour’.

The General had a distinguished military career rising quickly though the ranks, serving in the jewel in Britain’s crown, India, in Burma and in the Zulu and Boer wars. He found himself commander of a force sent to Natal, near the mining town of Dundee in South Africa. He’d been sent to Natal as diplomatic relations with the Boers deteriorated and was to take precautionary measures in case hostilities broke out. He was in command of the advance British position in Dundee with four battalions of infantry, three batteries of artillery and one cavalry regiment when war was declared on October 12, 1899.  

The British attitude, as the war began, was that the Transvaal Boers, mostly farmers seeking to push back British advances, would be easy to defeat. The reality proved to be very different and the Boers surprised all by advancing on Natal with armies of thousands of men. They were driven back from Talana Hill, but at a cost. There were heavy casualties on the British side including Penn Symons. 

The General had been mortally wounded during the Boer attack. The Boer guns are said to have opened fire at 5.30am when the General was having breakfast. Barry Brooking explained: “He had a wry sense of humour and complained that the enemy had started the action too early and before he had finished his breakfast!”

The General had been shot in the stomach announcing "I am mortally wounded". He was carried back into camp in excruciating pain. While being transported to hospital, his is said to have asked: “Have they got the hill?”   

It is understood that his last words to his doctors in hospital at Dundee near Ladysmith, before passing away three days later, were: “Tell everyone that I died facing the enemy”. He passed away from his stomach injuries on October 23, a few hours after the Boers entered Dundee. 

He was mentioned in the despatch of Sir George White, the commander of the forces at Natal in December 2, 1899, for his ‘energy and courage’. Sir White considered the country had lost ‘an officer of high ability and a leader of exceptional valour’. 

The Boer General Piet Joubert sent a letter of condolence to his widow and after his death he was treated with great respect by the Boers and given a funeral with full military honours, wrapped in the Union flag, and buried in Dundee.

Mr Brooking revealed during his speech, that like the General’s family, he too has visited the General’s burial site on a visit to Dundee to pay his respects ‘as fellow citizen of Saltash’.

The family still resides in the Hatt home of Sir William who enjoyed fishing, hunting and shooting in the local countryside. He was said to has the finest moustache in the British Army, and was a quiet and unassuming man. His great great nephew Heugh Symons said of the tribute: “He would have been surprised and even a bit bemused, but he did like a party.” 

Attending together with his brother Andrew Joscelyne, Fiona Symons and Sarah Tooley, Heugh explained that the family still speak about Sir William referring to him fondly as ‘Uncle Penn’. He’s still very much in their thoughts with three daughters sharing the middle name of Penn to keep it alive in the family. 

Heugh commenting on the community tribute, said: “We were delighted to think that his memory carries on as a Saltash man and as a Cornishman. There’s a fantastic monument here, and a great turnout of approximately one hundred people I think, so well done Barry. We’re thrilled, we’re delighted.”

Any tribute to a gallant Cornishman wouldn’t be complete without a rendition of Trelawny, the anthem of Cornwall; those gathered also sang Penn Symon’s favourite hymn Onward Christian Soldiers finishing with the national anthem.

A service at St Mary’s parish church in Botus Fleming, followed the tribute in Saltash and also remembered the man with military music and hymns, attended by the rural dean Michael Johnson. A memorial window and carved altar are dedicated to the gallant son of Saltash playing testament to his bravery and his ultimate sacrifice in serving his country and his parish.