The Crimean War, which took place from October 1853 until February 1856, marked the forging of an alliance of France, Britain, Turkey and Sardinia against Russia, and was originally brought about because of a clash of interests involving the right of Christians in the Holy Land. The war is seen as the first ‘modern’ war, involving such pioneering sciences as railways and telegraph communication, and also became famous for the pioneering work in medicine which was mainly due to the efforts of nurses such as Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole. The war was widely publicised in period newspapers and books, and gripped the people of Britain.
War erupted in the Black Sea between Russia and the Ottoman Empire in October 1853 over Russia’s rights to protect Orthodox Christians. The Russians destroyed the Ottoman fleet at the port of Sinope, and to stop Russia gaining further supremacy over the ailing Ottoman Empire, France and Britain entered the war in March 1854. Most of the fighting took place for control of the Black Sea, with pitched battles on the Crimean peninsula in southern Russia, one such famously being the ill fated Charge of the Light Brigade. The Russians held their great fortress at Sevastopol for over a year, and repelled several attacks before it fell, leading to peace in March 1856.
Among the regiments involved with the British was the famed 41st Regiment of Foot, later known as the Welch Regiment. The regiment took part in both of the great assaults on Sevastopol, The Battle of the Alma, at Inkerman, and also in the Battle of Balaclava, which saw the famed Charge of the Light Brigade.
The 41st Regiment of Foot was raised in 1719 by Colonel Edmund Fielding, as ‘Edmund Fielding’s Regiment of Foot’ and drew its troops from independent companies of invalids: men otherwise considered too ill, old or injured for active service. He also recruited Chelsea out-pensioners, who were men who received a pension from the Royal Hospital Chelsea, but lived in their own homes.
During its early years the regiment performed garrison duties at Portsmouth. It was re-titled the Royal Invalids in 1741. Ten years later, it was given the number 41 in the line infantry order of precedence. in 1787, it discharged its pensioners, gave up the ‘Royal Invalids’ title and started normal recruitment ready for active service overseas. on 23 January 1788 a young lieutenant, Arthur Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington, joined the regiment.
Its first overseas deployment came during the French Revolutionary Wars (1793-1802), when it helped capture Martinique in March 1794. It also took part in the attack on Guadeloupe in April that year.
The regiment was posted to Canada for the War of 1812 (1812-15), in which it gained four of its 11 battle honours. It took part in the capture of Detroit and the Battle of Queenston in 1812, and fought on board ship at the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813.
In the 1820s, it fought in the First Burma War (1824-26). Then, in 1831, it was given a territorial title, becoming the 41st (Welch) Regiment.
Service during the First Afghan War (1839-42) followed, including Kandahar, Guznee and Kabul. The regiment then saw action in the Crimean War (1854-56).
On 28 March 1854 war was declared by Britain and France on Russia. The 41st Regiment, stationed at Malta, numbered 30 officers and 863 rank and file. The Regiment sailed for the Crimea aboard the Cape of Good Hope and together with the 47th Regiment and their old companions of the War of 1812, the 49th Regiment, formed the 2nd Brigade of the 2nd Division. in June, the army was concentrated around the Bulgarian port of Varna on the Black Sea. But by then, the Turks had fought the Russians to a standstill on the Danube front. A decision was then made to capture the Russian naval base at Sevastopol on the Crimean Peninsula.
On 14 September, the Allied army landed at Kalamita Bay, some fifty miles north of Sevastopol and separated from it by a totally unknown stretch of terrain. The size of Russian forces in the Crimea was also unknown, estimates varying from 45,000 to as high as 140,000. The allied army numbered 64,000. Marching south along the coast, the Allies came across a Russian position upon the heights on the far side of the Alma River. A frontal assault followed, which cost the 41st Regiment four killed and 23 wounded. They had gained their first Crimean Battle Honour: ‘The Alma’.
The 41st Regiment was in reserve during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October, a day which saw the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade, and also the famous Thin Red Line incident, involving the 93rd (Southerland Highlanders) Regiment. 26 October saw the 41st Regiment involved in a large skirmish with the Russians, known as the Battle of Little Inkerman. This was basically a probe by the Russians of the extreme right of the Allied siege lines around Sevastopol, and turned out to be a precursor for the main Battle of Inkerman a few days later. Little Inkerman’s main claim to fame for the 41st is that it was the occasion for the first award of the Victoria Cross to a member of the Regiment, to Sergeant Ambrose Madden. When six battalions of Russians had been driven back by artillery fire, four companies of the 41st and four of the 47th were launched in pursuit. Sergeant Ambrose Madden led a party that captured one Russian officer and 14 men, Madden personally taking three of them. Within 10 days of Little Inkerman, the Regiment was to gain its second Victoria Cross, and the first of numerous Distinguished Conduct Medals.
The dawn of the Battle of Inkerman, 5 November 1854, found the 41st in the most advanced defences of the extreme right flank of the British position before Sevastopol, as 40,000 Russians prepared to attack through thick morning mist which restricted visibility to a few yards, in a terrain composed of a maze of ravines, gullies, and rocky outcrops. in the initial assault, Captain Hugh Rowlands won the Victoria Cross by rescuing the Colonel of the 47th from capture. By 07.30, the 41st, joined by four companies of the 49th found themselves attempting to defend the Sandbag Battery position from an assault by over 4,000 Russians. Brigadier Adams of the 49th ordered his force to charge. in the ensuing melee, all organized formation was lost, to the company level and below. The 41st spent the rest of that long day fighting a series of desperate actions, the nature of which is the reason Inkerman is known in the history of the British army as ‘the soldier’s battle’.
In one of these encounters, a group of men of the 41st captured three Russian drums, which are now in the Regimental Museum in Brecon. in another, Private Patrick Hurley won the Distinguished Conduct Medal by saving the badly wounded Lieutenant Colonel George Carpenter, the commander of the 41st, who later died later of his wounds, while in another encounter Sergeant Daniel Ford won the Distinguished Conduct Medal by saving the Regimental Colours.
Casualties for the day totalled five officers and 34 other ranks killed (out of 43 and 589 in the total Allied force), while six officers and 91 men were wounded (out of 100 and 1,178). Russian casualties were considerably heavier. The Battle Honour ‘Inkerman’ was awarded to the 41st. The 41st then suffered through the Crimean winter, under conditions which actually caused nearly as many casualties as their engagements, and saw the regiment hit by the largest amount of sick men than any other regiment on the Crimea.
On 8 September 1855, the 41st took part in the second assault on the Redan, a major feature of the fortifications of Sevastopol. The assault failed and the 41st lost more men than they did during Inkerman: three officers killed and six wounded; 35 men killed and 125 wounded. The French succeeded in capturing a key feature known as the Malakoff, and the Russians abandoned the city that night.
Following outcry at home about the increasing number of casualties among all of the Allied nations involved, an Armistice was signed on 30 March 1856.
In total, the 41st Regiment lost ten officers and 145 other ranks killed, fifteen officers and 436 men wounded, and three officers and 391 men died of disease. Sixteen men were reported as missing, presumed dead; totalling 1,016 men lost. in addition to the two Victoria Crosses, the regiment had also gained the award of sixteen Distinguished Conduct Medals and three battle honours: Alma, Inkerman, and Sevastopol.
The 41st arrived back in Britain in July 1856, complete with captured Russian drums and a goat mascot, which impressed Queen Victoria when she reviewed the Regiment at Aldershot on 29 July. Casualties in the Crimean War were comparable to what the 41st had suffered in the War of 1812, but as the Crimea had been so widely reported, the regiment had become well known to the public.
The men of the Regiment who fell in the Crimea are commemorated on a memorial plaque, situated within the Regimental Chapel at Llandaff Cathedral, which was presented by the Officers, NCO’s and men of the 1st Battalion, Welch Regiment.
In the 1881 Army reorganisation, the 41st Regiment amalgamated with the 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment to form The Welch Regiment, with its HQ at Maindy Barracks, Cardiff, and become the 1st Battalion, Welch Regiment.
41st Foot Crimean Casualties
The following are the known casualties suffered by the 41st Regiment of Foot during the Crimean campaign. The list has been compiled from several contemporary sources, most notably The Times casualty lists. Unlike WW1, in earlier campaigns the majority of casualties who died of sickness and disease were not reported, so many are missing from this list.
Anderson, William Abbott, Surgeon, Died of Disease, Died Aboard Transport Columbus, 3/1/1855
Ball, William, Private, 3495, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Bannister, John, Private, 3653, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Batford, Thomas, Private, 2728, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Benjamin, James, Private, 1323, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Bostock, James, Private, 1708, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Bowen, George, Died, Scutari, 29/1/1855
Bragg, William, Private, 3499, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 4/9/1855
Brennan, Patrick, Private, 2950, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Brodie, Peter, Private, 2635, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Burnes, James, Private, 2433, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Carpenter, George, Cb., Lieutenant Colonel, Died of Wounds, Battle of Inkerman, 6/11/1854
Carroll, Francis, Private, 3073, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 5/9/1855
Cassidy, Matthew, Private, 2441, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Cavanagh, Patrick, Private, 1950, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Coghlan, John, Private, 2804, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Collins, Edward, Private, 3532, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Conlon, Michael, Private, 3634, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 27/7/1855
Connolly, John, Private, 3502, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 23/4/1855
Cooper, James, Private, 2139, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Cox, David, Private, 3288, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Culbert, John, Private, 2214, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Cunningham, Patrick, Private, 2247, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 12/3/1855
Daily, John, Private, 2254, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Daniels, John, Private, 3408, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Davies, Daniel, Private, 1797, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Dawson, Arthur, Private, 3200, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 8/9/1855
Dodge, Thomas, Private, 3701, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 1/9/1855
Donnolly, Thomas, Private, 3586, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Donohoe, Thomas, Private, 3371, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Donovan, Daniel, Private, Died of Wounds, Battle of Inkerman, 26/10/1854
Driscoll, Michael, Private, 2535, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Dungan, Peter, Colour Serjeant, 1908, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 23/8/1855
Dunne, John, Private, 3607, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Eddy, Owen, Private, 2992, Killed in Action, First Attack on The Redan, 18/6/1855
Eman, James, Cb., Lieutenant Colonel, Died of Wounds, Final Attack on The Redan, 10/9/1855
Emerson, John, Serjeant, 2436, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Ennis, Patrick, Private, 3335, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Evans, Daniel, Private, 1611, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Evans, Jonathan, Private, 2567, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Every, Edward, Captain, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Falsey, Patrick, Private, 3300, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Farley, Robert, Private, 1477, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Farrell, Patrick, Private, 3502, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Finn, William, Private, 2571, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Fitzgerald, L E, Colour Serjeant, 1852, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Fitzgerald, Lionel, Ensign, Died of Wounds, 24/12/1855
Fitzgibbons, James, Private, 2815, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 9/5/1855
Flinn, Denis, Private, 3369, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Greig, John, Private, 3450, Killed in Action, First Attack on The Redan, 18/6/1855
Harman, Thomas, Private, 3366, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 8/8/1855
Harriott, Hugh Charles, Lieutenant, Died of Wounds, Scutari, 8/12/1854
Hart, Michael, Private, 1701, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Higgin, Myles, Private, 1850, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Hodgskins, Thomas, Private, 2182, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Hoey, P, Private, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 18-21/10/1854
Holmes, John, Private, Killed in Action, Battle of The Alma, 20/9/1854
Horner, Charles, Corporal, 1104, Died of Wounds, The Assault on The Quarries, 7/6/1855
Hughes, Michael, Private, Killed in Action, Battle of The Alma, 20/9/1854
Johnson, W, Captain, Died of Disease, 10/10/1855
Jones, George, Private, 1815, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 4/9/1855
Jones, Thomas, Corporal, 1981, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Joyce, Walter, Private, 2619, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Kary, Patrick, Private, 2984, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 31/8/1855
Kean, John, Private, 2864, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 23/4/1855
Keefe, Dennis, Private, 2492, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 15/6/1855
Keefe, Timothy, Private, 2849, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Keen, John, Private, 3768, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Kennedy, Jason, Private, 2838, Died of Wounds, Sebastopol, 26/4/1855
Kennedy, William, Private, 1095, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Lamont, James, Asst Surgeon, Died of Disease, in Camp at Sebastopol, 5/1/1855
Langham, Samuel, Private, 1210, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Latty, Joseph, Private, 2397, Killed in Action, Magazine Explosion at The French Siege Train, 15/11/1855
Lawrence, Henry, Private, 3705, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Lee, John, Corporal, 2161, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 26/5/1855
Lefevre, Joseph, Private, Killed in Action, Battle of The Alma, 20/9/1854
Lilles, Thomas, Private, 2688, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Lockhart, James Augustus, Captain, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Long, Charles, Private, 3736, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Macdonald, John, Private, 2294, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Madigan, John, Private, 2749, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Mahoney, Daniel, Private, 2552, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Maitland, William, Private, 2646, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 21/4/1855
Marsden, William, Private, 2963, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Martin, John, Private, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 26/10/1854
Mcdonald, Joseph, Private, 3030, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Mcgoldrick, William, Private, 3009, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 18/5/1855
Mcmahon, Thomas, Private, 3736, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Mcready, John, Private, 3515, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 23/8/1855
Meally, Patrick, Private, 2964, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Millott, Thomas, Private, 3659, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Moran, Martin, Private, 2974, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Morrow, William, Private, 3524, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Murphy, John, Private, 1230, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Murphy, Samuel, Private, 2332, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Murphy, Thomas, Private, 2798, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Neill, Henry, Private, 3425, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
O’Brien, Patrick, Private, 3085, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
O’Halloran, Martin, Private, 2434, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Oliver, William, Private, 3412, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Perry, Patrick, Private, 2991, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Phelps, George, Private, 1239, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 7/12/1854
Phillips, Michael, Private, 2458, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Philpott, Richard, Private, 3396, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Pratley, Edward, Private, 3725, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Purkins, Alexander, Private, 3699, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Putland, Samuel, Private, Killed in Action, Battle of The Alma, 20/9/1854
Reeves, Richard, Private, 1890, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Regan, James, Private, 3194, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 30/7/1855
Reynolds, Bernard, Private, 3235, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 20/3/1855
Reynolds, Patrick, Private, 3625, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 23/8/1855
Richards, Edwin, Captain, Died of Wounds, Battle of Inkerman, 6/11/1854
Rielly, Timothy, Private, 3038, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Rigsby, William, Private, 1808, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 26/8/1855
Robinson, Thomas, Private, 3393, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Roe, James, Private, 3083, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Scott, Robert, Private, 3438, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Shaugnessy, William, Corporal, 2377, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Sheehan, Benjamin, Corporal, 3401, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Smith, John, Private, 3606, Missing in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Spence, John, Serjeant, 1510, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Stirling, John, Lieutenant, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Swaby, John William, Lieutenant, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Taylor, Alfred, Lieutenant, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Valentine, John, Corporal, 2138, Died of Wounds, Sebastopol, 2/4/1855
Wall, John, Serjeant, 2900, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Walsh, Thomas, Serjeant, 2023, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Walsh, William, Private, 2245, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855
Weeble, William, Private, 3695, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 22/6/1855
White, James, Serjeant, 2693, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Williams, Griffith, Private, 2120, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Williams, Thomas, Private, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Wilson, John, Private, 3520, Killed in Action, Sebastopol, 30/7/1855
Woods, George, Private, 2272, Killed in Action, Battle of Inkerman, 5/11/1854
Woodward, James, Private, 3198, Killed in Action, Final Attack on The Redan, 8/9/1855