The three burials of Captain Elton; Erle Godfrey Elton (1869-1899) Kensal Green Cemetery

How many times was Captain Erle Godfrey Elton of the Black Watch buried? Some sources say he was buried on the battlefield of Magersfontein in South Africa where he died on 11th December 1899. And then he was supposed to have been disinterred and reburied in the West End Cemetery in Kimberley. Later still his body was brought to England and laid to rest in an impressive mausoleum on Central Avenue in Kensal Green Cemetery. If you peer through the glassless windows of the mausoleum you can still see his coffin sitting in front of a marble angel. Cemetery records say that this happened in June 1907. But the burial records also say that he was interred in the cemetery in February 1900 in plot 22564, just a couple of months after he had died nearly 6000 miles away. On the same page of the register a clerk has added another entry for ‘Elton grave in reserve 37929’; this is the plot of which on the mausoleum stands. Records show that 25 other people were also buried in plot 22564 between 1871 and 1905! It clearly wasn’t a common grave so 22564 must be a loculi in one the Catacombs at the cemetery that was used to hold coffins before they were placed elsewhere. Four burial plots in the space of two months and three burials? I can’t access any original sources for the South African side of this story but in the 10 or 11 weeks available there scarcely seems to have been enough time to bury Erle in Magersfontein, dig him up and rebury him in Kimberley, dig him up again, rebox him in a lead lined coffin and send him to England by ship ( though the journey only took a couple of weeks it seems, even in 1900) and then bury him again in Kensal Green. But perhaps it is true; I don’t suppose soldiers on the battlefield waited to find out what the families wishes were or what were the armies plans, before burying their fallen comrades. I imagine it was not uncommon for the army to then remove buried soldiers from battlefield graves if they had a cemetery close by they could use to give them a more formal interment. And by the time that had happened Captain Elton’s family had probably requested that his body be repatriated.     

Erle Godfrey Elton was born in June 1869 and was the son of Colonel Frederick Coulthurst Elton of the Royal Artillery and Olivia Georgiana Elton (nee Power). He was educated at Wellington College, and was a Gentleman Cadet at the Royal Military College in Sandhurst. He came from a long line of Army men; his father had fought in the Crimean War and was present at the siege of Sebastopol and had won an Order of the Bath, been mentioned in dispatches and been awarded a Turkish Order of Medjidie, 3rd Class for his part in the battle of Tel-El-Kebir in Egypt. His grandfather was a Captain in the 40th Foot and married an Admirals daughter and his great grandfather was a Lieutenant in the 11th Foot and was taken prisoner and held at Forte de Scaope, Ostend, for two years. After Sandhurst Erle joined his own regiment, the Black Watch, in August 1888, was promoted to Lieutenant two years later, in August 1890 and became a Captain in July 1898. He saw no active service until October 1899 when his battalion embarked for South Africa and the Boer War. They arrived at the Cape on 13th November, his regiment forming part of the Highland Brigade under Major General Wauchope and were part of the Kimberley Relief Force. They were initially employed in the De Aar-Naauwpoort district, joining their brigade on the Modder River shortly before the action at Magersfontein. Ironically, Elton was to die because the army insisted on using the standard British tactic against an entrenched position that had been used successfully at the battle in which his father had so distinguished himself and won so many honours, Tel-El-Kebir. This was an approach march at night in close order to maintain cohesion, followed by deployment into open order within a few hundred yards of the objective and a frontal attack with the bayonet at first light. At the ridge of Magersfontein, with rough scrub, steep slopes and an enemy that was fully aware of British tactics and positions this was a disaster. The Black Watch alone lost 93 men, including not just Erlea but the brigade commander Major General Wauchope, and had 210 wounded as the Boer army massacred them.

Erle's father, Colonel Frederick Coulthurst Elton

 The inscription over the Mausoleum door reads:

In loving memory of Erle, Captain Royal Highlanders (Black Watch). The good and beloved son of Colonel and Mrs Elton who gave up his life for Queen and Country at the battle of Magersfontein 11th December 1899.

This resting place is dedicated to him by those who are heartbroken at his loss. Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee a crown of life.

Although only one coffin can be seen inside the mausoleum four further burials took place; I suspect that there is also a vault beneath, possibly accessed from outside the mausoleum itself. Erle’s father was buried here in December 1919 and his mother in May 1929. Two further female family members were also buried here as late as 1956 and 1969.