Medals from one of the last survivors of the Rorke’s Drift to be sold at Noonan’s April 19th Sale

Noonans - Alfred Saxty was one of the last few survivors of the renowned Battle of Rorke’s Drift, synonymous with the iconic film Zulu. His campaign pair will be offered at Noonans in a sale of Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria on Wednesday, April 19, 2023. They are being sold by a collector.

As Christopher Mellor-Hill, Head of Client Liaison at Noonans commented:

Alfred Saxty was born at Buckland Dinham, near Frome, Somerset, and enlisted for 25 Brigadeat Newport, Monmouthshire, on 11 September 1876, aged 19, being posted to the 2nd Battalion, 24th Foot at Brecon two days later. He served in South Africa from 1 February 1878 to 12 January 1880.

After 7 months service in the Mediterranean, the regiment moved to India in August 1880 and served in Burma from May 1886 to January 1887, before returning to India again. Saxty was confined on 6 May 1881, charged with being drunk on picquet, and sentenced by District Court Martial to be reduced to Private and to 56 days imprisonment with hard labour and stoppage of pay, in addition being fined £1 and forfeited Good Conduct Pay. He steadily regained his steps in rank to become Sergeant again in December 1885. After his service in the Burma campaign, Saxty re-engaged for the 1st Battalion, Bedfordshire Regiment at Madras on 4 October 1887, ‘for such term as shall complete 21 years’ service.’ He transferred to the 2nd Battalion of that regiment on New Year’s Day 1888, and then transferred to the 2nd Battalion, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers on 14 July 1891. Reduced to Corporal in October 1894, he was discharged at his own request at Thayetmyo, Burma, on 28 February 1895.

He was admitted to In-Pension at Chelsea Hospital on 12 June 1930 but reverted to Out- Pension in October 1933 to live with his sister in Newport, Monmouthshire. He died three years later, at the age of 77 years in 1936, and was buried with military honours at St Wollos Cemetery, Newport, on 15 July. 

4 & 5 APRIL COINS & HISTORICAL MEDALS
19 APRIL ORDERS, DECORATIONS, MEDALS, AND MILITARIA
26 APRIL BRITISH 17TH CENTURY TRADE TOKENS
10 MAY THE THELEN COLLECTION OF BRITISH MILLED COINS

NOONANS — In 1991, its first year of trading, the company held three medal auctions and sold 1,200 lots for a total hammer price of £553,000, however 30 years later, Noonans is established as the premier medal auctioneer worldwide. Two years later, in 1993, it opened a coin department which also auctions commemorative medals and tokens. In 2015 Noonans (then Dix Noonan Webb) added jewellery to its sales calendar as well as setting up a stand alone banknotes department and expanding into premises next door. In 2022, they achieved a total hammer price of £16,437,725 and the total number of lots sold across all departments was 24,044. To date the company has sold in excess of 400,000 lots totalling over £235 million.

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MAYFAIR LONDON W1J 8BQ 
WWW.NOONANS.CO.UK

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