The Sun.
London, England, 1863-04-17 00:00:00

THE VICTORIA CROSS.

(From the london Gazette of this Evening.)
WAR-OFFICE, APRIL 16.
The Queen has been graciously pleased '..0 signify her in-
tention to confer the decoration of the Victoria Cross on
the undermentioned officers, whose claims to the same have
been submitted for her Majesty's approval, on ace .unt of
acts of bravery performed by them in India, as recorded
against their names, viz.:—
Lieutenant (now Captain) Robert Hope Moncrieff Aitken,
late 13th Bengal Native Infantry (now of the Bengal Staff
Corps)—For various acts of gallantry performed during
the defence of the Residency of Lucknow, from the
30th of June to the 22d of November, 1857 :-
1. On three different occasions, Lieutenant Aitken
went into the garden under the enemy's loopholes in the
" Captain's Bazaar." On two of these occasions, he brought
out a number of bullocks which had been left in the garden ;
—subsequently, on the 3d of July, the enemy having set
fire to the Bhoosa Stock in the garden, and it being appre-
hended that the fire would reach the powder magazine
which hat been left there, Lieutenant Aitken, ace°l-ntiglthae
by other officers, went into the garden, and cut dowrne
to the
tents which might have communicated these
loopholes,
powder, This was done, close to the
2 the enemy
den-
under a bright light from the flames.
geroas service. 2. On the night of Aug.ieut. Aitken was
. Guard Oa °, L
having set fire to the Baillie
tasted by ootne eepoya
the first man in the gateway, and, " he partially opened
his giruent, and, having
and a water •carrier of re
fnusketrY7
the gate under a heavy fire Ind
straw, saved the gate.
It ewmao3sa most
removed the burning v0,"?..d,, this officer led on 12 sepoys
3. On the evening of Sept. *.zo
guns
tnurpose of attacking two
-0 in order to prevent their being
opposite the gate refejaror_cl'ea. Havelock's second column
of his regiment, for the
' turned on the late N J he attacked and took the Terse.
tured thew,
Having caP ull force. 4, On the morning( f
Kotee, with a sun of his regiment, he as ' Sept. 26,
with a small party
gateway of the F saulted and cap-
tured the barricadedi itself. On this
occa •
urreed Buksh Palace,
and the palace l
occasion he sprang.
t a smell wicket gate on the • 0, up
against a
enemy from shutting • right, and pre-
vented the
it was forced open, and the assaulting with assistance,
enabled to rush in. The complete party were thus
was solely owing to this officer's success of the attack
distinguished bravery.
5. 5. In a subsequent sortie on the
29th
Aitken volunteered to take of September, Lieut.
firing, taking with him f a gun which still continued
arid lanes to the run. T our soldiers through the houses
the houses, but they he enemy fired on this party front
held their
party Coming up, the ground, until a stronger
gun was upset from its carriage, and
taken into the
Residency
taken.. Another gun was subsequently
Lieut. Chas Augustus Goodfellow, late
w Bombay Engi-
neesrs (now of the Royal E • ' '
Engineers)—For or gallant con-
duct at
the attack on the Fort of Beyt, on the 6th Oct.,
1859. On that occasion a soldier of the 28th Itegimen,
was shot under the walls of the fort. Lieut. Goodfellow
rushed under the walls, under a sharp fi e of match-
locks, and bore off the body of the soldier, who was then
dead, bat whom he at first supposed to be wounded only.