Exhibition: Queenslanders on the Veldt
First Australian casualty - Private V.S. Jones
Private V.S. Jones, first Australian casualty of the South African War, Sunnyside, 1st January 1900
Image no: 34342
When Lieutenant Adie (1st Queensland Mounted Infantry) suddenly encountered a party of four Boers near Sunnyside on New Year's Day 1900, he was unsure whether they were friend or foe because they were dressed in the ordinary clothes of a farmer. He ordered them to dismount and so began the action which resulted in the first Australian casualties in South Africa.
The Queenslanders dismounted and so did the Boers, who were able to take cover, and a duel began. The Boers were reinforced by 12 of their comrades, and forced our men to retire. Private Jones was shot dead, and Lieutenant Adie badly wounded.
Private V. S. Jones, 1st QMI of Rockhampton, was the first Australian killed in action in an overseas conflict.
Copyright held by John Oxley Library. Copies of this photograph are available from the State Library of Queensland's photographic reproduction service.
Last updated: 1st June 2011
Creatively engaging people with information, knowledge and community
