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Auction: 18003 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 319

(x) An extremely rare British East Africa 'Indian Contingent' group of three awarded to Sepoy Bahawal Bakhsh, 33rd Native Infantry

India General Service 1854-95, 1 clasp, Waziristan 1894-5 (907 Sepoy Bahawal Bakhsh, 33d Bl. Infy.); East and West Africa 1887-1900, no clasp, for 'Mwele 1894-95' (907 Sepoy Bahawal Bakhsh, 33d. Punjab Infy.); East and Central Africa 1897-99, 2 clasps, Lubwa's, Uganda 1897-98 (29 Sepoy Bahawal Bakhsh, Ind. Cont.), second clasp on the last attached by unofficial rivets, contact wear and worn overall, good fine (3)

Bahawal Bakhsh was one of 299 Indian officers and men to be awarded the East and West Africa Medal for 'Mwele 1895-6', and one of 294 entitled to the East and Central Africa Medal with the clasps for 'Lubwa's' and 'Uganda 1897-98'. His award for 'Mwele 1894-5' is verified on an Admiralty roll held in India Office records (L/MIL/7/2189, refers) and his East and Central Africa award at T.N.A. (WO 100/90, refers). A specific request was made for the latter awards to be inscribed to the 'Indian Contingent', owing to the Indian troops great pride in having served in such a distinguished force.

It is worth noting that such campaign pairs to the Contingent rarely survive as such; in fact the addition of the recipient's India General Service Medal for the Waziristan operations of 1894-95 makes this an extremely rare set of awards.


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Sold for
£2,100