Life in the mid-nineteenth century British Army was harsh. Soldiers were mainly recruited
from the rural working class and often enlisted under dubious circumstances.
Their barracks were squalid and overcrowded. Daily rations consisted of a pound of bread and
coffee for breakfast and three quarters of a pound of boiled meat for lunch. They earned a basic
wage of a shilling a day but little was left after money was deducted for food, laundry,
haircuts and medical treatment.
With that in mind, a free passage to a new land; six months employment and a grant of land
would have been an attractive choice for many service pensioners.
Bound for Western Australia
In 1850, as a part of its emigration policy, the Home Government in England began to send out
parties of military pensioners to Australia and by 1864 when the policy ended, the influx of
pensioners and their families had resulted in an increase in the Western Australian population
of over 2000 people.
As with Tasmania, retired soldiers were recruited and encouraged to accompany convicts on
their voyages to Western Australia and in all over 1100 Western Australian guards have been
identified. Where possible, they have been listed with their families on the various pages
devoted to convict voyages to Western Australia.
Like regular soldiers, some pensioners travelled to Western Australia on other
ships as well. Although many of them have been identified, their arrival during
and after the transportation years has not been documented in passenger lists
linked to these pages as yet.
The pensioners were not retained as permanent convict guards after the voyages and in many
cases their families travelled with them. Generally they sought a work among the free settlers
in the colony, but were always on hand to help in case of an outbreak among the prisoners.
To encourage them to stay in the colony, they were offered an allotment of ten acres of land
which they could select and lease for seven years and then own freehold. As an extra incentive,
a gratuity of £10 was given to each of them and they were promised the use of convict labour to
help clear the land.
Nearly all of the pensioners accepted the above offer and many pensioner blocks were still
owned by their descendants at the beginning of the first World War.
When the Governor of Western Australia wrote to England seeking re-inforcements for his
garrison of regular soldiers he found that owing to political unrest in Europe all he was
offered was a suggestion to make use of the military pensioners in the colony and enrol them as
an auxiliary force to the existing regular soldiers.
Accordingly, Captain John Bruce, who had arrived in the colony with the second detachment aboard
the Hashemy, was appointed Staff Officer to the newly established Enrolled Pensioner Force and at
one time the unit numbered over 600 men. They assisted the line companies in the various garrison
duties and finally assumed all responsibilities when the last of the Queen's troops left Fremantle
for Hobart on March 8, 1863.
In August 1857, Captain Bruce laid down the terms under which the Governor was prepared to
allocate cottages and allotments to Enrolled Pensioners.
It is strongly advised that time be taken to read the transcript of the document.
At one time around 300 rank and file pensioners were continuously employed and in 1863,
building of the large pensioner's barracks was begun at the head of St George's Terrace in
Perth. When they were completed the barracks contained 120 rooms, a hospital, magazine, and
The Enrolled Pensioner Guard uniform consisted of dark greyish-brown trousers with a scarlet
stripe down the leg; knee length dark blue surcoats with facings of red & yellow; dandified
epaulettes and a tall, regulation hat.
After Captain Bruce was appointed Commandant in Western Australia, Captain C. Finnerty took
over as commander of the pensioner force and held that position until 1872 when the then
Commandant, Colonel E.D. Harvest, assumed direct control of the pensioners.
In November 1880 the Enrolled Pensioner Force was abolished and a new unit called the
Enrolled Guard was formed from among its members. It was placed under the command of Captain
M.S. Smith, the Superintendent of Police and the final parade of the Enrolled Guard was held on
March 31, 1887.
Warders Employed by the Convict Establishment of Western Australia
When the passenger lists of the various convict voyages are studied it will become obvious
that apart from the prisoners and ship's crew, quite a number of other passengers travelled
with them. Regular soldiers, pensioners and their families have already been discussed above
but another important group also needs consideration.
Prison warders were employed to guard the convicts and apart from staying with them below
decks, they were also employed to oversee them after they arrived in Australia. They were
employed by the Convict Establishment of Western AustraliaIn and in many cases travelled with
their families. A document outlining their
pay and working conditions while on board the convict ships and after they arrived in
Western Australia is essential reading.
War Office Records
Personnel from the ranks who were granted a service pension would have had a record of
service in the British War Office Records and in many cases the records would have been filed
under the last unit they served in. Personnel records can be viewed at the London Public Records
Office at Kew, or by viewing a microfilm in one of the LDS Family History Centres around the
Soldiers documents covering the period of 1760-1872 are kept in the War Office file 'Record
Class WO 97'. Apart from the service documents of British soldiers, the records usually provide
information about their age, birthplace and trade or occupation on enlistment, their record of
service, any decorations, the reason for discharge and pension details.
An index to the 1246 microfilms in the series has been arranged by (discharge) regiment
number order and then sorted alphabetically. It is available
at the LDS website. The same index can also be accessed on CD-Rom and microfiche at LDS Family
History Centres and is located under the headings of 'England-Military Records-Army'
[ fiche No.0009, p.170 ].
British Infantry Campaign Medals
This following list excludes Cavalry, Royal Engineers and Army Service Corps, and each medal
may omit mention of regiments if only a few were awarded.
The Naval General Service Medal 1793-1840
Made available in 1849 to all men present in any of 231 fields of action between 1793 and
December 1814. Only 20,000 were actually issued due to death, illiteracy and general
disinterest of the men.
The Military General Service Medal 1793-1814
Made available in 1847 with similar criteria to the Naval General Service Medal. Only 25,000
were issued. Actions covered included the Peninsular War, Egypt and USA.
The Waterloo Medal 1815
Issued to all soldiers present and next of kin if killed in action.
Army of India Medal 1799-1826
Available in 1851 for service between 1799 and 1826.
Ghuznee Medal 1839
Awarded to 8,000 men for the capture of the Fortress of Ghuznee. Regiments present were the 2nd,
13th and 17th Foot.
Candahar, Ghuznee and Cabul Medals 1841-2
Awarded to 4,000 men from the 9th, 13th, 31st, 40th and 41st Foot.
Jellalabad Medal 1841-2
Awarded to the 13th Foot.
China War Medal 1840-1842
Awarded to army and navy personnel from the 18th, 26th, 49th, 55th and 98th Foot.
Scinde Campaign Medal 1843
Awarded for action at Meanee and Hyderabad against the Amirs. (22nd Foot)
Gwalior Campaign Stars 1843
Awarded for action at Maharajpoor and Punniar to the 3rd, 39th, 40th and 50th Foot.
Sutlej Campaign Medal 1845-6
Awarded for action at Moodkee, Ferozeshuhur, Aliwal and Sobraon to the 9th, 10th, 29th, 31st,
50th, 53rd, 62nd and 80th Foot.
Punjab Campaign Medal 1848-9
Awarded for action at Mooltan, Chilianwala and Goojerat to the 10th, 24th, 29th, 32nd, 53rd,
60th, 61st, 98th, and 103rd Foot.
South Africa Medal 1834-1853
Over 10,000 medals were issued for action in the Kaffir Wars to thirteen different regiments.
India General Service Medal 1854-1895
Awarded to numerous units involved in actions on the sub-continent.
Baltic Medal 1854-1855
Awarded to Royal Navy personnel and a few Royal Engineers or Sappers & Miners.
Crimean War Medal 1854-1856
Awarded for action at Alma, Balaklava, Inkermann, Sebastopol and Azoff and received by many army
and navy personnel.
India Mutiny Medal 1857-1858
Awarded for action at Delhi, Lucknow and Central India and received by many army
and navy personnel.
Second China War Medal 1856-1863
Issued to 1/2nd, 1/3rd, 2/31st, 44th, 59th, 2/60th, 67th, 99th Foot as well as to members of the
Royal Navy and Marines.