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And like a brave and gallant soul he pleaded for the honour, To carry in the coming fight the Regimental Colour. Into his willing hands they gave the sacred trust;
That night the Colour still remained, but, he was as the dust. As Colour Serjeant Davison took the colour from the dead, Another well-aimed shot takes off the gilt spear-head. The first upon the hill was the gallant Lieutenant Butler, Who attacked, and took a Flag from a Chinese soldier; The Standard-bearer falls but we preserve the trophy, In Kendal Church it now hangs up, a record of our glory."
The colours, which fluttered in Hong Kong when the regiment was stationed here after the hostilities are also in urgent need of conservation.
Modern viewpoints have assessments of glory or otherwise which differ from those of the 1840s. But the banner in Kendal church is unique and it would be a tragedy if it were allowed to disintegrate. Lt. Colonel Ralph May, Curator of the Regimental Museum of the Border Regiment and Kings Own Royal Border Regiment, Queen Mary's Tower, The Castle, Carlisle, would be delighted to hear of any offers of help in preservation. Given the uniqueness of the banner and the circumstances of its seizure, is it too much to hope that the money to permit that preservation might be found in Hong Kong?
NOTE
1 The action in which the 55th gained the Imperial banner, and in which Ensign Duell was killed is described also in The Border Magazine, September 1955, pp. 178-179, and in the Historical Account of the 34th and 55th Regiments (publ. in the 1870s) pp. 78-79 (information by courtesy of The Curator, The Regimental Museum of the Border Regiment and the Kings Own Border Regiment).
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And like a barave and gallant soul he pleaded for the honour, To carry in the coming fight the Regimental Colour. Into his willing hands they gave the sacred trust;
That night the Colour still remained, but, he was as the dust. As Colour Serjeant Davison took the colour from the dead, Another well-aimed shot takes off the gilt spear-head. The first upon the hill was the gallant Lieutenant Butler, Who attacked, and took a Flag from a Chinese soldier; The Standard-bearer falls but we preserve the trophy, In Kendal Church it now hangs up, a record of our glory."
The colours, which fluttered in Hong Kong when the regiment was stationed here after the hostilities are also in urgent need of conservation.
Modern viewpoints have assessments of glory or otherwise which differ from those of the 1840s. But the banner in Kendal church is unique and it would be a tragedy if it were allowed to disintegrate. Lt. Colonel Ralph May, Curator of the Regimental Museum of the Border Regiment and Kings Own Royal Border Regiment, Queen Mary's Tower, The Castle, Carlisle, would be delighted to hear of any offers of help in preservation. Given the uniqueness of the banner and the circumstances of its seizure, is it too much to hope that the money to permit that preservation might be found in Hong Kong?
NOTE
1 The action in which the 55th gained the Imperial banner, and in which Ensign Duell was killed is described also in The Border Magazine, September 1955, pp. 178-179, and in the Historical Account of the 34th and 55th Regiments (publ, in the 1870s) pp. 78-79 (information by courtesy of The Curator, The Regimental Museum of the Border Regiment and the Kings Own Border Regiment).
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