The very rare 4-clasp Indian Mutiny medal to Lieutenant-Colonel William Gully, Bengal Artillery

Indian Mutiny 1857-59, 4 clasps, Delhi, Relief of Lucknow, Lucknow, Central India (Lieut. W. Gully, Peshawar Mn. T. Batty.) fitted with a silver ribbon buckle, good very fine £3000-3500

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Brian Ritchie Collection of H.E.I.C. and British India Medals.

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Collection

Ex Murray collection 1926 [Lot 470] and listed in his published catalogue of 1882.

Only two officers received the Indian Mutiny medal with 4 clasps.

William Gully, the son of John Gully of Ackworth Park, was born at Ackworth, Yorkshire on 5 October 1837, and was educated by Mr Charles Howard at 15, St John’s Wood Park, and at Addiscombe. He entered the Bengal Artillery as 2nd Lieutenant in December 1855, and arrived at Fort William on 19 April 1856.

In January 1857, he did duty with a detachment of Artillery recruits, and following the outbreak of the Mutiny was summoned with all other available artillery officers to Delhi. At the end of October he joined ‘Lieutenant Field’s Battery’, and early the following month was with Sir Colin Campbell’s army as it closed in to relieve the Lucknow garrison. On the withdrawal of the latter he took part in the occupation of the Alum Bagh with some 4,000 men under Sir James Outram from 27 November till Campbell’s return in early March 1858, for the final siege and capture of Lucknow. Gully was mentioned in Outram’s despatch for ‘repelling an attack on the Alumbagh’ (Calcutta Gazette 13 February 1858).

After the fall of Lucknow, Gully removed to the 3rd Company, 1st Battalion, Bengal Artillery, this being the company that was equipped with the guns, limbers and horses of No. 17 Light Field Battery for the duration of the Mutiny campaign. With 3-1 B.A., Gully served in Central India at the capture of Calpee in May 1858.

In August 1858, he joined the Peshawar Mountain Train Battery and whilst with this unit submitted his final medal claim for service during the mutiny. This roll was submitted in February 1860, and, although none of the three claimants actually served with the Peshawar M.T.B. during the actions or campaigns for which they claimed clasps, it does fully verify Gully’s entitlement to the medal with four clasps, which is at variance to the record in Hart’s Army List which, after describing Gully as having been present in all four operations for which clasps were awarded, then states ‘medal with three clasps’. The existence of the medal, however, named to the Peshawar Mountain Train Battery, and the confirmation from the roll of that unit, would seem to prove that Gully’s claim to all four clasps was allowed.

Gully retired in February 1878 with the rank of Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel in the Royal Artillery.

Refs: Hodson Index (NAM); IOL L/MIL/10/67; IOL L/MIL/10/61; IOL L/MIL/10/6; IOL L/MIL/10/65; IOR L/MIL/5/77; IOR L/MIL/5/96.