Scinde Campaign Medal (Hyderabad), awarded to Gunner W. Ancion, 1843
Obverse, a bust of Queen Victoria |
Reverse, a laurel wreath about the inscription with a crown above |
|
Obverse, a bust of Queen Victoria |
Reverse, a laurel wreath about the inscription with a crown above |
Sindh, now a province of Pakistan, was added to the British Empire in a campaign under Sir Charles Napier against the Amirs of Afghanistan, who had attacked Hyderabad in protest at the emplacement of a British puppet ruler in the province. Most of the Afghan forces were defeated at Meanee but a section under Mir Sher Muhammad Talpur, the so-called `Lion of Sindh', would not surrender, and were defeated at Dubbo near Hyderabad.
The campaign is famous for the signal supposedly sent by Napier on his conquest of the province, "Peccavi", Latin for `I have sinned'. Regrettably for Napier's memory, this pun appears to have originated in Punch magazine.
This medal was awarded to Gunner W. Ancion of the 1st Battalion, Bombay Artillery, and is of the issue engraved to mark participation only in the battle of Dubbo (Hyderabad). Lester Watson purchased the medal at some point before 1928.