Five: Ship’s Steward for General Mess E. Woodland, Royal Navy

Ashantee 1873-74, no clasp (E. Woodland, Dom. 2.Cl. H.M.S. Tamar. 73-74); South Africa 1877-79, no clasp (E. Woodland, Dom. 1.Cl. H.M.S. “Tamar”) official corrections to latter half of surname and rate corrected from 2nd to 1st Class; Egypt and Sudan 1882-89, dated reverse, no clasp (E. Woodland, Sh. Stewd. H.M.S. “Tamar”); Royal Navy L.S. & G.C., V.R., narrow suspension (Edwin Woodland, Sh. Stewd. for Gen. Mess H.M.S. Tamar) impressed naming, name and part of rank officially corrected; Khedive’s Star 1882, generally good very fine and rare (5) £1,400-£1,800

Captain K. J. Douglas-Morris Collection of Naval Medals, Dix Noonan Webb, October 1996.

Edwin Woodland was born in Portsea, Hampshire, in February 1852. He joined the Royal Navy as a Ward Room Officer’s Servant in February 1868. Subsequent service included with H.M.S. Asia, as the Admiral’s Domestic on the Agincourt, and as the Captain’s Servant on H.M.S. Crocodile. In May 1873 Woodland joined the Tamar and in this ship earned a remarkable tally of five medals covering three campaigns. He entered H.M.S. Tamar as Domestic 2nd Class and gained the following promotions whilst on board: Domestic 1st Class (October 1876), Acting Ship’s Steward 3rd Class (May 1877), Assistant Ship’s Steward (August 1877), Acting Ship’s Steward (September 1879), and finally Ship’s Steward for General Mess (September 1880), in which rate he received his L.S. & G.C. medal in April 1882, being finally paid off from the Tamar in June 1883. Woodland was ultimately pensioned to shore when invalided from the Royal Naval Hospital, Portsmouth, on 6 May 1892 suffering from Bright’s disease.

Sold with copied service papers.