Light Brigade hero grave restored

Descendants of war hero Sergeant Major John Bevin, who was part of the Charge of the Light Brigade, gathered at Dunedin’s Southern Cemetery recently to unveil his restored grave.

The 130-year-old grave has been restored to its former glory by volunteers from the Otago Military History Society over the past two years, with donations from Bevin’s descendants and support from Bunnings Warehouse.

At the unveiling ceremony late last month, about 40 descendants and dignitaries from the Dunedin RSA and Otago Military History Society were piped to the grave by Chris Meyers and welcomed with a bugle call from Raph Miller.

Anglican Bishop The Rt Rev Stephen Benford performed a ceremony of dedication, and an information panel summarising Sgt Maj Bevin’s life was unveiled by military historian and society member Peter Trevathan.

Tennyson’s poem The Charge of the Light Brigade was recited by Danny Still, and the ceremony concluded with Miller playing Last Post.

Sgt Maj Bevin’s great-great-grandson Mark Bevin said the dignified ceremony had "a great sense of atmosphere" and his descendants were grateful for the respect paid to him.

Many had chipped in with donations for the restoration.

"Everyone was very impressed by the restored grave, and it was great to be able for everyone to catch up afterwards with family members they hadn’t seen for years," Mr Bevin said.

The driving force behind the grave restoration, Mr Trevathan said the work had involved cleaning and painting the fencing around the grave, levelling off the ground around it, cleaning the grave itself, and getting an information sign made by Williams Signs.

He acknowledged the support of Bunnings Dunedin for the project.

"Sgt Maj Bevin’s grave is the first grave in the Southern Cemetery that the Otago Military History Society has restored, and we are very pleased with how it has gone," he said.

There would be future grave restorations in the Southern Cemetery, including that of VC winner Gordon Duncan Boyes.

The society’s first project was restoring the memorials of Boer War soldiers in the Northern Cemetery, and work on the Upper Junction memorial was ongoing, Mr Trevathan said.

John Bevin

Born in Ireland in 1831, John Bevin enlisted in the British armed forces, and took part in the Crimean campaign as part of the Eighth (King’s Royal Irish) Hussars in 1854.

He was wounded in the disastrous Charge of the Light Brigade and taken prisoner, later to be exchanged and returned to his unit.

Balloted out in 1856, he left Ireland for Australia, and eventually arrived in Otago in 1862 with his wife, Annie, and three children to help set up the Otago Provincial Police.

Sergeant Major John Bevin was still in active service at the time of his abrupt illness and death due to a diabetic carbuncle, at age 60, in 1892.

He was held in such respect that his full military funeral was attended by 400 volunteer forces members and 2000 mourners.