MILITARY GENERAL SERVICE MEDAL

AN OUTSTANDING AND RARE 1812 WAR OFFICER CASUALTY MILITARY GENERAL SERVICE 1793 MEDAL TO A CAPTAIN OF THE 8TH FOOT, WHO BETWEEN 1812 AND 1815 SERVED AS A.D.C. TO MAJOR-GENERAL BARON DE ROTTENBURG, COMMANDER OF THE MILITARY FORCES IN UPPER CANADA, AMONGST OTHERS, WAS PRESENT AT THE BLOCKADE OF FORT GEORGE DURING 1813 AND WAS WOUNDED IN ACTION AT THE BATTLE OF PLATTSBURG IN SEPTEMBER 1814, WHERE DE ROTTENBURG SERVED IN SECOND IN COMMAND OF THE ARMY

MILITARY GENERAL SERVICE 1793, CLASP, MARTINIQUE ‘T. CROSSE, CAPT. 8TH FOOT’.

Thomas Crosse was appointed Ensign in the 8th Foot on 12 October 1804 and advanced to Lieutenant on 22 August 1805. In November 1805, the First Battalion 8th Foot landed in Cuxhaven on the Elbe, where they would co-operate with Austrian and Russian forces against the French. But with the defeat of the latter at the battle of Austerlitz, the 8th embarked for England in February 1806 and in March, to Ireland. In 1807, the battalion took part in the expedition to Copenhagen and in January 1808, embarked for Halifax, Nova Scotia. In November 1808, they embarked again, this time for the West Indies and were present with the First Battalion during the invasion and successful taking of the island of Martinique, January - February 1809. In April 1809, the Battalion returned to Nova Scotia, Lieutenant Crosse being noted as arriving in Lower Canada from Nova Scotia in 1811. On 25 April 1812, Crosse was appointed A.D.C. to Major-General Francis Baron de Rottenburg. How it was Crosse would be picked for this appointment is unknown but it would mean he would be away from his battalion for much of the war with America, only reuniting with them when the battalion came under de Rottenburg’s command before Fort George, June- December 1813.

AIDE-DE-CAMP TO MAJOR-GENERAL DE ROTTENBURG

As A.D.C. to Major-General Baron de Rottenburg, tracing where Crosse served during the war should be relatively straightforward as its safe to assume he would be close to Rottenburg during most of the time he served as A.D.C. During battles and actions, Crosse’s duties would entail much liaising between Brigade and commanding officers under Rottenburg’s command, often under fire. Commanders also frequently required their A.D.C.’s to be their ‘eyes’ at the front, reporting directly to the General and keeping them up to date with events. Seen as a cushy job at headquarters for much of their time, during battle, it was quite the opposite as an A.D.C.’s duties were often one of the most dangerous on the field. This is reflected by the number of A.D.C.’s that are listed in casualty lists of the time. Indeed, Captain Crosse would himself be wounded at the battle of Plattsburgh…………

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Condition NEF. Sold with much research on CD, including Regimental histories, books on the Niagara campaign etc etc. Scare enough to find a medal to an Officer wounded during the 1812 War but rare to find one for the battle of Plattsburg, an often overlooked but key battle in the war.