0 http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kemmis Betty MC 1916-2016

Kemmis Betty when he was commanding the 2nd Battalion: his 'cool judgment, calm orders and cheerful bearing…inspired his exhausted men’. See obituary p22.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com CONTENTS

President’s Foreword 3 Chairman’s Letter 5 Editorial 7 Honorary Secretary’s Notes − Membership 8 − 2GR Website 9 − Diary 11 − Notices 12 The Sirmoor Register − Deaths 12 − Obituaries 14 Sirmoor Club News 29 Sirmoor Club Activities − Sirmoor Piscatorial Society 42 − Sirmoor Golf Society 43 − Sirmoor Yacht Squadron 48 − Sirmoor Shooting 51 − Sirmoor Armchair Battlefield Tours 53 Articles − Remembering Gurkhas in the Highlands 54 − Earthquake Relief in Nepal 56 − Unveiling of the Gurkha Statue at Church Crookham 58 − Some Interesting Factual Snippets from the Chairman of the SRA (UK Sathies) 60 − 50th Anniversary of the Ending of Hostilities in Borneo 63 Books 64 Property and PRI 65 Trustees of the 2nd Goorkhas Regimental Trust 66

Editor: Nick Hinton, 24 Gilpin Avenue, London SW14 8QY; Phone 0208 876 3136 or 07808 247861, Email: [email protected]. All rights reserved. Contents of The Sirmooree may not be reproduced without prior permission of the Editor. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Sirmoor Club or the Editor.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

PRESIDENT’S FOREWORD

Dear Sirmooris,

I have sadly been unable to share time with you recently as I eventually ended up completing just short of 15 months in Afghanistan, arriving back at three o’clock in the morning, on Christmas Eve 2016. Even for the RAF, that was certainly cutting it tight! I am glad that I will now be able to spend more time on Sirmoor matters and events through our Chairman, William, and catch up with old friends.

I am also happy to report that the modern Brigade continues to achieve quite excellent results and keep the spirit of the Gurkhas alive. For eight months of my recent tour I had the pleasure of working alongside the Battalion I commanded, 2 RGR. They were quite superb and earned the respect and admiration of our NATO Allies and Afghan hosts under their CO, Jamie Murray. They won the military skills competitions and most of the sports events but, most importantly, their innate professionalism shone through at all times. My team of Australians, New Zealanders and Danes, rated them above all of the other units they worked closely with. My point in stating this is not to aggrandize the Brigade of Gurkhas, but to let you know that our reputation remains in exceptional hands, and that the RGR in particular really cares about its Regimental heritage, especially the antecedent Regiments. I believe that it is vitally important that, as our Regimental Association continues to thrive, we must embrace the RGR and cement their and our legacy. We can also provide them with some form of continuity through our experience and knowledge as we continue to pass on the baton from old to new. They are desperately keen to maintain the relevant parts of our kaida, while adjusting other parts to meet the demands of the 21st Century. We all have a role in this. Indeed, our continued success and comradeship in the wider Sirmoor family is a superb example of true Regimental spirit - and long may it continue.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com With this in mind our Chairman, William Shuttlewood, and the Trustees, will work hard to continue to develop further the agenda set by Bruce Jackman and our last President, General Sir Peter Duffell, as we move forward over the next few decades of the 21st Century. We all see no reason why we should not continue to be a strong Association with our own particular brand and ethos for as long as we collectively wish to. William has some excellent ideas and we will consult and keep you informed over time as these are developed further.

After the euphoria of our bi-centenary in 2015, which was both a recognition of 200 years of service to the British Crown, but also a reset for the modern Brigade, the GBA, the GWT and the Gurkha Museum as we march forward confidently into the 21st Century, it is easy to overlook the other momentous occasions beyond, notably the 200th anniversaries of the signing of the Treaty of Segauli, the date that the FCO uses as the start of true international relations with Nepal, and the formation of 6GR. I would like to extend our warm best wishes to our friends and brothers in arms in 6GR for their bi- centenary celebrations.

2016 has seen the loss of some very prominent Sirmoorees. In particular, I would single out the very special Peter Kemmis Betty. One of life’s true gentlemen, this kind, good-humoured and very brave Regimental officer died a few months after reaching his 100th birthday. He had an extraordinary life, not least being a survivor of Changi. He was among the very best of us and his example will be long-remembered. In fact, in 2012, I met a 93 year old 2/2GR pensioner in the Kaski Regimental home who had been in Peter’s company and was also interned at Changi. He rather sadly told me that all of his friends and his British Officers were now dead. I said, no, your company commander is still alive. I didn’t give a name, but he immediately replied: “Kemmis Betty Saheb is still alive? This is wonderful. He is a good man, a good man.” The smile and a few tears said it all as his mind went back to 1942. I told Peter this story and he was visibly moved, “they were very good men” was his immediate reply.

One of those men, Captain Bhaktasing Pun MM, (father of Major Bishnu Pun MVO) also celebrated his 100th birthday in 2016. In another link to 2/2GR, 2016 saw the presentation of the MBE, 70 years after it should have been awarded to Subedar Major Kalusing Chhetri OBI, MBE, MC, to his grandson

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com WO2 Khadak Chhetri (who is still serving and was once my ORQMS). Kalusing was a Subedar when 2/2GR went into Changi. The Japanese systematically tortured the then Subedar Major, Harising Bohra IOM, over a 2 year period leading to his death. Kalusing took over the Battalion from Harising and survived similar bad treatment, but luckily survived and led the men brilliantly through the most terrible conditions. He was gazetted with the MBE but never knew. This has now thankfully been rectified.

We have lost other good friends in UK and Nepal, including Patrick Covernton, who so bravely attended the 2015 Sirmoor Luncheon despite being very unwell, and Captain (QGO) Dalbahadur Rana. Our thoughts remain very much with their families and friends. They will not be forgotten.

I will finish with the words of our good friend from 1GR and 7GR, JPX (John Cross): “Gurkhas are a product of the past. If they did not exist no one would invent them. They have survived by persuading people that they achieve standards higher than those that the modern world sets itself.” We have all had a part in creating those traditions and standards, and the serving Brigade continues to maintain our reputation, but we are the guardians of that tradition, and the mentors for those who come after us. The Brigade is a family, and the 2nd Goorkhas are the biggest family within it. We must stay together in friendship and shared memories, and help each other where appropriate.

May I wish you all a very happy and eventful 2017.

IAR CHAIRMAN’S LETTER

There is a general agreement that our bi-centenary celebrations in 2015, both in UK and Nepal, were a huge success. There is however always the danger that the morning after the night before can be something of an anti- climax, that bonds of undying allegiance and friendship forged in the excitement of celebrating 200 years of service to the Crown might be diminished, that interest in and focus on Regimental affairs might rapidly decline.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

It was therefore with some trepidation that in 2016 I agreed to relieve Bruce as the Club’s Chairman. This succession, following closely on the change of President, marked the passing of responsibility for Regimental affairs to a younger generation, potentially adding to the view that we might have had the last Regimental hurrah.

My concerns were without foundation. My visit to the Sirmoor Club (Nepal) in April confirmed that those still living in the Regiment’s traditional recruiting areas remain as committed and enthusiastic to upholding the name and traditions of the 2nd Goorkhas as ever; the Delhi Day gathering of the Sirmoor Sathis in the rain at Aldershot, in front of the Queen’s Truncheon, underscored the spirit, fortitude and sense of history that are the bedrock of the Sirmoori; the large gathering of British Officers, their wives and guests for the annual Club lunch at the Travellers’ Club in London in May was reassurance that the Sirmoor sense of style was alive and well. We should all therefore be in no doubt that the Regiment and its three components will continue to endure for some time to come.

I have to report this happy state of affairs is nothing to do with me and everything to do with my predecessor. It is only when you take up the reins that you realise just what an enormous contribution, much of it hidden, that Bruce has made to the Regiment and the Sirmoor Club over a very great number of years. I note in commenting on his time as Chairman he concluded his last letter in the Sirmooree by stating: “you have made it a great pleasure for me, a huge amount of fun and a considerable honour”. I suggest these are equally the comments we will wish to make in recognition of his time, both as the Club’s Secretary and Chairman and I intend his contribution is recognized more formally when the Club next meets in May. In the interim, I am both pleased and relieved to report that Bruce will remain our Activities Coordinator for golf, sailing, shooting, skiing, battlefield tours etc and I do urge Club members to ensure he is given every support.

Life is all about milestones and there have been a number during the year. Foremost amongst them is the celebration of Peter Kemmis Betty’s centenary. His death in August was further opportunity to celebrate the life of a truly remarkable and hugely respected officer. It is of equal note that a

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

fellow Prisoner of War in Changi, Capt Bhaktasing Pun MM (father of Maj Bishnu Pun MVO), also celebrated 100 years in January this year. Other milestones are the belated award of the MBE to the 2nd Battalion’s late Subedar Major Kalu Chhetri OBI MBE MC – presented to his grandson by HRH The Duke of Cambridge. Coincidentally the Subedar Major was also a Prisoner of War with Peter Kemmis Betty in Changi; a rare CGS commendation to Capt Mahendra Phagami, now 1RGR but formally 2GR, for his outstanding leadership and devotion to duty as part of the European Union’s Training Mission in Mali; the award of the MBE to Tessa Morrish (formerly Ormsby) for her work in support of those with cystic fibrosis; and finally, the award of a Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (with bars too numerous to mention) to John Chapple who, as a Field Marshal, remains firmly on the Active List! The Regiment is truly a very broad and very successful church.

For the future, the Trustees of the 2GR Trust and I will continue to develop an agenda that steers each of the Regiment’s components towards a common future. Both the Sirmoor Club (Nepal) and the Sirmoor Sathis have continued to evolve, the latter reflecting the increasing number of 2nd Goorkhas who have chosen to settle in UK - the Trust’s governance arrangements may need adjustment to reflect this; we need to ensure we continue to communicate both internally and externally in the twenty-first century; we need to ensure our links with RGR remain strong; and we need to ensure that as a Club we continue to thrive.

There is therefore much to be done, but none of it needs to be done in a hurry. I will ensure you, as members of the Sirmoor Club, are fully consulted and informed. In doing so we should continue to live life looking forward – but remembering that we only understand it looking back! I wish you all every success in 2017.

Salaams and Jai Sirmoor !

WS

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

EDITORIAL

Our splendid bi-centenary celebrations of 2015 highlighted the continuity of a proud tradition. In contrast, 2016 saw change: a new President and a new Chairman of the Sirmoor Club and further development of our excellent website under the strong leadership of Nigel St George.

The theme of continuity and change runs strongly through this edition of the Sirmooree. Sadly, we lost Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kemmis Betty, but his place as Sirmoor centenarian was taken by Captain Bhagtasing Pun, who held The Truncheon during the march past of our 2015 parade in Pokhara. Having for several years been out of touch with 5/8GR (formerly our 4th Battalion) we renewed contact with them. The Sirmoor Club activities, fulsomely reported by Brigadier Bruce Jackman, Major David Thomas and Captain Andrew Johnson, show how the social aspects of the Sirmoor Club are flourishing.

We see the same further afield. Major Lalbahadur Gurung’s report from Nepal shows how much the country has changed in just the last few years. I sometimes travel on business to the area of northern India that was our Regimental home. Not only are the universities and colleges there producing high-calibre engineers who can more than hold their own in international business, there are flourishing towns such as Chandigarh which simply did not exist when the 2nd Goorkhas lived down the road in Dehra Dun. Whatever one may think of the Brexit discussions or President Trump, in very many fields we see progress and improvement.

It is this ability to evolve, adapt and innovate, all in the context of the Regiment that has made us one of the most successful of the regimental associations. The Sirmooree has an important part to play in communicating this.

NJHH

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com HONORARY SECRETARY’S NOTES Membership

Membership Numbers: Category Numbers Totals Full 152 155 Full – GCO 3 Associate - Attached 27 Associate - Seconded 29 104 Assoc – Others 2 Assoc – Relative 46 Hon Widows 70 Hon Ordinary 14 85 Hon Ex Officio 1 Grand Total 344 Suspended 32 376

New Members: Brig Ronnie Brown (2nd Bn RMO 1970 – 72) – Associate Member Lt Col Phil Murray (RAEC) 2nd Bn UEO 1976 – 78 – Associate Member Maj Amit Banerjee (IAMO 5/8 GR) – Associate Member

Resignation: Mrs Anne Powers (widow of the late Maj E W A Power 5th Bn (1945 – 47). Abbreviated Address List. The updated address list is available on http://www.members.2ndgoorkhas.com/members.html webpage. It has been made available to the GBA, GWT (UK) and Gurkha Museum for internal communications but not to outside organisations. If you wish your details to be removed from the list or require a hard copy of list, please contact the Honorary Secretary.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Website We remain grateful to Nigel St-George who continues to manage, monitor and update the website.

There is no change to the website URL http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com, however the Home Page tabs have been changed:

 Home Page. Welcome letter and on the right side the quick links to ‘News’ where the latest notices will be shown, and Quick Links.

 The Regiment. 11 sub-tabs take you to details about the Regiment.

 News and Notices. Now comprises eight sub tabs:  SRA Notice Board.  Media news.  GBA Gurkha Breaking News.  SRA Member’s News.  Cobseo. Latest news and Jobs.  New Books featuring Gurkhas.  Immigration and Settlement Issues.  UKBA HM Armed Forces Visa Guide

 The Sirmoor Rifles Association (SRA). Each branch has its own Notice Board:  The Sirmoor Rifles Association (Nepal).  The Sirmoor Rifles Association (UK). Also known as the 2nd Gurkha Rifles Association-UK (Sirmoor Sathies).  The Sirmoor Rifles Association (Sirmoor Club). An Officers' Association open to all British and Gurkha ranks who served in the 2nd KEO Goorkhas who achieved commissioned rank at any stage in their career. The Sirmoor Club Secure Area only contains the Sirmoor club Address List, Sirmoor Club photos, and Sirmoor Club AGM Minutes. Members can go direct to the Sirmoor Club Secure Area at http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com/sra-members-secure-area/ and save that link as a favourite, however to proceed further you will be asked to sign-in and use your password as before. If you forget

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com your password please contact the Honorary Secretary who will arrange a new password to be issued.

 Other Gurkha Links. 9 sub tabs linking to the websites of other Gurkha Associations, GWT and Gurkha Museum sites.

Diary Sirmoor Calendar 2017. The Sirmoor Programme for 2017 is enclosed and is on the website. GBA Calendar 2017. The GBA website for the GBA Calendar of Events 2017 is at http://www.gurkhabde.com. Events & Booking Forms 2017. A copy of each Booking Form is enclosed and can also be found at http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com/events.html . Sirmoor Club Committee Meeting. 27th February 2017 at 1100. Location: Oriental Club. 2GR Trust Meeting. 27th March 2017 at 1100. Location: Gurkha Museum, Winchester. RGR Reunion. Saturday 29th April 2017. This takes place at Twickenham for the Army and Navy Rugby Match and is open to all GBA members. Timings 1100 – 1600. Cost £36 per person. Returns by 28th February 2017. Sirmoor Club Reunion. Saturday 14th May 17 at the Army & Navy Club. Returns required by 14th April 2017. GBA Memorial Service and Reunion. Saturday 10th June 2017. RMAS Royal Memorial Chapel and Indian Army Memorial Room. Outside timings 1030 – 1430. Cost, £30 per person. Returns by 10th May 2017. GBA UK Bhela All Ranks Reunion and Sounding Retreat. Saturday 8th July 2017. Free Entry. The programme will include: Children & Adult Fun Fair, the Kathmandu Cup (Veterans Cup) and Nepal Cup (serving Brigade), The Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas, free fall parachuting display, Gurkha and British fast food stalls, and Nepali Cultural band and dances. All food and fun fair tickets are available for purchase on the day. Outside timings 1100 – 1800.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Sirmoor ‘Sathi’ Delhi Day. The Sathis will hold their annual Delhi Day Reunion on Saturday 19th September 2016, location to be confirmed. Those attending are asked to inform the Honorary Secretary names/numbers) by 1st September 2016. Payment (£10) will be collected at the door.

GBA Officers Dinner. Thursday 9th November 2017. Central London location tbc. Cost £60 per person. It will be preceded by a Colonel BG presentation on current Brigade issues. Returns by 9th October 2017.

Kukri Journal. The Kukri Journal 2016 will be distributed in June 2017. If would like to subscribe please contact the Brigade Secretary. Cost, including postage, is £22 for UK, £25 for Europe and £35 for Rest of World.

2nd Battalion Get-Together. 18 March 2017 at St Michael’s Community Centre, Wrotham Road, Welling, Kent, DA16 1LS from 2pm to 8pm. See enclosed flyer for details. Notices Sirmoor Club AGM Minutes 2016. The minutes of the Sirmoor Club e-AGM held on 12 September 2015 are on the website. Copies for members not on the internet will be forwarded on request. GBA/London Clubs. GBA has been offered preferential membership by the Army and Navy Club and the Oriental Club. Further details in the Sirmoor Club Notices (February 2016), or from the Honorary Secretary. THE SIRMOOR REGISTER

Honours and Awards

Subedar Major Kalu Chhetri OBI MBE MC.

Granted in September 1947, Subedar Major Kalu Chhetri’s MBE was presented to his grandson, WO2 Khadak Chettri (GSPS) at Buckingham Palace on Friday 13th May 2016.

Subedar Major Kalu Chhetri enlisted in the Regiment on 3rd November 1917. He joined the 2nd Battalion in 1920, serving on the north-west frontier until 1941. Captured by the Japanese at Slim River in 1942 (where he earned his

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com MC) he became the senior Gurkha Officer in captivity. He was awarded the MBE for 3½ years of strong leadership. The citation reads: ‘Kalu Chettri throughout, in spite of all adversity, and through the darkest and often most hopeless days, never wavered or lost heart. He maintained the highest traditions of his regiment and of the Indian Army and showed moral and physical courage, tenacity, resource and devotion to duty of the highest order.’

New Year’s Honour 2016

MBE: Major Yambadaur Rana. (1/2GR).

New Year’s Honours 2017 MBE: Mrs Tessa Mary Morrish, Chair, Gene Therapy for Cystic Fibrosis Appeal, North Hampshire and Cystic Fibrosis Care, Frimley Park Hospital, Surrey For services to people with cystic fibrosis. CGS Commendation: Capt Mahendra Phagami 1 RGR. Capt Mahendra was the youngest Sirmoori enlisted into the 2nd Goorkhas, before merger into RGR. Deaths Deaths reported in 2016: Captain H M C Scrimgeour RAMC (2nd Bn 1958 - 60) 6th January 2016

Brigadier A B Taggart MC (1st Bn 1948 - 50) 26th January 2016

Mrs Kaye Moore (w/o Maj ‘Dinty’ Moore, DOM) 20th February 2016

Major P J A Williams (RAEC) (1st Bn UEO 1973 - 76) 17th March 2016

Dr Mary Rattigan (RMO) 8th March 2016

Major J A Gardner (5th & 2nd Bn 1945 – 47) 10th March 2016

Mr D H Morris (2nd Bn 1956 – 56) 29th May 2016

Lieutenant Colonel P L G Covernton (1st Bn 1966 – 94) 6th June 2016

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com T/Major S G Jollye (4th & 5th Bn 1941 - 46) 8th June 2016

Lieutenant Colonel P Kemmis Betty MC (2nd Bn 1937 – 71) 25th August 2016

Mrs Tigger Ramsey-Brown (Widow of Lt Col D Ramsey-Brown MC 1st Bn 38 – 48. 3rd December 2016

Deaths reported from Nepal:

Capt (QGO) Khimbahadur Sen 5th August 2015

Capt (QGO) Shepbahadur Pun 2nd November 2015

Lt (QGO) Danbahadur Gurung 7th December 2015

Lt (QGO) Kharkabahadur Mall 21st May 2016

Capt (QGO) Ohbahadur Thapa 8th January 2016

Capt Dalbahadur Rana 5th August 2016

Capt Rumbahadur Pun 16th November 2016

Sgt Lapka Tamang (BOs Mess Sgt 1948 – 67) 15th December 2016

Obituaries

Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Covernton.

This address was given by Lieutenant General Sir Peter Duffell at Patrick’s funeral on 4th July 2016 at St Peter’s Church, St Mary Bourne:

Sarah has asked me to say a few words about Patrick who we remember today with much affection. He had many friends and it is testament to his genial and persuasive character and to his close and strong family that so many of us have come to this church of St Peter’s to remember the good things of his life and to rekindle the spirit of a most convivial and loyal friend.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Many of us travelled happily with him for nearly 50 years and stayed with him to the finish. Of course we knew that for the last few years of his life he teetered on the edge of his precipice sustained and nurtured by his marvellous Sarah as he fought the wretched demons that sometimes plagued this otherwise resolute man. But there was always something about Patrick - a natural life enhancer - that made us stick with him.

Appropriately enough for a young man drawn to the 2nd Gurkha Rifles he was born at the end of the war in Abbottabad in the North West Frontier province of India where his father was a regular officer of the old Indian Army. As Patrick himself admitted his schooling was somewhat erratic and his carefree and maverick character meant that he was not always in sympathy with those intent on delivering a successful education at that esteemed Catholic establishment - Beaumont College. Even his success with the oar at a great rowing school was insufficient to endear him to the English province of Jesuits in charge of Beaumont and at the Rector’s suggestion he left rather earlier than either he or his parents had planned. Following his departure from the College in circumstances which Patrick was always to dismiss with characteristic nonchalance he joined the Army and he entered the Royal Academy Sandhurst. After flirtation with some of the Army’s supposedly more colourful institutions he was accepted for a commission in the richly titled 2nd King Edward VII’s Own Goorkhas and from that point on he never looked back. He joined the first Battalion in Hong Kong in early 1966 and was posted initially to C Company then commanded by a future Chief of the General Staff, Major John Chapple. It was he who provided that essential early framework of Regimental doctrine that was to stand Patrick in good stead for the rest of his military career and beyond. Patrick’s first command was the Assault Pioneer Platoon responsible among many things for building and demolition – military arts that were right up Patrick’s highway and accompanied by his loyal second in command, Haribahadur, he was quickly into his stride. “What do you think of this Hari” I can still hear him say as he set off on another endeavour. “Not quite sure about that Saheb” was often the reply. Some of those early endeavours were worthy of his old school colloquism known as “pulling a Beaumont” referring to an ability to cause mass confusion in seemingly benign circumstances; incidents that put an indelible stamp on his regimental career and were to live with him and us for the rest of his life – incidents that lost nothing for their repeated telling.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Particularly memorable was the construction on battalion manoeuvres of an intricate field water supply system. Under his firm direction a bamboo tower several metres high and topped by an inflatable tank was constructed by Patrick’s Pioneers. Into the tank river water was slowly pumped. Gradually as it filled with water we were alerted to a creaking, cracking, fracturing sound as to Haribahadur’s horror the whole edifice came tumbling down flooding the Headquarters bunker in the process to the delight of his fellow officers and the restrained mirth of the watching Gurkhas. Others will recall a further jungle experience - the supposed requirement for fresh ration provision through the bombing of a jungle river designed to net a rich catch. Patrick could be seen assembling a complex explosive confection before embarking in an assault boat and launching himself and his orderly into the river. On the bank the watching Gurkhas waited expectantly. The device was lowered into the water the cable reeled out from the boat. Patrick was seen to raise a red flag, the orderly fiddled with the wires poised above the battery terminals both seemingly unaware that the river current has caused the boat to drift ever closer to the waiting bomb. There was an electric conjunction followed by a large explosion; a tall plume of water rose from the river lifting the assault boat, Patrick and his orderly into the air and depositing them unceremoniously into the river to the cheers of the serried ranks of the Battalion as riflemen garnered the rich harvest of stunned fish. Those first years in the Regiment had been a course of liberal studies but Patrick learnt fast and early mishaps were not repeated – indeed his Pioneer experience was to stand him in much good stead later in his life.

At the end of 1968 Patrick left for long leave in England. Something fortuitous then happened. Prior to departure for home he had been asked by a fellow officer in the 10th Gurkha Rifles to deliver on his behalf a present to his girlfriend in England – one Sarah Cave Brown - and this he duly did. Before long Sarah, smitten by the debonair and dashing gallant from the 2nd Gurkhas and in spite of that present, the 10th Gurkha was rightly forgotten in favour of the handsome romantic from the Second, and on the basis that all is fair in love and war at the end of his leave Patrick and Sarah were married.

To the wonder of us all he returned to the Battalion with his most elegant, beautiful and wise Sarah. Patrick married young but it was the best thing he

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com ever did and he and Sarah were to remain at the heart of the Regiment for almost 50 years. Of their erstwhile friend in the 10th Gurkhas Rifles we heard no more.

For the next 20 years or so Patrick and Sarah served happily wherever the army sent them. In addition to tours with the Regiment Patrick had a rich variety of appointments – company commander at Sandhurst, quartered in Portadown in Northern Ireland at the height of the troubles, armoured soldiering with 3rd Division in Germany, an exhilarating time with the Training Team in Zimbabwe and on promotion to Lieutenant Colonel, to Gibraltar where his old Regimental tutor now Field Marshal Sir John Chapple was the Governor. His fellow staff officers in Fortress Headquarters could only admire Patrick’s ready access to Government House and his apparent familiarity with the Governor and his family. In all these appointments and with their generous camaraderie they made friends with consummate ease and Sarah did much to ensure Patrick’s success by deeply impressing her husband’s superior officers.

The Coverntons were blessed with two beautiful and talented daughters. Natasha and Charlotte - both happily married in this church – they followed the flag on school holidays wherever their peripatetic parents took them; there was hardly a garrison town that they did not know all the while being educated in that most respectable of educational establishments St. Mary’s Ascot – where good girls from nice families go - before Edinburgh and Newcastle Universities completed the academic process and thrust them, Patrick fretting, Sarah sanguine into the wider world. To their parents’ great joy they found Mark and Nigel to share their lives and delivered the five grandchildren that crowned Patrick’s happiness. In return the girls much loved and admired their Father. He guided them with much fatherly wisdom, he was the wonderful creator who fashioned a gargantuan wooden Wendy House out of MFO boxes complete with working radio. He was the father who could be rung up in the dead of night by his daughters locked out of their car, and without batting an eyelid swiftly open the car with a few deft twists of a metal coat hanger, they were daughters who laughed at their father’s jokes even when he couldn’t remember the punch line.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Aside from his daughters, water played a large part in Patrick’s enthusiasms. In Hong Kong he achieved a Ships Master and Engineer Certificate that amongst many permitted maritime skills allowed him to tow a flying boat through Hong Kong’s harbour and much as he wanted to I am not sure he ever practised it. At water skiing he was particularly adept and I can see him now executing a fast beach start and returning to the shore intact all the while puffing strongly on a Benson and Hedges filter tip. Throughout his life he was, sadly, a great contributor to the profit margins of British American Tobacco. And particularly after leaving the Army he and Sarah sailed in Mediterranean waters with the Sirmoor Yacht Squadron where not least his navigational skills occasionally caused much excitement. Skiing, too, was another enthusiasm and some of us will recall the holidays and regimental chalets that we shared with the Coverntons in France and Switzerland and particularly Patrick’s individual and abandoned style as he easily roamed the piste and beyond.

In retirement Patrick did not settle for pruning the roses – he entered what I think of as his B&Q period but to call it that is to do an injustice to the skills he developed. Planning, design, engineering, electrics, plumbing, bricklaying, roofing entirely self-taught he mastered every aspect of housing maintenance and refurbishment all delivered on a most ambitious scale. While still serving he and Sarah had bought an almost derelict house in Fulham at a knock down price and this he transformed single-handedly into an upmarket desirable gentlemen’s residence that was to provide not least an agreeable income for the rest of their lives. He rebuilt and developed their family home, Postgrove Farmhouse almost from scratch. He did the entire plumbing himself, hand bending copper pipe by copper pipe with the result that not least the whole house gloriously judders when taking a bath. One morning Sarah discovered to her surprise that the staircase had been moved overnight from one end of the house to the other; a new extension was added, fireplaces adjusted together with discrete and delicately carved regimental insignia added. Walls were removed and rebuilt elsewhere; Solar heating was laid to the barn roof. Ever the modern man a robo-mower took care of a gardener’s greatest labour. New projects were constantly on the go. He was the complete master of his craft with skills at which we humble DIY men could only wonder.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

As a sick man Patrick, sometimes bolshie and disobedient, was lucky to have Sarah and I hope he knew it. She alone understood all his foibles and weaknesses and handled them all with a deft and ever patient touch. Once while recovering from a stroke and forbidden by his doctors to drive Sarah left him alone and took the car to visit friends. Patrick in need of some essentials dragged himself aboard the sit-on mower. Gaily he drove a mile across the A343 to the village shop to obtain some important victuals before returning home at speed. It was only later that Sarah visiting the same shop and meeting the owner who delightedly reported to her: “how lovely it was to see the Colonel up and about again”, that she realised what had been going on behind her back.

At the lychgate review I know that these stories and Patrick’s marvellous building talents will be acknowledged along with a recognition that most memories of Patrick make you want to smile; in personality he was a cavalier entering robustly into all the joys of life and forever loving a party but he also held to a few roundhead views on certain subjects with opinions delivered with an emphatic verbosity and superb indifference to public opinion. But he had no side, I never heard embittered talk for Patrick didn’t do malice or enmity. What you saw was what you got. And if he drifted away from his early Catholicism to what I might best describe as the English non- conformist tradition to the end he remained deeply loyal to the four institutions that shaped and dominated his life – his family, his school, his Regiment and his friends.

So there as best I can is a fragment of the life and spirit of Patrick Covernton, much loved by Sarah, Natasha, Charlotte and five wonderful grandchildren; staunch Gurkha Rifleman, and stout friend to us all. He never did moderation and some things he sadly did greatly to excess. But he had such buckets of flair and fun that even when the music stopped we mostly forgave him. We remain grateful for all the good times and the close friendship we enjoyed with that buoyant, roisterous soldier and gentlemen. At this time we think very much of his Sarah, Natasha and Charlotte.

PRD

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Major John Alan Gardner.

Although John Gardner served in the 2nd Goorkhas only for a short period from December 1945 to February 1947, his admiration for the Regiment and his loyalty to The Sirmoor Club continued until he died aged 89 on 10th March 2016.

John, who was born on 5th June 1926, was the son of Captain Osmond Gardner, MM, who had served during World War 1 and was a Captain in the Assam Valley Light Horse from 1918 to 1945. John was at Bromsgrove School before enlisting in 1944, and after the usual basic and infantry training of that time he sailed for India and the Officers Training School at Bangalore. He was gazetted to an Emergency Commission in The Worcestershire Regiment and immediately seconded to the 2nd Goorkhas where he joined a large number of subalterns in The Regimental Centre in Dehra Dun, most of whom were waiting anxiously for postings to one or other of our battalions. John’s opportunity did not come until the middle of 1946 when he was sent to the 5th Battalion in Waziristan. But he wasn’t to be there long: the 5th battalion was disbanded in January 1947 and its officers dispersed. John was posted to the 2nd Battalion in Bengal for the remainder of his time with the Regiment.

In February 1947 John left the 2nd Battalion for England and a Regular Commission in the Royal Army Service Corps in which he was to have an interesting and varied career, but one marred by ill-health. He served at first in Germany, and later in the 16th Parachute Brigade. From 1951 to 1952 he was with the SAS on operations in Malaya, but that was followed by medical downgrading for a year. He recovered in time to serve in Cyprus with 16th Parachute Brigade and take part in the Suez Operation of 1956. During the following five or six years he soldiered in Germany, Hong Kong and Singapore, and for four years after that he was with the Junior Soldiers’ Regiment RASC/RCT. From then onwards he filled one Royal Corps of Transport staff appointment after another in Germany and England, but he was again medically downgraded in 1969 and with his health continuing to decline he took early retirement in August 1976. It was a pity for the Army to lose such an adventurous, spirited and reliable soldier, and a friendly and loyal comrade.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

John’ wife, Jeanne, to whom he was married in London in 1953, died before him, but they are survived by their three sons to whom we send our sympathy. DRW

Major Sidney Henry Jollye.

S.H. Jollye, always known to us as Bill, died in Devon on 8th June 2016, aged 93. His service in the 2nd Goorkhas from 20 November 1941 to December 1946 was certainly unusual, and perhaps even unique, in that at various times he served in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Battalions and our advanced training battalion, the 29th Gurkha Rifles.

Bill, who was born on 25 September 1922, was a cousin of Gerald Jollye who was wounded while serving with the 1st Battalion in North Africa and, as a member of the Malayan Civil Service, killed by Communist Terrorists in an ambush near Malacca in December 1950. From Chiswick Polytechnic, Bill enlisted in the 60thh in May 1940 and, as a cadet, was sent by sea, round the Cape, to India in June 1941. He left the Officers Training School at Bangalore with an Emergency Commission in the 2nd Goorkhas and joined the 4th Battalion at Ghangora, just before it moved to Manzai on the North-West Frontier. Just a few months later he was transferred to the 5th Battalion which was then being raised in Dehra Dun and needed officers. He was to remain with the 5th Battalion in Baluchistan for three years as a rifle company commander and Adjutant. He left to do some jungle training in the 29th Gurkha Rifles before he joined the 3rd Battalion to command C Company from August 1945 to February 1946 in India and Malaya. After leave in England he joined the 2nd Battalion in Santa Cruz for a short time before he left in July 1946 for demobilization.

Bill then joined the Shell Petroleum Company, which stationed him in Colombia from 1948 to 1956 and in Karachi from 1956 to 1960, after which he was moved to the company’s London Head Office until he retired in 1975. He was a keen collector of works of reference such as sets of encyclopaedias, of which he amassed a substantial collection, so heavy that the ground floor rooms of his house were reinforced to cope with the weight of a lot of

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com shelves each carrying two rows of heavy books, one behind the other. He and his wife, Joan, lived in Sevenoaks for years before they moved to Newton Abbot.

Bill showed his fondness for the regiment by remaining a member of the The Sirmoor Club from its beginnings until the day he died. He was a learned, friendly and likeable man, easy to get on with and always willing to help others. He made an invaluable contribution to our regimental records by transcribing, typing and binding at his own expense four volumes of both battalions’ Digest of Services and in providing pen pictures of many of those who served with him in the 5th Battalion which have since been incorporated in the 2nd Goorkhas’ Regimental Register. He also researched and wrote for The Regimental Journal of 1984 an authentic essay on the Establishment of the Original Gurkha Regiments in 1815.

After a short illness, Bill died in a Nursing Home on 8th June 2016. His funeral was at Torquay Crematorium on 16 June. Sadly two of his sons and his daughter had died before him, and Joan, his wife for nearly 69 years is not well. We extend our deepest sympathy to Joan and their surviving sons, Robert and Chris. DRW

Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kemmis Betty MC.

Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kemmis Betty, who has died aged 100, fought a series of rear-guard actions during the retreat from North Malaya and was awarded a Military Cross.

In September 1941, 2nd Battalion, 2nd King Edward VII’s Own Goorkha Rifles (2/2 GR), part of 28th Indian Infantry Brigade, 11th Indian Division, moved from Secunderabad, India, to Ipoh, Malaya. Kemmis Betty was in command of a rifle company.

In December, with a Japanese attack imminent, the battalion was ordered to establish a defensive position near Alor Star on the Malay-Thai border. The Gurkhas were not trained for jungle warfare. They had no experience of enemy tanks and their anti-tank guns were too light to be effective. In an

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com account of the battle, Kemmis Betty said that the sound of the Japanese screaming as they attacked was very disconcerting.

They were ordered to fall back on Kampar, where he was in command of a detachment holding a vitally important bridge over the Sungei Dipang River. The bridgehead was under heavy artillery, mortar and small arms fire. When all the troops had crossed over, the demolition charge failed to destroy the bridge.

This happened again and, once more, Kemmis Betty led his detachment forward under constant fire to cover the demolition party. At the third attempt, the sappers were successful and he was able to extricate his small force.

Peter Kemmis Betty, the younger son of Colonel Hubert Kemmis Betty DSO, OBE, was born in London on 5th May 1916 and educated at Bradfield College and RMC Sandhurst. In 1936, he was commissioned into the Indian Army and was attached to the 1st Battalion The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment), which he joined in Delhi the same year.

He joined 2/2GR in 1937 and, two years later, he was with the battalion, part of 4th Infantry Brigade, on operations in Waziristan. They were shot at regularly by the tribesmen, and no operations on foot were undertaken without soldiers picketing the heights. After a move to Fort Razmak, in 1941 he accompanied the battalion to Malaya where their camp near Ipoh, Perak, was their base until the fighting began.

After the fierce four-day battle at Kampar, Japanese seaborne landings south of the town forced a further withdrawal to the next prepared defensive position on the Slim River. The Japanese again attacked with tanks and, despite fierce resistance, 2/2 GR were outflanked by the enemy infantry. When the bridge was blown, the battalion was stranded on the far bank. Many of the men were killed or drowned attempting to make their own way back across the river.

The battalion marched south along the railway. They were in an exhausted state and when they halted for a five-minute rest every hour, the men were

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com asleep in seconds and took a lot of rousing. The Japanese had almost complete air superiority and, at Parit Bunta, no sooner had an “Order Group” been assembled than enemy aircraft swooped down and bombed them, causing many casualties.

After retreating to Singapore, 2/2 GR were given the task of defending the large naval base on the north-east of the island. The causeway between Singapore and the Malayan mainland was blown but the Japanese did not take long to cross the straits, using sampans and small boats. Yet again 2/2 GR were ordered to withdraw. In the Bukit Timah area, they established a strong defensive position and were appalled when, in February 1942, the order came to surrender.

Kemmis Betty was interned at Changi PoW Camp. He had been wounded north of Kuala Lumpur earlier in the campaign. During his incarceration, he created a vegetable garden which supplemented the meagre prison hospital rations and he helped to rewrite the battalion war diary, the original of which had been lost during the withdrawal.

After his release, he initially stayed behind in Malaya to collect other survivors of the battalion, who had been imprisoned outside Singapore. His MC was gazetted in 1946. The citation for the award stated that “although worn out himself, his cool judgment, calm orders and cheerful bearing so inspired his exhausted men that not once did his Company fail to hold its position or withdraw until ordered to do so. Despite suffering heavy casualties, it remained an organised, disciplined fighting force right up to the surrender.”

On his return to India, he was posted to the 5th Battalion in Razmak, Waziristan, as second-in-command, where he remained until the unit was disbanded in early 1947. He rejoined 2/2 GR at Dinapore later in the year.

In 1948, he accompanied 2/2 GR to Malaya and served with it during the Emergency. By the end of December 1952, he was commanding “A” Company at Chemor, in Perak. After a staff appointment with a Gurkha infantry brigade, in 1954 he was one of three members of the battalion awarded the Perak Meritorious Service Medal. Then, while he was returning

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com to Britain on leave aboard the Empire Windrush, the troopship caught fire and sank. He and his family were saved and evacuated to Gibraltar but they lost all their luggage in the shipwreck.

Postings to Hong Kong and Singapore followed and, in 1958, he took command of 2/2 GR in Malaya. He was mentioned in despatches. After three years as Administrative Commandant at the Joint Services College, Latimer, Buckinghamshire, he moved to Kathmandu as Military Attaché (GSO1).

In 1967, he became Administrative Officer at the Royal Army Education Corps Depot Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, and from 1968 until 1971 he served on the Regular Commissions Board at Westbury, Wiltshire. He was for a time a Commissioner of Indian Family Pension Funds. Throughout his life he was an accomplished golfer and tennis player as well as an enthusiastic skier from age six to 86. For several years he was secretary of the Army Ski Association. He was a member of the Regimental Association/The Sirmoor Club from its inception until he died.

Peter Kemmis Betty married, in 1947, Gemma St Maur. She predeceased him and he is survived by their three sons.

(Reprinted by kind permission of the Daily Telegraph)

Brigadier Bruce Jackman also wrote:

Peter Kemmis Betty was the Company Commander of the forward company in our 2nd Battalion on the Malay/Thai border when the Japanese invaded in December 1941. He fought the Japanese for that entire campaign over a period of three hellish months during which he was wounded. He was awarded the MC when his Company held the vital bridge over the Sungei Dipang River against successive Japanese attacks until the bridge could be blown. Worse was to come at Slim River when, despite fierce resistance against tanks and waves of screaming Japanese infantry, the Battalion was outflanked and became stranded on the far bank when the bridge was blown. The Battalion had to make its own way across the river. Many soldiers were drowned and much equipment was lost. Days later at a CO's O

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Group in Parit Bunta they were bombed and strafed by Japanese aircraft causing many more casualties and more equipment destroyed. It must have been a dreadful time, retreating in constant contact with the enemy and with no friendly air cover at all.

The Battalion held a final defensive position at Pontian Kechil on the SW coast of Malaya for 10 days, then they were ordered to retreat across the Causeway to Singapore before it too was blown up. In Singapore the battalion initially defended the Naval Base and then withdrew again to south of the Bukit Timah road when, at long last, they went firm in a very good defensive position where they expected to give a very good account of themselves. There they received the order to surrender, which was met with incredulity and anger by everyone, especially the older Gurkha Officers and NCOs whose ethos was 'never to give up'. Then followed 3½ ghastly years as a POW in that hell hole, Changi – an experience that none of us can possibly comprehend. That Peter survived all this was testament to his incredible strength of mind and body, willpower, and endurance. Indeed, after his release from captivity Peter initially remained behind in Malaya to collect up other survivors of the Battalion who had been imprisoned outside Singapore, before he was repatriated to India.

But drama was to strike again a few years later when Peter and Gemma, with their two children at that time, Richard (aged 2) and Charlie (7 months), embarked on the Empire Windrush to set sail for England from Singapore for leave. Off Algeria there was an explosion in the engine room in which 4 seamen were killed. The ship caught fire and it had to be abandoned. The story goes that Charlie was thrown like a rugby ball by an Italian sailor into a lifeboat and thankfully caught by a safe pair of hands – or he might not have been here today! The ship was towed to Gibraltar but sank off the coast and the Kemmis Bettys lost all their baggage. The family returned from Algeria to England via Gibraltar. Later Peter was posted back to the 2nd Battalion and fought through the Malayan Emergency where he commanded the Battalion in the latter stages, for which he was Mentioned in Despatches. What a career and what experiences Peter had.

BCJ

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Major Peter Williams RAEC

Peter Williams had been in poor health for some time and died on 29th March 2016.

He joined the 1st Battalion on attachment as Education Officer on 29th June 1973 and went with the Battalion advance party to Tuker Lines, Seria, Brunei in January 1974, where he stayed for the duration of his appointment. It was a time he enjoyed and was proud of.

Peter was born on 10th September 1941 and educated at West Monmouth School. He married Moreen in 1965 and she and their 3 sons were with him throughout his tour. On arrival in Hong Kong they were quartered in Harmonic Villas (aka Mouth Organ Mansions) in Fanling. On going round to meet him, his Company Commander to be was greeted at the front door by the sliding of a small viewing hatch and a voice in imitation Chinese asking ‘How much you wanna pay Major ?’ It was the start of a close friendship that endured until he died.

When the take-over from 6th Gurkha Rifles in Brunei began, one of Peter’s tasks was to allocated married quarters, sensibly done on a post for post basis. Unfortunately a few were later found to be riddled with white ants and Peter, quite unfairly, was blamed for this as he was well known to be a great joker with a wicked but kindly wit. Still with quarters, the 2IC’s wife ran an occasional Sunday School class in her quarter, which was next door to the Williams. All these buildings stood on elevated piles above the ground to discourage white ants. Having crawled under the house during the opening hymn, Peter let rip with the ‘Herald Angels’ in a full-blooded Welsh baritone of ‘Delilah’ like Tom Jones. As it rose through the floorboards – puzzlement, consternation !

Peter was a first-class organiser and teacher. Ably assisted by WO2, later Captain (QGO) Bharatsing Chheteri, he made significant improvements to education in the Battalion. He also took a keen interest in the Gurkha Children’s School. On one memorable occasion when Lady Carver visited the school, she asked how well they spoke English. Pointing to a large poster on the wall depicting Trafalgar Square, the question was put to the

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com class “Who is that on top of the column?”. The eager answer, “Nah- poleon”. It was apprehensively pointed out that the man had his sleeve in his waistcoat because he had only one arm. The class in unison – “Ah, Colonel ED Smith sahib”.

In addition to his teaching duties he was deputy to Major John Lamond on jungle safaris which were run for army children and those of Shell Brunei. He was largely instrumental in making these a popular success.

Peter got on well with all ranks. In the Mess one evening when a recently promoted general with a ‘hard man’ reputation was visiting; as an avid reader of history and quoting Napoleon, Peter asked him “You may be a general, but are you lucky?”. The silence was electric, broken only by a grunt from the Commandant. Fortunately the general proved to be a good sort and took it well. Peter was always lucky!

His other special interests were rugby, in which he made a significant contribution to the Brunei Garrison rugby team, cricket and politics. He was Tory Agent for North Cornwall for a general election. He was also very fond of the Band of the Brigade of Gurkhas and arranged for it to give a concert in Padstow, followed by a fish and chip supper for all.

After retiring from the Army, Peter Williams was employed with the Sultan of Oman’s Armed Forces as head of the School for Recruits with the rank of Squadron Leader.

After Oman he and his wife initially bought a Post Office business in Lancashire but then moved to Padstow in Cornwall where they ran a select Bed and Breakfast house. Their Sunday menu speciality was a Gurkha curry cooked by Peter himself.

Eventually, as the song goes, he “returned home to Wales” and settled in Bridgend, Glamorgan, living happily with his family until his death. His funeral at Coychurch Crematorium was well attended by his large family and many friends, including a number from the regiments of the Brigade.

We send our sincere condolences to Moreen, his 3 sons and daughter.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Peter was proud that his sons served in the RAF, Royal Marines and the Royal Artillery, and that his daughter married a Petty Officer on the Royal Yacht.

There was never a dull moment when Peter was around. We shall miss him. JEGL SIRMOOR CLUB NEWS

Retirement of Brigadier Bruce Jackman as Chairman.

The following is an extract of the valedictory speech that Brigadier Bruce Jackman gave at the Sirmoor Club Reunion in London on 14th May 2016:

It has been a great honour, and it has given me much satisfaction, to have been involved in the Sirmoor Club Committee since September 1993, first as Honorary Secretary and then as Chairman from 2003 until now. My 23 years on the Committee was pipped by my father who was Honorary Secretary for 24 years; indeed he was one of the founder members of the Sirmoor Club when the Committee first met in March 1949.

My time on the Committee has been an interesting period in the Club's history as we moved from being the Officers' Association of a 'living' regiment to one of a 'past' regiment, now remembered as an antecedent of the present Royal Gurkha Rifles. And how proud we are of them in the way they continue to carry on our traditions, and keep the professionalism and fighting reputation of the Gurkha so highly respected in today's Army.

Now of course our numbers in the Club no longer increase with the arrival of new officers in the Regiment. Instead we must accept the slow decline in members as our veterans move on to greener pastures. However, I am delighted that some gaps in our ranks are being filled with relatives joining the Club. I urge those whose adult offspring, and indeed grandchildren, have yet to join to persuade them to do so – even if it means paying their subs as an incentive, as most of us have had to do!

I mentioned the wonderful 200th Anniversary last year. Quite apart from being a significant event in our history, it was a watershed in many ways; not

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Subedar Major Kalusing WO2 Khadak Chettri receiving Subedar X Chhetri OBI, MBE, MC Major Kalusing’s MBE from the Duke X of Cambridge. See story p12.

WO2 Khadak Chettri and his grandfather’s medals, with Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kemmis Betty.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Field Marshal Sir John Chapple receives his Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. See story p42.

Sirmoor Yacht Squadron Ionian Odyssey: see story p50.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Sirmoor Golf Society: the Shakespear spruce: see story p44.

Sirmoor Piscatorial Society: see story p43.

Sirmoor Golf Society with Peter Kemmis Betty: see story p45

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Gurkhas in the Highlands: see article p55.

Major Neil Macpherson 2GR Major General Sir Herbert Macpherson, father of Neil.

Major General Sir William Captain Ian Macpherson Macpherson 6GR & 7GR

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Unveiling of the Gurkha Statue, Church Crookham. See story p58.

Lieutenant General Sir Peter Duffell

The statue and the Queen’s Gurkha Orderly Officers.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Major Andrew Todd RGR, seen here with the Queen’s Gurkha Orderly Officers, helped rescue climbers from Mount Everest following the earthquake in Nepal in April 2015. He received his MBE from HRH The Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace on 18th November 2016.

The Brigade of Gurkhas is back in training for Mount Everest. The team is largely unchanged from the 2015 expedition and has built on the foundations it laid. They have been training in the French Alps, Wales and most recently in Scotland.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Gurkhas assisting with reconstruction in Nepal (see story p56)….

....with a helping hand from Prince Harry.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Colonel Christopher Lavender at the Indian Mutiny Memorial, Delhi, pointing out the casualty list of the Sirmoor Battalion with his Regimental blackthorn.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com least because it saw the Sirmoor Rifles Association – with ourselves the Sirmoor Club, the Sirmoor Club Nepal, and the Sirmoor Sathies UK – all coming together really for the first time in earnest. Furthermore our website has now been developed from what was a Sirmoor Club website into an inclusive Sirmoor Rifles Association website that uses all current social media communication across the board. So we are now truly a well-coordinated Regimental Association. This is why I feel the time is right for me to hand over to the next generation to take us forward into the next exciting chapter of our history.

I have been most fortunate to have served under two outstanding Presidents, Field Marshal John and General Sir Peter, who were wise counsellors and advisers, not just to me as Chairman but also to the Board of the 2GR Trust and to the Sirmoor Club Committee, and they have flown top- cover for me when necessary. I am very grateful to them – indeed I guess I speak on behalf of everyone here in thanking them. We are so lucky.

And what a strong team we have to continue the movement. Our new President, Ian Rigden, bridges the transition from 2GR to RGR where he went on to Command 2nd Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles in Afghanistan for which he was made OBE. And who better than William Shuttlewood to succeed me as Chairman. He commanded the 1 Battalion and he too was made OBE for his astute handling of a most successful amalgamation when both Battalions came together to form 2GR under his command. Thus he became the first Commandant of the 2nd Goorkhas since 1886. Surely there cannot be any more appropriate qualification for Chairmanship of the Sirmoor Rifles Association!

Also, as you know, both Ian and William have held the appointment of Colonel Brigade of Gurkhas - so both have a formidable amount of Gurkha knowledge and experience gained at the highest level in the Brigade and also in Nepal. In addition, William, having been Director of the Gurkha Welfare Trust charity for 11 years, is uniquely qualified to chair the Board of Trustees of the 2GR Trust, our Regimental charity.

So you see as I step aside I do so in the comforting knowledge that all will be very well in the Sirmoor Club under new reinvigorated leadership. Also of course we have the experienced Committee Members who have served for

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com so many years and to whom I am extremely grateful for their support and good work both in and out of Committee. And we have a relatively new Treasurer in Edward Mackaness – who's doing a great job by bringing his business experience to the table. And Nick Hinton, our new Editor of the Sirmooree, whose work in IBM is clearly being beneficial to us, is bursting with ideas. So I guess there will be plenty of sparkle in the management of the Sirmoor Club from here on.

But I want to make special mention of the continuity and long experience that Nigel Wylie Carrick brings as our Honorary Secretary. He immediately volunteered to replace Clive Fraser when the latter died so unexpectedly 10 years ago. Nigel is a genuinely committed Sirmoori, a fount of knowledge and with much experience of Nepal. He is tireless in always producing the best, witness the 200th Reunion in this Club last year and the Lunch here today. He has been a wonderful person to work with and hugely helpful in supporting me. I can't thank him enough, and we should all be very grateful indeed for all he does for the Club and for the Sirmoor Rifles Association.

Finally, and I have only had one opportunity to say this before – when I handed over Command of 2nd Battalion 35 years ago – I cannot thank Carol enough for supporting me throughout my career so brilliantly and, when she thought it was all over, to support me again so magnificently throughout the last 23 years that I have been engaged in Sirmoor Club and Sirmoor Rifles Association business – always accompanying me to the many functions that a Chairman has to attend. At last she can now relax!

Jai Sirmoor! Thank you all so much.

David Thomas put together this ditty, entitled ‘Passing the Baton’ to mark the handover: Farewell it is to Chairman Bruce. After 23 years we’ve let him loose. The Sirmoor Club - a happy bunch And now replete with Travellers lunch, Say an affectionate farewell. Thank you Bruce, you’ve done us well. You pass the baton well and good, And we welcome William Shuttlewood!

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Presentation to Lieutenant General Sir Peter Duffell.

At the same Sirmoor Club Reunion on 14th May 2016, the outgoing Chairman also made the following announcement:

You may recall that I took the opportunity last year, at our 200th Anniversary Reunion Lunch, and General Peter’s last as President, to thank him for his 10 years in the job. Unfortunately I was unable to present him with something by way of appreciation from the Sirmoor Club because it wasn't ready. Well now it is, so at last I can retire with a clear conscience and formally present him now with the silver beaker he chose to go with his collection, each one of which marks a special occasion - this being inscribed '2006 - President of the Sirmoor Rifles Association - 2015'.

Re-established link with 5/8GR.

We have recently established a formal link with 5/8th Gurkhas (our previous 4th Bn) through Colonel Lalit Sharma who commanded them and is now an Honorary Member of the Sirmoor Club. In his letter of regrets that he could not attend the Sirmoor Club reunion, he sent his best wishes and added:

‘I take this opportunity to invite each and every member of the Sirmoor fraternity, on behalf of the Commanding Officer and all Officers of 5/8th Goorkhas, to the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations of our raising, to be held at Secunderabad in Hyderabad in March 2017. Since the unit is deployed in an operational area at present, we shall celebrate it in 2017 when we shall be in a non-operational area.’

Captain Bhagtasing Pun becomes a Centenarian.

Captain Bhagtasing Pun MM has just become a Sirmooree centenarian. His extraordinary longevity is truly remarkable given that he had to endure terrifying conditions, hardships and starvation for over three and half years as prisoner of war in Singapore, and that the normal life expectancy in Nepal is substantially lower.

Reaching his 100th was celebrated with a special birthday party in Pokhara, where he lives with his family. The party was attended by over 400 family members, relatives, and friends as well as a good crowd from his village,

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Ramche in Myagdi, west Nepal. Flanked by his close family members, he was welcomed to the party, as planned, to the traditional Naumati Baja music at the entrance followed by cake cutting ceremony, greetings and presentation of khata by all those present and an entertainment for all to a cocktail of traditional and contemporary dances. One of his wishes was to meet families and relatives from his village that he hadn’t seen for many years. He was therefore very excited to meet everyone and took time to talk to them and exchange memories of the past. Remarkably, he knew them all - both old and young! He was clearly humbled to see those who have come from the UK, USA, Hong Kong and outside Pokhara valley specifically to be part of this special day. To give this special celebration a little bit of Sirmoor theme, a Sirmoor flag was raised throughout the day in his honour, and his birthday cake was displayed on the table covered by Sirmoor tablecloth.

Amongst the guests were representatives of Sirmoor Rifles Association (SRA) Nepal. Captain Bharatsing Chhetri, Chairman SRA Nepal, Captain Karnabahadur Thapa, Chairman SRA Pokhara Branch and Major Yambahadur Gurung attended the party to present him with a silver statue of Sirmooree. The presentation was accompanied by the Regimental music.

A special congratulatory message was received from His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. On his birthday, 9th January, the letter was delivered to him in person by his son, Bishnu Pun, a Sirmooree and a former orderly to the Prince of Wales. He was surprised and clearly thrilled to have received the personalised greetings from his former Colonel-in-Chief. The letter is framed and occupies a central place on the mantelpiece in his room.

Captain Bhagtasing puts his long life down to routine exercise, sticking to strict daily routine and keeping a positive outlook on life. He has never smoked. He used to enjoy occasional glass of wine or rakshi but gave it up over two decades ago after becoming a widower.

Sirmoorees who attended the Sirmoor Durbar 2015 in Pokhara Nepal saw him carry the Queen’s Truncheon as the oldest officer of the Regiment at the Parade.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Field Marshal Sir John Chapple receives his LSGC.

Recent changes to the rules of the award of the Long Service and Good Conduct medal mean that all serving Officers are now eligible to receive it. This includes Field Marshal Sir John Chapple who is still on the Army Staff List.

On 10th November 2016, Lieutenant General Nick Pope CBE, Deputy Chief of the General Staff, had the pleasure of presenting the Field Marshal his medal – and five bars - at the annual Gurkha Brigade Association Dinner.

SIRMOOR CLUB ACTIVITIES

(Full reports on these activities, including attendance lists, can be found on the Sirmoor website)

Sirmoor Piscatorial Society (SPS)

Of course, if you were not an optimist by nature, you would never be a fisherman and certainly not a Sirmoori one. So it was with a biblical combination of faith, hope and friendship that Sirmooris gathered at Parhazard House from 13-15th June. Sadly Charlie Ward, John Urquhart, Michael Willis and William Shuttlewood could not join us.

Nonetheless, on Monday Joanna and I met Tony Berry and Bruce Jackman for lunch at the Bakers Arms at Droxford ‘a beguiling village pub….where Adam Cordery knows what is required and delivers in fine fashion…’. The Sirmooris then spent the rest of the afternoon fishing the Meon while Joanna nobly went back to get ready for the evening. What did we catch? Well, although the river had been stocked the week before with 365 x 11-inch Brown Trout nothing was showing, nothing was rising and nothing was caught – so we returned to Parhazard for dinner.

Joanna and Lucy Cook had done us splendidly and we were joined by Peter and Annie Duffell, Norman and Alison Corbett, Sally Berry, Joanna’s two sisters, Jackie Craig who was with the Gurkha Welfare Trust nearly all her working life, and Josie Cowell. The evening went with a Sirmoor swing and

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com the pleasant memory of steaks au feu de bois a Parhazard lingered well beyond the lemon sponge and strawberries.

Next day, after a sunny breakfast on the terrace, we were ready for anything! Tony, fishing on Rookesbury, caught a fine 2lb chub. I caught a couple of small trout on a Wickhams Fancy and a Butcher, and Christopher landed a feisty 9-inch wild Brownie. However, our picnic was the highlight of the day and Sally and Joanna appeared on the dot of one o’clock with a loaded car that we managed to drive down to the riverside/

The day after, Wednesday, everyone had gone their separate way, so I went down to the bend in the river that you can just see in the photo and caught a 12-inch stockie that had a vicious tag in its back put in by PSFFA so that it could be identified.

What luck will 2017 bring us? Whatever it is we cannot wait to try again ….now that is optimism! Sirmoor Golf Society (SGS)

The SGS has open our membership to friends and golfers from other Regimental Associations to be Associate Members. While sticking to our policy of producing enjoyable, good-value meetings on quality courses, with this more eclectic mix of golfers we have established a Handicap System based on a tried and tested system used by other golf societies. The new system came into effect from 1st January 2017.

30 March 2016 – North Hants Golf Club.

This quality course was recommended by Richard Kemmis Betty. It is Justin Rose's local course and we had our meal in the Justin Rose Room, a lovely venue overlooking the course and bedecked with all his golf trophies and golfing paraphernalia.

North Hants was also the home club for Lt Col Gordon Shakespear (1st Bn 1940-75). He planted a Serbian Spruce tree there in 2004, having planted many other trees on the course, and there is a plaque commemorating his life. It seems appropriate therefore to adopt North Hants GC as our 'home' course for our annual Championships in future.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com 30th March was a beautiful Spring day and we were treated extraordinarily well by the club. The competition was a Individual Stableford format with players divided into two teams – Red and Blue – thus providing and individual and team competition. We had a good turnout of 22 players. Blue Team scored 249 points against Red Team's 224. The best individual Stableford score was Alexander Kemmis Betty with an astonishing 40 points (the new Handicap Committee has taken note!). Rosie Harrop won the best Ladies Stableford score with 28 points. Phil Murray was Nearest the Pin on the 8th and Richard Kemmis Betty produced the longest drive on the 18th. The Seve prize (for the most audacious shot) was awarded to Nigel St George for managing succesfully to 'chip' a ball onto the green from a position that was head height on a bank – and he did so with his Driver!

It was a really great day's golf, a super start to the season, and a wonderful introduction to what will be our 'home' golf course for years to come.

BCJ

5th May 2016 – Corhampton Golf Club – SGS Championship.

Thursday the 5th of May was Lt Col Peter Kemmis Betty's 100th Birthday. Peter originally invited the SGS to play at Corhampton GC, his home club, in 1999 which led to us adopting the club as our 'home' for our annual Championship meetings. This year Peter came to present the Sirmoor Golf Trophy on his 100th Birthday. It had been won in 1932 by his brother Mervyn, in 2007 and 2008 by his son Richard, and in 2012 by his grandson Alexander. Only Members of the Sirmoor Club itself can win the Trophy but the remaining prizes are open to all SGS Members. It was hardly surprising that 31 players took part in this year's very special golf meeting on such an auspicious day.

The competition was Individual Stableford but with 8 Teams of four (one team had to have a 'ghost' player) vying for the Team Prizes. The winner of the Trophy was Steve Clifton, the reigning Champion, with 36 points. Runner up was Richard Kemmis Betty with 34 points. The best non-Sirmoori was Jordan Pullinger with 31 points. The best Lady Stableford score was Rosie Harrop with 29 points. Nearest the Pin on the 11th was Mark Pettigrew.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Longest Drive on the 5th was Alexander Kemmis Betty. Nearest the Pin in Two Shots on the 16th was Jordan Pullinger. The Aslett Prize (best 20+ handicap) was won by Robert Cox with 26 points. The Seve Prize for the most outrageous shot with a successful outcome had no contenders, so the prize went to Derek Burton for so many outrageous shots with no successful outcomes! The Winning Team was Richard Kemmis Betty, David Harrison, Ann Burton and Robert Cox. Runners Up were Jonathan Kemmis Betty, Jordan Pullinger, Steve Clifton, and Philip Scofield. Third place was Bruce Jackman, Capt Dilip Gurung, Mark Pettigrew and Jenny Roe.

Lunch was a sumptious Curry Bhat with pudding, after which Bruce Jackman gave an account of Peter Kemmis Betty's eventful and courageous life in the 2nd Battalion, including the action in which he won his MC and his time as a Japanese POW, as well as his prowess as an all round sportsman in golf, tennis, squash, and especially skiing which he only gave up at the age of 86! We all toasted Peter's health with champagne provided by the Kemmis Betty brothers, who also kindly provide the wine for the meal. Then Peter presented the Sirmoor Golf Trophy to Steve Clifton whose name will be engraved on it for the third time (2010, 2015 and now 2016). David Harrison, who is President of the Army Golf Club, arranged for a write up of this occasion to be published in the the July Issue (No 182) of the Tee Times golfing magazine, so it achieved national acclaim – and rightly so.

Sadly Peter died peacefully in his sleep on 25th August 2016. This was a great sadness but nevertheless we are left with so many happy memories; not least his many times as a SGS player at Corhampton GC, but especially this year's presentation of the Trophy. BCJ 25th May 2016 – Royal Wimbledon Golf Club.

Mark Pettigrew kindly arranged for us to play at this very special golf club which is steeped in history and has a truly magnificent course. Numbers had to be limited to 20 players – 15 SGS players 'hosted' by Mark and 4 other members chosen to suit the Sirmoor style: Julian Walton, Ed Vale, David Morgan and Mike Tibbats – known by many from Hong Kong Jockey Club days and the brother of Lindy Tedford, wife of Ian Tedford 7GR. They were great fun and could not have been more helpful.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

It was a team competition with five teams of four, with the best two Stableford scores over 18 holes to count towards the Team Score. The winning team was Mark Pettigrew, Steve Clifton, Nick Cooke and Jonathan Forbes with a very creditable score of 65 points, with just 3 points separating the first three teams. Mark Pettigrew scored the highest Stableford score with 33 points. Rosie Harrop won Nearest The Pin on the 13th. James Harrop won the Longest Drive on the 16th. Norman Corbet won the Straightest Drive on the 15th, and Steve Clifton won the 'Aslett' Prize for the highest score of 20+ Handicaps with 32 points.

We were joined for our meal by Edwina (née Harrop), recently married to Rory Scott (they had their first child, a daughter, on 3 November), and also by Michelle Pettigrew to end a lovely day of golf in a magnificent golf club.

BCJ

29th September 2016 – Army Golf Club, Aldershot.

David Harrison, President of Army Golf, kindly arranged for us to play at the Army Golf Club, Aldershot. Disappointingly there were only 10 players on the day. This required some renegotiation with the Club but David managed to keep the cost to what was agreed when we had hoped for at least 20.

Once again we were blessed with perfect weather. The competition was Individual Stableford off full handicaps. Alison Corbett won with a superb score of 38 points. David Harrison came second with 35 points but couldn't claim the prize because he won the Longest Drive on the 18th (nobody in the SGS is allowed to win more than one individual prize); so Norman Corbett won the Runner Up prize with a score of 33 – beating Steve Clifton on double count-back (i,e., the best last six holes to count).

We ended with the best curry we had anywhere in the year. Not only was it delicious but it was beautifully presented with all the correct supporting sambals followed by a superb home-made pudding. Shyabash chef!

BCJ

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com 12/13th October 2016 – Sirmoor 'Devon Dunes Classic'.

This was our last fixture of the season and a repeat of last year's successful Autumn golf meeting. Once again we had two days of glorious weather on two of the best links courses in England, the Royal North Devon Golf Club, Westward Ho!, on 12th October, and at Saunton Golf Club on the other side of Bideford/Barnstaple Bay on the 13th.

The event was very well organised again by Steve Clifton. Richard Kemmis Betty provided the Devon Dunes Classic Trophy for the best individual combined Stableford score over the two days, and he stitched in a team competition. There were also individual prizes for the longest drives and nearest the pins on both courses. Sadly only a handful of Sirmoor players were available this year so numbers were made up with friends/guests. We played in four groups of three, with all players divided into two teams.

The courses lived up to their reputations, challenging but fair, and we were blessed with glorious summer-like weather which made Saunton in particular look spectacular. Each day was rounded off with a delicious 2-course curry. Talk about getting value for money; 36 holes of golf on two oustanding courses, two lovely meals, and a multitude of prizes all for just £90.

The results were:

12th October – Royal North Devon GC. Nearest the Pin (5th). Mike Roe. Longest Drive (18th). Richard Kemmis Betty.

13th October – Saunton GC. Nearest the Pin (5th). Steve Clifton. Saunton – Longest Drive (12th). Alan Bennett-Brown.

Devon Dunes Classic Trophy. Steve Clifton with 61 combined points over 36 holes. Runner Up. Rob Wallace with 57 points. Best Lady. Rosie Harrop with 54 points. The Team Prize. Blue Team with a combined score of 314 points against Red Team's 299 points.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

This competition provided a marvellous end to the SGS season. It is just a great shame that it was so poorly attended the future of the competition is now in jeopardy. BCJ Sirmoor Yacht Squadron (SYS)

26-28th June 2016 – SYS Regatta, Cowes

After a year's break for the Sirmoor 200th Anniversary we came back to racing with a vengeance with enough crews to man 5 boats, which makes for good racing. Yes we had to invite one or two guests but it was well worth it. Not only did they provide the essential qualified skippers needed to hire boats, but they also fitted in extremly well and enjoyed the Sirmoor experience. It was particularly good to welcome some new members of the SYS – James Attwood (brother of Tom), Mark Cook (10GR), Keith Steel (10GR), Garfield Smith (7GR/RGR), and Adrian Hayes (7GR/RGR).

We based ourselves at the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club (RCYC), arriving on Sunday in time for evening drinks and BBQ. After breakfast on Monday we had a briefing and then a magnetic board exercise to remind ourselves of the rules & etiquette of racing. Then at midday we went to the Island Sailing Club to man and rig the boats before setting out for a practice race. There followed three races and the result at the end of the first day was:

1 Pisces (Sarah Finch) 2 Wisconsin (Garfield Smith) 3 Biscuit (Richard Bridges) 4 Periscope (Sarah Holdstock) 5 Hibiscus (Mark Cook)

The only real incident occurred in the second race when Wisconsin and Periscope managed to force Biscuit to run aground just west of the Royal Yacht Squadron, as the boats jostled for position at the second mark. Biscuit was finally towed off by the rescue boat in the classic manner of taking the main halyard and pulling the boat over from the top of the mast until the keel is freed enough for the boat to float. It was interesting stuff and

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

provided amusement for spectators on the shore close to the incident. Fortunately no damage was done and the boat went on to win the next race, and indeed the whole Regatta!

That evening we had the famous Curry Supper at the RCYC cooked by Lee the chef – a real curry freak!

On Tuesday morning we manned the boats straight after breakfast and had three more races to finish the Regatta and repair to the Club House for drinks, prize-giving, and a slap-up buffet lunch. The results of day two were:

1 Biscuit (Richard Bridges) 2 Periscope (Sarah Holdstock) 3 Pisces (Sarah Finch) 4 Hibiscus (Mark Cook) 5 Wisconsin (Garfield Smith)

After combining the results of both days the Winner of the Jean Peacy Trophy was Biscuit (Richard Bridges) with Pisces (Sarah Finch) a very close Runner Up by one point. All but one boat had the pleasure and thrill of winning a race, which made for a very satisfactory regatta.

So ended a wonderful two days with perfect sailing weather – blue skies and ideal winds – in a lovely setting. The RCYC did us proud with great service and superb food. The staff now know us well and enter into the spirit of the occasion. However, we were indebted to Bob Milner (our Principle Race Officer who is an international race judge), Jo Chugg (RCYC Sailing Secretary), and Clive Tappenden and Lynne Rowcroft (Race Assistants) who all again gave their time voluntarily to run our regatta superbly and professionally.

The Regatta was so successful and such fun that all crews vowed to come again in 2017. Let's hope this becomes a reality. BCJ

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com 7-16th September – SYS Ionian Odyssey

It was difficult to get a flotilla of boats together this year so we sailed the Southern Ionian for 10 days with just one boat – a Bavaria 46 – and six crew: Richard (skipper) & Julia Bridges, Bruce & Carol Jackman, Meryon Bridges (Richard's brother – ex-Colonel RE and Everest mountaineer and round the world sailor), and Gillie Renton (whose husband, Robin, was recovering from an operation and couldn't join us - he had been a Brunei Shell helicopter pilot where Gillie ran jungle river safaris – they were members of the Officers' Mess).

We flew from Gatwick early so arrived in Lefkas at midday with plenty of time to take-over and victual the boat (Wave). We intended to sail to a little fishing village for the night but had a few problems with the boat which prevented us from setting sail. It was just as well because the weather that evening and all the next day was very stormy so we were better off staying in the Marina.

On Friday the 9th we awoke to a glorious morning with perfect wind conditions and set sail for lunch and a swim on a small island (Skorpio). That afternoon we sailed for our evening stop in a delightful bay where we had arranged to meet Duncan & Ria Briggs (ex-6GR) who have lived on their boat (Sea Topaz) for 11 years, and knew the Southern Ionian islands extremely well. We sailed with them for three days and visited some beautiful coves and bays during the day, always ending up in delightful coastal villages for the evenings. We ate ashore on some nights and onboard our boats on others. It was idyllic.

Monday the 12th saw Duncan & Ria depart to meet their family , who were coming 'to stay' on their boat for a holiday. They gave us an itinerary which provided some fantastic sailing with wonderful lunch stops and evening berths. We were most grateful for their local knowledge and advice.

We did meet up with the Briggs family again on the evening of Wednesday the 14th at the agreed BBQ site on a lovely deserted beach with plenty of dry driftwood, and enough material to make a perfect BBQ. Soon the fire was burning, Eddy Grant was blaring from the boat's speakers, we were tucking

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com into steaks and sausages with lovely salads. The next morning we set sail back to Lefkas. We experienced one of the best days sailing with perfect winds in the right quarter. Back in Lefkas we enjoyed the luxuries of fabulous hot showers and modern ablutions before we went out for our last delicious supper in a Taverna near the Marina.

On the morning of Friday the 16th we handed over the boat, had a breakfast ashore of a huge Spanish omelette each (yes in Greece!), then flew back to the UK in time to miss the evening rush hour. It was not to be. A huge rainstorm that morning had caused major flooding on the M4 (sections of it were completely closed) and it took the Jackmans 6½ hours to get to Bristol – normally it is a journey of 3 hours! What a way to end a lovely holiday! BCJ

Sirmoor Shooting

6th September 2016 – Baydon Simulated Game Day

For the second year running, we took a day's simulated game shoot run by Barbury Shooting School in the beautiful Ramsbury valley near Marlborough. We had 14 guns including two guests. Guns were paired on 7 pegs over 5 drives, each gun shooting half the drive on each peg before changing over.

We assembled at The Bell Inn, Ramsbury, for a full english breakfast included in the cost of the day – 5 drives and about 5,000 clays, plus a pub lunch and tea in the field all for £200 per gun. After breakfast, briefing and drawing pegs we set off for the first drive. All the drives were exceptionally well organised. The 'birds' (clays) were put over the guns to replicate the characteristics of partridge and pheasant, coming in ones and twos and small groups, clusters, and large flushes, with specially adapted traps that projected the clays so realistically that they didn't slow down as they crossed the gun line. Each peg experienced about the same number of birds on each drive coming from various directions with some traversing more than one gun – and of course there was the inevitable poaching of birds over neighbouring pegs! One drive was a competition shoot with teams shooting in turn thereby providing a different perspective and some competitive edge.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Once again, just as last year, we all agreed that it was a really super day's shooting at the beginning of the season, as realistic as it could be, and very good value for money – so much so that we all agreed to repeat the experience at the same time next year. BCJ

12th November 2016 – Macaroni Farm, Eastleach, Gloucestershire

This year was 'unfinished business' from last year's challenging shoot in the eye of Storm Desmond (see the Report in Sirmooree No 76).

The team gathered at The Swan Hotel, Bibury, for dinner on 11th November, having all observed their individual two minutes silence during the day. The team consisted of 9 guns, mostly accommodated at the The Walled Garden (Andrew & Anne Johnston's home).

At 8am prompt the following morning, the guests had a magnificent breakfast including smoked salmon and scrambled eggs. The questions uppermost in everyone's mind was “will Michael Willis remember the way and will John Nott have his driver with him ?”. (Last year John arrived without his driver who was stuck in the English Channel en route from France!).

At 9am the convoy of cars, under the control of ex-2nd Battalion MTO (retd) Andrew Johnston, left The Walled Garden for Marcaroni Farm, Eastleach. We arrived at Macaroni Farm to find that both Nott and Willis had arrived 'ages' earlier and were into their second cup of coffee.

Our hosts, Charles and Janie Phillips and son, Sam, welcomed us all with the hope that we would be able to get a little nearer our target this year, at least before dark. The plan was to have three drives, then refreshments, followed by another two drives. Our target was, again, about 150 birds. The Eastleach valleys are ideal for driven partridge off the tops of the surrounding ridges, and we were given the opportunity to shoot well over the expected bag. Without Hurricane Desmond this year we intended to demonstrate that we were slightly better than last year's ratio of 9:1 shots to kills.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Following refreshments after the first three drives, Charles took us to a drive called Paul's Hill. This was the first time it was shot this season and it didn't disappoint. The guns stood in a valley, facing a 200 yards of rising ground with their backs to a wood. The driven pheasant came off the cover crop at the top of the rise and kept climbing as they flew over the guns. It was sensational shooting. We were offered another drive but it was decided that we could not have bettered the quality of the birds shown at Paul's Hill and called it a morning after the four drives.

Everyone retired to The Victoria Inn in Eastleach for drinks and a lunch of steak & mushroom pie followed by a delicious bread & butter pudding. The bag was 63 partridge, 55 pheasant, and one unlucky pigeon – a total of 119 birds at a ratio of 5:1 shots to kills. The Sirmoor reputation was restored!

The Keeper, Paul Freebury, and his hard-working and enthusiastic band of beaters could not have presented the birds better for all guns on whatever pegs to have a great days shooting.

In an extraordinary incident David Thomas recovered the signet ring he lost last year. Paul Freebury had been walking along a track and saw a glint. He scraped away the earth and there was the signet ring. He returned it to a dumbfounded David Thomas at the end of this year's shoot.

Whilst it is a long time before next season, Charles was asked if we would be allowed to return next year and do even better. He said he would welcome us again. We look forward to it. ASCJ Sirmoor ‘Armchair’ Battlefield Tours

Gordon Corrigan continued to give his time and effort freely to act as our 'Tour Guide' for 2 Sirmoor Armchair Battlefield Tours (SABTs) at the Gurkha Museum this year, each accompanied by the most delicious curry bhats: - another good reason for attending these fascinating and amusing talks.

24th May 2016 – 'The Far East War Part II'. We finished the series on World War II by looking at the fall of Malaya and Singapore and follow-on campaigns to defeat the Japanese in Indo-China and Indonesia. We were proud to be joined by Lieutenant Colonel Peter Kemmis Betty MC who had

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com celebrated his 100th Birthday on the 5th of the month and commanded a Company in our 2nd Battalion when the Japanese invaded in December 1941. Peter took part in the question and answer session and gave an interesting insight into just what it was like at the time, his memory being as sharp as ever. We couldn't have ended our study of World War II campaigns in a more appropriate way.

6th December 2016 – 'Gurkha Battle Honours Pre 1815!'.

How could there be any Gurkha Battle Honours before Gurkhas, in the form of the Sirmoor Battalion, were first formally raised in 1815? Gordon gave an informative account of how Battlefield Honours were awarded, and how some dubious actions were recognised while other much more deserved battles were discarded. Addressing the title of the talk he covered the Amboor and Carnatic campaigns during which Battle Honours for Mysore 1792 and Assaye 1803 were awarded to the 10th Madras Battalion that subsequently became the 10th Gurkha Rifles in 1890. So the mystery of how Gurkhas achieved Battle Honours before they were officially raised as Gurkha units was unlocked in another most entertaining talk by Gordon Corrigan.

ARTICLES

Remembering the Gurkhas in the Highlands

Many years ago when a Gurkha Museum was to be established in the UK, General Sir Peter Hunt suggested Edinburgh Castle, where he could ensure a suitable building would be made available. Sadly from my point of view at least, the powers that be plumbed instead for Winchester. Many of the Scottish Regimental Museums do make mention of the Gurkhas, particularly the Gordons in Aberdeen. Thus I was pleased to be able to add something of Gurkha interest when recently I was asked to assist at the Clan Macpherson Museum in Newtonmore. All Clan members who had died in the First World War were to be remembered by a special centenary exhibition, launched in 2014. My area of expertise being the Indian Army, I helped with information for 2 British Officers of Gurkha Regiments who had died in that war and a further one from the Second World War.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

The Clan Macpherson Museum is open seven days a week in summer, afternoons only on Sundays. There is no admission charge but donations are welcome. The varied displays are stunning. There is a fine new exhibition on the late Sir Tommy Macpherson, a highly decorated special forces hero of the Second World War. As well as his international collection of awards, starting with the Military Cross and 2 bars, there is some of the personal kit he carried whilst operating behind enemy lines.

Major Neil Macpherson was killed in action on 31st October 1914 at Neuve Chappelle as Second-in-Command of 2nd Battalion, 2nd King Edward VII’s Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles). He was the first British Officer of 2/2GR to die but within a month all the others and half their Gurkha soldiers had been either killed or wounded. Neil was the son of Major General Sir Herbert Macpherson who had won the VC with the 78th Highlanders in the Indian Mutiny, taken part in innumerable actions, expeditions and wards, commanded the 2nd Goorkhas and died on active service in Burma in 1886. His son Neil was educated at Inverness College and had served in 5 major campaigns before his death in France at the age of 45. Neil’s name is on the Neuve Chappelle Memorial. He left behind a widow and 2 young daughters. His 7 brothers all served in the Great War.

Lieutenant Duncan Macpherson was the only child of Major General Sir William Macpherson who had a long and distinguished career in the Army Medical Services. Duncan was commissioned into the 1st Battalion 7th Gurkha Rifles. Age 25 he was on his first home leave from India when war broke out and was sent to a British Regiment as a reinforcement, but on arrival in France he was able to arrange an attachment to the 2nd Battalion 8th Gurkha Rifles. He died with them on 23rd November 1914 near Festubert in an attack on an enemy strongpoint along with 2 other British Officers, 3 Gurkha Officers and 14 Gurkha soldiers. He is buried in Bethune Town Cemetery and is remembered on the Fettes College War Memorial, which his father unveiled in 1921.

Serving with the Gurkhas in the Second World War, Captain Ian Macpherson packed an enormous amount of action into his short life. Planning a career in the Regular Army in his native Canada, he attended

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com the Royal Military College at Kingston, Ontario. But on commissioning he opted for the Indian Army and in 1942 found himself on the retreat through Burma with the 1st Battalion 7th Gurkha Rifles. He ended up commanding the remnants of the Battalion at the age of 21 and for his leadership he received a Mention in Dispatches.

The following year he received a further Mention for clandestine intelligence work behind Japanese lines with V Force. Brigadier Mike Calvert had met him on the retreat and recruited him for the Second Chindit Expedition in 1944. He commanded the company from 3rd Battalion 6th Gurkha Rifles which was tasked directly by Brigade Headquarters with protection and reconnaissance missions. This duty he performed with great flair and diligence in the most trying conditions of terrain and enemy activity. His death in action at the age of 23 came as a great personal shock to Calvert who had relied on him implicitly for his skill and courage, for which he received a third MID. He was a keen piper and greatly respected by his Gurkha soldiers for the care and concern he showed them. His name is under the 6th Gurkha Rifles, along with 27,000 other Allied dead, on the wall at the Yaukkkyan CWGC Cemetery near Rangoon. Visiting there in 2013 I felt awe and respect as well as sadness as I read his name high above me, etched in stone.

A visit to Newtonmore and the Clan Macpherson Museum is an excursion you will enjoy. The story of the Clan in Scotland and its service to the now unfashionable but still enthralling British Empire is without parallel. The Gurkhas remain just one small part of this vibrant and colourful jigsaw.

Major John Patchett

(The author served in 10GR and has lived in Kingussie, the next village beyond Newtonmore on the A9, since 1991).

Earthquake Relief in Nepal

Since the earthquakes which claimed nearly 9000 lives across Nepal and left millions homeless, the Gurkha Welfare Scheme (GWS), supported by serving

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com soldiers from the Brigade, have been helping pensioners whose villages and homes were destroyed.

The initial response included the distribution of emergency shelter kits, tarpaulins, CGI sheets and cooking utensils, funded by a grant of almost £1.2m from the Gurkha Welfare Trust, while at the same time assessing the extent of the damage as a basis for longer-term assistance. It was found that the homes of over 1200 elderly and vulnerable pensioners were left unsafe, and a further 1000 needed urgent repairs.

The GWS Earthquake Response Team was formed in November 2015, led by Lieutenant Colonel John White (ex QGE and 1RGR). It consists of additional Assistant Area Welfare Officers in the worst affected areas, many of whom are Sirmoorees – Sergeant Uttamprasad Gurung in Lamjung, Sergeant Bhaktabahadur Tamang covering much of Dhading from the Centre in Bagmati, and Sergeant Tejbahadur Thapa facing the challenges of rebuilding almost 300 houses in Gorkha. The team is based in Pokhara, with an engineering team which produced an earthquake resistant design for new houses. With two dozen project supervisors in the Area Welfare Centres, it works to the priorities set by the Area Welfare Officers.

Funding for all this reconstruction activity, estimated to cost almost £22m over the next 4 years, comes from an earthquake appeal launched by the Trust and to which a generous public is contributing regularly, augmented by institutional donations.

The Queen’s Gurkha Engineers also headed teams of sappers and other soldiers from the Brigade sent to help with the relief and reconstruction efforts. In a 4-phase programme called ‘Op Marmat’ from April 2015 to December 2016 they rebuilt welfare centres, schools, community halls and houses as well as helping with the distribution of emergency relief, building materials and food in Sindhuli, Gorkha, Lamjung, Ramechhap and Syangja.

By the end of 2016 the engineers had put up 71 buildings, mostly the larger and more substantial ones serving whole communities, but including a number of pensioners’ homes as well. Over the same period GWS had rebuilt 10 schools with 13 more due to be completed by the 2017 monsoon. At the same time, the GWS had built 622 homes. Highlighting the need to

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com fuel all this large-scale activity, the Army website also records that those taking part in Op Marmat consumed 14,121 portions of dal bhat!

NJHH

The information above comes from the websites of the Gurkha Welfare Trust, British Army news (www.army.mod.uk/news) and the Gurkha Brigade Association (www.gurkhabde.com).

Unveiling of the Gurkha Statue, Church Crookham

The following speech was given by Lieutenant General Sir Peter Duffell at the unveiling of the Gurkha Statue, Church Crookham on 10th July 2016:

County Council Chairman, Church Crookham Parish Councillors, Ladies and Gentlemen: can I, on behalf of the Brigade, express our deep appreciation to your Council for commissioning the Gurkha statue in this memorial Sirmoor Orchard planted many years ago by my Regiment; to Taylor Wimpey for their bountiful contribution and to the Sculptor, Jemma Pearson for executing the work that we are much looking forward to seeing. Almost forty years have passed since I commanded the First Battalion of the Second Goorkhas in Queen Elizabeth Barracks. I can still recall with much nostalgia our time here before deploying to Belize to deter Guatemalan ambitions for that Territory. Between 1970 and 2000 successive battalions of the Gurkha Brigade were stationed here for a 2 year tour and overall some 12,000 Gurkhas must have briefly lived here on unaccompanied service before returning to the Far East. It was from here that they sallied forth on operations to Cyprus at the time of the Turkish invasion, to the Falkland Islands, to the First Gulf war, to Kosovo, Bosnia and Macedonia. From here, too, they set off to Buckingham Palace for many tours on Public Duties, on Fire Service with the famous and not lamented Green Goddesses and on exercise to many parts of the world. It was from here also that they set off to savour the rich delights and pleasures of Fleet and Aldershot and much further afield. And if the barracks themselves were far from enticing the soldiers much enjoyed their UK posting introducing many of them to England for the first time and entitling them to far higher rates of pay than they were used to. The H shaped spider

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com huts each accommodated 56 soldiers and the whole barracks was home to some 750 Gurkhas. Each Rifleman’s space contained one bed, one cupboard, one bedside cabinet, one box soldier and a piece of carpet – meagre stuff indeed and the whole barracks was a maintenance nightmare for the Battalion quartermaster. But as always the Gurkha Battalions loyally made do.

This site had been part of the Aldershot military complex since well before the first world war designed no doubt as temporary accommodation as wars threatened; its previous name for reasons I cannot discover was Boyce barracks but following a visit by the Queen Mother in 1948 it was renamed after her and served as a training establishment for various Corps units until the arrival of the Gurkhas.

In spite of its somewhat Dad’s Army appearance this did not deter members of the Royal Family from visiting the barracks. The Queen twice inspected her 6th Queen Elizabeth Own Gurkha Rifles, Prince Philip came to see his 7th Duke of Edinburgh’s Own Gurkhas and the Prince of Wales as Colonel in Chief of my Regiment and later of the Royal Gurkha Rifles was also a fairly frequent visitor. On the day of his engagement to Princess Diana, Prince Charles dined here with his British and Gurkha Officers having first arrived at Fleet Station in the Royal train, a visit that caused a flurry in our antiquated Mess kitchen. The barracks was also popular with television companies anxious to create the atmosphere of a wartime camp. I recall an episode of The Avengers with the delightful Joanna Lumley mixing easily with the Riflemen while Two Fat Ladies sought out the secrets of a Gurkha Curry; and Dad’s Army felt very much at home. Today most of the Gurkhas that lived in Queen Elizabeth Barracks have long left the service with just a few of the last occupants still serving in the Royal Gurkha Rifles in their splendid modern barracks at Shorncliffe. From there they have set off again - this time to Iraq, Timor, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan where they are serving at the moment but our old barracks has an honourable place in the history of the Gurkha Brigade. Not least it is testament to the memory of Church Crookham and Fleet that many Gurkhas have returned to settle in the surrounding areas where long ago they briefly passed by with much lingering affection. As an historic relic from the past one hut was taken down piece by piece and reassembled in the Aldershot Military Museum to ensure that Queen

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com Elizabeth Barracks honourable story is not forgotten while the street names here will hopefully resonate with the new residents as they recall the light hearted and gallant Gurkha Rifleman. Thank you very much. PRD

Chairman of the Sirmoor Rifles Association (UK Sathies) Visit to Nepal

(This is an edited version of a report that first appeared in the September 2016 edition of The Nepal Sirmooree – Ed)

I went back to Nepal for 3 months on 19th February 2016 after a solid 19 years’ absence, thus breaking the 14-year-old record in exile of the revered Hindu God, Lord Ram by 5 years!

While in Nepal I was very lucky to attend the combined Tamandu, Tigris, and Neuve Chappelle day celebration in Kathmandu on 21st February. My sincere thanks to Chairman SCN, Captain Bharat Singh Thapa Chhetri and the Kathmandu branch Chairman, Captain Krishna Rana and his Committee for so giving me the opportunity to meet old Regimental friends whom I had not seen for ages. Likewise, Dilmaya and I were fortunate to be invited to the Pokhara branch Tamandu Day celebrations on 5th March, where again we had the chance to meet ex-Regimental colleagues. The Pokhara branch Members kindly took me to the Arghaun (after death ritual) of 1300-wallah, Cpl Manbahadur Gurung, an ex-veteran Nepal Cup player of the 1st Battalion, at Phedi Khola’s lovely Buddhist Gumba in Syangja. My thanks to Chairman Pokhara branch, Captain Karna Thapa and the branch members for their warm hospitality. Our thanks as well to Maj Hitman Gurung (ex-1/2 GR, Chairman ex-RGR wallahs) and other members for their touching warm welcome and treat at the famous Thakali Kitchen at Lakeside and to CSgt Ramesh Thakali and Sgt Bhupendra Shahi for so quickly and effectively summoning the roll-call of the unbeatable, famous ex-1/2 GR Nepal Cup players of 1970s/80s along with their wives at the Uncles Bar in New Road Pokhara equipped with Western-style draught beer and extremely tasty variety of BBQ. The mix of nostalgia and euphoria was difficult to handle!

Now to the big changes noticed and experienced in Nepal. The most impressive was the widening of the roads in Kathmandu by pulling down

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com houses, which Dr Baburam Bhattarai had enforced robustly when he was the Prime Minister a few years ago. Full marks to him! I too had to chop off about a metre from the front part of my house to which I readily agreed purely for the collective benefit of the public. The sad news is that the Maoists (Maobadis) have now broken up into 3 factions, the first under the leadership of Prachanda, the second group under Mr Baidhya and the third and recently formed group known as Nayan Shakti (New Force) under Dr Baburam Bhattarai. A three way tug-of-war within the Maoists! The other major parties such as: Congress, Rashtriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), ie the former Panchayat or Monarchical party and Marxist/Leninist (A-Male) are split up in a similar fashion. I leave it to your judgements as to what could happen next. In my opinion, it’s a complete mess, all of them jockeying for positions with which readily come power, money and fame that will last for generations!

The other interesting things worth mentioning are: lots and lots of palatial houses have sprouted up with gates more impressive than that of Buckingham Palace and the Sultans, but the bad and sad thing is that as soon as you step out of the houses, you hit jam-packed traffics, thick dust clouds and/or mud, stray dogs (bhushiya kukurs) and crows scavenging rubbish trolleys. Cows, goats and chickens nonchalantly occupy the highways and roads as if they have been bestowed with God-given rights! The pedestrian crossings don’t mean anything, for people cross willy-nilly from wherever they like. But if some law-abiding public do use the zebra crossings, the taxi drivers totally ignore them and drive past at breakneck speed hooting their horns to the extent of splitting their eardrums. Likewise in total contravention of the International Highway Code, vehicles on the left take priority to that of the right. If the vehicle in front gives his/her rear-right indicator, it is telling the rear vehicle to overtake. It is absolutely scary and crazy, and it beggars belief how such wrong systems were allowed to be established. But the good thing is once you get used to it, everything seems to go tickety-boo! Such is the stupid, anti-law system (kaida), which apparently seems to be working perfectly in Nepal.

The ongoing shortage of electricity (load shedding) and water are the two other frustrating issues. On one occasion, I had to wait for a week to get a 6,000 litre tank full of water for NCRs 1,700. My complaint ended up on deaf

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com ears, and the lame reply I got was that the water source had dried up, whereas you see huge mountain rivers snarling their way through the rugged valleys. Eventually, I had to resort to pumping up water manually from the well like in the Terai for survival! It beggars belief why these basic needs have not been put right even after receiving billions of dollars in foreign aid. The other irritating things that one has got to put up with are: the constant, loud, sounds of vehicle horns, continuous barking of dogs at night and the non-stop crowing of domestic cockerels (kukhrako bhales) as if competing as to who can sing better. This disturbance carries on to the wee hours of dawn thus inducing sleep deprivation. Also the huge disparity between the rich and poor is beyond belief, but still they mingle and live happily together. We also had the chance of experiencing a couple of after-shocks ranging between 4 to 5.5 magnitude, but like everybody else, shrugged them off as they had become immune to it, especially after having endured some 600+ such aftershocks after the big earthquake of 25 April 2015.

Dilmaya and I succeeded in scaling the Thorung La Pass (17,769 Ft/5,416 Metres high) on the Annapurna circuit, which has been officially recognized as the largest pass in the world. Our main worry was altitude sickness but, thank God, nothing happened to us! On our way to Thorung La Pass, we found the miles after miles of rugged, barren landscape surreal and mind boggling culminating onto Swargadwar. It certainly looked like The Gateway to Heaven (which is what the name means) or maybe the imaginary kingdom of Shangri-la from James Hilton’s novel ‘The Lost Horizon’. We were most surprised to see hundreds of thousands of Indians streaming into Muktinath to pay homage at the popular Hindu Temple and to pray, but rumour has it that they are also escaping the unbearable 35-40 degree heat that grips most of India at this time of the year.

While I was away Captain Raju Gurung, the General Secretary of the SRA (Sathies), kindly stood in for me, attending the Trustees Meeting on 25th February, hosting the Chairman of SCN and attending to the many queries and needs of the Sathies. I am most grateful to him. There is no doubt that the fine job done by people like him and the Chairmen and Secretaries of our branches keeps the spirit of SCN members sky high !

Major Lalbahadur Gurung

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com The 50th anniversary of the ending of hostilities in Borneo.

This was commemorated on 28th April 2016 at St Faith’s, the crypt of St Paul’s Cathedral, for the Rededication of the plaque in memory of those who had died in both Malaya and Borneo .

The event was organised by the National Malaya & Borneo Veterans Association. 335 people attended, incluing serving Gurkhas and 2 serving Gurkha Engineer British Officers. Other than the President, General Sir Gary Johnson KCB, OBE, MC and myself there were no other retired Brigade of Gurkhas Officers, which was a pity. It seems that many were unaware of the Association as I discovered later.

The service was well constructed with suitable hymns and good readings with the main Dignatories rededicating the the plaque. After the service many had their photo taken by the side of the plaque.

After the service we proceeded to the Mansion House where we met the deputy City of London Mayor as the Mayor had been called away on some urgent foreign mission. We were provided with plenty of refreshments and an excellent Buffet lunch consisting of curry and rice followed by apple pie. The Deputy mayor gave a welcoming speech praising everyone’s splendid efforts in the past. General Gary Johnson replied thanking the Mayor for the City’s generosity and hoping we would return in 10 year’s time. This event was a repeat of the dedication celebrated on the 40th anniversary.

Jon Aslett BOOKS

‘House of Snow’ by Ellen Parnavelas. Published by Head of Zeus, £25 or ebook £6.99.

In his introduction to this book, Sir Ranulph Fiennes says ‘In this volume you will find not only the voices of explorers and mountaineers but of authors

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com from the length and breadth of this fascinating nation”. A review of the book added ‘If you want a book in English that tells you about Nepalese thinking and gives a taste of the country’s contemporary literature, you could hardly do better‘.

It consists of about 50 pieces of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, some excerpts of other books, some stand-alone. They are mostly by Nepalese writers and organised in a broadly chronological sequence. The first, by the explorer Major H W Tilman, describes in lyrical detail a visit to the Langtang in the 1930s. There is an interesting account by Sir Edmund Hillary about the frustrations of building a school. Some of the best writing is in the cross- cultural pieces, including an essay by Pratyoush Outa about women’s resistance to their men going off at the beginning of the Second World War, and there are some intriguing modern stories about the contrast between expatriates coming home and the place of Nepalese in the wider world community. It is a very interesting, if sometimes uncomfortable read. If you are interested in the history and wider culture Nepal and Nepalese people, I strongly recommend it. At £6.99 it is extraordinarily good value, and all money from sales of the book goes to charities providing relief from the 2015 earthquakes.

NJHH

‘A Gurkha Remembers: A lifetime in Asia’ by J P Cross, CD audiobook published by Chrome Audio. £12 plus p&p (includes £1 donation per CD to Kulbir Thapa VC Home, Pokhara).

I can’t recommend this audiobook too highly. With the help of Chromeaudio, John Cross has put together an overview of his life in Asia, divided into 14 segments of about 5 minutes each. This is nowhere near enough to do full justice to the rich and varied life he has led, but he has cleverly focused on particular incidents that lend themselves to being told as stories, and the audiobook format brings them alive in a way that reading a conventional book does not. I found his account of disarming the Japanese in Cochin China particularly fascinating, and thoroughly enjoyed his account of a visit to the Russian embassy in Vientiane - but there are many other anecdotes, all concisely and wittily told. As in most of his books, the strong

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com personal element gives unusual and candid insights into how he views his life and himself, which also helps to bring the stories alive. As has says in the last section, he is now at peace with himself and thoroughly enjoying life with his adoptive family in Pokhara. I hope that if I reach the age of 90 I can not only look back on my life in such a positive way, but still have the lucidity, confidence and good humour to regale people with stories about it in the exceptionally enjoyable and interesting way that he has done.

NJHH

PROPERTY AND PRI

Blazer. The tailor Strathcarron of Corby, Northants has been recommended by a Sirmoori. ([email protected], phone 01536 401536). The delivered cost for a blazer is approximately £130.00 and the tailoring is good.

Lali dicing. Available for £6 by private purchase from Ian Kelly Militaria. (http://www.kellybadges.co.uk/8-cap-badges-army-other-ranks-cloth-cap- badges Sirmoor Medal. If you have not received your Sirmoor Medal, please contact the Honorary Secretary. Hats Felt Gurkha (HFG). 5 x HFG are available from the Honorary Secretary at £31 each +p&p. Sizes: (1 x 59, 3 x 58, 2 x 57, 1 x 56). Black Buttons. The following are available from the Honorary Secretary: blazer button (round or flat) £1 each + p&p; cuff Button 0.75p each + p&p; 1 x blazer set 6 x ball/flat, 8 x cuff. (£10 + p&p). Rams Head and 2GR Public Duties Ties are available from the Honorary Secretary at £5 + p&p.

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

Trustees of the 2nd Goorkhas (The Sirmoor Rifles) Regimental Trust

President Brigadier I A Rigden OBE Chairman Colonel W F Shuttlewood OBE Honorary Secretary Major N D Wylie Carrick MBE SRA Treasurer Captain E C Mackaness Editor, The Sirmooree Colonel N J H Hinton MBE Elected Members Mr R J C Corfield Mr J A Coulson Major D L Thomas MBE Major Yambahadur Gurung BEM Major Lalbahadur Gurung Captain Bharat Sing Thapa Chhetri Secretary and Treasurer to the Mr M F H Adler TD 2GR Trust

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com

http://www.2ndgoorkhas.com