Two Coalport mugs presented to Colour Sergeant George Chambers and his wife, 1875

Description

Colour Sergeant George Chambers of the 24th Foot married his wife Margaret Lewis, at Brecon on 17 April 1875 when the happy couple were presented a Coalport mug. Chambers had returned to Wales from Gibraltar in the previous January take charge of the Regiment's recruiting company. At the end of his tour at the 24th Depot in Brecon, George and Margaret were presented a second Coalport mug by fellow soldiers as a farewell present. George Chambers enlisted into the 24th at Cork in 1864 at the age of 18 and saw service in Ireland, Malta and Gibraltar. He was with the 1/24th Foot as part of Lord Chelmsford's invasion force of Zululand in January 1879. He was killed on the battlefield of Isandhlwana on 22 January 1879 when six companies of the 24th Regiment were overcome by a force of 25,000 Zulu warriors. These mugs serve as poignant memorials to this brave soldier.