THE SUDAN CAMPAIGN 1896-1908
On 1 January 1916, Danford was appointed Controller of Mines with the Third Army, directly responsible to the inspector of mines. He was badly injured in a motor vehicle accident at St. Pol when, on 3 May ‘while motoring on duty, the back axle of his car smashed and he was flung out [and his] olecranon [elbow] was fractured in 3 places.’ He was consequently away from duty for about 3 months.
Danford was made brevet Lieutenant-Colonel on 1 January 1918, and on 4 April was given the special appointment (A.Q.M.G.) and (Class X) Assistant Inspector of Mines, British Army in France. For his services during the war he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order, and was four times mentioned in despatches.
After the war Danford served in Ireland as C.R.E., 16th Infantry Brigade. On 26 June 1920, the I.R.A. (Sinn Fein) captured Brigadier- General Lucas along with Colonels Danford and Tyrrell, while they was on a fishing holiday at Castletownroche, near Fermoy. The General’s capture was described as follows in The Times on 28 June 1920:
‘The raiders, who had arrived in two motorcars, took possession of General Lucas’s car and set off with their prisoners in the direction of Cork. Soon afterwards Colonel Danford made a courageous but unsuccessful attempt to escape. The prisoners had not been bound in any way, and, seizing a moment when his captors’ eyes were not upon him, he jumped out and ran in a direction opposite to that in which the cars were travelling at a fairly high speed. There was an order to halt, and the republicans opened fire on Colonel Danford, who after a few rounds fell prostrate on the highway with serious wounds in the head and shoulder. Observing his serious condition, the raiders took counsel and decided to liberate Colonel Tyrrell, so that he could attend to his wounded fellow-officer. The raiders left them on the roadside and drove away with General Lucas to an unknown destination, which in republican parlance means an improvised prison. Colonels Tyrrell and Danford were discovered some hours later and taken to the military hospital at Fermoy. Military and police are scouring the district, but at the time of writing, no news is to hand of General Lucas or of his audacious captors’.
In the event, on 31 July, The Times was able to report that General Lucas had managed to remove the bars from the window of his room and effect an escape. Rain fell in torrents throughout the night and the general had great difficulty in making his way through the fields and hedges but, after further adventures, the intrepid escaper found his way to the safety of Pallas Green R.I.C. Barracks.
Danford was taken to Fermoy hospital seriously injured, having a gunshot wound both to the right arm and to the head, where the bullet passed through his face near the right eye, leading to paralysis of the face. However, he responded well to treatment, and was back on duty within six months. Appointed Colonel on 17 June 1925, Danford was appointed Chief Engineer, Egypt, from 23 March 1927, until his retirement on 22 April 1930. Colonel Danford died on 11 March 1949, at the age of 74.
With a folder containing copied research.
www.dnw.co.uk
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