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LIVES OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE
The E.J. Boys Archive

Amended 9.5.11

Private Alexander BALLIES — 1407, 13th Light Dragoons

Birth & early life

Born in Ayr, Scotland.

Enlistment

Enlisted at Edinburgh on the 9th of August 1851.

Age: 22.

Height: 5' 9".

Trade: Servant.

Service, discharge & pension

Tried by a District Court-martial on the 6th of February 1855 for "disgraceful conduct, Theft," and given 50 lashes. He was also sentenced to marked with the letter "D" for some reason, but this sentence was remitted.

Tried by a District Court-martial at Brighton on the 26th of July 1856 for "habitual drunkenness" and sentenced to 84 days imprisonment with hard labour. By this, and his previous conviction, he was still "Entitled to service, but has no claim towards G.C. pay or pension."

Served Eupatoria.

From Private to Corporal: 19th of June 1863.

Corporal to Sergeant: 1st of May 1868.

Medals & commemorations

Entitled to the Crimean medal with clasps for Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman, Sebastopol and the Turkish medal.

A supplementary roll (undated) signed by Major Henry Holden shows him as being issued with the Crimean medal (with clasps for Alma, Balaclava and Inkerman) on the 7th of October 1855.

Life after service

Death & burial

Died in Toronto, Canada, on the 2nd of June 1868.

Left no will, but had £3/18/1d in his "credits".

Buried in the Strachan Avenue Cemetery, Fort York, Toronto, Canada, which by 1988 had been levelled and landscaped. (There are photographs of the cemetery as it is now in the 13th Hussar file.)

RM: Alexander Ballies died of "Consumption" (TB).


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