Prize and Batta Rolls

Prize consisted of property taken as loot in an action, which was subsequently sold, the money being divided among troops taking part according to their rank - a private soldier received one share while the commanding officer might receive several hundred shares. Batta was an extra allowance of pay made for special field service. Most of the rolls are for prize, and those relating to batta are always distinguished as such in their original headings. The origin of the series lies in the Act of 1831 (see IOR/L/MIL/5/326) which authorised the payment of East India Company's soldiers unclaimed shares to the Lord Clive Fund and of sailors' unclaimed shares to Poplar Hospital. Hence the majority of the rolls are concerned with unpaid shares. The series consists mainly of nominal rolls, usually arranged in order of regimental precedence and often annotated with details of death, next-of-kin etc. Few are indexed. With the exception of the extremely full Deccan rolls (see IOR/L/MIL/5/187-238) which were produced c1850, the volumes have been bound up from loose papers, with frequent repetition and overlapping. Apart from the main run of volumes arranged by campaign, a group of miscellaneous associated material, especially concerning the disputed Banda and Kirwee prize, was kept with the rolls at the India Office. The series called Soldiers' References also contains papers on prize and batta claims (see IOR/L/MIL/5/362-75). The following actions and campaigns are covered: IOR/L/MIL/5/142-149 Dutch, French and other ships, 1793-1811 . IOR/L/MIL/5/150 Cochin, 1795. IOR/L/MIL/5/151-158 Ceylon, Amboyna and Banda, 1795-1796. IOR/L/MIL/5/159-160 Seringapatam, 1799. IOR/L/MIL/5/161-162 Egypt, 1801. IOR/L/MIL/5/163 Broach, 1803. IOR/L/MIL/5/164-165 Second Mahratta War, 1803-1805. L/MIL/5/166 Tranquebar, 1808 L/MIL/5/167 St Paul's, Ile de Bourbon, 1809 L/MIL/5/168 Banda Neira, 1810 L/MIL/5/169-170 Ile de Bourbon, 1810 L/MIL/5/171-174 Mauritius (Ile de France), 1810 L/MIL/5/175 Manado, 1810 L/MIL/5/176-177 Ternate, 1810 L/MIL/5/175-183 Java, 1811 L/MIL/5/184-186 Palembang, 1812 Sambas (Borneo), 1813 (L/MIL/5/164) Hathras, 1817 (L/MIL/5/160) L/MIL/5/187-243 Deccan, 1817-1819 l/MIL/5/244 Warree, 1819 L/MIL/5/245 Rassool Khyma, 1819-1820 L/MIL/5/246 Kittoor, 1824 L/MIL/5/247-252 Ava, 1824-1826 L/MIL/5/253-257 Bhurtpore, 1826 L/MIL/5/258 Coord, 1834 L/MIL/5/259-261 First Afghan War, 1839-1842 L/MIL/5/262-272 China, 1840-1842 L/MIL/5/273 Nepaunee, 1841 Gwalior, 1843 (L/MIL/5/261) L/MIL/5/274-275 Meeanee, Hyderabad and Sind, 1843 L/MIL/5/276 Indus, Sutlej and Punjab, 1846-1849 L/MIL/5/277-282 Burma (Pegu), 1852-1853 L/MIL/5/283-284 Persia, 1856-1857 L/MIL/5/285-290 Delhi L/MIL/5/291-298 Lucknow, 1857-1858 L/MIL/5/299-305 Banda and Kirwee, 1858 L/MIL/5/305-309 Jhansi L/MIL/5/310-313 Kotah, 1858 L/MIL/5/314 Other Mutiny actions, 1857-1858 L/MIL/5/315-316 Abyssinia, 1867-1868 L/MIL/5/317-350 Miscellaneous

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