Skip to main content

Henry Maidment – Forgotten War Hero


(Illustration: A Peninsular War Veteran with his medal.)

Henry Maidment was an agricultural labourer who lived in the village of Pimperne.  In 1866, Henry was one of the few surviving British Army veterans who had fought Napoleon Bonaparte’s French Army in the Spanish Peninsular War. 

At 83, he could not work and had hit hard times. He was surviving on a parish handout of just two shillings and sixpence (12.5p) per week and a single loaf of bread. The octogenarian pauper had, in fact, a distinguished military record but had left the army without a military pension.                                                                    

Henry Maidment fought in the Battles of Talavera, Salamanca, Vittoria, Pyrenees, Nivelle and Toulouse. For this, he was entitled to a Military General Service Medal with clasps. Each of his major battles was represented by a clasp on the ribbon. Such a medal was valued in 2006 to be worth £3,700. In August 1815, his battalion had even accompanied Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on the island of St Helena. 

In March 1866, a letter about Henry Maidment appeared in the columns of the London Times newspaper. Signed by 2ndLieutenant of Dorset, George Mansel he described Henry as a fine old soldier now suffering hard times. He invited the assistance of the public towards maintaining this old Peninsular War veteran, whom he said had no other maintenance than a tiny parish payout. 

On Friday 6 April 1866 a more acidic but unsigned letter about Henry Maidment appeared in the Western Gazette.

‘I read in the Times of 28th, a letter signed by a gentleman of property and position, as I am told, in Pimperne – Colonel Mansel. If this be so, more shame, I think for the Colonel, Lord Portman, and other rich proprietors in the parish and neighbourhood, who must surely might afford, among them, to keep this poor old soldier in comfort, without invoking the powerful aid of your columns to assist them.’

Henry Maidment died on the 22nd March 1868 in Pimperne by which time he had been granted a pension from the Crown. He lived in an era when an agricultural labourer rarely left his home village. However, as a soldier he experienced Ireland, Portugal, Spain and France and would have visited cities such as Cork, Porto, Toulouse and Bordeaux. Quite different places compared to the village of Pimperne!  Undoubtedly though, the finest achievement of Henry Maidment was to survive the six major bloody battles of the Spanish Peninsular War. It was a period also, when armies lost more soldiers from disease than in battle. One can but hope that the appeal made on his behalf deservingly led to the old Dorset infantryman spending his last few years in a little more comfort.

(Source: British Newspaper Archive.)

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Panda Pops

Panda  Blue Rasperry Ade, Strawberry Jelly & Ice Cream and Casper Ghostly Limeade were all unique soft drink flavours produced by the Panda Pops brand owned by Badger Beers. Panda Pops were often sold in small bottles of fizzy drink that were as sweet and sticky as it was as possible for them to be. Other popular Panda Pop flavours were Cherry Ade and Bright Green Cola. Even more singular blends could be concocted by mixing two or more flavours in a Panda Pops mixing bowl. Panda Cola achieved a sort of cult status and there is even a song, ‘ Warm Panda Cola’ . While among Panda aficionados there was even the spoof blend of Princess Diana Memorial flavour! The Blandford drink competed remarkably well against American giants Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola. Panda Pops date back to the 1960s when the Blandford brewer dropped the name of Sunparlor for its soft drink brands. Sunparlor had also been the name of a winning race horse owned by a member of the Woodhouse family. Cream soda was...
3 comments
Read more

Greyhound Inn

In the 1700s, the Greyhound Inn was one of the three great coaching inns of Blandford and was both stylish and substantial. The other two great inns were the Crown and the Red Lion. In fact, the Greyhound dates back to the early 1600s. This inn was a regular stopping point for horse drawn coaches travelling between London and the West of England. The Greyhound was destroyed in the 1731 Great Fire of Blandford. It was then rebuilt with an impressive Market Place facing frontage together with sizeable back buildings which included stables, a tap room, workshops and a brewery. The front part covered 3,150 sq ft and the back buildings a further 3,100 sq ft. In 1779, the Inn was advertising it had an excellent and much used billiard table. On Bonfire Night in 1805, the Greyhound Inn was one of the many stopping points to change his horses for Lieutenant John Richards Lapenotiere of the Royal Navy. He was taking the news of victory at the Battle of Trafalgar and of Horatio Nelson’s death to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

History Slice with an Aussie Flavour.

  From Dorset Gallows to Van Diemen’s Land is the unlikely but true story of political corruption, hangings and transportation in the small market town of Blandford in Southern England.  It is available as a paperback from  Amazon in the United Kingdom, Australia and the USA. The book uncovers the extraordinary tale of two ordinary men, George Long a shoemaker and Richard Bleathman a butcher. Driven by belief and dissatisfaction they are swept along by events. Sentenced to be hanged in Dorchester Gaol for their protests against political corruption they are instead, following clemency appeals,  transported to Van Diemen’s Land -  on the other side of the world. ‘A fascinatingly  good read.  This book entirely complements the story of the Tolpuddle Martyrs - also transported to Australia.’ (Richard Holledge, newspaper editor, freelance journalist - London. As read in the Independent, New York Times & Financial Times. Author of   Voices of the M...
Post a Comment
Read more