Item number: M459

Year: AD 1843-1858

Material: Silver

Size: 65.6 x 59.5 x 1.6 mm

Weight: 20.65 g

Provenance: J. Collins Medal 2025

This miniature medal group comprises three miniature medals intended for wear with civilian formal dress (for example, evening dress with tailcoat). From left to right, these are the Army of India Medal, the China War Medal, and the Indian Mutiny Medal.

The Army of India Medal, with Ava clasp

The obverse of the medal bears a left-facing portrait of Queen Victoria. Her hair is gathered into a chignon bound by two fillets, with a single curl falling from the knot. At the hairline on the forehead she wears, in the manner of a diadem, the front portion of the George IV State Diadem worn at the coronation of King George IV, the rear portion having been omitted through artistic stylisation. The portrait continues the design created by the engraver William Wyon for the commemorative medal of Queen Victoria’s accession in AD 1837, itself inspired by Antonio Canova’s sculpture Fountain Nymph. At the neckline appears the inscription “W. WYON · RA”, 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 is identical to that of the China War Medal issued from AD 1843 onwards.

The reverse depicts a seated full-length figure of the goddess Victory, shown in left profile with her wings folded and hanging down. In her left hand she holds a laurel wreath, and in her right an olive branch; beneath her is a lotus leaf. In front of the goddess stands a palm tree, while various weapons such as blades and shields are scattered at her feet. Around the upper edge of the reverse runs the inscription “TO THE ARMY OF INDIA”, and at the lower edge is the date range “1799–1826”, indicating the period of the relevant campaigns.

The ribbon is of alternating blue and white, overall a pale blue tone, conveying a restrained and simple appearance. This ribbon is specific to the Army of India Medal and denotes service in a series of military operations in South Asia between AD 1799 and 1826.

The suspension is floral design, clawed, swivel scroll, a form reused from that first adopted by the British Army on the Sutlej Campaign Medal from AD 1846 onwards.

The First Anglo-Burmese War (AD 1824–1826) was the first large-scale conflict among the three Anglo-Burmese wars fought in the nineteenth century between the British East India Company and the Konbaung dynasty of Burma. It was also one of the longest and most costly military conflicts in the history of British India. The war arose primarily from Burmese expansion along the north-eastern frontier of India, leading to territorial, commercial, and political frictions with British India in regions such as Assam, Manipur, Cachar, and Arakan. These tensions were compounded by British commercial interests in opening new markets and by British concerns over possible French assistance to Burma, ultimately resulting in open hostilities. Fighting began in AD 1824, when Burmese forces under the command of Maha Bandula advanced into British-held Assam. Benefiting from concentrated elite forces and superior knowledge of the terrain, the Burmese initially achieved a series of victories.

The British therefore avoided unfavourable terrain and shifted operations to Burmese territory. In May AD 1824, forces of the Indian Navy landed at Rangoon, taking the Burmese by surprise. Eventually, Bandula was killed in action, Burmese morale collapsed, and their forces were compelled to withdraw, enabling British troops to penetrate further inland.

A succession of defeats forced the Burmese court to recognise its inability to continue the war. British forces advanced towards the former capital, Amarapura, coming within less than 15 kilometres of the capital at Ava. With British troops at the gates, the Burmese king accepted British terms, and on 24 February AD 1826 signed the harsh Treaty of Yandabo. Under its provisions, Burma ceded extensive territories in the north-west and south-west, including Assam, Manipur, Arakan, and Tenasserim (modern Tanintharyi Region), relinquished control over border areas such as Cachar and Jaintia, paid a large indemnity, opened its ports to trade, and permitted the stationing of diplomatic representatives. The costs of war, demographic losses, and the burden of indemnities severely weakened Burma. After two subsequent, smaller Anglo-Burmese wars, Burma ultimately succumbed to British colonial rule.

Most participants in the conflict received the Burma Medal awarded by the East India Company. However, many naval personnel who had supported operations along the Irrawaddy River did not receive recognition until AD 1851, when they were awarded the Army of India Medal with the “Ava” clasp, issued by the East India Company with royal approval.

The China War Medal

The obverse bears a left-facing portrait of Queen Victoria, with her hair arranged in a chignon bound by two fillets and a curl falling from the knot. At the hairline she wears the front portion of the George IV State Diadem, the remainder omitted through artistic convention. The portrait follows the same design lineage as William Wyon’s commemorative medal of AD 1837 for Queen Victoria’s accession, itself inspired by Canova’s Fountain Nymph. At the neckline appears “W. WYON · RA”, identifying Wyon as Chief Engraver of the Royal Mint. Around the portrait is the legend “VICTORIA REGINA”, meaning “Queen Victoria”.

The reverse shows a palm tree, beneath which stands a shield bearing the royal arms of the United Kingdom. The three lions passant guardant in the upper left and lower right quarters represent England; the lion rampant with surrounding fleurs-de-lis in the upper right represents Scotland; and the harp represents Ireland. Around 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 trial reverse design depicted a British lion trampling a Chinese dragon, but the British government judged this imagery excessively offensive to China and ultimately adopted the more neutral composition of stacked armaments. Around the upper edge is the inscription “ARMIS EXPOSCERE PACIM”, meaning “To demand peace by force of arms”. Below, separated by a horizontal line indicating the ground, a rectangular panel bears the word “CHINA”, identifying the medal as the China War Medal.

The ribbon consists of alternating red and yellow stripes, with a broad red central band flanked by narrower yellow edges. This ribbon is specific to the China War Medal and encompasses the two Opium Wars as well as the campaign of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

The First Opium War broke out in AD 1840 and concluded in AD 1842 with the signing of the Treaty of Nanjing. The immediate trigger lay in AD 1838, when the Daoguang Emperor appointed the Imperial Commissioner Lin Zexu to suppress the opium trade in Guangzhou. Upon taking office, Lin ordered the destruction at Humen of more than 20,000 chests of British-imported opium. This action provoked British dissatisfaction, which was used as a pretext for launching military operations against the Qing dynasty in AD 1840, culminating in British victory in AD 1842.

The Treaty of Nanjing, concluded after the First Opium War, was the first of the unequal treaties in modern Chinese history and plunged the Qing empire into a semi-colonial condition. China lost judicial and tariff autonomy, granted unilateral most-favoured-nation status and extraterritorial rights to the Western powers, established treaty ports and concessions, and opened the five ports of Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, Fuzhou, and Guangzhou to foreign trade.

In AD 1843, the British government instituted the China War Medal to reward those who had rendered meritorious service during the First Opium War. The same medal design continued in use during the Second Opium War, although six additional clasps were authorised for that later conflict. After the campaign of the Eight-Nation Alliance, Britain established a new China War Medal, which retained the reverse design and ribbon of the earlier issues, while altering only the portrait of Queen Victoria and the upper legend on the obverse.

The Indian Mutiny Medal, with Central India clasp

The obverse bears the same left-facing portrait of Queen Victoria, with her hair bound by two fillets and a curl falling from the chignon, and wearing the front portion of the George IV State Diadem. The portrait design follows William Wyon’s commemorative medal of AD 1837, inspired by Canova’s Fountain Nymph. The inscription “W. WYON · RA” appears at the neckline, identifying the designer as William Wyon, then Chief Engraver of the Royal Mint. Around the portrait runs the legend “VICTORIA REGINA”. The obverse design is identical to that used on the China War Medal issued from AD 1843 onwards.

The reverse depicts the personification of the British Isles, Britannia, shown as a full-length figure in left profile. She wears a Roman centurion’s helmet and a classical robe. Her right arm is extended forward holding a laurel wreath, while her left arm hangs down, the upper arm bearing a Greek-style round shield emblazoned with the Union Flag, and her hand also holding a wreath. Beside her stands a lion, symbolising England. Around the upper edge is the word “INDIA”, and below, separated by a horizontal ground line, appears the date “1857–1858”, indicating the duration of the Indian Rebellion.

The ribbon consists of alternating white and red stripes, arranged in five equal-width bands, from left to right white, red, white, red, white.

In AD 1858, the British government instituted the Indian Mutiny Medal to recognise military personnel who had participated in the suppression of the rebellion. In AD 1868, eligibility was extended to include non-military individuals who had directly experienced the uprising, bringing the total number issued to approximately 290,000. The medal was struck in silver. The obverse bears a crowned left-facing portrait of Queen Victoria with her name in Latin on either side. The reverse shows Britannia, holding a Union Flag shield in her left hand and raising a laurel wreath of victory in her right, accompanied by a lion at her feet. The inscriptions “INDIA” and “1857–1858” appear respectively at the top and bottom of the reverse.

Based on individual service records, the British government authorised five clasps for this medal, corresponding to specific operations and campaigns, namely “Delhi”, “Defence of Lucknow”, “Lucknow”, and “Central India” (see illustration).

Prior to the rebellion, British colonial rule over the Indian subcontinent had been administered by the private British East India Company. In the conquest of India, the Company relied heavily on locally recruited soldiers known as sepoys. On the eve of the rebellion, of the Company’s force of approximately 240,000 troops on the subcontinent, around 200,000 were sepoys. Even before the outbreak of rebellion in AD 1857, the Company’s policies had provoked sporadic resistance, which it generally managed to suppress by manipulating complex ethnic and religious divisions. However, in March AD 1857, rumours spread among the sepoys that they would be forced to convert to Christianity and that newly issued paper cartridges were greased with pig and cow fat, offending both Muslim and Hindu soldiers, who formed the largest proportions of the ranks. Fuelled by these rumours, rebellion spread across northern India in May of that year and at one point captured Delhi, the capital of the Mughal Empire, proclaiming the emperor Bahadur Shah II, then confined in the Red Fort, as its leader. With direct intervention by the British government, however, regular British troops redeployed from overseas stations and loyal princely states joined in suppressing the uprising, which was largely quelled by AD 1858. Later estimates of Indian deaths in the conflict range from 100,000 to 800,000.

The most significant consequence of the rebellion was the dissolution of the East India Company’s system of rule and the transfer of the Indian subcontinent to direct government administration as a crown colony. In AD 1876, the British monarch additionally assumed the title of “Emperor of India”. Conversely, in the view of Indian nationalists, the uprising has been honoured as a great national revolt and the First War of Independence. Ultimately, following the end of the Second World War, India achieved independence in AD 1947, bringing to a close nearly two centuries of British rule.

According to surviving documentary evidence, no individual has been conclusively identified in official rolls as having received all three of these medals. The recipient of this miniature group may therefore have been an Indian-born soldier serving in the British forces.

物件編號: M459

年代: 公元 1843-1858 年

材質: 銀

尺寸: 65.6 x 59.5 x 1.6 mm

重量: 20.65 g

來源: 克林獎章 2025

此迷你版章組包含三個迷你版獎章，用以著非軍服正裝(例如燕尾服)時配戴，由左至右分別為「印度陸軍獎章」、「中國戰爭獎章」與「印度叛亂獎章」。

印度陸軍獎章，附阿瓦銘牌(Army of India Medal, with Ava clasp)

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。

獎章的背面中央為勝利女神左側全身坐像，雙翅收攏垂下。其左手持一月桂花冠，右手持一橄欖樹枝，座下置有蓮葉。在女神前方，有一棵棕櫚樹，腳邊還有不少刀械、盾牌等武器。獎章背面的上緣，環列「TO THE ARMY OF INDIA」，即「給印度陸軍」，底部並標示相關戰役的持續時間「1799-1826」。

綬帶形制為藍白交織，整體呈淺藍色，顯得簡約、樸實。該綬帶為英國印度陸軍獎章的專用綬帶，是公元1799年至1826年，於南亞一系列軍事行動的專屬綬帶。

懸掛形制復用自公元1846年起，英軍於象泉河獎章開始採用的花瓣造型帶爪螺旋式懸掛。

第一次英緬戰爭(First Anglo-Burmese War,1824-1826)是19世紀英國東印度公司與緬甸貢榜王朝之間三次英緬衝突的第一場大規模戰爭，亦是英屬印度歷史上最長、最昂貴的軍事衝突之一。此戰主要因緬甸在印度東北邊境擴張，與英屬印度在阿薩姆、曼尼普爾(Manipur)、察查與若開等地存在領土、貿易與影響力的摩擦，加以英國工商業對於開拓市場的需求，以及英方對於法國援助緬甸的擔憂，最終引發英緬的全面對抗。戰事自公元1824年爆發，由緬軍由統帥瑪哈·班都拉率軍攻入英屬印度阿薩姆，在精銳的集結與熟悉地利的優勢下，初時連戰皆捷。

英軍於是避開不利地形，改於緬甸本土作戰，公元1824年5月，英國印度海軍登陸仰光，緬軍措手不及。最終緬軍統帥班都拉戰死，緬軍士氣崩潰，被迫棄守，英軍遂得以深入內陸。

連串戰敗迫使緬甸王廷承認無力再戰，英軍隨即逼近舊都阿瑪拉普拉(Amarapura)，距首都阿瓦(Ava)不到15公里。在英軍兵臨城下之際，緬甸國王接受英方條件，並於公元1826年2月24日在延達布(Yandabo)簽署苛刻的和平條約，緬甸需割讓包括阿薩姆、曼尼普爾、若開與丹那沙林(Tenasserim，今德林達依省Tanintharyi)在內的西北與西南等大片領土予英方，放棄對察查與賈因提亚等邊境地區的控制權，並支付巨額賠款、開放通商及准許派駐外交代表等。軍費、人口損耗和賠款拖垮緬甸國力，在其後二次較小規模的英緬戰爭後，緬甸最終未能倖免於英國的殖民統治。

大部分參與者均獲頒東印度公司所授之緬甸獎章，但有許多支援伊洛瓦底江畔的海軍相關人員，則至公元1851年才獲頒附「阿瓦」銘牌的「印度陸軍獎章」，亦經女王同意，由東印度公司所頒授。

中國戰爭獎章(China War Medal)

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」。

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。

綬帶形制為紅、黃色帶相間，以紅色色帶為主體，兩側鑲有較細的黃色色帶。該綬帶為中國戰爭獎章的專用綬帶，包含兩次鴉片戰爭和八國聯軍之役。

第一次鴉片戰爭發生於公元1840年，並於公元1842年以簽訂《南京條約》告終。導火線為公元1838年，道光皇帝特派欽差大臣林則徐前往廣州禁煙。林則徐到任後，隨即於虎門銷毀英國進口鴉片2萬餘箱。此舉引來英國不滿，並以此為藉口，於公元1840年對清朝發起軍事行動，最終在公元1842年取得勝利。

第一次鴉片戰爭後所簽訂的《南京條約》，是中國近代史上第一個不平等條約，使清朝陷入半殖民的局面。中國自此喪失領事裁判權、關稅自主權，同時給予列強片面最惠國待遇、設立租界等權益，並開放上海、寧波、廈門、福州、廣州五個港口。

公元1843年，英國政府頒布這面中國戰爭獎章，以獎勵第一次鴉片戰爭期間有功的軍士。而這面獎章的形制沿用至第二次鴉片戰爭，惟第二次鴉片戰爭所授予的中國戰爭獎章還增加了6種銘條。八國聯軍後，英國又設立新的中國戰爭獎章，這面獎章背面的形式、綬帶仍沿用前兩次所頒布的戰爭獎章，唯獨正面維多利亞女王像和上緣字樣有所更易。

印度叛亂獎章，附中印度銘牌(Indian Munity Medal, with Central India clasp)

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。

獎章背面為不列顛群島的擬人形象——不列顛尼亞的左側全身像。其頭戴羅馬百夫長頭盔，身著羅馬式長袍。右臂平伸向前，手執桂冠花環。左臂下垂，大臂套著希臘式圓木盾，盾上繪有聯合王國的米字旗，手上亦執花環。其後方身側伴隨一隻雄獅，象徵英格蘭。上方環列「INDIA」，即「印度」；下方以橫線為地，其下「1857-1858」，標示印度譁變的持續時間。

綬帶形制為白、紅色帶相間，以五道等寬色帶相間排列，自左依序為白、紅、白、紅、白。

公元1858年，英國政府為獎勵參與鎮壓叛亂的軍事人員，設立該印度叛亂獎章以資表揚。後續公元1868年，頒發對象擴張至親歷叛亂的非軍事人員，總發行量達到29萬枚。獎章以銀質打造，正面是頭戴王冠的維多利亞女王側像，兩側以拉丁文刻有「維多利亞女王」銘文。背面是象徵英國的不列顛女神，左手持有米字旗盾牌，右手高舉象徵勝利的桂冠，腳邊則伴隨一隻雄獅。在背面的上下兩處，分別刻有「印度」和標示叛亂年份「1857-1858」字樣。

按照個人服役紀錄，英國政府針對該獎章打造五種銘牌，依事件時序為「德里」、「防衛勒克瑙」、「勒克瑙」和「印度中部」。(見下圖)

早先英國對於南亞次大陸的殖民，由私人的英國東印度公司負責包辦。征服印度的過程中，東印度公司仰賴從印度各地招募而來的「西帕依」在地士兵。截至印度叛亂的前夕，東印度公司在印度次大陸的24萬軍隊中，其中就有20萬人是西帕依。早在公元1857年叛亂爆發前，東印度公司的治理方針即招來零星反抗，不過憑藉操弄複雜的民族和宗教關係，公司大抵能撲滅這些反抗。不過在公元1857年3月，西帕依之間謠傳將被迫皈依基督教，和準備換裝的紙殼彈藥塗有豬/牛油，同時引發部隊中比例最高的穆斯林和印度教士兵不滿。在謠言的推波助瀾下，當年5月叛亂在印度北部蔓延，並且一度攻下蒙兀兒帝國的首都德里，擁護被軟禁在紅堡的皇帝巴哈杜沙二世擔任領導人。不過在英國政府介入下，動員部署在海外其他地區的英國正規軍和未參加叛亂的土邦投入平叛，並於公元1858年大抵平息各地的叛亂。後世評估這場衝突中喪失生命的印度人，數量從10萬到80萬不等。

叛亂最大的影響是英國政府撤銷東印度公司的管理體系，將印度次大陸劃為政府的直轄殖民地，公元1876年英國皇室還得到「印度皇帝」頭銜。另一方面在印度民族主義者眼中，這場叛亂被稱作民族大起義和第一次獨立戰爭而備受尊崇。最終在第二次世界大戰結束後，印度於公元1947年獨立建國，結束英國在當地近兩百年的統治。

按現存史料，未能從清冊中查證同時獲頒該三枚獎章者，該獲頒者可能為於英軍中服役的印度裔官兵。