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Auction: 18001 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 269

A rare Baltic and New Zealand pair awarded to Chief Carpenter's Mate J. Rouse, Royal Navy

Baltic 1854-55, unnamed as issued; New Zealand 1845-66, reverse dated 1863-1865 (J. Rouse, Cf. Carps. Mate, H.M.S. Eclipse), the last with named lid of card box of issue, the first with tightened suspension claw, good very fine (2)

Just 60 New Zealand Medals bearing these reverse dates were issued to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, the whole to H.M.S. Eclipse.

H.M.S. Eclipse was a barque-rigged wooden screw sloop of 750 tons, armed with a 110-pounder Armstrong gun and two 68-pounder pivot guns, as well as two 32-pounders. Under Commander Richard Mayne, R.N., she was the first naval ship to enter the Waikato Heads.

Having participated in the bombardment of Maori positions at the mouth of the Katikara River on 4 June 1863, Commander Mayne led a force of 200 Bluejackets at the capture of Merrimi in October of the same year. Later still - in November - Mayne commanded a force of 400 Bluejackets in the invasion of Waikato but he was seriously wounded in that action at Rangiriri and invalided home.

Mayne was replaced by Commander Edmund Fremantle, R.N., following which Eclipse participated in the bombardment of enemy positions on 21 September 1865, in addition to sailing to Opotiki in the Bay of Plenty to investigate reports of the Reverend Volkner's murder; see Blue Devils, by Richard Stowers, for further details.

Jordan Rouse was born at Minster, Kent on 22 July 1827 and entered the Royal Navy as a Boy 2nd Class aboard H.M.S. Ocean in April 1845. Appointed Carpenter's Crew in the Howe in early 1848, he was advanced to Carpenter's Mate in April 1853 but was re-rated Able Seaman a month or two later. Re-appointed a Carpenter's Mate on joining the Monarch in March 1854, he witnessed active service in the same ship in the Baltic operations (Medal). Having then been advanced to Chief Carpenter's Mate in the Eclipse in October 1862, he witnessed further active service in New Zealand (Medal). Rouse came ashore in August 1870 and died in Sheppey, Kent in late 1872; sold with copied service record and medal roll verification.

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Sold for
£1,000