(Jan. 6, 1860, Semiahmoo) Darrah heard of his
promotion a week ago, and our fellows at Victoria providentially sent
up a dozen of champagne for us to drink to it… He has only been 5½
years a subaltern, so he has been extremely lucky. He is a very nice
fellow and we got on very well together.
--Lt.
Anderson, Observations of the Boundary Commission |
" In
Victoria I used to get up about 9, read the newspapers, take a few
solar observations with a Sextant till 12, have luncheon, and ride
up to town about 2, lounge about the town paying visits and
shopping till 3, then go for a ride till 4:39, get home about
5:30, have dinner at 6, cup of tea at 7:30, rubber of whist (for
love) till 11, and then turn in and that was our ordinary
employment. We used to be overrun at various portions of the
day by naval officers coming on shore for fun, and in the evening
we used sometimes to have as many as a dozen at a time in our
Mess-room, and we were all great friends with them."
-- 27 May
1860, Lt. Anderson RE |
Darrah, like all
Royal Engineer officers, was a Gentleman Cadet at the Royal
Military Academy, Woolwich, where he learned his trade as a Royal
Engineer Officer. Upon completion he received a commission as a
2nd Lieutenant on 14
August 1854
Lieutenant - 14 Aug. 1854
Young Lieutenant
Darrah soon found himself in the Seige of Sebastopol.
"In 1855, during the
Seige of Sebastopol, Lt Darrah was the officer on duty
commanding the Right attack of the seige with Captain Browne and
40 Men on the Day shift of the 13th of June. Later, on the Night
of the 15th of June, Lt. Darrah was once again in the trench
line with Captain Browne and a detachment of 40 men. Each
Detachment spent 17 hours in the line."
- -History
of the Royal Sappers and Miners : from the formation of the
corps in March 1772 to the date when its designation was changed
to that of Royal Engineers in October 1856.
Pg. 335
|
Seeing a collection of
gabions idle, some French soldiers of the 20th and 27th
regiments of the line, carried off about a hundred from the
store and broke them up for firewood. Private Calderwod in
charge of them, failing to make his bad French understood, remonstrated
with the depredators by an extravagant display of
gesture and grimace. The allies were humorous and treated the
appeal of the irate sapper with more risibility than was
agreeable. Lieutenant Darrah of the engineers appearing, he
spoke of the abstraction to one of their officers, telling him
the gabions were British property; and as if to add weight to
his assertion, pointed out the un-arms soldier who had charge of
them. Without attempting to excuse the appropriation, the French
officer shrugged his shoulders, merely observed, that as the
sapper had no carbine to show the nature of his authority, he
could not be regarded as a sentinel; and so the gabions were
borne away to cook French soup!"
- History
of the Royal Sappers and Miners : from the formation of the
corps in March 1772 to the date when its designation was changed
to that of Royal Engineers in October 1856.
Pg. 375
|
2nd Captain - 28 Nov. 1859
Captain - 12 March 1867
Army Major - 15 Aug. 1868
Astronomer with
British North American Boundary Commission, 1858 - 1862.
|
 |
Darrah (seated in tent with
theodolite) and Haig (standing) at Yahk
River station |
|
War Service:
Crimean War -
1855
Received Crimean Campaign medal with
Sebastopol bar
Received Turkish Crimean Campaign medal
Abyssinia -
1868
Received Abyssinian Campaign medal
 |
A railway bridge constructed by the Royal Engineers
similar to the one Darrah helped build in Abyssinia. |
Died at Kirkee,
Bombay, India, 21 June 1871
|