Durban - Thieves have stolen two historical bronze plaques from the Old Fort – the heart of Durban’s military history.
The plaques were stolen at the weekend and the thieves can – at most – expect to get “a couple of hundred rand” if taken to a scrap metal dealer.
Ken Gillings, honorary life vice-president of the SA Gunners’ Association, appealed to scrap metal dealers not to buy the plaques if they were brought to their businesses.
There were three plaques at the Fort, but now only one remains.
The plaques formed part of a memorial that has as its centrepiece a field gun used in Namibia at the start of World War I.
“During the German South West Africa Campaign, the Transvaal Horse Artillery (THA) lost two guns to the Germans in the Battle of Sandfontein in September 1914. They were rendered unusable by the South African Gunners and the Germans dropped them into Lake Outjikoto, north of Tsumeb in Namibia,” Gillings said.
“The lake is extremely deep but one of them struck an underwater ledge of rock at the side of it and was subsequently recovered and used for training purposes by the South African Field Artillery Depot in Potchefstroom.
“The THA coincidentally did most of its Citizen Force training on this gun from 1913 and subsequently (after the War) until 1922. It then ended up in the Wynberg Military Camp and the SADF granted permission for it to be used as a memorial in Durban after strong motivation by Mr Anson Lloyd, who served in the artillery during World War II,” Gillings said.
The memorial was designed by Keith Gow, who was also a gunner in World War II and who later became chairman of the Durban Branch of the Gunners’ Association.
It was unveiled at a dedication service on August 27, 1967.
“We appeal to scrap metal dealers to be on the lookout for these historical plaques, and to contact us if someone is trying to sell them the stolen bronze pieces,” he said.
A scrap metal dealer, who asked to remain anonymous, said they did not buy items from historical sites.
“We would definitely alert the authority should anyone come with such items.”
Daily News
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