Rare Maida Medal Acquired
by the National Army Museum
Napoleonic Newsdesk
by Paul Chamberlain
 |
A rare silver specimen of the Maida Medal, one of the earliest campaign medals ever to be awarded in the British Army, has Museum staff intrigued over its history. Maida Gold medals were issued to the senior officers of the seventeen regiments that took part in the Battle of Maida, fought in Sicily on 4th July 1806. This silver medal has Museum staff fascinated over the question of its original owner, as unlike the gold specimens there is no name inscribed on it. “This is one of only two recorded examples of the silver Maida medal known to me," said Museum curator Lesley Smurthwaite, who believes that it may have been struck in commemoration of the event. "It is of particular interest to the Museum since we have comparatively few artifacts representing this relatively unacclaimed battle of the Napoleonic Wars”. The medal was purchased from medals dealer Christopher Eimer for £1,450. Following conservation, the medal will go on display in the Road to Waterloo Gallery, which tells the story of the British soldier during the Napoleonic Wars. Major General Stuart led the advance to the attack at the battle of Maida and routed the French with great loss. Over 2,000 French soldiers were estimated to have been killed, whilst the British suffered losses of only 1 officer and 44 men. Contact: National Army Museum www.national-army-museum.ac.uk More Napoleonic Newsdesk
Waterloo Weekend The Man Who Broke Napoleon's Codes Fort Brockhurst, Gosport, Hampshire The Fighting Talk Series Rare Maida Medal Acquired by the National Army Museum The Little Grenadier Waterloo Renovation Plans First Empire News Back to Table of Contents -- First Empire # 71 Back to First Empire List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2003 by First Empire. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com |