Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Army L.S. & G.C., V.R., 2nd issue, large letter reverse (Drum Major J. R. Darkin. 2nd Regt. 1856) engraved naming, with top silver riband buckle, nearly very fine £100-140

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Collection of Medals to Musicians formed by the Late Llewellyn Lord.

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John Robert Darkin was born on 3 June 1820 in Paddington, Middlesex, and attested for the Coldstream Guards on 25 March 1828, at the age of just 7. Appointed a Drummer on 1 October 1833, he transferred to the 2nd (Royal West Surrey) Regiment of Foot with the rank of Drum-Major on 1 July 1846, and served with them in South Africa during the Third Kaffir War, 1850-53. His wife and daughter followed him out to South Africa on the troopship Birkenhead, and were caught up in the incidents of the terrible night of 25-26 February 1852. As his daughter Marian recollects, ‘I was three years and eight months old at the time of the wreck. There were only my mother and myself of our family on board the Birkenhead; my mother was on the way to join my father. I can remember quite well my mother taking me in her arms on deck in our night clothes, and giving me to a cabin boy to hold whilst she went again down below deck to fetch a cloak, and they lowered me into the boat. When she got back she could not find me, and all the boats had pushed off. Two officers swung mother from the side of the vessel as she was sinking, and she just caught the side of the boat and fell amongst the people. If she had fallen the other way they must have left her, as the boat was being drawn under by the sinking vessel. We were out in the boat till one o’clock the next day, and a small vessel picked us up and gave us some biscuits and water, and took us back to Cape Town.’ (A Deathless Story, Addison and Matthews refers). Reunited with his family up-country, Darkin was awarded his Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in 1856, and was discharged on 31 May 1859, after 20 years and 361 days’ service. He died at Leeds on 10 June 1883.