Description
Waterloo Medal, 18th June 1815, Sergeant Thomas Higginson, 23rd Royal Welsh Fusiliers, an old veteran who guarded the regiments baggage at Ostend during the battle.
The medal has been neatly partially renamed, only the section for the name of the recipient has been erased and engraved.
Name contemporarily re-engraved: “Sergt Thos Higginson” the remainder officially impressed as issued to a 23rd RWF man at Waterloo reading: “23rd Regiment Foot R.W.F.” with stars to fill out the remainder of the naming.
Fitted with a silver clip and loop suspension.
Sergeant Thomas Higginson does not feature on the Waterloo Medal Roll, he was one of the 23rd R.W.F.’s long serving NCO’s having been present with them back in the invasion of Martinique during 1808-9 and serving since 1798.
He was present on the campaign with the regiment on the path to Waterloo. According to the official muster and pay lists for the unit, it remarks that during the period of the Battle of Waterloo dated 24th June 1815: “Commissioned at Ostend in Charge of the Regimental Baggage.”
In case of defeat, the Baggage would have been guarded a safe distance from the Battlefield, Sergt Higginson making sure nothing was stolen.
The medal suggests that he bought at some time a comrades medal as he did not get one for himself only needing to change the rank and name section.
Thomas must have been one of the oldest soldiers of the regiment at the time, being 47 years old.
He was born in “Tilsey” aka Tyldesley, Lancaster back in 1768.
He was already unusually old for a new recruit when he signed up for “Unlimited Service” on 31st January 1798, at the time he was working as a “Weaver” likely in one of Manchesters many Cotton Mills.
Note period records from the period record that a “Private Thomas Higginson” of the 23rd R.W.F. was taken as a Prisoner of War in 1799, “List of Prisoners of War arrived in the Depot of Valenciennes since the 1st Day of March 1799.” Certainly looks like him.
The list notes him as part of “List of Officers and Men of Captain Halkett’s Company of the 23rd or Royal Welsh Fusiliers Regiment taken Prisoners of War on 20th May 1798.
Led by Captain Alexander Halkett, Halkett was captured, along with 3 of his Lieutenants and a large number of 23rd RWF Men.
The unusual event was recounted in the Regimental History reading:
“In 1798, The Regiment formed part of a force, sent under the command of Major General Coote, to destroy sluices and works in the canal of Ostend.
2 Companies only landed on this service, they were made Prisoners of War, in common with the rest of the troops, and marched to Lisle; they were soon after, however, exchanged, and joined the headquarters of the regiment in Guernsey.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expedition_to_Ostend
He would only spend 3 years 237 days as a Private, followed by 5 years 212 days as a Corporal, finishing off his service with 10 years 239 days as a Sergeant.
His service totalled 19 years 155 days, at which point he was about to turn 50 years old and was found: “Being Old and Worn Out.” from his service and discharged on 4th June 1817.
His papers recall having seen overseas serving in the “West Indies” from 31st December 1808 to the 12th April 1809, making him one of the regiments soldier who took part in the invasion of Martinique, which occurred during this precise time period.
Thomas never lived to claim the Military General Service Medal which would have been his only “officially” named medal, he would have had to be about 80 years at the time, no one matching his description was alive by that point.
