Friday 24 May 2013

Cpl Edward STUART, Straits Settlements Volunteer Force (SSVF), 2nd Derbyshire Regiment.


1 to 2 years ago, when I spotted this medal group on sale at Aberdeen Medals (owned by Mark Seller), my heart must have missed a heartbeat. This same feeling is probably felt by some collectors when they see an extremely rare and exceptional item.

Obverse
Medal Group Awarded to Edward Stuart (Derbyshire Regiment and Straits Settlements Volunteer Force)

India Medal 1896 with Bars TIRAH 1897-98, PUNJAB FRONTIER 1897-98 (Awarded to 4458 PTE E. Stuart 2d Bn Derby. Regt. Correction on "4458 PTE")
Queen's South Africa Medal 1899 with Bars SOUTH AFRICA 1902, TRANSVAAL, ORANGE FREE STATE, CAPE COLONY (Awarded to 4458 CORPL: E. STUART. NOTTS: & DERBY: REGT)
Efficiency Medal, Bar MALAYA with Clasp (Awarded to 10072 CPL. E STUART)


Reverse

I recalled this story from a book kindly loaned to me by an avid collector friend of mine:





Although I have been collecting and researching volunteers medals for a long time, I did not know that many volunteers took part in the African Wars during the Victorian era. This is my first encounter with a unique medal group comprising India, Africa and Malaya Efficiency Medals. Although he also served in China before settling down in the Straits Settlements, he was not awarded any China medal. 

Very few medals in collection have so many campaign bars spreading across numerous continents, and I always wanted to own a Queen's South Africa (QSA) medal because of its high quality workmanship and exquisite design that is not seen in modern medals.


Without hesitation, I bought this medal group and endured two agonising weeks waiting for the medal to arrive.



Reverse of QSA

The story of Edward Stuart started around 200 years ago in 1894. He was borned in the English town of Nottingham, Nottinghamshire county and baptised at the St Peters Parish. At the age of 23 yeas and 3 months, of average built (being only 5 feet 4 inches tall and 135 pounds in weight) with dark complexion, brown eyes and hairs, and tattooed, he enlisted in the Sherwood Forresters on 9 Jan 1894. 


Enlistment Record 1894

Enlistment Record

Service Record

His Service Record showed that he served in The Sherwood Forresters (Derbyshire Regiment) as a Private from 9 Jan 1894, promoted to Corporal on 26 Aug 1902, and to Sergeant on 20 Feb 1904. During that period, he took part in the two major British campaigns to colonise India and South Africa.


Service Record

He was re-engaged at Pekin (modern day Beijing) on 11 Nov 1904 and discharged at Singapore after 12 and a half years of service on 15 May 1906.

Service Record



Service Record

This record showed that Edward Stuart was in England from 9 Jan 1904 to 23 Dec 1906, went to East Indies (and participated in the India Campaign) from 24 Dec 1896 to 24 Oct 1899 (a period of almost 3 years). He then proceeded to Africa from 25 Oct 1899 to 28 Feb 1902, and South Africa from 1 Mar 1902 to 7 Sep 1902 (3 years) He then went to China from 8 Sep 1902 to 6 Dec 1904, and finally to Straits Settlements (Singapore) from 7 Dec 1904 to 15 May 1906. 

Service Record

He was awarded the India medal (bars PUNJAB FRONTIER 1897-98 and TIRAH 1897-98) and Queen's South Africa medal (bars CAPE COLONY, ORANGE FREE STATE, TRANSVAAL and SOUTH AFRICA 1902)

Service Record

There was no further information regarding Edward Stuart after he was discharged from service in Singapore. He might have went back to England and then came back to Singapore or Malaya after several years in England, or he had stayed in Singapore or Malaya for good after his service. 

His Malaya Efficiency medal with clasp (indicating 18 years of volunteer service) awarded in 1937 showed that he only joined the SSVF around 1919. What he did during the period from 1906 to 1919 remains unknown. 


Ref: In Oriente Primus




No comments:

Post a Comment