Born at Bohola, Castlebar, Ireland, on the 4th of March 1818.
Enlisted at Hounslow on the 2nd of January 1836.
Age: 18 years.
Height: 5' 7".
Trade: None shown.
From Private to Corporal: 25th of August 1838.
Reduced to Private by a Regimental Court-martial on the 18th of April 1842.
Private to Corporal: 31st of August 1837.
Corporal to Sergeant: 16th of September 1849.
Appointed to Troop Sergeant Major on the 17th of March 1854.
Embarked for the Crimea aboard the H.T. "Shooting Star" on the 25th of April 1854.
He was "slightly" wounded in action at Balaclava (according to the official "Casualty Lists) but "severely", according to his documents.
In the Regimental History there is a picture (said to have been taken by Fenton, but it could not have been, as Fenton did not arrive in the Crimea until the spring of 1855 and an officer pictured was not seen again after the Charge in October of 1854) in which he is pictured with several officers and senior N.C.O.s. (See copy in the 8th Hussar's file.)
A letter was sent from Colonel Rodolph De Salis to the Military Secretary at the War Office:
"Newbridge,
Sept. 30th 1856.
Sir, A Sergeant from the 16th Lancers was recently gazetted (without purchase) to the 8th Hussars under my command and I now take it upon myself to send you the record of service of a most zealous NCO officer in the hope that should there be any more commissions being granted on the augmentation now taking place, request that you bring this to the notice of the Commander-in-Chief and for him to look favourably on the case of Troop Sergeant Major Clark, 8th Hussars.
He could have had a commission in the Land Transport Corps, should he have wished for it.
He has received a medal for distinguished conduct in the field and he was recommended for the Victoria Cross in consequence of his conduct at Balaclava.
He was never absent from his duties when serving with the regiment in the East. He is physically, mentally, and also in manner well qualified for the change in rank and if he is to be made an officer will be an acquisition to the regiment.
I have the honour, etc. etc.,
Rodolph De Salis,
Lt. Colonel, 8th Hussars."
Embarked for India from Cork aboard the S.S. "Great Britain" on the 8th of October 1857.
Gazetted as Cornet in the 8th Hussars (without purchase) on the 16th of October 1857 after having served 21 years 287 days in the ranks, and appointed to Adjutant, vice Harding, on the 24th of November 1858.
Lieutenant: 11th of May 1860.
Leg broken by a kick from a Troop horse. Unable to continue in the cavalry and transferred (as a Lieutenant) to the 59th Foot on the 15th of March 1867.
Adjutant of Liverpool Regimental District. 22nd of April 1868 (becoming Captain, Un-attached) on the 1st of April 1869) until the 1st of April 1870.
Acting District Paymaster of Inverness Recruiting District: 1st of April 1870 — 30th of September 1873.
On to half-pay: 1st of October 1873.
Paymaster of the 2nd Battalion, 18th Foot: 13th of June 1874.
Paymaster, Army Pay Department: 1st of April 1878. (Attached to the 18th Foot.)
In a very critical state of health from April of 1878 and died in Dublin, whilst still serving, on the 27th of December 1878.
Extract from the "Irish Times" for the 30th of December 1878:
"Death — Clarke. On the 27th of December at Haddington Road, Dublin, Captain Michael Clarke, Paymaster 2nd Bn. 18th (Royal Irish) Regiment, and late of the 8th (Royal Irish) Hussars."
He died of "Pneumonia, 6 days 5 hours".
He was shown as "Married", aged 60 years, and a Helen Hadrett, of the same address, as being present at, and the informant of, his death. (See copy of his death certificate in the "Certificates" file.)
A check of the local Street Directory shows that no one with the surname of Hadrett was a householder in Haddrington Road at this date. Beggars Bush Infantry Barracks are in Haddrington Road, so he may have died in the Barracks and the woman named, Helen Hadrett, was an Army nurse.
Next of kin: Wife, Grace Clarke.
Entitled to the Crimean medal with clasps for Alma, Balaclava, Inkerman and Sebastopol.
He was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal, being recommended for it on the 12th of January 1855 and receiving a gratuity of £15, but it is not known under what circumstances. A "replacement" medal was ordered from the Mint on the 5th of July 1861. No reason for this was shown.
At the commencement of the Crimean War there was no provision for an award for a particular act, or acts of gallantry for Corporals or Privates, while for Sergeants the Meritorious Service Medal was of indeterminate status, and could be given either for general conduct or for a particular act. This carried an annuity not exceeding £20. By a Royal Warrant dated the 4th of December 1854 it was promulgated that;
"One Sergeant in each Regiment of Cavalry and Infantry and one of each Battalion in the Foot Guards and Rifle Brigade serving in the East, in the Crimea or elsewhere, shall be selected by the Commanding Officer and recommended to Us for the grant of an annuity not exceeding £20, The Annuity so granted is to be at the disposal of such Sergeant although he may still be in Our Service. The Sergeant to be selected for the annuity of £20 is to be the Individual whom you may consider most deserving of such a Reward...
A further proposal was made in the same Royal Warrant to extend the provisions and recommend (in particular for the cavalry, but an increased number for the Infantry and Guards Regiments) to:
"One Sergeant, two Corporals and four Privates, to receive a Medal and Gratuity, this to be in the instance of a Sergeant, £15, for a Corporal £10 and for Private £5. This Gratuity is to be placed in the Regimental Savings Bank, there to remain on Deposit at Interest until His Discharge from Our Service and to be deemed his Personal Property... I am further directed to observe that in selecting individuals for the Gratuities to be awarded for Distinguished Service or Gallant Conduct in the Field, you are not to be fettered in your selection by any consideration as to the Length of Service, the General Good Conduct of the Individual (and especially in the late operations) being alone the qualifications to entitle him to the Award."
By July of 1859 this Gratuity Fund was exhausted and no further awards were made for the Crimean War. Since the original recommendations made by the Commanding Officers have not survived it is impossible to say what standards were applied in selecting men for awards. When the inscription on the medal was being considered it was accepted that the medal could be given for some distinguished service, not necessarily in action, and it can be read as meaning that gallantry was more appropriate to awards with gratuity, than those with an annuity.
However, on the 17th of March 1856 a Memorandum from the Horse Guards stated:
"The latter part of the Warrant referred to, relating to Medals and Gratuities for Non-commissioned Officers and Privates has been invariably interpreted to apply only for "Distinguished Conduct in the Field" (as is inscribed on the Medal) and no non-combatant has accordingly received them, however exemplary may have been the performance of his duties,
The Medal accompanying the Annuities already bestowed on non-combatant Sergeants and inscribed "For Distinguished Conduct in the Field:, have been, if the known arguments are correct, erroneously conferred, and the cases should not be made a precedent..."
By the date of the Memorandum seven Hospital Sergeants from all arms had received the medal and annuity and no doubt these were the cases to which the Adjutant-General referred, All in all though, it seems likely that the great majority of awards for the Crimea were, however, made for acts of gallantry.
Mutiny medal with clasp for Central India.
He was present at the battle of Kotah (where he was Staff Officer of the Left Wing, 8th Hussars) and the pursuit of the rebels under Brigadier Honner until the end of April 1859.
His name was included in the 1877 list of members of the Balaclava Commemoration Society but because of his death in December of 1878 was not shown in the 1879 revised list.
He was buried in the British Military (Grangegorman) Cemetery in Blackhorse, (opposite Pheonix Park) Dublin.
(See close-up photograph of the part of the inscription relating to him on the erected gravestone in the 8th Hussar file.)
(In 1995 Mr. Robert Cudmore, a former member of the regiment, provided a full size photograph of his gravestone and a copy of the inscription. This reads:
"To the memory of Captain M. Clarke. Paymaster 2nd Bn. 18th The Royal Irish Regiment, late Adj. 8th (Royal Irish) Hussars. Died 27th December 1878, aged 61 years.
He was One of the Six Hundred at Balaclava.
Erected by the Officers of the 18th Royal Irish Regiment.
Here also interred is Grace, his wife, who died 24th January 1884 at Ash, Surrey, aged 67 years.
Be thou faithful unto death."
It is known that a replacement D.C.M. was issued in 1861, so did he perhaps lose both the original and also the Crimean medal when on service in India during the Mutiny, both being replaced and named in what was his then current rank.
There is no entry on the Crimean medal rolls of the regiment to indicate that a "fresh medal" was issued to him.
With the medals are eight original commission parchments, a manuscript and a printed statement of service (this also showing that he was awarded the D.C.M. for "distinguished conduct in the field at Balaclava", and six testimonials from fellow officers as to his character and capabilities.
(There are copies of all the various documents named, in the "Memoirs" file as well as a photograph of him in uniform).