"Majuba Wiped Out" Vesta Case, 1900

This is a rare and interesting silver vesta case with enamelling to the front "Majuba" in the background with a strident "Wiped Out" across it and the dates "1881" above and "1900" below. This matchsafe is in excellent condition with a good spring, there is a touch of enamelling missing from the dates, but we feel the interest of the intended statement outweighs any minor condition issues.

The Battle of Majuba Hill on 27th February  1881 was the main battle of the first Anglo-Boer War and was a resounding success for the Boers. During the Second Anglo-Boer War, “Remember Majuba” was a rallying cry of British soldiers. Exactly 19 years after Majuba Hill, on 27th February 1900, General Piet Cronjé and 4,000 of his men surrendered after the British victory at the Battle of Paardeberg. In the jingoistic poem, The Absent-Minded Beggar, by Rudyard Kipling, there is a line which reads: “He is out on active service, wiping something off a slate”. Hence the wording on the medal: “MAJUBA WIPED OUT” signifies the restoration of British pride.