Zulu War 1879 Group Of 3 To The 21st Foot / RSF

Zulu War Medal bar 1879 2632 LCE CORPL I BRONSON 2-21ST FOOT , IGS Bar Burma 1885-87 3236 CR SERGT I BRONSON 2ND BN R SCO FUS Army LSGC ( Vic ) 323 CLR SERGTJ BRONSON 2/R SCOTS FUS

Isaac Bronson was born on the Island of Malta in 1867 and enlisted into the 21st Foot at Norwich in 1871 , being shown at the time as a 14 year old grocers porter

He was discharges in India in December 1889 , his intended place of residence being Bangalore

In 1887 Isaac's wife Mary had set up a small guest house ( Bangalores first hotel ) for visiting British Officers to Bangalore which Issac ran with Mary until his death in 1910 . his death certificate shows his trade as hotel proprietor





There is a good photo of Isaac available on-line and I'm sure as the Bronson's establishment was the go to place for the British Establishment in Bangalore for many years there will be much more to find

THE TAJ WEST END HOTEL BANGALORE


The hotel has an old and venerable history of its existence. When the British chose to build military barracks in Bangalore in the early 1800, this quaint, sleepy town became the nucleus of their activities and the Bangalore Cantonment was laid out as a military station where mostly English officials resided with their families. Since English “sahibs” and “memsahibs” didn’t mingle with the local populace, some of the enterprising ones took it upon themselves to open establishments for the exclusive English clientele. In 1887, a very affable British woman Bronson opened a boarding house with 10 beds and called it the Bronson’s West End.She started this venture in a modest one-storey building on Race Course Road. Soon the inn was bustling with regulars, so to accommodate them all a second building that belonged to the Secretary of the Race Club and then a third building which belonged to the Grenadier Guards, an elite regiment that was stationed in Bangalore at the time, were taken over.In 1912, there was a change of ownership and the Bronson’s West End was taken over by the Spencers, who after having been successful as wine dealers had enough money to expand and invest in departmental stores and hotels catering to the need of the English upper class trying to adjust to life in India. The Spencers ensured that the milieu of the life back home was recreated at the hotel and that’s when the West End acquired the characteristics of a truly country club atmosphere. Well-heeled Indians and the members of the royalty, too, rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous from the world. The vivacious and beautiful Devika Rani, who held the film world in thrall for two decades, and her venerated Russian husband Svetoslav Roerich, were regular visitors. S__279773190The Jagirdar of Arni made the West End his home for 36 years and the Raja of Chettinad, too, was a regular.Sir Winston Churchill dined at the West End when he came to India as a cigar-smoking war journalist. Later, Prince Charles enjoyed its hospitality during his trip to India in 1961. The hotel’s precinct and its ambience have been shot extensively in David Lean’s “A Passage to India”. Actors Dame Peggy Ashcroft and Rex Harrison strolled on its canopied walkways. In 1984, the Spencers called upon the Taj Hotels Resort and Palaces to carry on the old world charm of the luxurious West End, while bringing fresh life and modern ideas of hospitality to Bangalore’s most popular country club. At present, there are 117 rooms in the hotel and it continues to welcome heads of state, international celebrities and corporate moguls.The 1887 Block – the oldest block of the hotel–still stands tall and so does the 1905 Block, the second oldest block bearing testimony to the lasting beauty of the colonial architecture. Italian tiles have been retained in portions of the old buildings and so has been the Bronson’s emblem – a grenade with a flash. The serene surroundings can be soaked in from the terrace garden after climbing the 100-year-old staircase.


Zulu Medal has an official correction to the Initial otherwise medals with some contacting and in VF condition

Code: 51135