FREDERICK JOSEPH TRUMP
October 1872 – 2nd December 1917
Frederick Joseph Trump was born in Rhymney, Monmouthshire in 1872, and was baptised in the
Parish Church on 16th October 1872. His parents were Henry Valentine (born in Honiton, Devon)
and Mary (born in Pontlottyn). In the Rhymney church’s baptism register, Henry was described as a
“Manager of Ironworks”. In the 1881 census they lived at 2 Buchan Row, Rhymney and Henry is a
Civil Engineer and Frederick had three other brothers, William, Charles and Herbert.
Frederick established a career as a mining engineer, and in January 1902 The London Gazette
recorded that he was appointed Assistant Inspector of Mines. He was commissioned Second
Lieutena nt in the South Wales Borderers Volunteer Battalion on 11th April 1900 and Captain in the
Monmouthshire Regiment on 1st April 1908.
By 1911 he was living at 108 Stanwell Road, Penarth, with his widowed mother and a domestic
servant. Little can be found of his career after this point before he rejoined his regiment in 1915. At
some point, however, he was appointed as Manager of a mine in South Africa. A newspaper article
reporting his death gives more details of this;
“Prior to the war the fallen hero had acted for three and half years as the general manager of the
Ferriera Deep Gold Mine, Johannesburg – the third largest in the world”
Ferreira gold mine 1895
Further news reports state “FORMER RHYMNEY OFFICER PROMOTED.
"The many friends of Capt. Fred. J. Trump (a former Inspector of Mines), son of the late Mr H.V.
Trump and brother of our esteemed townsman Mr. W.H. Trump, solicitor, will be glad to hear that
he has recently been gazetted as Temporary Major. It will be remembered that Major Trump, who
is now with troops in France, relinquished an important mining appointment in South Africa a few
months ago, and returned to this country to re-join his old regiment – the Monmouthshires,
amongst the rank and file of which he is highly popular. We offer our warmest congratulations to
him upon his promotion.”
Precise details of his war service are not known but the Monmouthshires were involved in heavy
fighting in France. Casualties, with no immediate replacements available, meant that as one of the
battalions was disbanded the remaining soldiers were merged with other units.
As a temporary Lieut. Colonel, Fred was awarded the DSO on 1st January 1917 and the Legion
d’Honneur Croix de Guerre on 3rd May 1917, probably on the battlefield in Loos.