Hms Doris Memorial Gun

740-1/0/10061 DEVONPORT PARK 08-MAY-02 Devonport HMS Doris Memorial Gun

II

Boer War memorial. Erected 1904; by Harry Hems. Polished granite plinth on base, rectangular on plan with white marble inscription panels bordered by cable moulding; chamfered arris at top inscribed with the words 'Ready-Aye-Ready'. Surmounted by the field gun brought from the Boer War. It was erected as a memorial to the crew of HMS Doris who died fighting in South Africa alongside the army at the Battle of Paardeberg. This field gun was captured from the Boers and dragged the distance of 800 hundred miles back to their ship HMS Doris. In 1901 HMS Doris returned to Devonport to an heroic welcome and the crew decided there should be a memorial to the sailors who died in the battle. The memorial was unveiled in 1904 by Admiral E.H. Seymour. It is said that the exploit was the origin of Royal Navy field gun trials. HMS Doris Memorial Gun is a most unusual Boer War memorial.

This List entry has been amended to add sources for War Memorials Online and the War Memorials Register. These sources were not used in the compilation of this List entry but are added here as a guide for further reading, 8 December 2016.