Item number: M453

Year: AD 1861

Material: Silver

Size: 96.4 x 36.1 x 3 mm

Weight: 39.9 g

Manufactured by: The Royal Mint

Provenance: Aberdeen Medals 2025

This is a Second China War Medal issued by the British government. The presence of the FATSHAN 1857 clasp indicates that the recipient served in the Royal Navy.

The obverse bears a left-facing portrait of Queen Victoria. Her hair is drawn into a chignon bound by two fillets, with a single curl falling from the knot. Across the hairline she wears the forepart of the George IV State Diadem worn at the coronation of George IV, the rear portion being omitted through artistic convention. The portrait design continues that created by the medallist William Wyon in AD 1837 for Queen Victoria’s accession medal, itself inspired by Antonio Canova’s sculpture Fountain Nymph. At the truncation of the neck appears the inscription “W. WYON · R.A.”, identifying the designer as William Wyon, then Chief Engraver of the Royal Mint. Around the portrait is the legend “VICTORIA REGINA”, meaning “Queen Victoria”. The obverse design and legend are identical to those used on the China War Medal issued from AD 1843 onwards.

The reverse depicts a palm tree beside which rests a shield bearing the Royal Arms of the United Kingdom: in the upper left and lower right are three lions passant guardant representing England; in the upper right, a lion rampant within a tressure of fleurs-de-lis representing Scotland; and a harp representing Ireland. Surrounding the shield is a pile of military equipment, including cannon, cannonballs, flags, firearms, an anchor, drums, and swords. It is noteworthy that William Wyon’s original proof reverse showed a British lion trampling a Chinese dragon; however, the British government considered this imagery excessively offensive to China and ultimately adopted the alternative design employing stacked arms. Above is the motto “ARMIS EXPOSCERE PACIM”, meaning “to seek peace by force of arms”. Below, a horizontal line represents the ground, beneath which a rectangular panel inscribed “CHINA” identifies the medal as the China War Medal.

The Royal Navy issued the medal first, with a plain, unnamed edge. Some examples, however, bear unit designations, ranks, or personal names engraved on the rim, which may derive either from officially named Army issues or from naval recipients who subsequently had their medals impressed or engraved privately.

At the time of its initial issue, Henry Taprell Dorling, author of Ribbons and Medals, recorded that:

It was authorised in 1861, and was first issued with a ribbon of five equal stripes: blue, yellow, red, white and green, eventually to be replaced by the crimson ribbon with yellow edges.

The medal is fitted with a cusped swivel suspension. On either side of the bar encircling the ribbon is a rose emblem, symbolising England. This cusped suspension is identical to that used on the Indian Mutiny Medal issued in AD 1859 and represents the most common suspension type for medals of this class.

The medal was awarded to officers and men of both the Navy and the Army, with the following clasps (also termed bars) authorised: “CHINA 1842”, awarded to those who already possessed the China Medal of AD 1842 and were entitled to the later medal; “CANTON 1857”, awarded to those who took part in operations against Canton; “TAKU FORTS 1858”, awarded to those present at the capture of the Taku Forts on 23 May AD 1858; “TAKU FORTS 1860”, awarded to those engaged in the capture of the forts on 21 August AD 1860; “PEKIN 1860”, awarded to those who took part in the operations resulting in the capture of Pekin in October AD 1860; and “FATSHAN 1857”, awarded to naval officers, ratings, and Royal Marines who were engaged in that action. The vessels involved included HMS Bustard, HMS Calcutta, HMS Coromandel, HMS Cruiser, HMS Elk, HMS Forester, HMS Fury, HMS Haughty, HMS Highflyer, HMS Hong Kong, HMS Hornet, HMS Nankin, HMS Niger, HMS Plover, HMS Raleigh, HMS Starling, HMS Staunch, HMS Sybille, and HMS Tribune.

The background to the Second Opium War, also known as the Anglo-French Expedition, was similar to that of the First Opium War of AD 1842. From the British perspective, the conflict arose from the Qing government’s treatment of Europeans and the prolonged failure to secure adequate commercial and diplomatic rights; from the Qing court’s viewpoint, however, Western powers were using armed coercion to expand trade and residence demands, thereby infringing upon imperial authority, interests, and sovereignty. In October AD 1856, officials in Canton boarded the British-registered Arrow, detained its crew, and hauled down the British flag, an incident that became the immediate catalyst for hostilities. Admiral Sir Michael Seymour sought redress without success and on 23 October seized the Barrier Forts at the mouth of the Pearl River and entered Canton. Owing to insufficient forces, Britain appealed both to the Governor-General of India for troops and to the home government for naval reinforcements, which arrived during March AD 1857. The Royal Navy then conducted a series of operations in the Pearl River Delta, and in May AD 1857 Commodore Elliot, Admiral Seymour, and Commodore Keppel successively destroyed units of the Eight Banners Canton flotilla at Escape Creek and in Fatshan Creek. The outbreak of the Indian Mutiny in AD 1857 temporarily strained British military resources, and it was not until December that large-scale combined operations were deemed feasible. Canton fell on 5 January AD 1858, and the Viceroy of Liangguang, Ye Mingchen, was captured and sent to Calcutta. Thereafter, Anglo-French operations moved northwards. Lord Elgin insisted that peace negotiations be conducted in Pekin, but when the envoys reached the mouth of the Peiho River they were refused passage, prompting a joint Anglo-French assault on the Taku Forts in May AD 1858, after which Tientsin was reached and a treaty concluded. The Qing court, however, failed to honour the agreement, and in AD 1859 the British envoy Sir Frederick Bruce was again fired upon by the Taku Forts. Consequently, in AD 1860 Britain and France dispatched a larger combined expeditionary force under Sir Hope Grant and General Montauban. The Taku Forts were captured again on 21 August, the allies advanced through Tientsin, and after engagements at Changjiawan and Palikao entered Pekin on 13 October, compelling the Qing government on 24 October to sign the Convention of Pekin and to pay a substantial indemnity.

物件編號: M453

年代: 公元 1861 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 96.4 x 36.1 x 3 mm

重量: 39.9 g

製造地: 皇家鑄幣廠

來源: 亞伯丁獎章 2025

這是一枚英國政府頒發的第二次中國戰爭獎章。附佛山1857銘牌表示獲頒者為英國海軍成員。

獎章正面為維多利亞女王的左側肖像，頭髮以兩條髮帶(fillet)束成髮髻，一縷捲髮自髮髻垂落。前額髮際處以佩戴髮箍的方式佩戴喬治四世登基典禮所戴之喬治四世國冠(George IV State Diadem)的前半部，後半部因藝術化處理而消失。肖像設計延續了設計者威廉·威恩(William Wyon)於公元1837年為維多利亞女王登基而創作的紀念獎章，參考安東尼奧·卡諾瓦(Antonio Canova)的《噴泉仙女》(Fountain Nymph)雕像而製成。肖像頸線處有「W.WYON· RA」，標示設計者為當時皇家鑄幣廠首席雕刻師威廉·威恩。肖像左右環列「VICTORIA REGINA」，意即「維多利亞女王」。圖文設計與公元1843年起頒發的中國戰爭獎章相同。

背面為有一棵棕櫚樹，樹下有一面盾牌，上為英國皇家的紋章，左上與右下各一組三隻撲擊的獅子，代表英格蘭；右上躍立的獅子與圍繞獅子的百合紋飾，代表蘇格蘭；豎琴則代表愛爾蘭。盾牌周圍堆疊著火炮、炮彈、旗幟、槍械、船錨、軍鼓、軍刀等各種軍械。值得一提的是，威廉·威恩所設計之原試鑄樣章背圖為一隻象徵英國的獅子踐踏一條象徵中國的龍。但是英國政府考量這個圖像太過冒犯中國，最終決定使用以兵械堆作為意象的版本。上方環列「ARMIS EXPOSCERE PACIM」，意即「以武力求取和平」。下方以橫線作為地面相隔，橫線下方的長方形區塊中「CHINA」標示獎章為中國戰爭獎章。

皇家海軍先行頒發獎章，其邊稜光平無文。但一些獎章的邊稜部分會刻有單位、級職或姓名，可能來源於陸軍獲頒者的官方刻名，或海軍獲頒者自行壓印(impressed)或雕刻(engraved)。

初頒行時，《綬帶與獎章》(Ribbons and Medals)的作者亨利·塔普雷爾·多林(Henry Taprell Dorling)，記錄道：

它於公元1861年獲得正式授權，最初頒授時所配用的綬帶為五條等寬色帶，左起依序為藍、黃、紅、白與綠；其後則改為紅色(crimson)綬帶，邊緣鑲以黃色飾邊。

獎章採用花瓣弧型(cusped)可旋轉式(swivel)懸掛，綬帶所圍繞的橫桿兩側各有一玫瑰紋飾，象徵英格蘭。花瓣型支架形式與公元1859年頒行的「印度譁變獎章」(Indian Mutiny Medal)相同，是該類獎章最普遍的懸掛。

該獎章頒授予海軍與陸軍的軍官與士兵，並另行核發下列銘牌(clasp，或佩條bars)：「CHINA 1842」頒予原已持有 1842年中國戰役獎章、且符合新獎章資格者；「CANTON 1857」頒予參與對廣州作戰行動者；「TAKU FORTS 1858」頒予在 公元1858年5月23日 參與大沽炮臺攻佔行動者；「TAKU FORTS 1860」頒予於 公元1860年8月21日參與攻佔該炮臺者；「PEKIN 1860」頒予參與並促成公元1860年10月攻佔北京之軍事行動者；「FATSHAN 1857」頒予進入該戰役戰鬥序列之海軍軍官、士兵與海軍陸戰隊員。相關船艦有鴇號(HMS Bustard)、加爾各答號(HMS Calcutta)、科羅曼德號(HMS Coromandel)、巡洋號(HMS Cruiser)、麋鹿號(HMS Elk)、林務號(HMS Forester)、狂怒號(HMS Fury)、傲慢號(HMS Haughty)、高飛號(HMS Highflyer)、香港號(HMS Hong Kong)、大黃蜂號(HMS Hornet)、南京號(HMS Nankin)、尼日號(HMS Niger)、鴴號(HMS Plover)、羅利號(HMS Raleigh)、椋鳥號(HMS Starling)、堅毅號(HMS Staunch)、西比拉號(HMS Sybille)、護民官號(HMS Tribune)。

第二次鴉片戰爭(又稱英法聯軍之役)爆發的背景，與公元1842年的第一次鴉片戰爭相似，英方將其歸因於清廷對歐洲人的待遇不當，以及通商與外交權利長期未獲充分保障；然而於清廷的視角中，西方列強以武力脅迫，持續擴張通商與居留要求，侵犯了朝廷與帝室的威嚴、利益與主權。公元1856年10月，廣州方面登檢英國籍亞羅號(Arrow)並拘捕船員、降下英旗，成為直接導火線；英國海軍上將西摩爵士要求交涉未果，遂於10月23日攻佔珠江口屏障炮臺並進入廣州。由於兵力不足，英方一方面向印度總督請求陸軍支援，一方面向本國請求海軍增援；增援部隊於公元1857年3月陸續抵達。隨後英國海軍在珠江三角洲展開多次水上行動，公元1857年5月，艾略特准將、西摩上將與凱佩爾准將，於流溪河(Escape Creek)以及佛山水道(Fatshan Creek)，先後殲滅八旗廣州水師營。受公元1857年的印度兵變影響，英軍兵力一度緊絀，直到公元1857年12月，前線指揮官才認為具備條件展開大規模聯合作戰；公元1858年1月5日廣州陷落，兩廣總督葉名琛被俘並押往加爾各答。英法雙方隨後將戰事北移，額爾金勳爵堅持在北京簽約，使節團進抵白河口時遭拒，促使英法聯合艦隊於公元1858年5月攻擊守衛河口的大沽炮臺，成功後進入天津並簽訂條約。然而清廷並無履約之意，英使布魯斯於公元1859年再度遭大沽炮臺砲擊，英法遂於公元1860年派出規模更大的聯合遠征軍，在霍普·格蘭特與蒙托邦指揮下，於8月21日再次攻陷大沽炮臺，隨後進軍天津並直取北京，經張家灣與八里橋兩役後，於10月13日進入北京，迫使清廷於10月24日簽署新約《北京條約》，並支付鉅額賠款。