Date
Instituted: 1892.
Campaign: East and West Africa 1887-1900.
Description: This medal is virtually
identical to the Ashantee Medal with the obverse bearing the head
of Queen Victoria and the legend ‘VICTORIA REGINA’. The reverse
depicts the troops in combat with the native enemy against a jungle
backdrop. The suspender is straight and attached to the medal
by a claw mount sweated to it.
Metal: Silver.
Size: 36mm.
Clasps: ‘1887-8’, ‘WITU 1890’, ‘1891-2’, ‘1892’, ‘WITU AUGUST 1893’, ‘LIWONDI
1893’, ‘JUBA RIVER 1893’, ‘LAKE NYASSA 1893’, ‘1893-94’, ‘GAMBIA
1894’, ‘BENIN RIVER 1894’, ‘BRASS RIVER 1895’, ‘1896-98’, ‘NIGER
1897’, ‘BENIN 1897’, ‘DAWKITA 1897’, ‘1897-98’, ‘1898’, ‘SIERRA
LEONE 1898-99’, ‘1899’ and ‘1900’.
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Naming: Naming
varies with examples encountered with impressed tall serifed capitals
while later awards have narrow or square capitals. Medals to some
officers appear with engraved sloping capitals. Those awarded
to native troops are usually in engraved running script.
Comments: Although this medal is
identical to the Ashantee Medal it is somewhat thinner and also
appears in bronze for native troops. Those who took part in
the ‘MWELE’ operations in 1895 do not have a clasp to commemorate
this but often have ‘MWELE 1895’ engraved on the rim of the medal
as well as the ‘BRASS RIVER
1895’ or ‘BENIN 1897’ clasps.
The
clasps ‘LIWONDI 1893’, ‘LAKE NYASSA 1893’ and ‘DAWKITA 1897’ are
considered rare. The collector should verify any medal encountered
with these clasps before purchase as they have been subject to fakes.
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