Born at Silchester, Hampshire, c.1821.
Enlisted at Reading on the 22nd of October 1840.
Age: 18 years 11 months.
Height: 5' 7".
Trade: Sawyer.
Features: Dark complexion. Grey eyes. Brown hair.
George Dearlove is shown on the death certificate of Corporal Robert Hook, 13th Light Dragoons (brother of 1264 Private Alfred Hook of the 13th Light Dragoons), having been present at his death from "Haemophilysis" [sic?] in Hounslow Barracks in August 1852. He was possibly acting as a Medical Orderly at this time.
Sent to Scutari on the 16th of September and rejoined the regiment on the 3rd of October 1854.
Discharged from Hounslow on the 2nd of November 1864 as "Free, "to pension after 24 years' service."
He sent money from the Crimea to his sister, C. Dearlove, of No. 20 Andover Place, Camberwell, London.
Served 24 years 12 days. In Turkey and the Crimea, 2 years.
Conduct and character: "very good". In possession of four Good Conduct badges.
Never entered in the Regimental Defaulters' book. Never tried by Court-martial.
To live, c/o. Mrs. Dearlove [whether wife or mother is not shown], of No. 10, Cheltenham Buildings, Horn Lane, Reading.
Documents confirm the award of the Crimean medal with four clasps, the French War Medal and the Long Service & Good Conduct Medal.
Entitled to the Crimean medal with clasps for Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman, Sebastopol and the Turkish medal.
Awarded the French War Medal. The citation for this stated:
"Served during the Eastern campaign, including the affairs of the Bouljanak and Mackenzie's Farm, battles of the Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman, Siege and fall of Sebastopol and the Expedition to Eupatoria."
According to 1228 Harry Powell in his "Recollections":
"the Commanding Officer had made a sort of lottery of the decorations given to the Regiment by the French; one of the trumpeters, by name R. Davis [Richard DAVIS — 1108, 13th Light Dragoons], was lucky enough to win one but one or two of the other men who had the decoration were not actually even under arms on that day, so could not have taken part in the Charge."
Awarded the Long Service & Good Conduct medal on the 21st of August 1862, with a gratuity of £5.
George Dearlove's death certificate shows that he died from "Phthisis, Pulmonalis", aged 47 years, at 47, Bedford Street, in the parish of St. Mary's, Reading, on the 29th of December 1870. Isabella Matilda Smith, of the same address, was present at his death. (See copy of the death certificate in the 13th Light Dragoons "Certificates" file.)
[The archive also contains a note that George Dearlove "Died in the South London Pension District on the 29th of December 1869." The death certificate proves that this was not so.]