Single Campaign Medals


Casualties among 28th Foot’s Flank Companies were reported by Blakeney: ‘Two-thirds of the men and all the officers lay on the battlefield: one alone of the latter was enabled to resume his legs, for he had no bone broken; he continued through the fight, - ‘twas the system of the old Slashers.’ Out of seven officers, two died and four were officially reported as casualties. Captain Mullens was classified as severely wounded; if Blakeney’s remarks were meant literally, he was a stretcher case, and was admitted to hospital in Cadiz, where he was treated, cared for and then convalesced, despite frequent French bombardments.


Mullens was back with his regiment in Lisbon by the end of July 1811, in good time to participate in 1/28th Foot’s next fight, which took place at the end of October 1811. This was the brilliant little battle of Arroyo dos Molinos, where Sir Rowland Hill, after a series of forced marches in terrible weather, destroyed an entire French Division and a brigade of cavalry. In May 1812 Mullens joined in General Hill’s audacious raid that resulted in the destruction of the French pontoon bridge across the River Tagus at Almaraz. This protected Wellington’s southern flank by preventing Soult’s army from moving north, and thus enabled the British victory at Salamanca and the liberation of Madrid. Mullens fought at the disastrous siege of the castle of Burgos in September-October 1812 and the subsequent retreat to Portugal, where the exhausted allied army went into winter quarters in November.


In December 1812 Mullens left his regiment, probably returning home on sick certificate or six months leave, until the start of the 1813 campaigning season. He re-joined in May 1813 and his promotion to Brevet Major in the army was published on 4 June. After 18 years of military service, he was now officially eligible to command a composite unit of temporarily ‘brigaded’ Flank Companies. His first battle of 1813 was at Maya in the Pyrenees mountains in July 1813, where the 28th was surprised early on Sunday 25 July. Facey recorded in his Diary ‘We all immediately stood to our arms marching as fast as possible to the top of the mountains where the enemy was advancing, and at that time actually engaged with our outposts. We sooner [sic] arrived at the top of the hills than we commenced firing, and the enemy at the same time making a rapid advance up the mountains, and cheering, we repulsed them three times, but they being so superior in number, and we at the same time, lost some men, we were at last obliged to give way.’ A series of successful counter-attacks by the 28th Foot over the following days restored British ascendancy.


Mullens received his regimental promotion to Major in the 28th Foot on 9 September 1813, a much shorter wait after obtaining his brevet than the one for his captaincy ten years earlier. The fighting had created more vacancies, but there is no doubt that, if Mullens had accepted to transfer to another, less prestigious regiment, his career would have progressed far quicker. Slow promotion was the price for doggedly staying with a beloved and much sought-after regiment.


Soon after Mullens was promoted, Wellington invaded France, with a masterly crossing of the Bidassoa river. His next task was to move all of his army out of the Pyrenees mountains and into the plains of France before the full force of winter struck. The 28th Foot were soon encamped in knee-deep snow and suffering losses from exposure and frostbite. In November 1813, Wellington successfully conducted the battle of Nivelle, followed by that of Nive, during which the 28th made an opposed river crossing at the ford of Halsa. Wellington took enough ground for his army to winter comfortably.


Senior Major


There was only a short break in the fighting over the winter of 1813-14, as the allied governments believed that Napoleon would not be able to fight for much longer, and must not be given time to rebuild his armies. On 2 February 1814, Wellington began to break out of his bridge-head in the south-western extremity of France. At the battle of Garris on 15 February 1814, a force under the direct command of Wellington attacked and routed a French Division who were defending a ridge line. Late in the afternoon, the 28th Foot, at the head of Wellington’s troops, approached the French position but simply deployed its skirmishers, as the men were tired from a long march and the colonel expected an order to make camp. Suddenly a galloper arrived, bearing Wellington’s order ‘Take that hill before dark.’ The companies quickly formed up in open column and advanced, fighting their way up the steep slopes to the crest, where they beat off a counterattack; the French fled in disarray towards the bridge over the river Bidouze.


At the battle of Orthes on 27 February 1814, Mullens commanded a brigaded battalion made up of all the Light Companies of Colonel O’Callaghan’s Brigade, those of the 28th, 34th, and 39th Foot, plus a Company of 5th Battalion 60th Rifles. His mission was to seize and hold the ford over the Gave de Pau river at Souars, a mile upstream from Orthes, to enable General Hill’s Second Division to cross, followed by Portuguese and British cavalry. This mission, which was successfully accomplished, was rewarded by the grant of an Army Gold Medal for field officers.


Soult retreated towards Toulouse, and Mullens was involved in the battle at Aire-sur-l’Adour on 2 March. His final battle took place at Toulouse on Easter Sunday 10 April; news of Napoleon’s abdication and the end of hostilities arrived the next day. On 3 July 1814 the regiment embarked at Pauillac on the Gironde, bound for Cork. A new commanding officer had just been appointed, and the 28th Foot expected to be sent to North America to serve in the Second American War (orders for this were issued, changed and then cancelled in 1815 due to the news of a peace treaty with the United States). In the later part of 1814 Mullens retired on half-pay for the remainder of his service, a decision probably prompted by continuing health issues from ague and dwindling prospects of commanding his beloved 28th Foot in the foreseeable future.


Now permanently based in his native Ireland, Mullens became a Justice of the Peace. In 1823 Daniel O’Connell began to campaign for repeal of the Act of Union. He established the Catholic Association, to help liberal Protestants who sympathised with his cause to win seats at Westminster in the general election of 1826 and then to press for Repeal and Catholic emancipation. During the 1826 election there was not one fixed single day when all polling had to take place. Once each local returning officer received the election writ, he drew up and published a voting timetable for the constituencies for which he was responsible. The election took place over several weeks and as a result, there was great unrest in many parts of Ireland as news spread of seat gains by the Catholic Association’s candidates.


Mullens was one of the magistrates who authorised troops to fire on unruly crowds, causing many casualties (Freeman’s Journal 20 June, Dublin Evening Post 27, 29 June, 1,13,18 July 1826 refers). Edward Mullens’s eldest surviving brother had succeeded their father as Baron Ventry in 1824, but then died in 1827. The title passed to Edward’s nephew, and it was rumoured that he would put Edward forward as candidate for one of the Kerry seats in Parliament. It was not to be, as the family’s political patronage was greatly weakened by the electoral franchise changes enacted in 1829, which reduced the electorate of the county constituencies by over 80%.


The Honourable Edward Mullens, a gallant, loyal and modest warrior, died in his sixty-third year, on 31 July 1841.


www.dnw.co.uk all lots are illustrated on our website and are subject to buyers’ premium at 24% (+VAT where applicable)


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148  |  Page 149  |  Page 150  |  Page 151  |  Page 152  |  Page 153  |  Page 154  |  Page 155  |  Page 156  |  Page 157  |  Page 158  |  Page 159  |  Page 160  |  Page 161  |  Page 162  |  Page 163  |  Page 164  |  Page 165  |  Page 166  |  Page 167  |  Page 168  |  Page 169  |  Page 170  |  Page 171  |  Page 172  |  Page 173  |  Page 174  |  Page 175  |  Page 176  |  Page 177  |  Page 178  |  Page 179  |  Page 180  |  Page 181  |  Page 182  |  Page 183  |  Page 184  |  Page 185  |  Page 186  |  Page 187  |  Page 188  |  Page 189  |  Page 190  |  Page 191  |  Page 192  |  Page 193  |  Page 194  |  Page 195  |  Page 196  |  Page 197  |  Page 198  |  Page 199  |  Page 200  |  Page 201  |  Page 202  |  Page 203  |  Page 204  |  Page 205  |  Page 206  |  Page 207  |  Page 208  |  Page 209  |  Page 210  |  Page 211  |  Page 212  |  Page 213  |  Page 214  |  Page 215  |  Page 216  |  Page 217  |  Page 218  |  Page 219  |  Page 220  |  Page 221  |  Page 222  |  Page 223  |  Page 224  |  Page 225  |  Page 226  |  Page 227  |  Page 228  |  Page 229  |  Page 230  |  Page 231  |  Page 232  |  Page 233  |  Page 234  |  Page 235  |  Page 236  |  Page 237  |  Page 238  |  Page 239  |  Page 240  |  Page 241  |  Page 242  |  Page 243  |  Page 244  |  Page 245  |  Page 246  |  Page 247  |  Page 248  |  Page 249  |  Page 250  |  Page 251  |  Page 252  |  Page 253  |  Page 254  |  Page 255  |  Page 256  |  Page 257  |  Page 258  |  Page 259  |  Page 260  |  Page 261  |  Page 262  |  Page 263  |  Page 264  |  Page 265  |  Page 266  |  Page 267  |  Page 268  |  Page 269  |  Page 270  |  Page 271  |  Page 272  |  Page 273  |  Page 274  |  Page 275  |  Page 276  |  Page 277  |  Page 278  |  Page 279  |  Page 280  |  Page 281  |  Page 282  |  Page 283  |  Page 284  |  Page 285  |  Page 286  |  Page 287  |  Page 288  |  Page 289  |  Page 290  |  Page 291  |  Page 292  |  Page 293  |  Page 294  |  Page 295  |  Page 296  |  Page 297  |  Page 298  |  Page 299  |  Page 300  |  Page 301  |  Page 302  |  Page 303  |  Page 304  |  Page 305  |  Page 306  |  Page 307  |  Page 308  |  Page 309  |  Page 310  |  Page 311  |  Page 312  |  Page 313  |  Page 314  |  Page 315  |  Page 316  |  Page 317  |  Page 318  |  Page 319  |  Page 320  |  Page 321  |  Page 322  |  Page 323  |  Page 324  |  Page 325  |  Page 326  |  Page 327  |  Page 328  |  Page 329  |  Page 330  |  Page 331  |  Page 332  |  Page 333  |  Page 334  |  Page 335  |  Page 336  |  Page 337  |  Page 338  |  Page 339  |  Page 340  |  Page 341  |  Page 342  |  Page 343  |  Page 344  |  Page 345  |  Page 346  |  Page 347  |  Page 348  |  Page 349  |  Page 350  |  Page 351  |  Page 352  |  Page 353  |  Page 354  |  Page 355  |  Page 356  |  Page 357  |  Page 358  |  Page 359  |  Page 360  |  Page 361  |  Page 362  |  Page 363  |  Page 364  |  Page 365  |  Page 366  |  Page 367  |  Page 368  |  Page 369  |  Page 370  |  Page 371  |  Page 372  |  Page 373  |  Page 374  |  Page 375  |  Page 376  |  Page 377  |  Page 378  |  Page 379  |  Page 380  |  Page 381  |  Page 382  |  Page 383  |  Page 384  |  Page 385  |  Page 386  |  Page 387  |  Page 388  |  Page 389