William Augustus Steward

“ The result of the battle was as brilliant as the commander's resolve was daring, for the Mahratta army was routed by one only a fifth its size, and left 2,000 dead on the field; but the cost to the British was a third of the army killed or wounded, including 170 officers. Wellesley had one horse killed under him by a cannon shot, and another by a bayonet wound in the breast—sufficient evidence of the part the General took in the attack. The battle of Assaye, Wellington's first victory, is excellent evidence that he was as bold in attack as he was brilliant in defence. ”

“ Little over a decade has passed since the South African, or Boer War, was brought to a close, so that it is hardly necessary for me to enter into details of the fighting, since so many will readily call to mind the events which led up to the ultimatum from the Boer Government in October 1899, and the necessity for Britain to place in the field the largest army ever sent out of England—about 200,000 men, which makes the army of 30,000 that fought under Viscount Wolseley in Egypt look very insignificant. ”

“ It is doubtful whether, since the invention of gunpowder, any mass of men had ever been more fearfully exposed to all its murderous power. The dying were piled upon the dead in mounds, which the living could not pass; and the French soldiers, undisturbed in their avocation, raised the deriding cry 'Vive l'Empéreur!'" By midnight 2,000 men had fallen outside the city, and Wellington ordered the troops to withdraw ”

“ Delhi.—On May 11, 1857, the 3rd Native Cavalry, who had outstripped their infantry companions in revolt on the long march of 38 miles from Meerut, appeared before the King's palace at Delhi, and declared they had "slain all the English at Meerut, and had come to fight for the faith." The old King had no desire to become embroiled in the tumult that had begun to rage around him, but his guards, sympathising with the mutineers, opened the gates and stood by while the miscreants murdered the English officers and officials, and their families, and any white person they could find. ”

“ Sir Hugh Gough's army of 16,224 men—6,533 Europeans and 9,691 native troops—prepared for battle at sunrise, when the British batteries opened fire, but with little effect upon the enemy's guns in the strong redoubts. At 9 o'clock the European infantry advanced to attack, and then, without firing a shot, under a galling fire rushed upon the Sikhs, while the cavalry, passing in single files through the gaps in the entrenchments made by the sappers, re-formed and sabred the stubborn Sikh artillerymen at their posts. ”

“ I have endeavoured, while making my book helpful, to make it also interesting, for I am of opinion that those who do not generally take more than a mere handling interest in the things they sell lose more than half the interest which a business life affords, while those who simply take a pleasure in the mere possession of the things they collect fail to understand the true meaning and value of the collector's spirit. ”

“ PISTRUCCI'S WATERLOO MEDAL
In the year 1819, when the battle of Waterloo was still fresh in the minds of every one, the Prince Regent, who became George IV, being desirous of fitly commemorating the event, conceived the idea of doing so by the striking of a medal which by reason of its magnificence would do justice to the great achievement of arms. To this end a competition among the great artists of the day was suggested to the Royal Academicians, but they unanimously selected Flaxman to execute the commission. ”

“ Clarke, a volunteer, fought with remarkable desperation, killing three cuirassiers and preserving the colours he was carrying, although he had received twenty-six sabre cuts. Kellerman's success was short-lived, for the British artillery fire had begun to play havoc with his cavalry, while the fierce charge of the squadrons of cuirassiers upon the square of the 28th was repelled by deadly discharges of musketry, and the French cavalry were compelled to flee, and in their wild course, 2 miles from the field, they swept 2,000 dismounted horsemen into the stampede. ”

“ They are guided by a female figure of a flying Victory, placed between them, conducting their horses to the conflict. Quite detached from this central group, and forming a border round it, a composition of many figures represents the battle of the Giants. They are struck down by the thunder of Jupiter; the youngest ones, being the most daring in the assault of heaven, are the first to receive the Divine punishment. In their descent they tumble over one another in every variety of attitude—symbolical of the confusion of the defeated enemy. ”

“ The gold medal bears on the obverse the figure of Britannia, wearing a rather squat Roman-looking helmet, seated upon a globe, and bearing in her extended right hand a laurel wreath and in her left a palm branch, which rests upon an oval shield bearing the Union Jack; to Britannia's right is the British lion. On the reverse is a simple wreath of laurel, with the name of the battle and the date engraved in Roman capitals. The medal is attached to the ribbon by a simple suspender, and a gold buckle was frequently worn in the middle of the ribbon. ”

“ The War Medal is a comparatively modern institution, otherwise we might have learned the names of the common folk who fought so tenaciously in the old wars, as, for instance, the Welsh infantry and Irish soldiers who, with the English bowmen, comprised the army of 30,000 which at Crécy routed an army of 120,000; the followers of the Black Prince who captured the impetuous King John at Poitiers, or the English archers whose deadly volleys made such havoc at Agincourt, on that fateful day in October nearly five hundred years ago ”

“ The Spanish and Portuguese allies lost about 2,000 men killed or wounded, and as the allied army consisted of about 34,000 men, the brunt of the fighting was borne by the British troops. The French, who numbered about 33,000, lost about 1,000 more men than the British, including 5 of their General Officers killed or wounded; 2,000 dead and 800 of their worst wounded were left on the field when the French drew off, leaving the British uncertain as to what the morrow might bring forth, but reinforcements coming for the British, Soult moved off in the direction of Badajoz, followed by Beresford. ”

“ The bravest of them, however, planted their standards as rallying-points, and stood their ground until they were killed; the others appeared to be making for Omdurman, 5 miles from the scene of battle, and to prevent this the 21st Lancers were ordered to charge. They hacked their way through the dense mass of men who feared nothing. Then the Khalifa's stalwarts made a last effort, but Macdonald's Sudanese steadily met the onslaught; repulsed it, sent the Dervishes flying in all directions, and the battle of Omdurman was won. Mahdism was worsted, but Osman Digna had again eluded the victors. ”

“ Spanish-American War.—Arising out of the difficulties between the Spanish and the Cubans, came the war between Spain and America and the opportunity for the United States Navy to demonstrate its power, with a squadron of only 6 ships, by destroying the fleet of 11 Spanish battleships in Manila Bay without the loss of a single man. I illustrate the remarkably fine medal which was presented by the American nation to Commodore George Dewey—Admiral Dewey, as he is known in Britain—and to the officers and men who served under him. ”

“ The star of the second class has rays between the arms, and the small gold cross which rests upon it has crossed swords between the arms; the centre is enamelled with a green flower on a blue ground, surrounded by eighteen pearls set in a gold band. The badge of the second class has twenty pearls set round the centre, and on the reverse a red enamelled centre circled by a green enamelled border decorated with gold tracery. The third-class badge has only fourteen pearls. The badges of each class were suspended from a half red and green ribbon, like that used for the Ghuznee medal. ”

“ Roaring camels, screaming mules, and frightened camp followers helped to make the confusion worse confounded as the Arabs hewed their way through the terrified animals and the helpless camp followers. The soldiers hastily rushed for their rifles, and endeavoured to form squares, into one of which, formed by the marines, about 60 Arabs forced their way, but never got out again. Again the Gardner guns jammed, and the unfortunate seamen had a bad time, as the howling Dervishes rushed into their zareba. ”

“ There Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jourdan had taken up the position from which they were to be driven by the forceful Wellington, who spared nothing to achieve his object. "Never," wrote Napier, "was an army more hardly used by its commander, and never was a victory more complete." ”

“ The 80th Regiment was sent with the 1st European Light Infantry to silence the guns, and the 80th was successful in capturing three. "A more wonderful battle never was. Within 150 yards of one another were 8,000 British troops against an unknown number of enemies yet unbroken." All the Governor-General's staff were killed or wounded before the day of retribution arrived. The Commander-in-Chief and the Governor-General of India, Sir Henry Hardinge, placed themselves in front of the two wings of the army "to prevent the troops from firing" until they closed! ”

“ Lord Anglesea, observing that the French lancers and cuirassiers were preparing to make a flank attack upon the British infantry, wheeled the Royals, Royal North British Dragoons (Scots Greys) , and Enniskilleners into line, charged and overwhelmed the French cavalry, and falling upon the disorganised infantry completed the brilliant work of the 5th division. ”

“ First Distinguished-conduct Medal.—The first record we have of the bestowal of a medal for conspicuous conduct in the field is in the award made to an Irish commander who distinguished himself at the Battle of Edge Hill—the first battle of the Civil War, fought on October 23rd, 1642—by the recovery of a Royal [Pg 4] standard, and certain military accessories. The gallant soldier, who became Sir Robert Welch, was subsequently presented with an oval gold medal specially cut to the King's orders by the Royal "graver of seals and medals," Thomas Rawlins. ”

“ The India Medal, 1799-1826.—The European veterans of the Indian wars had been as badly treated in the way of war decorations as the heroes of the Peninsular, but an effort to reward the survivors was made public by the announcement on April 14th, 1851—forty-eight years after the first battle, for which a bar was issued, was fought—that the Queen had assented to the measure proposed by the Court of Directors of the East India Company to grant a medal at their expense to the surviving officers and soldiers of the Crown who were engaged in the services in India from 1799 to 1826. ”

“ Forcing its way onward, with the pipers of the Black Watch playing at its head, the army entered Commassie practically unopposed, and the reign of the barbarous King Koffi Calcali came to an end, a reign in which "murder, pure and simple, monotonous massacre of bound men," was the "one employment of the King, and the one spectacle of the populace."
In the march on Commassie 80 European officers and men were killed, and 261 officers and men wounded, but the number of deaths from disease was very great. The grim spectre of disease is always more to be feared than the bullets of an enemy. ”