Naval General Service Medal 1793 - 1840 : Private G Goahagan, Royal Marines Accession Number: RELAWM14657

Description

Naval General Service Medal 1793 - 1840 with the bar Trafalgar. The recipients name is impressed in Roman capitals on the edge. Obverse: The diademed head of Queen Victoria and the legend 'VICTORIA REGINA' with the date '1848'. Reverse: The figure of Britannia, holding a trident, seated sideways on a seahorse. The designer's name 'W Wyon' is under the neck and on the rear exergue. The medal is fitted with a 34 mm white ribbon that has dark blue edges.

Contextual Description

Awarded to Private George Goahagan, Royal Marines, for service at the Battle of Trafalgar in HMS Belleisle, on 21 October 1805. Bellisle was a 74 gun third rate ship of the line, captained by William Hargood. At the Battle of Trafalgar she was the only British ship to be totally dismasted and lost 33 dead and 93 wounded. The Naval General Service Medal was originally intended to cover the period 1798 to 1815 but was later extended to include the period to 1840. 1,710 Trafalgar bars were issued to officers and men who served during the major fleet action off Cape Trafalgar between the British fleet of Vice-Admiral Lord Nelson with 27 ships-of-the-line and the Franco-Spanish fleet of Vice-Admiral Villeneuve with 33 ships-of-the-line. Lord Nelson was mortally wounded during the engagement but he effectively destroyed the Franco-Spanish fleet. This medal is part of a collection assembled by the late Hon. Sir Thomas Hughes, Member of the Legislative Council of New South Wales. It was presented to the Memorial in memory of his son, Captain Roger Forrest Hughes, Australian Army Medical Corps, who died of wounds in France on 11 December 1916, and of his grandson, Flying Officer Peter Roger Forrest Hughes, 12 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, who was killed on active service while flying in the Northern Territory on 3 October 1942.

Details

Accession Number
RELAWM14657
Designer
William Wyon
Classification
Heraldry
Object Type
Medal
Physical Description
Material: Silver
Measurement
Archived measurement
Date Made
c 1848
Place Made
Whole/Part
Whole
Item Count
1
Copyright
Copyright not applicable

Conflicts

Places

Units

Tags

More like this

Naval General Service Medal 1793 -1840 : George Larrad

Heraldry REL/14686 19th century

Naval General Service Medal 1793 - 1840 with the bar 'Syria'. The recipient's name is impressed in serif capitals on the edge. Obverse: The diademed head of Queen Victoria and the legend 'VICTORIA REG

Davison's Nile Medal : Royal Navy

Heraldry RELAWM14655 French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802)

Davison's Nile Medal in bronze-gilt. Obverse: The figure of Peace with an olive branch in her right hand. Under her right arm she supports a shield decorated with the portrait of Horatio Nelson with t

First China War Medal 1840 - 1842 : J Potter, HMS Belleisle

Heraldry RELAWM14661 19th century

First China War Medal 1840 - 1842. Impressed around edge with reipient's name and ship. Obverse: The diademed head of Queen Victoria and the legend 'VICTORIA REGINA'. Reverse: A trophy of arms with an

See more similar items →

Record information

Last modified: 14 May 2025 - 5.17 am