Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

China 1857-60, no clasp (Ag. Lieut. T. M. Philbrick. H.M.S. Auckland. I.N.) officially impressed naming, good very fine £400-500

Provenance: Alan Wolfe Collection, Dix Noonan Webb, December 2005.

Thomas Morris Philbrick was born in Great Dunmow, Essex, in 1832, and arrived in Bombay aboard the Rajasthan in 1846. He passed as a Volunteer in the Indian Navy on 9 May 1849, becoming Mate of the Auckland on 4 August 1854. He served as Acting Lieutenant during the Second Opium War, and was in action in February 1857 when he was present at the destruction of five heavily armed junks at Lantao, mounting 64 guns, and the burning and destruction of two batteries mounting 30 guns. Soon after, the Auckland engaged a fleet of 80 Mandarin junks, at Second bar Creek in the Canton River, which came down in a line of battle to attack her, and after a smart action sank most of them, causing the remainder to retreat. A further action saw Auckland assist in the capture of eight Chinese vessels and 72 prisoners, and the capture and burning of a pirate junk at Chung Chow Island.
On 1 April 1857 the Auckland spotted a Mandarin war junk in the Bay of Toong Chung. Anchoring off the bay, all her boats were manned and armed and despatched to cut her out, under the command of First Lieutenant Davies. When about ten yards from the junk, a battery on the beach, which was hidden from view, opened fire upon the advancing boats with grape and canister. Davies immediately ordered the second cutter and gig, under the command of Lieutenant Philbrick, to take possession of the junk, whilst he proceeded with the launch and first cutter to storm the battery. The battery was stormed and held until the junk was observed to be under way, and the party then embarked in the boats and assisted to tow her out. During this time three other batteries kept up a heavy fire on the junk and the boats towing her to safety, which was returned by Lieutenant Philbrick’s men manning the guns of the junk with small arms. There were casualties to the junk’s captors during the exchange, and also to the enemy. One very corpulent Mandarin was observed encouraging his men by words and example, when a round shot struck him and tore him into fragments.

The Indian Navy was disbanded on 30 April 1863, and Philbrick transferred to the Bombay Marine in the Master-Attendant’s and Dockyard Departments at Calcutta.