Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Three: Sergeant John Gahagan, Bombay Artillery

Punjab 1848-49, 2 clasps, Mooltan, Goojerat (Gunner John Gahagan, 3rd Troop Brigade H. Arty.); India General Service 1854-95, 1 clasp, Persia (Batt. Staff Serjt. J. Gahagan. Artillery); Indian Mutiny 1857-59, 1 clasp, Central India (Serjt. John Gahagan, 4th C. 3rd Bn. Bombay Arty.) nearly extremely fine (3) £1000-1200

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Medals to the Bombay Artillery.

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Provenance: Bought Spink 1968.

John Gahagan was born at Poona in 1828, and enlisted at Mhow on 5 December 1845, for unlimited service, and was posted as a Gunner to the Horse Artillery. In the Punjab campaign of 1848-49 he was serving as a Gunner in the 3rd Troop, Horse Artillery, and subsequently served as a Sergeant in that troop until June 1856.

On 28 June 1856, he transferred to the 4th Company, 3rd Battalion, a native Golundauze Battery, as Battery Staff Sergeant. The Company was manning No. 8 Light Field Battery and was shortly afterwards engaged in the Persian War, being stationed at Bushire until 17 May 1857.

In May 1858 the Battery H.Q. is shown in the Muster Roll as ‘en route to Kotah with detachments at Nusserabad and Neemuch’, and was part of the Rajputana Field Force under Major-General Roberts. By October 1858 Gahagan had transferred to the ‘Town Major’s Non-Effective List’ as an Acting Sub Conductor of Ordnance, as was still serving as such in October 1859.