Were officers awarded the Crimea medal?

[Pgeddes]

The Crimean War medal was the first campaign medal issued by the army to rank and file soldiers. As I understand it previous campaign medals had been for officers only. However, photographs of my great great grandfather, who served in the Crimea, do not show him wearing the Crimean War medal. Therefore it causes me to ask if the medal was only issued to Other Ranks and also, if so, what was awarded to officers.

Of possible relevance, regarding my great great grandfather, is that he was mentioned in dispatches. Might this have had an effect on the award of a medal?

Thanks for you help.

[Waggoner]

Actually, the first campaign medal issued to all ranks was the Waterloo medal. This was followed by the Military General Service Medal in 1848 for the Napoleonic Wars that was issued to all ranks but only to living survivors. As for your gggf, could the picture have been taken before he received his medal? Have you looked him up on the medal rolls?

All the best,

Gary

[Swordswoman]

The Crimea medal was definitely awarded to officers as well as other ranks. Some (like Lt-Col Doherty of the 13th Light Dragoons) were even awarded all four clasps of Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman and Sebastopol - even though he was sick for Balaclava and the part played by the regiment at Alma and Inkerman was minimal.

The confusion here may have been arisen because of the creation of the Victoria Cross of which Crimean veterans were the first recipients - and this was the first proper award for gallantry to be made without distinction of rank.

None of which helps you solve the mystery of your great great grandfather's photograph, and I can only agree with Waggoner that it may have been taken before the medal was awarded. Is he wearing other decorations?

[Pgeddes]

I have two different post Crimean war photos of him in uniform one taken probably some time in the 1870s and the other some after 1883. In the first photo he is wearing one medal ribbon, which does not look at all like the Crimea medal and may be the New Zealand medal, which he certainly received (although the colours look wrong, but this could be down to the reflectiveness of the thread used and the way colours can look in black and white. In the second photo he is wearing three medals but again, none of them appear to be the Crimea medal.

Paul

[usartillery]

If you will give me your G-G-Grandfather's name I will be glad to check Tony Margrave's Officers of the British Army 1854, 1855, 1856 and be able to tell you if he served in the Crimea, and if so, what his medal and clasp entitlements were.

Cheers.

[colsjt65]

I assume from your post on the New Zealand topic that he is Walter Rice Olivey. From my research, I have the following about him - I see he was in the 91st Regt. at the time of the Crimean War - no mention of Crimean war service in Hart's.

Highest Rank while serving New Zealand – Paymaster
Promotion record - Ensign 14 Feb. 1851, Lieutenant 29 Oct. 1852, Paymaster 6 April 1855, Hon. Major 14 Feb. 1866.

91st Regt. - Hart's 1852-5; 1-12th Regt - 1856-[1870]

Hart's 1887 - Colonel W. R. Olivey served in the New Zealand war in 1863-65 (Medal). Served in the Egyptian war of 1882 as Chief Paymaster (CB. Medal, 3rd Class of the Osmanieh, and Khedive's Star). Served with the Nile Expedition in 1884-5 (mentioned in despatches, Clasp).

Present at funerals of Captains Mercer and Phelps (Nov. 1863). A chief mourner at Col. Kempt's funeral, Auckland, 1 Aug. 1865.

Col. Sir Walter Rice Olivey KCB became Chief Paymaster, army pay department. He was promoted to full colonel on the creation of the army pay department in 1880. He was made Companion of the Bath in May 1883 and invested as Knight Commander of the Bath on 2nd April 1887.

Arrived in New Zealand on the HMSS Curaçoa (2 Oct. 1863), departed on the Prince Alfred (30 Oct.1865).

[Mark]

There are a number of campaign medals awarded and issued to all ranks prior to the Crimean War. The Waterloo Medal, Military General Service Medal, Sutlej Medal and Punjab Medal spring to mind straight away but there are others too.

Mark

[Pgeddes]

Thanks Bruce,

Your assumption was correct.

I knew most of that information already but the details of his arrival and departure dates from New Zealand are something I have been after for a while.

The Crimean service confuses me somewhat. The story in the family has always been that he was promoted without purchase to lieutenant following the mention in dispatches and later given a choice of regiments, following which he chose the vacant post of Lt. Paymaster in the 1/12th. This cannot be completely correct as he was promoted before the Crimea, but I have never heard about any purchase other than that of his ensign's commission in the 91st (which cost his father £1000). I have been led to believe that he transferred to the Buffs for some time in the Crimea and was mentioned in dispatches whilst serving with them (I have not checked Harts for this yet though). I also have a 1903 newspaper clipping of an obituary for my Great Grandfather Herbert (Col. Sir Walter's youngest son, who was killed in 1903 in Somaliland) which states that Col. Sir Walter "distinguished himself in the Commissariat during the Crimean War." Thus I am stumped as to why no edition of Harts I have yet seen mentions his service in the Crimea. Even if the story of him being in the Buffs for a time turned out to be wrong, the 1/91st were present in the Crimea, albeit on a nearby island managing a supply depot.

Paul Geddes

[Pgeddes]

Still on the trail of why someone who reputedly served in the Crimea might not have the medal, if I am correct in thinking that the 91st Highlanders were performing supply base duty on a nearby island, were men of this regiment awarded the medal, as they were not on a combat footing per se or on the peninsular themselves?

Paul Geddes