For sale: interesting Zulu War book

[Maggie]

I have just consigned a book for sale at Bloomsbury Auctions on 14 June 2012- members might be interested. It comes from my husband's great uncle James Godfrey Thrupp who was a Civil Surgeon, writing under the pen ame of JG Lefebre.
James Godfrey Thrupp (J.G. Thrupp) was the grandson of Joseph Thrupp the coach builder of Grosvenor Square. He wrote under his own name and his mother's maiden name - Lefebre. As well as being a member of the Royal College of Surgeons, Thrupp was a traveller and explorer. He joined Frank Linsley James as the medical officer for an expediation to the Sudan and is featured throughout James' book , 'The Unknown Horn of Africa'. From this expedition he brought back a number of new plants as is listed as a contrbutor to the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew.
In 1878Thrupp joined the Zulu War as a Civil Surgeon, attached to Glyn's Column; he is mentioned in General Orders during the Zulu Wars, as follows:
No. 219, dated 10th December 1878, Times of Natal 13th December 1878.
7. Civil Surgeon Thrupp will take over medical charge of the 1-24th Regiment, in place of Civil Surgeon Hartley, reported sick.

District Order No. 9, dated 26th April 1879, Natal Mercury, 29th April 1879.
8. Civil Surgeon Thrupp will proceed on horseback to Ladysmith, where he is to report his arrival to the senior medical officer for duty.


Thrupp wrote 'The New Dance of Death' with Alfred Egmont Hake. Sections appear to be an autobiographical account of Thrupp's own experiences at Islanhlwana and Rorke's Drift, including the finding of Colonel Durnford's body and the removal of his watch (which is supported by the contemporary account of Bishop Colenso - see below *). The book has about 40 pages devoted to these two battle places with a number of pencil annotations explaining which parts are eyewitnes accounts ( most) and which are fantasy (very little) and signed in both his real name JG Thrupp and his pen name JG Lefebre.

Thrupp had no children and the book is being sold by a member of his sister's family.



*BiSHOPSTOWE, March 23, 1879.

..." Yesterday Dr. Thrupp (a civilian from London, who came out as special surgeon for one year and is going home again) called here and brought a watch which he had taken from the body of an officer on the morning of January 23, to see if we could recognise it. It was Colonel Durnford's. The body was found lying within the camp, near to the hospital, with some two hundred others lying around him. It was not mutilated. ... It is strange that two months have passed before this fact has reached us, though we have made all manner of inquiries. This has apparently arisen from Dr. Thrupp's want of personal acquaintance with Colonel Durnford, whom he had only seen once before".

Source: BISHOP COLENSO

[Keith Smith]

Maggie

I was very interested to read your item about the book written by Dr Thrupp - you may even have obtained the General Order information from my own work written some years ago.

What fascinates me about it is that when I looked up the work on ABEbooks, there were dozens of copies for sale produced by photocopy reprint companies, but one in particular mentions the fact that the book is in three volumes. Is this really the case, and if so, which volume contains the Zulu War stuff?

Of course, nothing would be the same as the original, especially if it has hand-written notes by the author.

I'm not sure if you know this but there are references to Dr Thrupp, which confirm much of what you said in your post, in the Royal Engineers Museum at Chatham. The references are: 4901/44-4 to 44-7 and 4901/31-8.

KIS

[Maureene]

This link is about the sale. ( I have no connection )

http://www.dnfa.com/BCVA/search.asp?vie ... d=444205-1

Cheers
Maureen

[Mark]

Thread moved to 'For Sale or Wanted' sub-forum.

Can I remind members that the forum rules do require items sold to be listed with a fixed price and postage fees. This being an off-forum auction and the seller the original poster we have entered into a bit of a grey area. However, I will allow this one to remain in this sub-forum.

Mark
Administrator

[Maggie]

Hello Keith

sorry but I have not logged on for a while. I sold the book but I can tell you that there were three volumes and james godfrey thrupp had only annotated the second volume. Just about the whole of the chapters on the zulu wars were based on his own experience or things told to him by eye witnesses. So if you can get a copy from somewhere it might be of interest to you. I have a great interest in the family history and was fascinated to learn of 'uncle godfrey's' involvement,and I was glad to pass the book to someone who is obviously fascinated with the zulu wars. I do not know who purchased the book.

Regards