Endpiece

I named the heroic Bvt Colonel “Maiwand Mike” Fenlon after an eminent Professor of Prosthodontics, Michael Fenlon. My fictional character was based on a Captain in the Royal Horse Artillery, John Slade, who took over command of E Battery at Maiwand in 1880 when a Major Blackwood was badly wounded.

A year later, during the First Boer War, Captain Slade served on the Army Staff. He was sent to Rome as a military attaché and accompanied General Antonio Baldissera in 1896 when the General was sent to take command in Ethiopia. In 1903 Slade was promoted to Major-General and commanded British troops in Egypt. He retired from the army in 1905, was appointed KCB, and awarded a knighthood in 1907. He became Gentleman Usher to both King Edward VII and King George V.