Samuel Parkes (VC)

Samuel Parkes
The Charge of the Light Brigade, oil painting of 1894 by Richard Caton Woodville
Born	later 1815 Wigginton, Staffordshire
Died	15 November 1864 (aged 49) Stanhope Lodge, Hyde Park, London, London
Buried at	Brompton Cemetery, London
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1831 - 1857
Rank	Private
Unit	4th Queens Own Light Dragoons
Battles/wars	First Anglo-Afghan War Crimean War
Awards	Victoria Cross

Samuel Parkes VC (probably late 1815 – 15 November 1864) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Parkes was awarded his VC for his actions during the Charge of the Light Brigade.

Born in Wigginton, Tamworth, Staffordshire probably in later 1815, he was baptised at the Church of St Editha, Tamworth, on 24 December 1815, the son of Thomas Parks/Parkes and Lydia Fearn/Fern/Fearns; no exact date of birth has been established. Within the family, it is said that he was known as "George". He had two sisters, Elizabeth (baptised 1812) and Mary (baptised 1819); no other siblings are recorded in St Editha's baptismal register.

He died on 14 November 1864 at Stanhope Lodge, Hyde Park, London. He was buried in Brompton Cemetery, London in an unmarked pauper's grave (no. 39265, reference R80’6" x 109’ 3") on 19 November 1864 after a funeral at St George's, Hanover Square. A memorial stone was placed on his grave in May 1999, thanks to the efforts of Peter Elkin, and a plaque was placed in Tamworth parish church on Balaklava Day 2004. A new memorial was unveiled in the village of his birth on 14 September 2011 following a fund-raising campaign by the people of Wigginton.

Was he born in 1813 or 1815? According to the Army, he was born in 1813. His own declaration on enlistment declares his age as 18 years old while his discharge papers state precisely that he was 44 years 3 months (i.e. he was born in August or September 1813). His death certificate and the Brompton Cemetery burial register both say, however, that he was aged 49 at death, in which case he was born in 1815. The years around 1830 were a time of agricultural depression in England so, like many before and since, the 16-year-old lad might have lied about his age to enlist in a secure job with reasonable pay. Furthermore, birth and baptism usually followed each other rapidly at that time. On balance, 1815 would seem to be the more likely year of his birth.