The Collection of Medals formed by the late Alan Wolfe

Six: Lieutenant-Colonel E. de V. Wintle, 15th Bengal Lancers, killed in action near Nasariyeh, Iraq, in February 1916, whilst attempting to relieve Turkish pressure on the British garrison at Kut-al-Amara

India General Service 1854-95, 1 clasp, Hazara 1888 (Lieutt. E. de V. Wintle, 15th Bl. Cavy.); India General Service 1895-1902, 2 clasps, Punjab Frontier 1897-98, Tirah 1897-98 (Captn. E. de V. Wintle, 15th Bl. Lcers.); 1914-15 Star (Lt. Col., 12/Cavalry); British War and Victory Medals (Lt. Col.); Delhi Durbar 1911, unnamed as issued, contact marks to the earlier medals, otherwise nearly very fine or better (6) £800-1000

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Collection of Medals formed by the late Alan Wolfe.

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Ernest de Veynes Wintle was born on 23 February 1865, and first commissioned into the Leinster Regiment as a Lieutenant in February 1884. In May 1887 he transferred to the Bengal Staff Corps and was shortly afterwards attached as Officiating Squadron Officer to the 15th Bengal Cavalry (later Lancers). His appointment was confirmed in August 1888, and he remained with the 15th Cavalry until October 1909, when he transferred to the 29th Lancers as second-in-command. He then transferred to the 12th Cavalry in May 1911, and in November of the same year was appointed its Commandant.

Wintle first saw action with the 15th Bengal Cavalry on the North West Frontier, during the ‘Black Mountain’ campaign of 1888, and again during the 1897-98 frontier campaigns, at Malakand, operations in Bajour and in the Mohmand country (despatches GGO 178 of 18 February 1898). He also took part in the subsequent operations with the Tirah Field Force, including operations in the Bazaar Valley during the last weeks of December 1897.

On the outbreak of the Great War, Wintle was commanding the 12th Cavalry in India, and, in November 1915, he took the regiment to Mesopotamia, where he commanded the cavalry force under General Tidswell on the Euphrates river. In January 1916, the British garrison in Kut-al-Amara had been invested by the Turks and it was decided to take some pressure off the defenders by sending forward a small force to make a feint from Nasariyeh, through Butaniyeh, towards the flank of the besieging army. Headquarters, two squadrons and the machine-gun section of the 12th Cavalry accompanied this force which, after three weeks at Butaniyeh, was ordered to withdraw to Nasariyeh. During the closing stages of this difficult manoeuvre on 7 February, with a superior number of some 5,000 hostile Arabs pressing in on all sides, the 1500-strong Butaniyeh column got into trouble and it seemed likely it would be cut off from Nasariyeh.

The final retirement through the sandhills commenced at 1130, the 12th Cavalry receiving orders to fall back by troops on either flank. By 1430, the regiment was hard-pressed and running short of ammunition. “The enemy were now within 200 yards of the cavalry positions, and again the nature of the ground made mounted action very nearly impossible, and even dismounted action was rendered difficult by the lack of cover for the led horses. At 2.45 [1445hrs] Colonel Wintle gave the order to retire to the next position and a moment later he was killed by a shot through the head.” (Boyle, History of Probyn’s Horse.) By 1800hrs the retirement had been successfully accomplished. Colonel Wintle is commemorated by name on the Basra Memorial.