Zulu War Campaign medal

For future reference what doe’s one look for to establish if a Zulu War Campaign medal is genuine.
The reason I ask. You chaps seem to know what to look for regarding the various markings.

hi oh2.
The best way i have found is to deal with reputable dealers who have had many years experience dealing
with medals of all descriptions , one major point is to see if the medal recipient is on the actual roll , and his
attestation papers come with the medal or other copies of his service record , also to make sure his enlistment
number is correct and on the medal along with the regiments name. As we saw in the previous medal fiasco ,
somethings just didnt add up. Also helps that the medal is issued to a regt that was actualy involved in the conflict !!.
If buying from ebay ask them how they came by the medal, i think you will find if they are legitimate they will be
happy to answer any questions you put forward, not like the previous medals that 1879graves looked into. The
medals should be quite heavy for their size as i think they are predominantly silver. Here is the description of
the zulu war medal from the MEDAL ROLL BOOK by D.R. FORSYTH. " A circular silver medal 1.42 inch in diameter,
on the obverse the diadem head of Queen Victoria with the legend " VICTORIA REGINA" . The reverse has a lion
stooping to drink , standing in front of a protea bush , above the bush the wording " SOUTH AFRICA", whilst in the
exergue a zulu shield and four crossed assegai"s. The medal roll book also tells you which medals were sent back
to Woolwhich / mint , when these were returned for forfeiture or the owner couldnt be traced or some didnt show
any interest in the medal and others just didnt know about them , they were consigned to the melting pot immediatley
on receipt. According to FORSYTH , 6,090 medals and clasps were returned, of these 5,378 were those of colonials.
I hope this has been some help , oh2 if you are thinking of buying one send me a pm and i will give you a reputable
dealer.
cheers 90th.

Hi oh2

I think 90th has covered most of it for you. I have never bought a medal, I only take information from the medal for my database. Like 90th says, the best place to start is with MEDAL ROLL BOOK by D.R. FORSYTH.

1879Graves

Graves1879/ 90th The book you mentioned. MEDAL ROLL BOOK by D.R. FORSYTH.what does this book actually contain.

hi pete,
Essentialy its a book of lists , it shows every unit in the colonial, naval , mounted , imperial forces which
are entitled 1877-78-79 medal. These lists start with the commanding officer and work their way down
to everbody who served in the regt in these years, and tells you what clasp , if any they are entitled too.
As you may now , to earn the 1879 clasp you had to cross into zululand , with the exception of those who
fought at R.DRIFT. Also a cross next to a name means the medal was returned to Woolwich / Mint. There are
extracts from sth african papers from the time telling how one could apply for their medal, a page which lists
some deserters, technical data from the compiler etc, etc . The size of the personnal from each regt varies
some like the main units have pages of names, this is the listing for the 95th regt, i will use it as an example.

95TH ( DERBYSHIRE) REGIMENT
LIEUTENANT
Smith- Dorrien. H.L. 1879.

As he is the only member of the 95th to have fought in sth africa it goes on to the 98th regt, which has LT CAREY
listed . He is also the only one from the 98th regt ( prince imp fame). Hope this makes sense . I may try and
see if i can list a page from the book, need to wait till the kids get home !!!. It also states rank and whatever
they were employed as ie- bandmaster, orderley room clerk , qtr master, drummer etc etc. Also gives unit
breakdown as to how many persons recieved each clasp.

hope this helps pete.
cheers 90th.

hi pete.
here is the page, i got my youngest daughter to post for me because i have no idea :lol!:

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cheers 90th

Hi all, this is 90th's work and Admin this is what the book looks like.

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Very Interesting. Where can this book be purchased, and could you tell me the cost.

sas1

hi sas1.
Virtually impossible to get one, i checked some sites today all out of stock. A couple of years ago before
i managed my copy i had asked an internet book site to find one and the price, 800 quid !!!! , I KID YOU NOT !
I was lucky enough to get mine for 90 quid on ebay, i was online for 40 quid till someone tried a trump bid in the
last minute. i will send you the ISBN ( book number) by pm instantly.
cheers 90th.