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| Private - Coldstream Guards [ArmyNavyAirforce.co.uk] |
Very little is known about the military career of Benjamin Garrett, a British soldier who served during the Crimean War, but what I have discovered paints a picture of quiet valour amid one of the most brutal and transformative conflicts of the 19th century.
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| Death of Benjamin Garrett 1855 [Albert Garret Notes] |
Early Life
Discovering Benjamin’s origins was no easy feat. At the time, resources were scarce—this was before the days of online records. Aside from the early version of the International Genealogical Index (IGI), there were few tools to guide us. It wasn’t until I discovered his wife Caroline’s birthplace—Shepton Beauchamp in Somerset—that I learned that Benjamin, too, had been baptised in the same parish.
Born the third child of Jonah Garrett and Priscilla Allen, Benjamin was baptised on 17 March 1815 at the Church of St Michael, Shepton Beauchamp. Only he and his older sister Sarah survived to adulthood. Benjamin’s father died when he was just two years old, and his mother later remarried a man named John Attwell, with whom she had four more children.
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| Baptism Benjamin Garrett 1815 Shepton Beauchamp [Somerset, England, Church of England Baptisms, 1813-1914] |
Benjamin does not appear in the 1841 census, and the exact date he enlisted in the military remains unclear. However, we do know that he and Caroline had two children before they were married—the first born in Upton cum Chalvey, Buckinghamshire. This is the earliest record of Benjamin listed as a Private in the Guards.
On 24 November 1845, Benjamin married Caroline Anstey at St. Mary’s Church in Paddington, London. His occupation was officially recorded as “Private in the Coldstream Guard,” and his father Jonah’s profession was listed as “shoemaker.”
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| Marriage Certificate - Benjamin Garrett and Caroline Anstey 1845 [Church of England Parish Registers, 1754-1921. London Metropolitan Archives, London.] |
By the 1851 census, the Garrett family had settled at 12 Queen Street, Aldgate, in the borough of Tower Hamlets. Benjamin, Caroline, and their children—John (7), Benjamin (5), and Barbara (1)—were recorded there. The census confirmed both Benjamin and Caroline’s birthplace as Somersetshire, and their son John's as Buckinghamshire.
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| 1851 England Census - Benjamin Garrett and family [Class: HO107; Piece: 1546; Folio: 551; Page: 66; GSU roll: 174776] |
The Garrett Children
Benjamin and Caroline are believed to have had eight children:
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John (b. 1843, Upton cum Chalvey, Buckinghamshire – d. 1876, London)
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Benjamin (b. 1845, Marylebone, London – d. 1916, Glasgow)
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Thomas (b. 1846, City of London – no further records found)
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William (b. 1849, Westminster – d. 1850, Westminster)
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Barbara (b. 1850, Westminster – d. 1854, Marylebone)
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Francis (b. 1852, Westminster – fate unknown)
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George (d. 1854, Westminster – no birth record found)
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Albert (b. 1854, Westminster – d. 1939, Glasgow)
Albert, their youngest child and my great-great-grandfather, would have been just a baby when his father went off to fight in the Crimea.
Private in the Coldstream Guards
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| Coldstream Guards at the Alma [Richard Caton Woodville 1896] |
The Road to Sebastopol and Battle of the Alma
By the time the Allies reached the River Alma, the Russian Army had fortified the heights beyond the river, confident in their ability to repel the invading forces. On the morning of 20 September, after delays in British positioning, the assault began. Despite fierce resistance and heavy casualties, it was the timely arrival of Sir Colin Campbell and the indomitable Highlanders, supported by the Guards Brigade, that turned the tide. Under withering fire, they scaled the heights and outflanked the Russian position, eventually driving them into full retreat. Yet, in a decision now widely criticized, Lord Raglan withheld the cavalry from pursuing the fleeing Russians—a missed opportunity that might have ended the siege before it began.
The Battle of Balaclava - Charge of the Light Brigade
By 24 September, the Allied forces were still camped four miles from the city—plenty of time for the Russians to regroup and strengthen their defenses.
Then came one of the war’s most infamous moments: the Charge of the Light Brigade on 25 October. Following a miscommunicated order, Lord Cardigan led his cavalry directly into the mouth of Russian artillery. The charge was executed with flawless precision—more fitting for a parade ground than a battlefield—but the outcome was disastrous. Though they reached the enemy lines and even passed beyond the guns, the Light Brigade found themselves surrounded and unable to retreat. Of the 670 men who rode in, fewer than 200 made it back.
The charge proved futile. It handed victory to no one. The Allies maintained their positions, but the Russians held control of the Voronzov Road—a critical supply route. This would pose a severe challenge for the Allies, as they faced a bitter winter with dwindling access to ammunition and provisions.
Although the Coldstream Guards did not participate in the Battle of Balaclava, it was a turning point in the Crimean War.
The Battle of Inkerman
The war dragged on into winter. Then, on 5 November, 1854, the Battle of Inkerman erupted in thick fog that cloaked the landscape and threw troop formations into chaos. The Russians, with twice the manpower of the combined British and French forces, launched a surprise attack. What followed was one of the most confusing and bloody battles in British history. With visibility near zero, units became separated and coordination broke down. Victory that day was wrestled from the chaos by the tenacity of British infantrymen and the well-timed arrival of French reinforcements. While technically a win, the cost was enormous. For Lord Raglan, it marked the beginning of the end of the campaign's first phase.
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| The Return from Inkerman [Lady Elizabeth Butler - University of Hull] |
Disease and Death at Scutari
In the aftermath of Inkerman, the British camp fell into a nightmarish winter. Supplies were delayed for months. Soldiers endured brutal conditions with little food, inadequate clothing, and the looming threat of disease. Scurvy, brought on by a poor diet of salt pork and green coffee berries, ran rampant. Medical care was almost nonexistent until the arrival of nurses like Florence Nightingale—sadly too late for many.
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| [National Army Museum] |
Benjamin was one of those lost to the elements of war, as we know, family records indicate that he died of dysentery at Scutari Hospital in Turkey two months after the Battle of Inkerman. Like countless others, his death was not the result of a bullet or blade, but of neglect, disease, and the harsh reality of 19th-century warfare.
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| "The Sick and Wounded Fund" Nominal return of Deaths [The Times 25 Jan 1855] |
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| Crimea Medal [Wikimedia Commons] |
The Crimea Medal
The medal was awarded to the next of kin of those who died during the campaign, so one wonders what happened to Benjamin's. Given Albert's meticulous recording of family events, it is surprising that he would not have kept it, unless they were given to another of his brothers.
Today, Crimea Medals—especially those with the Balaklava clasp given to participants in the Charge of the Light Brigade—are highly prized by collectors. Most recipients also received the Turkish Crimea Medal, a recognition of the Allied cooperation in the campaign.
Honoring His Memory
Benjamin’s story, pieced together from official records, family documents, and historical texts, is a poignant reminder of the ordinary men who fought and died in extraordinary circumstances. Though his life and service were brief and largely undocumented, his contribution to one of Britain’s most storied military campaigns deserves remembrance.
Acknowledgements:
- Len Metzner, Military Researcher of London.
- World Atlas Encyclopedia.
- Ribbons and Medals by H. Taprell Dorling.
- Family papers written by Albert Garrett.
