Lt John Chard is arguably, the most famous Royal Engineer in the Corps’ long and illustrious history. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for his leadership at the defence of Rorke's Drift where he commanded a handful of British infantry in a desperate yet resolute defence against a substantially larger Zulu force led by Prince Dabulamanzi kaMpande. Cited for his intelligence and tenacity, Chard has long been one of the heroes of the Corps. The story was told in the movie ZULU.
Chard’s own hand-written report on the battle is being sold by the Chard family on 17 December and the Royal Engineer Museum aims to buy the papers as well as his photograph album and drawing set, as used whilst Chard was at Chatham. The guide price is £50,000. Sadly, the Corps does not currently own any material relating to Chard and his action at Rorke's Drift.
The campaign's website is at https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/JohnChardVC