Ralph Pringle Interviewing Private Ward V.C. Hero in Leeds (1901)
An ordinary hero of the Boer War in a curious silent 'interview'.
Private Charles Ward was a Leeds infantryman who returned from the Boer War a local hero, bearer of the last Victoria Cross awarded by the Queen herself. This intriguing item shows him interviewed - silent - by showman and regular Mitchell and Kenyon collaborator Ralph Pringle, who clearly saw Ward's newfound celebrity as an opportunity to attract a large paying audience of proud locals.
The screening of this film was apparently accompanied by the local regiment the Leeds Rifles. It's not clear, though, whether a commentator would have spoken some of Ward's words (though Pringle is seen taking some notes during the interview). Private Ward's Second Battalian Yorkshire Light Infantry was overwhelmed by Boer forces at Lindley, South Africa, in June 1900. With his officers all dead or wounded, Ward crossed enemy lines to deliver a message calling for reinforcements, and was seriously wounded in the process. Ward's elevation to the status of national hero reflects a trend in the Victorian and Edwardian periods of honouring the bravery of ordinary 'Tommies'; previously accolades had been reserved for the officer class. All the same, the more celebrated Boer War heroes still tended to be officers, among them Lords Kitchener and Roberts (both of whom turn up in more than one Mitchell & Kenyon film).
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England Expects
The military loomed large in Victorian society - and filmmakers were naturally eager to satisfy public interest in military subjects.
In the hierarchy of Victorian celebrity culture, military heroes came second only to the Queen herself. With the British Empire at its peak, filmmakers jostled for glimpses of conquering heroes like Lord Kitchener and Field-Marshal Roberts.
The second Boer War was the first major conflict of the film era, and a few intrepid pioneers travelled with their cameras to South Africa. Military commanders kept them away from the front lines, meaning they rarely captured anything of the fighting, the footage they sent home gave filmgoers an unprecedented window on the war. Other filmmakers, meanwhile, were content to re-enact skirmishes at home, or to film processions of departing or returning troops to excite patriotic audiences.
56 videos in this collection
1
2
Coldstream Guards Embarking on Troopship Gascon
3
H.M.S. "Powerful" Arriving in Portsmouth Harbour
4
Lord Roberts Presenting Medals to Boer War Volunteers in Liverpool (1901)
5
Wooden Walls of Old England
6
Royal Scots Regiment at Edinburgh Castle (1901)
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Battle of Spion Kop: Ambulance Corps Crossing the Tugela River (1) (1900)
8
A Skirmish with the Boers near Kimberley by a Troop of Cavalry Scouts Attached to General French's Column
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Tommies on the March
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Warships at Sunset
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Dispersing the Troops at Windsor after Parade
12
Norton No. 57
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Trafalgar Day London 1900
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Lancers Crossing the Modder River
15
Sailors on H.M.S. Black Prince Firing Cannon and Rifles
16
Train Load of C.I.V.s Leaving Southampton
17
War Balloon and Transport Crossing the Vaal River
18
Colonial Troops and Cavalry on the March
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French Military Procession
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Gymnasts on Parallel Bars
21
Lord Roberts Hoisting the Union Jack at Pretoria
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Military Parade
23
Bluejackets' Field Gun Drill at Durban
24
Soldiers March along a Road
25
The Arrival and Reception of Lord Roberts at Capetown
26
The Gordon Highlanders
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Parade of Troops with Band and Crowds Following
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1st Volunteer Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment - Blackburn Rifle Volunteers (1900)
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The 5-inch Siege Guns Crossing Vaal River
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Artillery Crossing a River
31
The Australian Mounted Rifles Marching through Cape Town
32
Bayonet Drill
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Duke and Duchess of York at Conway
34
Entry of the Scots' Guards into Bloemfontein
35
Field Ambulances Crossing the Vaal River
36
The Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers Digging Entrenchments at Orange River, South Africa - The passing of the armoured train
37
Gordon Highlanders Leaving for the Boer War
38
Indian Army Parade
39
Infantry at Pretoria (c.1900)
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Mounting and Dismounting a 3-ton Gun
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Troopship Nubia Leaving Harbour
42
King's Liverpool Regiment
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Lord Roberts' Arrival in London
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Lord Roberts Leaving for South Africa
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C.I.V. Procession. Cyclists and Infantry
46
Lord Roberts' Visit to Manchester (1901)
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Manchester's Welcome to the Imperial Yeomanry (1901)
48
Military Sunday in Newcastle
49
President Kruger
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Ralph Pringle Interviewing Private Ward V.C. Hero in Leeds (1901)
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Sir George White Leaving the London Hippodrome
52
The Return of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment (1901)
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Return of the Brave Manchester Volunteers (1901)
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The Seaforth Highlanders' Return to Cairo after the Fall of Omdurman and Khartoum
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The Surrender of Kroonstad to Lord Roberts
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