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Rhodesian Services Association Incorporated |
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Background and facts: Ten or more years ago Dave Gordon, son of my late Dad's half section in Burma Ginge Gordon, wrote to me suggesting that a book on the Indep Companies in Rhodesia should be written. This idea stagnated with me for a time. Sometime around July 2007 I approached Chris Cocks with the idea of writing a book on the history of the Rhodesia Regiment. We approached Alex Binda who had recently completed The Saints and Masodja. Alex agreed to take on the task. In 2009 disagreement arose between the three parties and Alex Binda went his own way and sought a new publisher. We took stock of the situation and many people who had supplied material at my instigation, agreed to cede the rights to that material to the Rhodesian Services Association. Current phase: The objective of this book is to record the unit's history. It is not about who writes the book. This regiment has a proud history dating back to 1898. We have set in place a management group and an author. The sponsor and 'trustee' of this book is the Rhodesian Services Association. We are seeking input from anyone who has information, photos or links to the Rhodesia Regiment. All material will be correctly acknowledged. This can be sent to: Chris Cocks, email info@30degreessouth.co.za tel +27 11-839 4671 fax +27 11-839 4670 Hugh Bomford, email hbomford@clear.net.nz tel +64 7 576 9500 fax +64 7 576 9501 cell +64 275 45 8069 postal address PO Box 13003, Tauranga 3141, New Zealand. Your input is important to the development of this book. This cartoon was specially drawn for this project by Vic Mackenzie.
There is a wonderful wealth of interesting facts about the Rhodesia Regiment and some of the famous people who served in it. Below is something to tantalise you extracted from Contact! Contact! - October 2009. "We have had some really interesting material come in and we welcome more. Some of the material received covered Sir Arthur ‘Bomber’ Harris former Marshal of the royal Air Force in WWII and bugler in the 1st Battalion Rhodesia Regiment in WWI. He farmed around Salisbury before WWI. Farm names Crofton Townsend and Gibson’s have come to light. If anyone has any information on these farms please contact us. Another gem gives us the details we had been seeking that link the Rhodesia Regiment to the 6th Hauraki Battalion Group via through a common alliance with various British regiments which today form The Rifles. The Hauraki Regiment and Rhodesia regiment share the same year of formation – 1898. In simple terms the regimental family tree runs like this: In 1914 Capt. J.B. Brady set out with a number of Rhodesians from Cape Town bound for South Hampton. A fellow passenger asked them where they were going. “To France” was the prompt and spirited reply to which the passenger identified himself as the Marquis of Winchester and explained to the keen Rhodesian warriors that it was not as simple as they imagined to join the war effort against Germany and that they must first join a British regiment. He invited them to join his regiment, the King’s Royal Rifle Corps (60th Rifles). On a more sober note, of that platoon that joined The King’s Royal Rifle Corps only twelve were still alive on the 11th November 1918. Thus began the association between the Rhodesia Regiment and The King’s Royal Rifle Corps which can be seen through various parts of the Rhodesia regiment uniform. The Hauraki Regiment’s first Regimental Alliance began in 1913 with the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry. In 1958 the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry were brigaded with The King’s Royal Rifle Corps. The King’s Royal Rifle Corps titles are thus: 1755 The 62nd (Royal American) Foot 1966 redesigned 2nd Battalion The Royal Green Jackets (The King’s Royal Rifle Corps) 1968 redesigned 2nd Battalion The Royal Green Jackets Other material concerns the 1937 Coronation where we learned that that the Rhodesians were the second contingent of Empire troops to land in England behind the Australians. The Rhodesians, wearing their knee length shorts, together with the Australians had the place to themselves and it appears they had a hectic round of social engagements which they bravely endured and were injected with renewed vigour upon the arrival of the New Zealanders followed by the other Empire troops from Canada, West, East and South Africa, India, Malaya, Hong Kong, Somaliland, Aden, Fiji and Mauritius. It seems like they had one hell of a party but to get the full story you will have wait until this book is released!"
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The Rhodesia Regiment - book project 
