Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

An unusual double-issue pair of Waterloo medals awarded to Lieutenant Samuel Phelps, Royal Foot Artillery

Waterloo 1815 (Lieut. Samuel Phelps Royal Foot Artillery.) fitted with original steel clip and ring suspension; Waterloo 1815 (Lieutenant S. Phelps, Royal Foot Artillery) a slightly later issue, fitted with replacement steel clip and small ring suspension, the first with two edge bruises and a little polished, otherwise nearly very fine, the second with edge bruising and marks overall, therefore good fine or better (2) £2,400-£2,800

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Simon C. Marriage Collection of Medals to the Artillery.

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Samuel Phelps was appointed a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Artillery on 4 April 1808, and 1st Lieutenant on 18 September 1809. He served in the Walcheren expedition in 1809, and was present at Quatre Bras and Waterloo in Major Lloyd’s Brigade (wounded) and with the Army of Occupation. Placed on half-pay on 4 August 1822, he died in 1927 from the effects of Walcheren fever.

There is a memorial tablet to him in St Michael’s Church, Rudbaxton, Wales:
‘Sacred to the memory / of Samuel Phelps / third son of John Martin Esqr of Withy Bush / and a Lieutenant in the Royal Artillery / who after an active service / in different campaigns, / wounded early in the memorable battle of Waterloo / fell a victim to the protracted effects / of the Walcheren fever / on the 13th day of December 1827 / in the 37th year of his age.’ (Wellington’s Men Remembered by Janet & David Bromley refers).

In a letter to his brother, dated 18 July 1815, Phelps wrote: ‘... On the 14th instant we received an order to march, when after two days hard marching we arrived at the scene of action at about 3 o’clock in the evening of the 16th, our guns were immediately brought into action. We began by commencing a heavy fire upon the enemy’s position which was kept up until late in the evening. We lost a great many horses killed but did not suffer much in men, the troops of the line suffered considerably, especially the highlanders, we, however, drove the enemy back and our right troops occupied the ground he stood upon!... I was mounting my horse, one foot in the stirrup, when a cannon shot struck him dead having gone through him. We lay all this night in the rear of the field of battle repairing our damages as well as possible and at about twelve o’clock on the 17th we were ordered to retire as the Prussians on our left had been obliged to retreat... On the morning of the 18th at [10 o’clock?] I went to the rear to bring up some ammunition [caissons when?] about twelve o’clock the enemy commenced [a heavy fire?] upon our lines. I did not return to the fighting until two o’clock; we had hard work with our guns [sinking?] it being so wet that it was with difficulty [that we could?] work them, we kept up a warm fire upon the enemy when of a sudden an immense body of cavalry came out of some corn in our front and charged through our guns, it was with difficulty that we got to the squares of infantry in our rear, the line fired volleys into them, they retired and we got to our guns and peppered them finely; they charged us again four time following but we killed such a number of them that they were glad to retire at last. Our losses were considerable, two officers out of five are severely wounded, a great number of our men and horses killed.’ (The Waterloo Archive, Volume IV: British sources, edited by Gareth Glover, refers)

First Lieutenant Phelps served in Major William Lloyd’s brigade at Waterloo. Major Lloyd was severely wounded and died of his wounds eleven days after the above letter was written.