Major General Ralph Arthur Penrhyn Clements, (9 February 1855 – 2 April 1909), commonly known as R. A. P. Clements, was a senior

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer. Clements, the son of a churchman, fought in the

Xhosa War The Xhosa Wars (also known as the Cape Frontier Wars or the Kaffir Wars) were a series of nine wars (from 1779 to 1879) between the Xhosa Kingdom and the British Empire as well as Trekboers from the Dutch colonial empire in what is now the Ea ...

of 1877–1878 and the

Anglo-Zulu War The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in present-day South Africa from January to early July 1879 between forces of the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Two famous battles of the war were the Zulu victory at Battle of Isandlwana, Isandlwana and th ...

as a junior officer. He was twice wounded during the

Third Anglo-Burmese War The Third Anglo-Burmese War (), also known as the Third Burma War, took place during 7–29 November 1885, with sporadic resistance continuing into 1887. It was the final of three wars fought in the 19th century between the Burmese and the Br ...

while serving as a

brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

, being

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. After commanding a battalion of the

South Wales Borderers The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...

during the late 1890s, he was appointed a brigade commander during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

. Clements commanded the

Colesberg Colesberg is a town with 17,354 inhabitants in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, located on the main N1 road from Cape Town to Johannesburg. In a sheep-farming area spread over half-a-million hectares, greater Colesberg breeds ma ...

front in early 1900, but was surprised at the

Battle of Nooitgedacht In the Battle of Nooitgedacht on 13 December 1900, Boer commandos led by Generals Koos de la Rey and Christiaan Beyers combined to deal a defeat to a British brigade under the command of Major General R. A. P. Clements during the Second Boer W ...

in December, managing to extricate his force from the latter. After the Boer War he served in India, rising to divisional command before his death.

Early life and career

Clements was born at

Upton St Leonards Upton St Leonards is a village in the English county of Gloucestershire. Forming part of the district of Stroud, it is a mile or so north of the A46 road between Stroud and Cheltenham. Facilities The village has two four-star hotels (Hatton ...

on 9 February 1855, the son of Reverend Jacob Clements, a local sub-dean and

Canon Residentiary Canon () is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, in one of the houses within the precinct of ...

, and was educated at the

Rossall School Rossall School is a private Day school, day and boarding school, boarding school in the United Kingdom for 0–18 year olds, between Cleveleys and Fleetwood, Lancashire. Rossall was founded in 1844 by St. Vincent Beechey, St Vincent Beechey as a ...

. He transferred from the militia to the British Army on 2 December 1874, and served as a lieutenant of the

24th Regiment of Foot Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * Fourth (album), ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 ...

in South Africa. Clements fought at the Battle of Nyumaga during the

of 1877–1878, being

on 26 February 1878. He became adjutant of his battalion on 27 July 1879 and served at the

Battle of Ulundi The Battle of Ulundi took place at the Zulu capital of Ulundi () on 4 July 1879 and was the last battle of the Anglo-Zulu War. The British Army broke the military power of the Zulu Kingdom by defeating the main Zulu army and capturing and bu ...

during the 1879

. For his service, Clements received the South Africa Medal with clasp; he continued to serve with the regiment when it became the South Wales Borderers and was promoted to captain on 4 December 1880, becoming a company commander. Clements became battalion adjutant again on 26 October 1882, holding the position until promoted to major on 24 February 1886. He served as a

during the Burma Expedition and as

Assistant Provost Marshal Provost marshal is a title given to a person in charge of a group of Military Police (MP). The title originated with an older term for MPs, '' provosts'', from the Old French (Modern French ). While a provost marshal is now usually a senior c ...

, being twice wounded in battle (once severely) and mentioned in dispatches on 22 June 1886. Clements rejoined his battalion in early 1886 and remained with them until 1889. Clements received the India General Service Medal with clasps and was brevetted lieutenant colonel in July 1887 for his actions. Awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

in 1891, he was made an Aide-de-camp to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

on 2 December 1896. On 8 April 1897 Clements was promoted to command of the 2nd Battalion, South Wales Borderers.

Second Boer War

During the

, on 20 November 1899 Clements was selected to take command of the unit that became the 12th Brigade of the 6th Division at

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

. He departed for South Africa on 4 December with the temporary rank of major general and the substantive rank of colonel. Clements took over command on the

front from Major General John French in late January and held it with lesser forces against the attacks of Boer commander

Koos de la Rey Jacobus Herculaas de la Rey (pronounced phonetically as "Ya-qui-bis Hehr-key-lahs de la Ray") (22 October 1847 – 15 September 1914), better known as Koos de la Rey, was a South African military officer who served as a Boer general during the ...

. On 12 February, after the action at Pink Hill, Clements shortened his line in the face of the Boer advance by retreating to Rensburg siding. After the victories of Field Marshal Frederick Roberts on the western front, the Boers retreated and Clements took Colesberg on 28 February. He was in command of forces occupying the South-Western part of the

Orange Free State The Orange Free State ( ; ) was an independent Boer-ruled sovereign republic under British suzerainty in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century, which ceased to exist after it was defeated and surrendered to the British Em ...

in March 1900, including

Fauresmith Fauresmith is located 130 km south west of Bloemfontein, South Africa. The town, named after Rev Phillip Faure and Sir Harry Smith, is the second oldest town in the Free State. Fauresmith is the only town in South Africa, and one of only t ...

, the second largest city. He led his brigade (column) under the command of

Archibald Hunter General Sir Archibald Hunter, (6 September 1856 – 28 June 1936) was a senior officer in the British Army who distinguished himself during the Boer War. He was Governor of Omdurman, in Sudan, and later of Gibraltar. Early life Archibald Hunt ...

during the advance into the

Brandwater Basin The Brandwater Basin is the drainage basin of the Brandwater River (Afrikaans: Brandwaterrivier), a tributary of the Grootspruit River in the south-east of Orange Free State, South Africa, north of Lesotho. The basin is situated south of Bethle ...

during July 1900. Due to the slow movement of his supply convoy, the advance of the column into the

Drakensberg The Drakensberg (Zulu language, Zulu: uKhahlamba, Sotho language, Sotho: Maloti, Afrikaans: Drakensberge) is the eastern portion of the Great Escarpment, Southern Africa, Great Escarpment, which encloses the central South Africa#Geography, Sout ...

was delayed until 20 July. For the attack of Hunter's force, Clements and Arthur Paget's columns were tasked with attacking Slabbert's Nek in the Boer centre. Slebbert's Nek was taken with little resistance and the columns joined Hunter and advanced to

Fouriesburg Fouriesburg is a small town situated at the junction of the R711 and R26 routes in the eastern Free State, South Africa. It is near the Maluti Mountains and only 10 km from Caledon's Poort border post, which gives access to Lesotho. His ...

, after which a large Boer force under General

Marthinus Prinsloo Marthinus Prinsloo (1838 - 1903) was an Orange Free State Boer farmer, politician and general in the Second Boer War (1899-1902). He was born of Nicolaas Frans Prinsloo (1813 - 1890) and Isabella Johanna Petronella Rautenbach (1819-around 1908) ...

surrendered to them. Clements' column moved into the Magalies valley in September and remained there for the next three months, burning farms there so effectively that the area became a "blackened desert" according to the historian Thomas Pakenham. Clements encamped at Nooitgedacht on 8 December, in a position that provided him with a water supply and

heliograph A heliograph () is a solar telegraph system that signals by flashes of sunlight (generally using Morse code from the 1840s) reflected by a mirror. The flashes are produced by momentarily pivoting the mirror, or by interrupting the beam with a s ...

communication, though dominated by the

Magaliesberg The Magaliesberg (historically also known as ''Macalisberg'' or ''Cashan Mountains'') of northern South Africa, is a modest but well-defined mountain range composed mainly of quartzites. It rises at a point south of the Pilanesberg (and the ...

. His 1,200-strong force was attacked at dawn on 13 December by more than 1,500 Boers under de la Rey and

Christian Frederick Beyers Christiaan Frederik Beyers (23 September 1869 – 8 December 1914) was a Boer attorney, politician and general during the Second Boer War and one of the leaders of the pro-German Maritz rebellion (1914 – 1915) against the government of the U ...

. The three hundred dispersed pickets he had posted on the ridge were swiftly overrun and surrendered. After Boer fire was directed on his camp, Clements began a retreat with the remaining half of his force to Yeomanry Hill in the valley, out of range of the Boers on the ridge. Due to Boer exhaustion and looting of his camp, Clements managed an orderly retreat towards

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

that afternoon. Clements subsequently commanded the districts of Pretoria and

Standerton Standerton is a large commercial and agricultural town lying on the banks of the Vaal River in Mpumalanga, South Africa, which specialises in cattle, dairy, maize and poultry farming. The town was established in 1876 and named after Boer leader Co ...

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

. He was mentioned in dispatches on 4 May 1900, 16 April 1901, and 29 July 1902, and received the Queen's medal with three clasps and the King's medal with two clasps. Following the end of the war in June 1902, he held a staff appointment at Cape Town for several months, then arrived home on the ''SS Saxon'' in late December 1902.

Later life

He was made an aide-de-camp to

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

in 1901 and a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

in 1904. On 1 February of that year, he was sent to India as a major general in the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

to command a second class district at

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

, which became the Sirhind Brigade of the

3rd (Lahore) Division The 3rd (Lahore) Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army and before 1895, the Bengal Army, first organised in 1852. It saw service during World War I as part of the Indian Corps in France before being moved to the Middle East where ...

under the

Kitchener Reforms The Indian Army was the force of British India, until national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and the princely states, which could also have ...

. Clements was appointed commander of the

4th (Quetta) Division The 4th (Quetta) Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army. It was formed by Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener, General Kitchener while he was Commander-in-chief of British Raj, India. During World War I the division rema ...

on 1 December 1907, and died on 2 April 1909 at

Quetta Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a ...

from complications resulting from an

appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the Appendix (anatomy), appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and anorexia (symptom), decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these t ...

operation. He was buried in the New Cemetery at Quetta.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * 1855 births 1909 deaths British Militia officers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army major generals Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Distinguished Service Order South Wales Borderers officers British Army personnel of the Anglo-Zulu War British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Burmese War People educated at Rossall School {{DEFAULTSORT:Clements, Ralph Arthur Penrhyn People from Stroud District Military personnel from Gloucestershire