Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Four: Captain’s Coxswain Edward Spearing, Royal Navy

China 1842 (Edward Spearing, H.M.S. North Star); New Zealand 1845-66, reverse dated 1845 to 1846 (Edward, Spearing Ordy HMS North Star; Crimea 1854-56, 2 clasps, Sebastopol, Azoff, unnamed as issued; Turkish Crimea 1855, Sardinian issue, unnamed as issued, pierced with small rings for suspension, contact marks, otherwise nearly very fine or better and a scarce group (4) £2,400-£2,800

Captain K. J. Douglas-Morris Collection, Dix Noonan Webb, October 1996.

Edward Spearing was born in Gosport, Hampshire, on 4 December 1825. He joined the Royal Navy as a Boy 2nd Class aboard Victory on 5 July 1841, and moved to North Star on 16 September 1841, advancing to Boy 1st Class in December 1841, and to Ordinary Seaman in January 1846. Whilst in North Star he saw service in China and New Zealand receiving medals for both campaigns. He left North Star on 6 September 1846, and joined Vengeance on 19 October 1846, serving as Able Seaman and Sailmaker’s Mate until 10 July 1850. He joined Dauntless on 17 August 1850, and was advanced to Captain of the Foretop in January 1853. He served as a Seaman Rigger at Portsmouth Dockyard from May 1853 to February 1854. He next joined Swallow on 23 August 1854, and served as Captain’s Coxswain and Captain of the Forecastle during the operations before Sebastopol and afterwards in the Sea of Azoff, his medals for these services being delivered on board Swallow, which ship he left on 1 June 1858. Edward Spearing was finally invalided out of the service from H.M.S. Liffey on 11 July 1859.

Sold with full record of service and other copied research, including extracts from Swallow’s log of the Azoff operations.