Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A Crimea D.C.M. group of three awarded to Private J. Bancroft, 77th Foot, who was wounded by gunshot at the Battle of Inkerman, 5 November 1854, resulting in the amputation of the fingers on his left hand

Distinguished Conduct Medal, V.R. (Joseph Bancroft. 77th. Regt.); Crimea 1854-56, 3 clasps, Alma, Inkermann, Sebastopol (Private Josh. Bancroft 77th. Foot) contemporarily engraved naming; Turkish Crimea 1855, British issue (Joseph Bancroft 77th Regt.) contemporarily engraved naming, with Baltic-style suspension, contact marks and edge bruising, especially to second, nearly very fine (3)

D.C.M. recommendation dated 17 January 1855 and awarded 14 May 1855.

Joseph Bancroft was born in Manchester in 1826, and attested there for the 77th Regiment of Foot on 24 October 1843. He deserted on 2 February 1846, rejoining on 24 June of that year; subsequently tried by a District Court Martial he was sentenced to three months imprisonment with hard labour. He served with the Regiment in the Crimea, was present at the Battle of the Alma, and was severely wounded at the Battle of Inkermann, 5 November 1854. Subsequently invalided back to England, he was discharged as being unfit for further service on 17 July 1855, as a result of being ‘disabled by loss of middle fingers of left hand by amputation after gunshot wound received at Inkermann’ (service records refer), after 10 years and 220 days’ service.