CORPORAL REGINALD PHILLIPS – VETERAN OF THE CRIMEAN WAR.

Early on in Black Hearts And Blue Devils we come across Crimean War veteran Reg Phillips who identifies himself as a corporal (former) of the “38th. of Foot” (aka the First Staffordshire Regiment). This was an infantry regiment which had a history going back to 1688 (or 1705 depending on whether you count incarnations following disbandings). As is to be expected of an imperial British regiment it attained battle honours in many theatres, all over the world. One such was the Crimea during the Crimean war. Reg Phillips, coming, as we must assume, from Blackheath in the present West Midlands of England, which formerly fell within the (south) Staffordshire county boundary, would upon enlistment naturally have been assigned to this regiment. He has tales to tell about the war in Crimea, to the discomfiture of constable Josh Lively, who has been bored by the telling many times before…

The war itself was between the Russians on the one hand and an alliance principally consisting of France, Great Britain and the Ottoman Empire on the other (the Russians lost). Starting, ostensibly, as a dispute between Tsar Nicholas I and Napoléon III about the rights and treatment of minority Christians in the Ottomans’ Palestine territories, it perhaps had more to do with Russian territorial ambitions in respect of Turkish possessions, the Ottomans not being the power they once were. Britain and France wanted to prevent Russian expansion and prop up Turkey to maintain the power balance in that part of the world. To cut to Hecuba, Turks and Russians found an excuse to go to war. It was in fact the Turks that declared first, having obtained guarantees of support from Britain and France. The British contribution to the war began in January 1854 when French and British ships entered the Black Sea. It was decided to take the Russians major naval base at Sevastopol, on the Crimean peninsula. The story of the allies getting to Sevastopol and laying siege is the story of the famous battles you hear of in school history lessons: Alma, Balaclava (renowned for the 93rd. Highland regiment’s ‘thin red line’ which faced off Russian cavalry in overwhelming odds; also the bungled but brave ‘charge of the light brigade’ immortalised by Alfred Lord Tennyson) and Inkerman. In Black Hearts And Blue Devils, Reg Phillips proudly shows off his campaign medal (pictures of which in a previous post/blog) which has two bars as he was at Inkerman and the siege of Sevastopol. In Reg’s words, a wretched business: “Yes. Wretched business, trench warfare. You took the words right out of my mouth.”

In 1881, 6 or 7 years before the events in ‘Black Hearts’ to which I refer, the 38th. was amalgamated with the 80th. to become the first battalion, South Staffs regiment – but obviously old Reg would remember the former title. I am attaching an image from military archives of what I believe was described as the “remnants” of the 38th. taken in theatre. Also, a twentieth century Reginald Phillips, my uncle Reg who was killed in WW II.

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