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Service Profile
- Branch
- Royal Navy
- Rank
- Petty Officer First Class
- Service Era
- Crimean War, Battle of Inkerman, Siege of Sevastopol, Indian Rebellion, Siege of Lucknow
- Medals Recorded
- 4
William Nelson Hall
Petty Officer First Class, Royal Navy
Support & adopt this hero ↓Crimean WarBattle of InkermanSiege of SevastopolIndian RebellionSiege of Lucknow
Awards & Decorations
- Crimea Medal
- Inkermann
- Sebastopol
- Turkish Crimea Medal
- Indian Mutiny Medal
- Relief of Lucknow
- Lucknow
- Victoria Cross Naval pre-1918
Ribbon Rack
Biography
A Black Royal Navy gunner won the Victoria Cross at Lucknow.
William Nelson Hall was born in Nova Scotia in 1827 to Jacob and Lucinda Hall. After years at sea, he joined the Royal Navy in 1852. Aboard HMS Rodney, he served in the Crimean War, including the fighting at Inkerman and the siege of Sevastopol.
During the Indian Rebellion, Hall joined Captain William Peel’s Naval Brigade from HMS Shannon. On 16 November 1857, at Shah Najaf during the second relief of Lucknow, he and Lieutenant Thomas James Young continued serving a 24-pounder gun after enemy fire had depleted its crew. Their action under fire earned each man the Victoria Cross. Hall received his decoration aboard HMS Donegal on 28 October 1859.
Hall continued in the Royal Navy, rising to first-class petty officer and serving as quartermaster. He retired in 1876 and returned to Nova Scotia, where he farmed with his sisters. He died on 25 August 1904. His courage and pioneering place among Black Victoria Cross recipients remain central to his legacy.
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