Item number: M427

Year: AD 1816-1817

Material: Silver

Size: 57.7 x 18.1 x 2.2 mm

Weight: 5.2 g

Provenance: Spink 2025

This miniature of the Waterloo Medal corresponds to the award authorised by the House of Commons and conferred between AD 1816 and 1867 upon all those who had participated in the Battle of Waterloo and its associated engagements. The miniature version was intended for wear with civilian formal attire, such as evening dress, rather than with military uniform.

The medal is circular in form. The obverse bears a left-facing portrait of George, Prince of Wales, who was serving as Prince Regent of the United Kingdom at the time (and who later became King George IV). He is shown wearing a laurel wreath. Beneath the portrait appears the signature “W WYON MINT,” identifying the work as that of William Wyon, Chief Engraver to the Royal Mint, and confirming that both the design and manufacture were executed at the Mint. The surrounding inscription “GEORGE P. REGENT” denotes “George, Prince Regent.”

The reverse depicts Victory seated to the left, her torso turned to the front, with wings outspread. She holds a palm branch in her right hand and an olive branch in her left. The base carries the word “WATERLOO,” indicating the name of the engagement. Above runs the inscription “WELLINGTON,” referring to the commander-in-chief, Field Marshal the Duke of Wellington. The lower edge bears the date “JUNE 18 1815,” the day of the battle itself.

On the full-sized medal, the rim would bear the recipient’s name, with the remaining space filled by star-shaped ornaments, though the miniature version has a plain edge. A suspension ring is soldered to the top of the medal and connects to the ring affixed to the ribbon. The ribbon is deep crimson with dark blue edges, identical to that used for the later Army Gold Medal and the Military General Service Medal.

The Battle of Waterloo, fought on 18 June AD 1815, constituted the decisive conclusion to the Napoleonic Wars. Following his return to power during the Hundred Days, Napoleon moved swiftly against the Seventh Coalition, comprising Britain, Prussia, the Netherlands and others, seeking to defeat its armies separately before they could unite. On 16 June, the French won a tactical victory over the Prussians at Ligny, though without destroying their capacity to fight; on the same day, at Quatre Bras, forces under the Duke of Wellington checked the French advance on the coalition’s western flank. The Prussians, withdrawing north under Marshal Blücher, pledged to return in support during the decisive engagement. On 18 June, near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, Wellington held a strong defensive position against repeated French assaults, including fierce fighting around the key locations of Hougoumont, La Haye Sainte and Papelotte. Although the French at one point pressed dangerously close to the Allied centre, the timely arrival of the Prussian army in the evening overwhelmed the French flank and sealed their defeat. The French army collapsed, Napoleon fled to Paris, was compelled to abdicate once more, and was subsequently exiled to Saint Helena.

The Waterloo Medal was announced in AD 1816 and issued in 1816–1817. It was the first British medal awarded to all ranks who had been physically present in battle, and the first campaign medal that could be received by the next of kin of those killed in action. Eligibility extended to all participants in the battles of Ligny, Quatre Bras and Waterloo in AD 1815. Recipients were also credited with two years of additional service and pay for seniority and pension purposes, and collectively became known as the “Waterloo Men.” The medal was issued in a total of 39,000 examples, including approximately 6,000 to cavalry, 4,000 to the Foot Guards, 16,000 to line infantry regiments, 5,000 to artillery, and 6,500 to the King’s German Legion, in addition to those awarded to staff, engineers and logistical personnel, yielding around 38,500 in all. Among the recipients were nine Black soldiers, likely originating from the Caribbean.

George IV (1762–1830), who appears on the medal as Prince Regent, was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from AD 1820 to 1830. Owing to the mental incapacity of his father, George III, he served as Prince Regent from AD 1811 to 1819. His regency coincided with the final phase of the Napoleonic Wars, during which Britain achieved ultimate victory over France and, following the Congress of Vienna, emerged as a dominant European power. As head of state, he supported Wellington and the government in the prosecution of the war. In cultural and domestic affairs, he was noted for his extravagant tastes and was an influential patron of architecture, the arts and fashion, shaping the aesthetic known as the Regency Style. His personal life, however, was marked by controversy, including financial disorder, self-indulgence and a troubled marriage with Queen Caroline, contributing to his complex and often divisive historical reputation.

物件編號: M427

年代: 公元 1816-1817 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 57.7 x 18.1 x 2.2 mm

重量: 5.2 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2025

這是一枚公元1816至1867年，英國下議院決議頒予滑鐵盧及相關戰役的所有參與者以滑鐵盧獎章 。而該迷你版則是用以著非軍服正裝(例如燕尾服)時配戴。

獎章外觀為圓形，正面是時任英國攝政的威爾士親王喬治(即日後的喬治四世)左側肖像，頭戴桂冠，於人像右下角有英國皇家造幣廠首席雕刻師威廉·威恩的戳記「W WYON MINT」，代表這枚獎章出自威廉·威恩的設計，並由皇家造幣廠鑄造。肖像左右兩側「GEORGE P. REGENT」 ，即「喬治親王攝政」。

獎章背面為勝利女神的左側坐像，上身為正面，雙翼展開，右手持棕櫚枝，左手持橄欖枝，基座上有「WATERLOO」，即戰役名「滑鐵盧」。上方環列「WELLINGTON」，即戰役指揮官，陸軍元帥威靈頓公爵。下方橫列「JUNE 18 1815」，為滑鐵盧一役之日期。

正章之邊緣應有獲頒者姓名，餘處以星形符號填充，但迷你版為光面。頂部焊有圓環，再與綬帶所穿過的圓環相扣連。綬帶為深紅色，兩側邊緣為深藍色，綬帶與後來「陸軍金質獎章」(Army Gold Medal)、「軍事通用服役獎章」(Military General Service Medal)相同。

滑鐵盧戰役發生於公元1815年6月18日，是拿破崙戰爭的決定性終局之戰。拿破崙於百日復辟後迅速面臨由英國、普魯士、荷蘭等國組成的第七次反法同盟，為避免聯軍會合，他率軍北上企圖各個擊破。6月16日，法軍在利尼(Ligny)擊敗普魯士軍，但未能徹底消滅其戰力；同日於四臂村(Quatre Bras)，惠靈頓公爵率領的英荷聯軍成功拖住法軍側翼。普軍隨後在布呂歇爾(Blücher)指揮下向北撤退，並承諾在決戰時再度加入戰場。6月18日，在比利時滑鐵盧附近，惠靈頓憑藉既有防禦陣地抵抗拿破崙的多次進攻，包括對關鍵據點烏古蒙農莊(Hougoumont)、拉埃桑特(La Haye Sainte)與帕佩洛特(Papelotte)的激烈爭奪。法軍雖一度逼近聯軍中線，但黃昏時普魯士軍抵達戰場，從東側壓迫法軍，使其陷入兩面受敵的局面。最終，法軍全面潰敗，拿破崙逃返巴黎後被迫再次退位，並被流放至聖赫勒拿島。

滑鐵盧戰役獎章於公元1816公告、並於1816–1817年間頒發，是英國政府首次授予所有實際參與戰鬥的士兵的戰役獎章。凡在公元1815年利尼、四臂村或滑鐵盧戰役中參與者皆具受領資格，陣亡者的遺屬亦可代為領取，形成英國史上第一枚可授予軍人近親的戰役紀念章。受章者並額外獲計兩年服役與薪給，作為晉資與退休金之計算，並被統稱為「滑鐵盧之人」(Waterloo Men)。此獎章的頒行在當時屬破格之舉，深受受領軍士歡迎，但亦引發部分半島戰爭老兵不滿，認為僅於滑鐵盧參戰的新兵即得公開嘉獎，而長期征戰者卻僅獲國會十三次致謝。滑鐵盧獎章共製作39,000枚，其中約6,000枚頒予騎兵，4,000枚頒予步兵衛隊(Foot Guards)，16,000頒予線列步兵團，5,000頒予砲兵，6,500枚頒予英王德意志軍團(King’s German Legion)，加上參謀、工兵及後勤，共頒發38,500枚。其中包括9名黑人，可能來自加勒比海地區。

喬治四世(George IV，1762–1830)是英國與愛爾蘭聯合王國的國王，因父王喬治三世精神失常而被任命為攝政王(Prince Regent)，於公元1811年至1819年攝政，並於公元1820至1830年在位。其攝政時期正值拿破崙戰爭末期，英國在此階段取得對法國的最終勝利，並在維也納會議後奠定十九世紀的國際力量格局。他身為國家象徵，支持惠靈頓公爵與政府持續對法作戰。同時，在內政與文化層面，他以奢華品味著稱，積極贊助藝術、建築與時尚，並在攝政時期塑造出所謂「攝政風格」(Regency Style)，深刻影響英國後世美學。然而，他的私生活常受爭議，包括沉溺享樂、財務紊亂及與妻子卡羅琳的婚姻醜聞，使其形象褒貶不一。