76 AWARDED FOR VALOUR
The original recommendations from Hope Grant were denied on the
grounds that while the actions of these individuals had been commendable,
they were not beyond the bounds of simple duty, and thus not VC material.
Hope Grant replied to the denial in a snit, declaring that he had promised
Lane and Chaplin VCs on the spot for their actions, and under the Clause VII
of the warrant, it was within his power as theatre commander to confer VCs
provisionally in the field. As it was, he had chosen to go through channels.
He wrote Horse Guards requesting a reassessment, as he felt his promise to
be binding on himself and the government, ‘tantamount to a provisional
bestowal.’ He went on to state that he felt it would look bad if those two
got it and the other five did not.^7
At the time of the Third China War the Duke of Cambridge was still
feeling out the parameters of his office as General Commanding in Chief
and was often uncooperative with Lord Herbert of Lea’s War Office admin-
istration. He had interfered with the command selection process for the
expedition, and at one point the War Office complained that all the commu-
niques originating from China were being mailed to Horse Guards and
then forwarded to the War Office.^8 Upon receipt of Hope Grant’s letter
protesting the rejections he reviewed the situation and saw an opportunity
to one-up the War Office. He passed it along to the War Office with his
hearty approval; the War Office followed his lead and passed all the recom-
mendations to Her Majesty. All of them got it.^9
Despite the Duke of Cambridge’s interference, the precedent was clearly
established that merely being first in the van was not enough; the initial
penetration had to have concrete merit. A good example of this situation
occurred in the process of ferreting out the mad Emperor Theodore from
the mountain fortress of Magdala. The fortress presented concentric earth-
work ramparts that proved impervious even to the fire of the Armstrong
12-pounders; the gates of the outer ring had been blocked with boulders
and rubble and were likewise shell-proof.^10
A soldier of the 33rd Regiment, James Bergin, managed to hack a hole
in the thorn bushes that festooned the palisade and boost drummer Michael
Magner on top of the wall. Magner pulled Bergin up beside him and while
the latter took potshots at the enemy hoisted several more men over the
top. This small force held the breach and more importantly seized the inner
gate of the next palisade, opening up the interior of the fortress to assault.
An ensign named Wynter arrived carrying the colors and was placed on top
of the wall to rally troops to the breach.^11
In this instance the actions of Bergin and Magner proved the pivotal
moment in carrying Magdala by storm. Both were recommended for the
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