A Collection of Medals for the Ashantee War 1873-74

Pair: Paymaster-in-Chief F. R. C. Whiddon, Royal Navy, a recipient of the ‘Witu 1890’ clasp to his Ashantee Medal

Ashantee 1873-74, no clasp (F. R. C. Whiddon, Asst. Payr. R.N. H.M.S. Himalaya. 73-74); British War Medal (Payr. in Ch. F. R. C. Whiddon, R.N.) nearly very fine or better and rare (2) £1400-1600

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Medals for the Ashantee War 1873-74.

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Only 10 European naval and marine recipients of the Ashantee 1873-74 Medal, and two native kroomen, subsequently received East and West Africa clasps to their medals.

Francis Rowland Courtenay Whiddon was born on 6 February 1844, and joined the Royal Navy as an Assistant Clerk on 11 December 1861. He was promoted to Clerk a few days later and to Assistant Paymaster in June 1865. He served as Assistant Paymaster of Himalaya in the Ashantee expedition of 1873-74 (Medal). He was promoted to Paymaster in December 1878 and to Staff Paymaster in March 1888.

As Staff Paymaster of Boadicea in charge of the Commissariat, Whiddon served in the Naval Brigade landed under the command of Vice-Admiral Hon. Sir E. R. Fremantle, K.C.B., C.M.G., Commander-in-Chief on the East Indies station, for the punitive expedition against the Sultan of Vitu, in East Africa, October 1890 (Clasp). He was mentioned in Fremantle’s despatch dated Mombasa, 1 November 1890: ‘Staff Paymaster F. R. C. Whiddon in charge of the Commissariat, showed great capacity in the arrangement for the supply of provisions, and I felt confident that there would be no failure on his part in having everything in readiness that might be required at the front.’

Whiddon was promoted to Fleet Paymaster with effect from December 1890, and retired as Paymaster-in-Chief in November 1902. He was recalled in February 1915 for service at a Youths Training Establishment.