Ghuznee Medal

The Ghuznee Medal is a British campaign medal that was awarded for participation in the storming of the fortress of Ghuznee in Afghanistan, on 21 to 23 July 1839. This action, the Battle of Ghazni, took place during the First Anglo-Afghan War.

This was the second medal awarded to all ranks of the British Army for a specific campaign, the Waterloo Medal being the first. It was struck in 1839 on the orders of Shuja Shah Durrani, the Shah of Afghanistan, to show his appreciation to the British forces who had restored him to his throne by storming the fortress.

Description
The obverse depicts the fortress of Ghuznee with the word ‘GHUZNEE’ below, while the reverse has a mural crown surrounded by a laurel wreath and the date ’23 JULY 1839’. The suspender is straight with a ring passing through a smaller loop sweated to the top of the medal. Two separate dies exist for this medal with one having a wider border around the edge than the other. The second also has a narrower and taller fortress. The medal was issued unnamed but many were later privately engraved or impressed in varying styles on the reverse or rim.