Description
Indian Mutiny Medal, bar Central India, Private William Coleman, 3rd Madras European Regiment, later known as the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers.
Officially impressed: “Wm. Coleman, 3rd Madrs Eurpn Regt”
Confirmed on the medal roll. Discharged and returned home following the White Mutiny.
William was born in Dulverton, Somerset during 1837. (Considered to be part of Tiverton at the time, now just over the border a few miles away and part of the same Parliamentary constituency).
The son of Stephen and Mary Coleman, he had 5 other siblings.
Shown on the 1851 Census working as a Tailor.
He later died there during 1889.
William Coleman was a Tailor from Tiverton, Devon, when he enlisted at Bristol on 27th June 1857 for a 10 year contract with the HEIC’s Indian Army, joining the 3rd European Regiment, he held service number 1258.
The Indian Mutiny had just recently begun during May.
He sailed for India on the ship “Sir Robert Sale”. It was reported that the Sir Robert Sail took 294 Soldiers over to India about August 1857.
After finishing out the war he was allowed to take his own discharged “Under GOGG 883 of 20th June 1859”, following the end of the war, in consequence of the rebellion of many of the established Indian regiments, the Indian Army was reformed.
The reforms were however widely disliked by the soldiers, which sparked the “White Mutiny”.
The Government planned to abolish the East India Company’s Army and combine it into the Queen’s official “British Army”, however the men affected form the HEIC such as Coleman were not consulted and were close to mutiny in the end.
Eventually the Government gave in and allowed the Europeans of the HEIC’s Indian Army an opportunity to be released from their contract and return home, or re-enlist in the British Army.
Unsurprisingly as a result of their poor treatment, most men wanted to go back home, Coleman would become one of the 10,116 men who opted to return back home, only about 2809 would re-enlist.
Once Britain took control of his regiment, it would cease to exist before becoming its own regiment in the British Army known as the 108th Regiment, or 3rd Madras Infantry.
Following the Childer Reforms of 1881, the regiment was amalgamated with the 27th (Inniskilling Regiment) to form the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. This allowed the Royal Inniskilling to claim the Battle Honour of “Central India” on their colours earned by men like Pte Coleman.
This regiment is now known as the Royal Irish rangers.
You can read further on their proud service in the Indian Mutiny, during the Central India Campaign on the website of the Royal Irish below:
https://www.royal-irish.com/events/capture-of-banda-the-indian-mutiny
https://www.royal-irish.com/events/battle-honour-central-india
https://www.royal-irish.com/events/last-action-of-the-indian-mutiny-3rd-madras-regiment
