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 SOLDIER OF THE MONTH
Private George Henry Burgess No.1737
90th
Regiment
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In the captions to the Fenton photographs Captain Crealock referred to George Henry Burgess as ‘my servant for twelve years’ indicating that George may have enlisted in the early 1840s. His entry in the Regimental Descriptions for the 90th Regiment shows that, in fact, he joined the Regiment on 26 December 1840. Burgess was only 14 years 8 months in age at the time and was described as being 5ft 8ins in height with a sallow complexion, dark eyes and brown hair. He was a Labourer by trade.
Born in Shepton Mallet, Somerset, Burgess signed up for Unlimited Service at Tralee in Ireland. This combination indicates a strong probability that his father was a soldier living in Somerset at the time of George’s birth but serving in Ireland with his family present when George enlisted, or possibly, visa versa.
Burgess served in the Crimea but the Regimental Muster of October 1856 notes that he was transferred to Headquarters Staff in Constantinople and this was, presumably, in his capacity as Captain Henry Crealock’s Servant. |
For his service in the campaign George was awarded the Crimea War Medal clasp for Sebastopol and the Turkish Medal.
Following the return to England he was granted furlough for the month of September 1856. However, in the spring of 1857 the regimental musters note him as ‘Attending on Brevet Major Crealock to China’ at the time when Brevet Major Crealock was assigned to the Army Staff.
He later went with the regiment to serve in the Indian Mutiny campaign, again presumably with Crealock but, sadly, died there at Seetapore on 25 August 1859. He was posthumously awarded the campaign Indian Mutiny Medal.
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This biography was researched by Patricia Martin and the original design and layout was by Katie Barclay, with photographic scanning by Joanne McPhie. The research was funded by the Trustees of the Cameronians. |
