Every year Royal Marines, veterans and Royal Marines Cadets gather at the Royal Marines Memorial in London for the Graspan Parade. This is the story behind the name.
What happened at Graspan
Graspan was fought on 25 November 1899, during the Second Boer War in South Africa. Lord Methuen’s column was on its way to relieve the siege of Kimberley, and the Royal Marines went with it, alongside a Naval Brigade of sailors and four 12-pounder guns.
The Marines’ force was two companies of Royal Marine Light Infantry and one of Royal Marine Artillery, 190 officers and men in all. They were formed up at Simon’s Town from the crews of HMS Doris, Powerful and Terrible. Two days earlier they had supported the action at Belmont.
At Graspan the Boers held a rocky hill, a kopje. At about seven in the morning the Marines advanced across roughly half a mile of open ground in short rushes, under heavy and accurate fire. The Naval Brigade, led by Lieutenant Taylor RN and Lieutenant Jones RMLI, stormed the summit. When the bayonets reached them, the Boers gave way and left the hill.
The cost was heavy. Five Marines were killed and many more were wounded, among them their commanding officer, Major J. H. Plumbe, and Captain G. Senior of the Royal Marine Artillery.
The Royal Marines Memorial
The memorial stands on the north side of The Mall, next to Admiralty Arch. The bronze figure, by the sculptor Adrian Jones, shows a Marine with rifle and bayonet standing over a wounded comrade. It was unveiled in 1903 to remember the Royal Marines who died in South Africa and in China in 1899 to 1900. It was put into storage in 1940 and returned to its present site in 1948, and in 2000 it was rededicated in honour of all Royal Marines who have served their country by land and sea.
The Graspan Parade
The Graspan Parade is the largest annual Royal Marines parade. It sets off from Horse Guards and marches to the memorial, where the fallen are remembered. Serving Royal Marines, veterans and Royal Marines Cadets take part, with the Royal Marines Band. In 2024 the parade marked 360 years of the Royal Marines.
Find out more
This is our own short account, written from these two pages, which tell the story in more detail:
- The history of Graspan Parade, from the Royal Marines Charity
- The Battle of Graspan, 1899, by Si Biggs, on Royal Marines History