Crimea
In 1855 William Napier left the England with the 1st Battalion, 13th (1st Somersetshire) (Prince Albert's Light Infantry) Regiment of Foot under General Lord Mark Kerr, G.C.B., and arrived at Balaklava, Crimean Peninsula, by sea on 29 June 1855.
William described Sevastopol as follows in 1897:
| “ | The mortality was fearful, but that the losses in battle were not more than one half of those caused by fever, and the hardships of camp life in that rigorous climate. Not long before the outbreak of the war, I saw a regiment of the Grenadier Guards paraded at Gibraltar, 900 strong. Afterwards I saw them paraded in the Crimea, when only 82 of all ranks answered the roll call. Of the 800 odd who were absent, not more than 300 had fallen in battle. | ” |
The French had the honour of sealing the fate of Sevastopol. On 8 September 1855, they captured the Malakoff, the most formidable of its fortresses. The war was now virtually over. A treaty was concluded in March 1856. Following the battle at Sevastopol, Sergeant William Napier was awarded the Crimea Medal with clasp and the Turkish Medal.
He fought in the following battles in the Crimea:
- 16 August 1855, Battle of Tchernaya, Crimea.
- 6 and 7 September 1855, in the trenches at Sevastopol.
- 8 September 1855 -1856, Capture of Redan and the fall of Sevastopol.
- 6 April 1858, Relief of Azimghur.
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