Wakefield Voices from the Crimea

New book of soldier's letters

Letters sent home from Wakefield Soldiers during the Crimean War

A collection of letters sent home from Wakefield men to their friends and families from the Siege of Sebastopol, from both the Army and Navy.

Oddly this collection includes no letters from Yorkshire Regiments, such as the 19th (Green Howards) or 33rd (Duke of Wellington's). There are also only two sets of correspondance from an Officer, which contradicts the assumed levels of literacy of the Other Ranks, that they did not or could not write home and also challenges the assumption that it was largely the officers who wrote home. This collection of letters from Wakefield and a cursory study of letters published in the Leeds Mercury and the Huddersfield Chronicle suggests that the ORs (from Private to Colour Sergeant) were frequently writing home to their families, detailing their daily lives and experiences in often graphic detail as well as criticisng their officers and also newspapers such as The Times, often coming to the defence of Lord Raglan (whom The Times portrayed as hauty and out of touch with his men). Uniquely there are letters from a bandsman.

The scope of the letters includes the army in Bulgaria, accounts of the battles of the Alma and Inkerman, the winter 1854-1855 and also the fall of Sebastopol. The letters of the Barnsley-born Sergeant James Wallis cover his arrival in the Crimea, the Alma, Winter 1854-1855, the first attack (18 June 1855), the final assault and mopping up during winter 1855-1856; the letters of 'An anonymous young [Naval] officer' give a fascinating insight into the daily life of a naval officer and how officers of differant services viewed each other.

Below are the details of the men, their units and place of residence in this collection:

Name	Rank	Regiment	Town
John Ainsley	Private	68th Durham Light Infantry	Wakefield
William Baines	Private	30th (East Devonshire)	Wakefield
John Burgoyne	Private	23d (Royal Welch Fusiliers)	Wakefield
Robert Crawford	Private	28th (North Gloucester)	Wakefield
James Evans	?	Rifle Brigade	Barnsley
Samuel Evans	Private	Scots Fusilier Guards(1st Battn)	Wakefield
George Firth	Private	4th (Kings Own)
Henry Firth	?	?	Dewsbury
James Greenwood	Bandsman	34th (Cumberland)	Barnsley
Hincliffe	Sergeant	2nd Battn. Rifle Brigade	Wakefield
William Hamlet Floyd	Private	23rd (Royal Welch Fusiliers)	Wakefield
George Haigh	Bombardier	Royal Artillery	Wakefield
William Leache	Private	Royal Sappers and Miners	Barnsley
David Maguire	?	?	Barnsley
John Murray	Private	23rd (Royal Welch Fusiliers)	Wakefield
Edwin Peat	Gunner	Royal Artillery	Barnsley
William Pegman	Private	54th (West Norfolk)	Barnsley
Selby	Sergeant	50th (Kent)	Barnsley
William Shelley	Corporal	34th (Cumberland), Light Company	Wakefield
John Sidebottom	Private	Royal Marines	Wakefield
"BS"	Private	39th (Dorsetshire)	Wakefield
John Swift	Corporal	34th (Cumberland)	Barnsley
James Wallis	Sergeant	2nd Battn. Rifle Brigade	Barnsley
Samuel Weale	Corporal	30th (Cambridgeshire)	Wakefield
Anon	Officer	21st (Royal North British Fusiliers)	Wakefield

There appears to be strong recruiting links between Wakefield and the Royal Welch Fusiliers and the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment and Barnsley.

I hope to follow up this volume with "White Roses Before Sebastopol: letters fromWest Yorkshire men in the Crimean War" based on letters in the Leeds Mercury, Huddersfield Chronicle, Sheffiled Independent and the York Herald.