Canada General Service Medal 1866 - 1870 : Private W Saunders, 47th Foot

Canada General Service Medal 1866 - 1870 with the bar 'FENIAN RAID 1866'. The recipient's number, rank, name and regiment are impressed around the edge. Obverse: A veiled bust of Queen Victoria with the legend 'VICTORIA REGINA ET IMPERATRIX'. Reverse: The Canadian flag surrounded by a maple leaf wreath with the word 'CANADA' above. The medal is fitted with a straight bar swivel suspender with a single rectangular campaign bar. A piece of 32 mm ribbon of three equal stripes of red, white and red is attached to the suspender.

Awarded to Private W Saunders of the 47th (British) Infantry Regiment who was stationed in Canada and was part of the force to repel the Fenian invasion in June 1866 back to the United States. The Canada General Service Medal was not authorised by the British Government until 1899 and the time allowed for applications for the award was extended until 1928. Although the medals were struck in Britain they were issued by the newly independent Canadian Government. The 47th Foot were only entitled to the single bar 'Fenian Raid 1866' and claimed 119 medals. There were two other bars issued with this medal: 'Fenian Raid 1870' and 'Red River 1870'. This medal is part of a collection assembled by the late Hon. Sir Thomas Hughes, Member of the Legislative Council of New South Wales. It was presented to the Memorial in memory of his son, Captain Roger Forrest Hughes, Australian Army Medical Corps, who died of wounds in France on 11 December 1916, and of his grandson, Flying Officer Peter Roger Forrest Hughes, 12 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, who was killed on active service while flying in the Northern Territory on 3 October 1942.