Tributes pour in for a great historian and military gentleman, Ken Gillings

"As his loving and deeply sadden family may we request that no floral arrangements be sent to our home. Please rather at the going down of the sun raise your glasses to a toast to the greatest friend I ever had. kumnandi eAfrika Ken."

December 10, 2016

. 2 minutes read

The tragic death of Ken Gillings while snorkelling at Cape Vidal late yesterday afternoon has left a huge hole in the battlefields tourism industry.

Ken was on holiday with his family when, according to NetCare, he got into difficulties. He was taken out of the water by locals who performed CPR and rushed Ken to a nearby doctor’s rooms where he was declared dead by paramedics. A life-long military man with family connections to the Dannhauser area, Ken was a great friend of Dundee having brought battlefields tourists here for over 40 years.

His groups were regular visitors to Battlefields Country Lodge and the Royal Country Inn. His distraught wife, Heather, has said that, at Ken Gillings personal request, ‘which many of you will be well aware of, there won’t be a Memorial Service.’ His cremation will take place privately.

“As his loving and deeply sadden family may we request that no floral arrangements be sent to our home. Please rather at the going down of the sun raise your glasses to a toast to the greatest friend I ever had. kumnandi eAfrika Ken.”

Johann Hamman, Courier freelancer and a fellow tour guide, paid his respects to Ken’s memory as he only he can:

The frightening suddenness with which the news of Ken’s passing was thrust upon us when a cruel and uncaring sea claimed his life off of Cape Vidal illustrates the precious fragility of our lives.

The news hit me like a pouncing tiger, and I can only guess the level of that deep distraught his immediate family must be going through right now. I have always considered a gush of condolences a convoy of empty vessels, as it does nothing at all to ease the pain, but is a mere whisper of respect, soon to be forgotten to the rest of us.

Ken Gillings, one of the most well-known founding fathers of the battlefield guiding industry, in life Regimental Sergeant Major of the Natal Field Artillery, lost his life in a snorkeling incident at Cape Vidal yesterday.

His now vacant chair leaves us with a gaping hole of regret that we can never hope to fill. His greatly sought-after battlefield tours across every nook and cranny of this country will now be no more.

You left us with a barrage of unanswered questions, Sa’major, as all those educationals will now revert back to a dimly remembered memory. The skirls of the pipe had barely subsided its lament over Rob Gerrard when they had to start up a new lament. Happy trails now, Ken Gillings, and our best wishes to your remaining loved ones. Your watch has ended.

At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!

December 10, 2016

. 2 minutes read