Height: 9.1cm (3.5in)
Silver figure of and Askari modelled with pillbox hat, field service marching order, and .303 S.M.L.E. rifle and bayonet. Maker’s label of The Goldsmiths & Silversmiths Company, 112 Regent Street, London. Hallmarked London, 1925
Raised in 1902, the full strength of the King’s African Rifles in 1914 was 70 British officers, three British NCOs, and 2,325 Africans. By the end of the First World War this had expanded to 1,193 British officers, 1,497 British N.C.Os and 30,658 Africans in 22 battalions, including two made up of former German askari of the Schutztruppen. Throughout the period the K.A.R. continued its operations in Somaliland against Seyed Mohamed Abdullahi Hassan, the ‘Mad Mullah’ whose revolt threatened the stability of the region. In 1964 the West German Government decided to address the pensions owed to 350 surviving former Schutztruppen for their services during the First World War. As none had any documentary proof of service, a test was devised whereby old soldiers proved their credentials by performing rifle drill as per the German manual of the 1914. Not a single applicant failed the test. K.A.R. casualties in the First World War were 5,117 officers and men killed and wounded with another 3,039 dying from diseases. Regimental Colours were awarded to the four senior K.A.R. Battalions in 1923.