Shropshire Star

Shropshire's Lord Hill's medals go for £7,800

Medals earned by county war hero Lord General Roland Hill have smashed their auction estimate and sold for £7,800.

Published
Hill's medals are brought together on the brooch

The unique bar brooch, commissioned by Lieutenant-General Rowland Hill, was still in its original box and Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons Auctioneers in Derbyshire, where it went under the hammer, described it as one of the richest historical finds he has ever come across.

Mr Hanson was thrilled at the price the medals had realised and said his firm was proud to have auctioned the historic collection.

He said: “I am delighted to see this important historical item honouring a Shropshire war hero and great leader of men sell for well above its estimate of £1,000 to £2,000.

"Lieutenant-General Roland Hill was an extraordinary man, a former Commander-in-Chief of the British Army who served under Wellington. We at Hansons Auctioneers are extremely proud to handle the sale of a medals brooch honouring and recognising his many acts of bravery."

Hill was a Shropshire hero who made his name as the right hand man to the Duke of Wellington in the Peninsular War, and was one of Wellington's trusted generals at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.

A grateful public erected a monument to him on the outskirts of Shrewsbury - Lord Hill's Column.

Thanks to Hill's bravery, he was awarded a clutch of medals - the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath; the Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Guelphic Order (Hanoverian); the Grand Cross of the Order of the Tower and the Sword (Portugal’s highest award); and the Peninsular Cross (awarded to British officers).

All those medals feature on the bespoke badge of honour.

Speaking ahead of the auction Mr Hanson said the brooch was a true one-off.

He said: “This bar brooch is so unique and original, it is an object money cannot normally buy.

“This gold and enamel badge would have been custom-made for him by a jeweller. Small and elegant, it perhaps sums up the character of the man himself.

"He was brilliant on the battlefield and yet humble, a commander renowned for looking after his men. He rarely swore, only uttering an expletive in the most trying of circumstances."

The brooch astonished the experts when it was taken into a saleroom.

The owner asked to remain anonymous, but is understood to be a descendant of the Hill family living in Derbyshire.

General Hill – known as "Daddy Hill" by his troops due to his caring nature - was made Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in 1828, succeeding Wellington.

An unexpected achievement of Hill’s was contributing to the saving of the ancient and historic Westminster Hall from destruction during the great fire at the Houses of Parliament in 1834.

In the confusion Lord Hill, who was unknown in the crowd, saw that the flames were approaching the hall and “pointed out the propriety of making a gap in some buildings, so as to cut off the flames.” This was done “and thus was a great national structure saved from demolition.”

Hill, who had been born at Prees Hall, died in 1842, aged 71.