Victorian Bradford – Part 2

Thank you to John D Ellis for providing the following information about two Black people from the C19th with links to Bradford: Richard Umhala and Ophelia Powell.

Ophelia Powell – A Victorian music hall star and “Lady of Colour”

For over a decade in the second half of the nineteenth century, Ophelia Powell was a music hall star. A serio-comic vocalist, who used comedy to explore serious issues, she was billed as “a lady of colour”. According to Sam Beale, female serio-comics were “…associated with gritty and witty portrayals of the lives of lower-class Victorians and frequently engaged in ironic representations of ‘acceptable’ versions of female behaviour in performances”.(1) They provided a “…commentary on the social conditions of the Victorian poor…” particularly “…the lives, opinions and problems of working-class women”.(2) Beale suggests that they “pre-empted modern stand-up techniques”, with acts involving jokes, singing and improvised audience participation.(3) Inevitably, they became adroit at dealing with hecklers. One female serio-comic, Bessie Bellwood (1856-1896), was particularly adept at dealing with problematic audience members, telling one “Don’t open your mouth so wide. You’ll cut your throat with your collar”.(4) 

Ophelia Powell shared the same billing with performers, both Black and White, whose acts were described as either “negr*es” or “n*ggers”. (This format of transcription is being used to avoid causing offence, but also to not sanitise contemporary language). Some were comedians, others were vocalists or minstrels. Nothing is known as to how Ophelia Powell, a female ‘of colour’, navigated the world she inhabited. However, all bar one of the contemporary newspaper reports identified, appear to distinguish her favourably from other performers ‘of colour’ (or those pretending to be so). Whilst performing in Norwich at ‘The Forester’s Gala’ in June 1868, a report by The Norfolk Chronicle and Norwich Gazette revealed the casual racism of the time, and something of the prejudice faced by Ophelia Powell: “There was comic, serio and serio comic “talent”, and among the vocal performers were some n*ggers, one of whom was styled by courtesy, “a lady of colour” named Miss Ophelia Powell”.(5) The Norfolk Chronicle… was clearly ‘kicking back’ at the racial/ethnic and social class identity (i.e. “Lady”) given to Ophelia Powell.

The only part of Ophelia Powell’s act that is known is a minstrel song originating from the USA in the 1850s: “She’s black, but dat’s (that’s) no matter”.(6)

My Di-nah, dear me, she’s as beautiful quite, as a star that shines calmly at close of the night.

A voice like a Syren, a foot like a Fay, she’s just such a gal you don’t meet every day.

Spoken: But she’s black, she’s so very black.

I know she is, but what of that, you’d love to look at her, I’d have her just the way she is – she’s black but that’s no matter.

I know she is, but what of that, you’d love, could you look at her, I’d have her just the way she is – she’s black but that’s no matter.

She’s black, but that’s no matter. She’s black, but that’s no matter.

I’d have her just the way she is – she’s black but that’s no matter.

She’s black, but that’s no matter. She’s black, but that’s no matter.

She lives on the bank of a bright flowing stream,

In a cabin that might have been built in a dream,

Surrounded by roses and woodbines and leaves,

That twine and climb lovingly up to the eaves.

Spoken: But she’s black, she’s so very black.

If ever I marry this dark colour’d maid,

You’ll believe in the truth of what I have said;

I love her because her complexion will keep,

And they say that beauty is only skin deep.

Spoken: But she’s black, she’s so very black.(7)

In the second half of the twentieth century, Black comedians such as Charlie Williams and Lenny Henry frequently used comedy about their ‘colour’ at their own expense in order to survive and succeed. They were criticised for it both at the time and after. It is highly likely, considering the lyrics of “She’s black, but dat’s (that’s) no matter”, that Ophelia Powell used the same stratagem and for the same reasons.

Reference to Ophelia Ann Powell first occurs in the Bradford Observer in January 1857, when, whilst employed as a servant-girl at the Turk’s Head beer house in Southgate, Bradford, she witnessed a robbery:

A YOUTHFUL BURGLAR STOPPED IN HIS CAREER.- At the Borough Court on Monday, a well-dressed youth, who gave his name as John Jones, and his age 19, was charged first with entering the Ivy Hotel, Barkerend, with burglarious instruments, for an unlawful purpose; and next with stealing the sum of £12 10s from the Turk’s Head beer-house. In Southgate, which he entered in a like manner. The prisoner was supposed to have come from Birmingham and had been remanded from Friday. Between eight and nine o’clock on Thursday evening, Mr Thomas Stephenson, son of the landlady of the Ivy Hotel, heard footsteps in the staircase, and knowing no person ought to be there, he hastened into the staircase to ascertain who was there. Encountering the prisoner upon one of the landing, he knocked him down, and then removed him to the bar, and there required him to turn out his pockets. Three skeleton keys dropped from him on to the floor as he entered the bar, and a quantity of lucifer matches were found upon him. He was given into the custody of P.C. Smith. There was £60 in a drawer in one of the upper rooms, and his detection, no doubt, fortunately saved it. The prisoner gave an address in York Street, Leeds, as a place where he had been lodging, and ongoing there on Friday afternoon, Burniston found a dark lantern and a jemmy, which he found concealed beneath some bedding on which the prisoner had been sleeping some nights previously. But the prisoner was identified as the person who stole a cash box containing £12 10s, belonging to Mr Richard Farmery, from a bedroom in his house, the Turk’s Head beer-house in Southgate, at about six o’clock, on the evening of the 20th. The servant girl, named Ophelia Ann Powell (a person of colour), on passing the staircase door, observed that it was slightly ajar, and proceeded to close it, but at the moment she did so, the prisoner rushed out of the staircase, knocked her down, and ran out at the door, and along the street. He had the cash box under his arm, and as she arose and ran into the street, he looked round to stare at her as he ran off. She had a good opportunity of noticing his features and general appearance and could swear to him positively. Mr Farmery had a few minutes previously taken change from the cash box, which was on the table in the bedroom, and had afterwards locked the door; but the lock had been picked, the door was open, and the cash box was missing. Mr Northwood appeared for the prisoner, and set up an alibi, but it failed. A young man, named Joseph Fieldhouse, stated that the prisoner was drinking at the Red House beer-shop, York Street, Leeds, from two o’clock till eleven o’clock at night on the 20th; but although he stated that he had been asked to come and speak as to the 20th, yet nothing has ever been said till that morning about any charge of robbery on the 20th, which would be preferred against the prisoner. He was committed for trial at the sessions.(8)

Whilst the Bradford Observer referred to Ophelia Powell as “a person of colour”, several other newspapers, (when repeating the story), referred to her as “a coloured Maroon girl”.(9) Famously, the Maroons were the descendants of escaped enslaved people in Jamaica, although how such a personal and specific detail was known, or if instead it was an embellishment (based on her ‘fight’ as opposed to ‘freeze’ or ‘flight’ response), or conjecture is unknown. However, an Ophelia Powell was baptised at the parish of Westmoreland, Cornwall County, Jamaica in February 1839, and was therefore (if baptised shortly after birth) of the correct age to be described as a “girl” in 1857.(10)  If the Ophelia Powell baptised in Jamaica in 1839 came to be employed as a servant-girl in Victorian Bradford, then it is likely that it was linked to Mr Richard Farmery, the proprietor of the Turk’s Head. (The name the ‘Turk’s Head’ itself being synonymous with the orientalisation of the Middle East, Africa, Islam and ‘people of colour’).

A biography of Jenny Hill, a White serio-comic actress, recounts how as a child she was indentured to a Bradford “…publican for 12 months. She and a companion had to get up with the lark in order to scrub floors, polish pewter and beer bottles until the performance for the early afternoon drinkers began at noon. Often they had no breakfast. After the evening performance was over the artistes had to stay up all the time a patron might buy them a glass of wine. She was even expected to make and bottle ginger beer”.(11) In return, Jenny Hill was given the opportunity to perform both at the Turk’s Head, “a well-known and well-accustomed tavern and music hall” and other local venues.(12) Jenny Hill was indentured at the Turk’s Head between 1862 and 1865, and it is possible that Ophelia Powell was her predecessor.

In July 1864 Ophelia Powell was at the Britannia Music Hall, Glasgow, billed as “Miss Ophelia Powell, the ‘Coloured’ Serio-Comic Vocalist, and a host of Novelties”.(13) In September 1864, Ophelia Powell was in Aberdeen at the Bon-Accord Music Hall: “Miss Ophelia Powell (serio-comic) a lady of colour, received great applause on Monday night…”(14) Newspapers held in the archives of findmypast.co.uk facilitate identifying where and when Ophelia Powell performed: In 1865 she appeared at Dundee and Sunderland. The following year, she was again at Dundee. In 1867 she appeared at Birmingham and Aldershot. In the latter, whilst appearing at the Victory Music Hall, Ophelia Powell was a victim of crime – as she had been in Bradford in 1857.(15) Once again, when confronted, she chose ‘fight’ over ‘freeze’ or ‘flight’: Whilst returning from the Victory to her lodgings at No.12 Hilley Terrace, she dropped her purse only for it to be whisked away by two opportunistic female thieves.(16) Ophelia Powell, accompanied by a friend, pursued the miscreants to the nearby Pavilion Cricket Ground, confronted them, retrieved her purse and then summoned the police.(17)

In 1868 Ophelia Powell was very busy; appearing at Liverpool, Birmingham, Norwich, Canterbury and Nottingham. Towards the end of the year she returned to West Yorkshire, performing at Halifax, billed as “MISS O. POWELL, a Lady of Colour, Ballad Vocalist”.(18) In 1869 Ophelia Powell appeared at Cheltenham and Sheffield, and the following year at Gloucester and Manchester. In 1871 she returned to Yorkshire – appearing at Rotherham.

In 1872 Ophelia Powell was in Ireland appearing at the Garrison Music Hall, when The Era (6 October 1872), noted her attendance as a mourner at the funeral of a Miss Louisa Sampson (known professionally as Daly), a sentimental vocalist who had died of consumption (TB) and was subsequently interred at Mount Jerome Cemetery, Dublin.(19) In 1874 Ophelia Powell appeared at The Parrot Hotel Music Hall in Newport (South Wales), where she was billed as “…the only real Coloured Lady Serio-Comic of the British Stage”.(20) In 1875 Ophelia Powell appeared at Wednesbury, Staffordshire.

Her last known performance was at the Star Music Hall (late the White Horse), Bettell Lane, Stourbridge in January 1876. She was billed as “Miss OPHELIA POWELL, the far-famed Serio and Sentimental Vocalist”.(21) (The Star Music Hall is now called The Maverick).(22) Thereafter no reference has been found to Ophelia Powell in parish registers, newspapers, census returns or in the registers for births, marriages and deaths. By the late 1870s she had been performing for over twenty years in an industry that was becoming increasingly crowded with serio-comics.(23) By 1876, the venues in which Ophelia Powell was performing were much smaller than the ones she had appeared at earlier in her career. With that in mind, it is possible that she decided to ‘face the final curtain’ (professionally speaking) and retire, relocate – or both. The fact that she cannot subsequently be identified in Britain suggests that she probably left the country – perhaps returning to Jamaica.

References.

  1. Beale, Sam. “Funny and disturbing: women’s serio-comic performances on the Victorian music hall”. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2040610X.2022.2091734#abstract
  2. Ibid.
  3. Ibid.
  4. Ibid.
  5. The Norfolk Chronicle and Norwich Gazette, 6 June 1868. findmypast.co.uk
  6. Aberdeen, Banff and Kincardine People’s Journal, 10 September 1864. findmypast.co.uk
  7. digital.nls.uk/special-collections-of-printed-music/archive/94726404
  8. Bradford Observer, 15 January 1857. findmypast.co.uk
  9. Northern Daily Times, 14 January 1857. findmypast.co.uk
  10. Jamaica Births & Baptisms 1752-1920. FHL: 1291713. Ref: Item 2 v 5 p 128 Westmoreland. ancestry.co.uk
  11. https://bradfordunconsideredtrifles.wordpress.com/2017/03/18/the-vital-spark-the-harsh-master/
  12. Ibid.
  13. Glasgow Sentinel, 2 July 1864. findmypast.co.uk
  14. Aberdeen, Banff and Kincardine People’s Journal, 10September 1864. findmypast.co.uk
  15. The Victory Music Hall was also known as the Apollo Theatre. It was built in 1859 and demolished in 1899.
  16. Sheldrake’s Aldershot and Sandhurst Military Gazette, 25May 1867. findmypast.co.uk
  17. Ibid.
  18. The Halifax Guardian, 14 November 1868. findmypast.co.uk
  19. The Era, 6 October 1872. findmypast.co.uk
  20. South Wales Weekly Telegram and Evening Telegram, 4 September 1874. findmypast.co.uk
  21. The Advertiser for Brierly-Hill, Stourbridge, Dudley and Kidderminster, 1 January 1876.
  22. www.pressreader.com/uk/black-country-bugle/20240417/281599540543061
  23. Beale, Sam. “Funny and disturbing: women’s serio-comic performances on the Victorian music hall”. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2040610X.2022.2091734#abstract

“A great favourite with both officers and men”: Richard Umhala, an African Prince in Victorian Bradford.

The Bradford Observer of 21st December 1848 informed its readers of the death, in her twenty-ninth year, of Emily Bronte, daughter of the Reverend Patrick Bronte of Haworth. Also noted was the death “at Bradford Moor Barracks, aged 8 years, Richard Umhala, a native of the Cape of Good Hope, and attached to the 90th Foot: the little fellow was a great favourite with both officers and men”.(1)

The historical presence of Black and Asian people in Britain is well documented, however, less is known of the presence of “people of colour” (as people of either African or Asian origin were frequently referred to in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries), in the Bradford area. Richard Umhala, an African, (the Cape of Good Hope is in South Africa) was certainly not the first Black person in the Bradford area, nor the only one living there in the 1840s: Thomas Grenada, described as “a negro” was baptised at St Peter’s Church, Birstall in January 1769.(2) John Williams, “a man of colour”, and his wife Mary lived at Church Hill in Baildon during the 1840s.(3) William James, also “a man of colour”, aged 53 years, died in the Bradford Poor House in October 1843, and was subsequently buried at the Church of St Peter, Bradford).(4) “People of colour” were also referenced by two of the area’s most famous authors: Emily Bronte’s novel “Wuthering Heights” (1847) features Heathcliff, variously described as a “dark skinned Gypsy” and a “little Lascar” (a nineteenth century term for Indian sailors).(5) Whilst Charlotte Bronte’s “Jane Eyre” (1847), also contains a Black character – the unfortunate Mrs Rochester.(6)

A company of the 90th (Perthshire Volunteers) (Light Infantry) Regiment of Foot, (here-after the “90th Foot”), commanded by Major Frederick Eld, had taken up quarters in Bradford Moor Barracks in August 1848. Tasked with supporting the authorities in suppressing the Chartist disturbances, they had recently returned from South Africa and service in the 2nd Kaffir War (1846-1847), (hereafter the “7th Xhosa War”), one of the many small wars that carved out the British Empire and came to define the Victorian period and subsequent attitudes to ethnicity.(7)

It was not uncommon for regiments of the British Army of the nineteenth century to adopt children. Many young boys, including those “of colour”, were either employed as servants or enlisted in regimental bands until old enough to serve in the ranks, most notably, James Francis (“Jimmy”) Durham, (1885-1910), a Black boy who was adopted by the soldiers of the Durham Light Infantry during the Sudan Campaign, and later served as a drummer in the unit.

Richard Umhala’s surname and the service of the 90th Foot in South Africa provide clues to his origins: An African chief of the Xhosa tribe named Umhala, described by those who met him as “a man of superior intellect….one who could judge cause and effect, and future results”, had long been a thorn in the side of the British authorities in the Cape, fighting against them in both the 6th and 7th Xhosa Wars. Politically astute and the consummate survivor, Umhala named one of his sons after a British Army officer, (“Mackinnon Umhala” after General George Henry Mackinnon the Chief Commissioner of British Kaffraria), and even sent his children to Christian mission schools to be educated, (although he would not apparently allow them to be baptised). Thus, it is possible that Richard Umhala, if indeed the son of Chief Umhala, was deliberately sent to Britain by his father to gain a better understanding of the country and people. Alternately, Richard may have been brought to Britain as a hostage acting as surety against his father’s co-operation with the British. It is also possible that Richard had no link to Chief Umhala of the Xhosa and may simply have been a servant boy named after Umhala by the 90th out of respect for their wily erstwhile opponent. (Although the British tended to anglicise the names of African soldiers, sailors and retainers or give them ironic/comedic names – so retaining the surname Umhala would suggest Richard was Chief Umhala’s son). Whilst the fashion for Black servants had waned somewhat since the eighteenth century, Major Frederick Eld’s new wife, Annie Cecilia, was a White South African and Richard was probably her companion; a friendly face and a reminder of home whilst quartered in Bradford – thousands of miles from the place of both of their births.

By the 18th of December 1848 it would have been clear that Richard Umhala was dying: Suffering from hydrocephalus (fluid on the brain) for almost four weeks, he was baptised at St Peter’s Church, Bradford. The baptism entry noted that Richard’s father was Umhala, and Richard himself was identified as a “prince” – suggesting that he was indeed the son of Chief Umhala of the Xhosa.(9) It is unlikely that Richard, had capacity during the baptism. Victorian Bradford had a high rate of infant mortality, so baptising children shortly after birth or when severely ill, (both times of vulnerability) was viewed by as an act of spiritual necessity to ensure that they would be accepted into the Kingdom of Heaven. It was also beneficial to the spiritual and emotional wellbeing of their families/carers. However, Richard’s forced baptism, albeit well-intentioned, does not sit comfortably with twenty-first century ideals of tolerance and diversity.

Richard Umhala died in Bradford Moor Barracks on the 19th of December 1848, (the day after his baptism). His death certificate recorded that he was 8 years of age and a native of the Cape of Good Hope. The cause of death was given as hydrocephalus of 28 days. The informant, present at Richard’s death, was Corporal Henry Fitzmaurice of the 90th Foot.(10) Fitzmaurice’s Army records reveals that at the time of Richard’s death, he was serving as a Corporal in the orderly room of Major Frederick Eld’s company. Annie Cecilia Eld was heavily pregnant (her daughter, Cecilia, being born at Drewton Street, Bradford on the 29th of January 1849), and so it would have been logical for Frederick Eld to ensure that Fitzmaurice, a trusted non-commissioned officer, was given the responsibility for caring for Richard Umhala.(11)

Richard Umhala was buried in the churchyard of St Peter’s Church, Bradford (now Bradford Cathedral) on the 21st of December 1848.

Bradford Cathedral (Cathedral Church of St Peter). The location of the baptism and burial of Richard Umhala of the Xhosa .c1848. (12)

Post-Script and References.

Bradford Moor Barracks. Built in the early 1840s in response to the Chartist disturbances. During WW1, the barracks were used to accommodate German POWs. In the 1930s the barracks were decommissioned and demolished.

The 90th (Perthshire Volunteers) (Light Infantry) Regiment of Foot. The regiment became the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in 1881. In 1968 they disbanded rather than accept amalgamation.

Chief Umhala of the Xhosa (1808-1869). Umhala was problematic for the British. The British newspaper archives, held by findmypast.co.uk, have over 1,200 entries for “Umhala” between 1836, (when, following his defeat in the 6th Xhosa War he swore allegiance to the Crown and in return was appointed as a magistrate), and 1869 (when his death was reported).(13) In 1851 The Sun reported that he had sent one of his sons to gather intelligence on the British forces in the Eastern Cape.(14) The paper also proved a “racialised” pen-picture of him around the same time: “At present he is strongly suspected of cherishing hostile intentions, but, like all his countrymen, he is a shrewd, calculating savage, who weighs the probabilities with great care, and will only act with decision where he sees, or fancies he perceives, his own immediate interest”.(15) By 1857 his continued agitation against the British, and his support for the “Great Cattle-Killing Movement” had reduced his “power to but the shadow of what it was” and he had only “the infirm, and old men for warriors”.(16)

Mackinnon Umhala was apparently educated in England, (which makes it likely that Richard was also sent to England by Umhala to be educated), and upon his return to South Africa worked as a government clerk and interpreter. He succeeded his father as Chief and fought, alongside other members of his family, against the British in the 9th Xhosa War (1877-1879).(17) Many of the Xhosa “rebels” fell in battle, others were captured and executed. Captured and charged with sedition, a witness at his trial described Mackinnon as “a clever fellow” being “a tall, well built, powerful and active man; and has a pleasing, insinuating manner, with a good flow of conversation, and he knows how to turn to advantage all his accomplishments”. Mackinnon Umhala was subsequently acquitted of sedition.(18) His fate remains unknown.

The Xhosa. The Xhosa refer to themselves as the amaXhosa. They were, and indeed still are, (as of the early twenty-first century there are over eight million Xhosa), the main inhabitants of the Eastern Cape, and Richard Umhala, prince or not, was almost certainly Xhosa. Notable Xhosa include Bishop Sir Desmond Tutu (1931-), Bantu Stephen Biko (1946-1977) and Nelson Mandela (1918-2013).

The Elds. Lieutenant Colonel Frederick Eld: Born at Seighford Hall, Staffordshire c.1803. Served in the 90th Foot during the 7th Xhosa War (1846-1847). He married Annie Cecilia Middleton at St George’s Church, Cape Town in January 1848. He retired from the Army in 1855 and died in Leamington Spa in 1881.(19)  Annie Cecilia Eld (nee’ Middleton): A doctor’s daughter, born at the Cape of Good Hope c.1832. Following her death in Leamington Spa in August 1913, Annie’s obituary described her as “one of the handsomest ladies of her day and was endeared to all who knew her”.(20) The Elds had three children: Cecilia Frederica Eld, (1849- 1875).(21) Francis Frederick Eld (1857-1909), married with five daughters. Charles Edward Eld, (1860-1926), married twice, with a daughter from the first marriage and two sons by the second marriage. Both Frederick and Annie Eld were interred in the family plot in Seighford parish church Staffordshire. The Eld family continued to serve as officers in the British Army well into the twentieth century.

Henry Fitzmaurice. Henry Fitzmaurice was born in March, Cambridgeshire c.1824. A clerk by occupation, he enlisted in the 90th Foot at Westminster, Middlesex in August 1846. He did not serve in the 7th Xhosa War, but despite that had been promoted rapidly, almost certainly due to his civilian occupation and the fact that senior non-commissioned officers in the British Army of the time had to be literate. Following the death of Richard Umhala, Henry Fitzmaurice appears to have turned to drink, and he was court-martialled and demoted for drunken-ness on duty. He subsequently served during the Crimean War (1854-1855), (for which he received the Crimean War Medal) and was promoted several times. He was discharged as an out-pensioner of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, as a Colour-Sergeant on a pension of 1s/4d per day in December 1855 due to a medical disability. On discharge he was 5/7 and ¼” tall, with brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion. It was noted that his character had been “very good”. After leaving the Army he settled in King’s Lynn, and then London. His fate remains unknown.(22)

  1. The Bradford Observer, 21st December 1848. Emily Bronte and Richard Umhala both died on Tuesday the 19th of December 1848. findmypast.co.uk
  2. For Thomas Grenada see: Huddersfield Baptisms. findmypast.co.uk
  3. For John Williams see: The Bradford Observer, 24th December 1840 and 15th March 1849. findmypast.co.uk
  4. For William James see: Bradford Observer, 26th October 1843. Burial: 23rd October 1843. William James, aged 53 years, abode given as Bradford. Church of St Peter, Bradford. West Yorkshire, England. West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Deaths and Burials, 1813-1985. West Yorkshire Archive Service; Wakefield, Yorkshire, England; New Reference Number: BDP14. ancestry.com
  5. Bronte, EJ. “Wuthering Heights” (Thomas Cautley Newby. 1847). How Heathcliff got a ‘racelift’ | Film | The Guardian
  6. Bronte, C. “Jane Eyre: An Autobiography.” (Smith, Elder & Co, London. 1847).
  7. The 2nd Kaffir War, referred to today as the 7th Xhosa War, was one in a series of wars between the Xhosa and Europeans between the 1770s and 1870s, (the Cape Frontier Wars). “Kaffraria” was the name given by White settlers to what is today part of the Eastern Cape of South Africa, and the word “kaffir” was used as a racial slur against Black Africans.
  8. Moore Smith, GC. “The Autobiography of Sir Harry Smith, Baronet of Aliwal on the Sutlej, GCB”. (Pickle Partners Publishing, 2011).
  9. Baptism: 18th of December 1848. St Peter’s Church, Bradford. Richard Umhala. Parent’s Christian and Surname: “None known” and “Umhala”. Abode: Kaffir Land. Quality, title or profession: Kaffir Prince. West Yorkshire Archive Service. West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1910. New Reference Number: BDP14. ancestry.co.uk Interestingly, a transcript of the baptism on findmypast.co.uk identifies Richard’s mother as “Rose Umhala”, but this cannot be verified.
  10. England & Wales Deaths 1837-2007. 4th Quarter of 1848. Bradford, Yorkshire. Volume 23. Page 79.
  11. For the baptism of Cecilia Frederica Eld see: Baptism: 6th of March 1849. Christ Church, Bradford. West Yorkshire Archive Service. West Yorkshire, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1910. ancestry.co.uk For Henry Fitzmaurice see: The National Archives (TNA) WO 97/1653/159.
  12. Bradford Cathedral – geograph-2106999 – Bradford Cathedral – Wikipedia
  13. findmypast.co.uk
  14. Sun (London), 11th June 1851. findmypast.co.uk
  15. Sun (London), 7th March 1851. findmypast.co.uk
  16. Peires, JB. “The Dead will Arise: Nongqawuse and the Great Cattle-Killing Movement of 1856-57”. (Indiana University Press, 1989).
  17. Morning Post, 20th December 1877. Northwich Guardian, 1st May 1878. The Globe, 21st August 1878.  findmypast.co.uk
  18. East Anglian Daily Times, 14th August 1878. findmypast.co.uk
  19. For Lt.Col Frederick Eld see: Staffordshire Advertiser, 6th May 1848. findmypast.co.uk
  20. For Annie Cecilia Eld see: Staffordshire Advertiser, 6th May 1848. Leamington Spa Courier, 15th August 1913. findmypast.co.uk
  21. For Cecilia Frederica Eld see: Staffordshire Advertiser, 3rd February 1849. findmypast.co.uk
  22. For Henry Fitzmaurice see: The National Archives (TNA) WO 22/67, WO 23/50 and WO 97/1653/159. findmypast.co.uk