Spencer Walpole Follett joined the 9th Lancers as a lieutenant on 20 Nov 1875. He was promoted to captain on 24 Aug 1881 and major on 13 Feb 1895. He went with the regiment to South Africa in 1896 (see Officer Group, Undress 1896) and sailed with them to India in 1898, only to have to return to South Africa in October 1899. He commanded A Squadron at Belmont, Graspan, Modder River and Magersfontein. On 15 Mar 1900 he was appointed 2nd in command of the regiment, and was commanding officer from 8 Sep 1900. The regiment was part of Scobell’s column and captured Lotter and his Commando in September 1901. Follett took over command of the column in December 1901. They hunted Kritzinger’s Commando in the Cape Province and in March 1902 hunted Fouche and Malan. He was mentioned in Despatches by Kitchener, and on 22 Aug 1902 awarded a Brevet of Lieutenant-Colonel.
But Follett disgraced himself in 1902, in a scandal that brought shame on the 9th Lancers. When the regiment was stationed in Sialkot on 29 April 1902 the men became very drunk and two of them accosted the Indian cook, demanding that he bring them ‘a woman’. The cook was unable to help them with this unreasonable demand so was badly beaten up. He managed to give a report of the incident in a dying disposition, but was dead 8 days after the incident. The Viceroy was not satisfied with Follett’s reaction to this murder and ordered him to hold a Court of Enquiry. Follett’s findings were that, ‘owing to the evidence being entirely native it appears impossible to bring the guilty men to justice.’ There was yet another incident when a punkah wallah was killed by a soldier of the regiment which outraged the Viceroy enough to insist that the Commander-in-Chief institute disciplinary steps against the 9th Lancers. This resulted in the cancellation of all leave for officers and men for 9 months, and anyone on leave was to be recalled. The regiment was under a stigma for concealing criminal assault and murder.
Follett relinquished command in 1903 and reverted to being 2nd in command to Lieutenant-Colonel M O Little. The following year he was placed on the Reserve of Officers. On 17 November 1905 he was on the fateful voyage of the steamship SS Hilda which sank near St Malo. Follett drowned, along with 125 others.
