Alexander Wright

Few soldiers at Sevastopol were recognised for gallantry across so many separate actions as Private Alexander Wright. Born at Ballymena, County Antrim, in 1826, Wright served as No. 2239 in the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment of Foot, part of the 2nd Brigade of the Light Division during the Crimean War. His service took him through the Battle of the Alma, the Battle of Inkerman and the long siege of Sevastopol. His surviving named Crimea Medal confirms his entitlement to the clasps Alma, Inkermann and Sebastopol. VCGC The siege developed into months of exhausting trench warfare under artillery and rifle fire. On the night of 22 March 1855, Russian forces under General Stepan Khrulev launched a major sortie involving more than 5,000 men. While the principal attack fell against the French positions on Victoria Ridge, Russian troops also struck the British Right Attack on Woronzov Ridge, where the 77th Regiment was among the defenders. Wright distinguished himself in helping repel the assault, the first of several actions for which his conduct was formally recognised. VCGC His most celebrated action came on the night of 19 April 1855. A force including men of the 77th and 90th Regiments, under Colonel Thomas Graham Egerton, attacked Russian rifle pits in front of Sevastopol. The positions were captured after fierce fighting, although Egerton was killed during the action, and the captured works subsequently became associated with his name as Egerton's Pit. Contemporary service-journal evidence confirms the participation of the 77th in the assault. The National Army Museum also records the tradition that Wright had served as Egerton's soldier servant, although it describes the identification cautiously rather than as an absolute certainty. Victorian Web Wright was severely wounded during the struggle for the rifle pits. Despite the intensity of the Russian fire, he was particularly noted for the encouragement he gave the men while they held the captured position. Contemporary medal literature later recorded him as having distinguished himself on numerous occasions, especially during the attack of 19 April. Project Gutenberg His gallantry did not end there. On 30 August 1855 Wright was again highly distinguished and was wounded for a second time. His Victoria Cross was therefore awarded not for one isolated exploit, but for sustained bravery during the Crimean campaign. The official citation recognised his conduct on 22 March, 19 April and 30 August and described his bravery as extending through the whole war. VCGC Queen Victoria instituted the Victoria Cross by Royal Warrant on 29 January 1856, making the new decoration retrospective to the Crimean War. Wright's award was announced in the London Gazette on 24 February 1857. National Archives "For conspicuous bravery through the whole Crimean War. Highly distinguished on the night of the 22nd March, 1855, in repelling a sortie. Highly distinguished at the taking of the Russian Rifle Pits, on the night of the 19th April,1855; remarked for the great encouragement he gave the men while holding the pits under a terrible fire. He was wounded. Highly distinguished on the 30th August, 1855, (wounded)."

Wright did not attend the first great Victoria Cross investiture at Hyde Park in London on 26 June 1857 because the 77th Regiment had been posted to New South Wales. Instructions were issued for Victoria Crosses intended for recipients overseas to be presented by the appropriate commanders. Wright and Sergeant John Park, the two Victoria Cross recipients of the 77th, were subsequently presented with their Crosses by the General Officer Commanding in New South Wales at Sydney in March 1858, shortly before the regiment departed for India. Victoria Cross Wright's recognised Crimean honours extended beyond the Victoria Cross. He received the Crimea Medal 1854–56 with the clasps Alma, Inkermann and Sebastopol. He was also among the British soldiers recognised with the French Médaille militaire, one of 500 sent by Emperor Napoleon III for distribution among members of the British Army who had distinguished themselves during the war. His foreign campaign entitlement also included the Turkish Crimea Medal, Sardinian issue, an example awarded to Wright being recorded in the National Army Museum collection. Spink The 77th Regiment left Australia for India in 1858 and arrived during the closing stages of the Indian Rebellion. Wright's time there was brief. He died at Calcutta on 28 July 1858, aged approximately thirty-two. The precise circumstances of his death have not been established securely in the stronger records located during this review, and his burial place remains uncertain. Later secondary accounts have described him as killed in action and his body as unrecovered, but without a regimental casualty or burial record confirming those details, they should not be presented as established fact.