The Monghyr Mutiny 1766
The Bengal Army in 1766 comprised three brigades. The First, under Lt. Colonel Sir Robert Fletcher, was based at Monghyr, 300 miles west of Calcutta. The Third Brigade, under Sir Robert Barker, was at Bankipore, 100 miles further west, and the Second Brigade, under Colonel Smith, at Allahabad, 200 miles further west again. Outraged by the threatened loss of income, a large number of the officers of the First Brigade made a pact to resign their commissions unless their double batta (a special allowance) was reinstated. This pact was communicated to their colleagues in the Third and the Second Brigades with an enjoinder to do likewise. The officers of the Third readily agreed but the Second hesitated before finally agreeing too. The date set for the mass resignations was 1st July 1766.
Lord Robert Clive and his senior general, John Carnac, raced to Monghyr where they arrived on 15th May and immediately ordered a parade of all European soldiers. He explained that his officers' actions amounted to mutiny and that they would be subject to the most serious punishment. Those less guilty would be returned home to England. He then issued extra pay to his native soldiers and ordered them to seek out the mutineers and escort them to Calcutta where they would face court martial. Much controversy surrounds the supposed Monghyr Mutiny medal, which was intended to reward native troops, who helped quell the mutiny. Many commentators actually doubt its existence.
The medal, below, has long been identified as the Monghyr Mutiny medal and is on pictured on the web site of the British Army Museum in London with the following caption, "This medal is believed to have been issued on the recommendation of Robert, Lord Clive, to the Indian officers of two Indian battalions who succeeded in quelling a mutiny among the European troops at Monghyr in Bengal, in June 1766." The medal's existence is mentioned, without description, in W. Augustus Stewart's, 1915, War Medals and Their History. This identification has since been debunked by a very authoritative article, which appeared in the GMIC forum, identifying the medal as a Masonic jewel issued by the Freemason's Lodge of the Palmen in Germany.
Misidentified Monghyr Mutiny Medal
There was a medal produced by the Mint in Calcutta (Murshidabad Mint), along with the Pondicherry Mint, however in the 1870s the dies for it, and an additional two medals, which the Mints had produced, prior to the Deccan medal, were lost. The image above is presented here to keep some collector from making a very expensive mistake.
The Bengal Army in 1766 comprised three brigades. The First, under Lt. Colonel Sir Robert Fletcher, was based at Monghyr, 300 miles west of Calcutta. The Third Brigade, under Sir Robert Barker, was at Bankipore, 100 miles further west, and the Second Brigade, under Colonel Smith, at Allahabad, 200 miles further west again. Outraged by the threatened loss of income, a large number of the officers of the First Brigade made a pact to resign their commissions unless their double batta (a special allowance) was reinstated. This pact was communicated to their colleagues in the Third and the Second Brigades with an enjoinder to do likewise. The officers of the Third readily agreed but the Second hesitated before finally agreeing too. The date set for the mass resignations was 1st July 1766.
Lord Robert Clive and his senior general, John Carnac, raced to Monghyr where they arrived on 15th May and immediately ordered a parade of all European soldiers. He explained that his officers' actions amounted to mutiny and that they would be subject to the most serious punishment. Those less guilty would be returned home to England. He then issued extra pay to his native soldiers and ordered them to seek out the mutineers and escort them to Calcutta where they would face court martial. Much controversy surrounds the supposed Monghyr Mutiny medal, which was intended to reward native troops, who helped quell the mutiny. Many commentators actually doubt its existence.
The medal, below, has long been identified as the Monghyr Mutiny medal and is on pictured on the web site of the British Army Museum in London with the following caption, "This medal is believed to have been issued on the recommendation of Robert, Lord Clive, to the Indian officers of two Indian battalions who succeeded in quelling a mutiny among the European troops at Monghyr in Bengal, in June 1766." The medal's existence is mentioned, without description, in W. Augustus Stewart's, 1915, War Medals and Their History. This identification has since been debunked by a very authoritative article, which appeared in the GMIC forum, identifying the medal as a Masonic jewel issued by the Freemason's Lodge of the Palmen in Germany.
Misidentified Monghyr Mutiny Medal
There was a medal produced by the Mint in Calcutta (Murshidabad Mint), along with the Pondicherry Mint, however in the 1870s the dies for it, and an additional two medals, which the Mints had produced, prior to the Deccan medal, were lost. The image above is presented here to keep some collector from making a very expensive mistake.
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