Matthew Rosamund (also spelled Rosamond) VC (12 July 1823 – 14 July 1866) was an English recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

forces. The christening record for Matthew Rosamond in 1823 shows his parents as George Rosamond and his wife Elizabeth. Matthew Rosamond married Bridget Mahoney in Agra, West Bengal on 21 July 1851. The English 1861 census for Eaton Socon in Bedfordshire, shows Matthew Rosamond home from India five years before his death. Just prior to his death, he married Alice Wollen in 1865 in Serampore, Bengal, India. Rosamund was born in the village of St. Neots,

Huntingdonshire Huntingdonshire (; abbreviated Hunts) is a local government district in Cambridgeshire, England, which was historically a county in its own right. It borders Peterborough to the north, Fenland to the north-east, East Cambridgeshire to the e ...

(some records say Swallow Cliffe, Wiltshire; others say Seaton Town, Bedfordshire), the son and grandson of soldiers.

Victoria Cross

Rosamund was 33 years old, and a

sergeant-major Sergeant major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's infantry, and ranked about third in th ...

in the 37th

Bengal Native Infantry The regiments of Bengal Native Infantry, alongside the regiments of Bengal European Infantry, were the regular infantry components of the East India Company's Bengal Army from the raising of the first Native battalion in 1757 to the passing in ...

Bengal Army The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Gover ...

during the

Indian Mutiny The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the form ...

when the following deed on 4 June 1857 at

Benares Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges, Ganges river in North India, northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hinduism, Hindu world.* * * * The city ...

led to the award of the Victoria Cross for Rosamund, Sergeant-Major Peter Gill and Private John Kirk: Rosamund later achieved the rank of

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

but died on board ship and was buried in the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

at the age of 43. His VC medal was sold at auction in 1903 and has not been located since. A blue plaque has been erected in the village of Eaton Socon in Bedfordshire with the correct spelling of his surname which reads "Matthew Rosamond VC – On 4th June 1857 Matthew Rosamond, a relative of the Rosamond bakers on this site, won the Victoria Cross during the Indian Mutiny. He died on the Red Sea on 14th July 1866 and was buried at sea. This building was built by Budd's Bakers as a new bakehouse around 1930, replacing a much older timber framed property."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosamund, Matthew British recipients of the Victoria Cross British Indian Army officers British East India Company Army soldiers 1823 births 1866 deaths Indian Rebellion of 1857 recipients of the Victoria Cross People from St Neots Burials at sea Military personnel from Cambridgeshire