Auction Catalogue

11 & 12 December 2013

Starting at 10:00 AM

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Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Washington Mayfair Hotel  London  W1J 5HE

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Lot

№ 518

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11 December 2013

Hammer Price:
£600

Crimea 1854-56, 3 clasps, Sebastopol, Balaklava, Inkermann (Commander Maxse, Naval A.D.C. to Lord Raglan), old engraved naming, original silk riband, with decorative upper brooch bar for wearing, in leather, velvet-lined fitted case, clasps loose on riband, good very fine £400-500

Frederick Augustus Maxse was born in 1833, the second son of James Maxse, a wealthy Bristol merchant, and of Lady Caroline, daughter of the 5th Earl of Berkeley. His brother, Lieutenant-Colonel H. F. B. Maxse, was an A.D.C. to Lord Cardigan, and rode in the charge of the Light Brigade.

Educated privately in England and France, he entered the Royal Navy as a cadet in 1846 and, having served on the South American, Mediterranean and West Indies stations, was appointed Flag Lieutenant to Rear-Admiral Sir Edward Lyons, in which capacity he served in H.M.S.
Agamemnon in the summer of 1854, when he was present at the inspection of the Circassian Coast, and was bearer of the flag of truce previous to the attack on Redout Kaleh, in addition to being present at the bombardment of Odessa and the disembarkation of our troops.

Then in September of the same year, he was appointed a naval A.D.C. to Lord Raglan, C.-in-C. in the Crimea, being charged with acting as a liaison officer between the Royal Navy and land forces, a duty that led to his celebrated night ride from Tractir Bridge with orders for Lyons to enter Balaklava harbour in support of the army following the storming of the Alma Heights. Raglan was much impressed by his A.D.C’s exploits and he was rewarded by advancement to Commander ‘for conveying despatches at imminent risk of his life’. Moreover, the story of his epic night ride hit the home press,
Punch publishing a nine-stanza poem entitled ‘Lieutenant Maxse’s Ride’, while Astley’s Circus re-enacted the exploit throughout the winter of 1854-55. He was also awarded the 5th Class of the Turkish Order of Medjidie, and the Turkish Medal.

Maxse came ashore as a Captain in the late 1860s, but would later be advanced to Rear-Admiral on the Retired List, and pursued a political career as a Radical - a career of some notoriety; for further details see
Real, The Yearbook of Research in English and American Literature (Vol. IV).