Sergeant David James Sambrook - 1st Battalion Welsh Regiment

David James Sambrook was born in Fishguard on the 6th October 1871 to parents Thomas and Anne.  He was the only son of the couple as when he was just three years his father, who was a mariner, died.  His mother, Anne, took her son to live with her unmarried brother and sister on the Wallis.

He grew up on the Wallis and was quite possibly a pupil at the National School which was in nearby Hamilton Street just at the bottom of the hill.  It is known that he went to work as a solicitor’s clerk for Tombs Solicitors in Park Street, Fishguard before becoming a soldier in the 1st Battalion Welsh Regiment.  He joined up around 1893 when the battalion was based in Pembroke Dock and in 1899 went with the regiment to South Africa for the Second Boer War.

The 1st Battalion were involved in the Battle of Paaderberg in February 1900 and then again on the 10th March in the Battle of Dreifontein. It was during this battle that Sergeant Sambrook received injuries from which he died 4 days later on March 14th.

His mother was initially told of her son’s death by a neighbour whose own son was in the regiment however when official notification reached Fishguard it stated that he was only injured and she was given false hope that her son had survived.  In the days that followed, his death was confirmed and she learnt that he was buried in Orange Free State, South Africa.

His  mother, Mrs Anne Sambrook,  requested that he not be forgotten by the town and so it was decided that a  memorial would be erected to his memory.  A fund was established and by early the following summer sufficient monies had been raised to instruct a local sculptor,   D R Reynolds, to create the memorial.  Forest of Dean marble was used to create the 11 ft obelisk as it was considered to be a hard wearing stone and this has proved correct as the inscription can be clearly read today, some 120 years later.  An open air service was held on the 5th July 1901 to dedicate the memorial.

It was sited in a prominent position just inside the gates of St Mary’s Church

so that it could be a perpetual reminder of the sacrifice of one of Fishguard’s sons

Sergeant Sambrook along with all those from Pembrokeshire who fell in the Boer Wars are remembered on the Pembrokeshire Boer War Memorial in Haverfordwest, on the Boer War Monument in Cathays Park, Cardiff and on the Welsh Battalion’s own memorial in Llandaff Cathedral.

On the Fishguard memorial, Sergeant Sambrook is recorded with his surname spelt as Sandsbrook – this isn’t an error – for some reason, David James was born with the surname Sambruck, which during his childhood became Sambrook and by the time of his death in 1900 he was known as Sandsbrook.

In the photo of his platoon, Sergeant Sambrook is seated in the first row and can be seen between the shoulders of the drummer and the bugler. His Sergeant stripes can be seen on his right arm.

To read an article from the local press at the time of his death, please press here.