Dalkeith soldier's Waterloo medal sold at auction

Edinburgh Reporter

3 days ago

A medal awarded to the oldest Scot who took part in the cavalry charge that turned around the Battle of Waterloo, has fetched £3,400 at auction.
Private Thomas Anderson, from Dalkeith, in Midlothian, was 46 years-old when he and the Royal North British Dragoons — The Scots Greys — took part in the Charge of the Union Brigade on 18 June 1815.
Their heroic actions inflicted heavy losses on Napoleon's French infantry and helped turn the tide of the battle in Britain's favour.
Anderson's Waterloo Medal was among the highlights of Noonans' sale of Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria in London.
The medal, which had been in the US, was bought by a private collector.
Described as 'a very good man and a faithful soldier', Anderson is thought to have been the oldest in the regiment known for their heavy grey horses who took part in the charge.
Christopher Mellor-Hill, Head of Client Liaison at Noonans, said after the sale: 'Anderson was part of the Union Brigade, who in their famous heavy cavalry charge at Waterloo, destroyed five French infantry brigades and inflicted some 5000 casualties.
'At the age of 46 years, he was probably the oldest man in the regiment and was subsequently awarded the Waterloo Medal.'
Anderson was a candlemaker in Dalkeith before he enlisted into the Scots Greys at the age of 25 in April 1793.
He served in Captain Thomas Fenton's Troop at Waterloo in 1815 and was discharged the following year due to chronic rheumatism and asthma contracted in his service.
He returned to his hometown and resumed his trade as a candlemaker. He died in 1824, aged 56, and is buried in Dalkeith Old Churchyard.
At Waterloo, 416 Scots Greys famously charged into the advancing French infantry with the famous battle cry 'Scotland Forever!'.
During the charge, Sergeant Charles 'Ensign' Ewart from Kilmarnock heroically captured a French eagle battle standard, later incorporated into the regiment's official badge.
Many of the Scots Greys were cut down in volleys of French musket fire, leaving 104 men dead and 97 wounded, while 228 horses out of 416 were also killed.
Despite such heavy losses, their actions helped turn the tide of the battle. The Scots Greys would go on to pursue the defeated French Army until Napoleon's surrender and final abdication.
Private Thomas Anderson Waterloo Medal Credit Saltire News
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