Records of Colour Sergeant William Henry Lester

These records relate to the military service and civilian job hunting of a Leicester man active from the mid to late nineteenth century. They constitute mainly service records, testimonials from officers and former officers of the regular and auxiliary units in which he had served, and personal items including photographs (18-19).

<p>Additional to Records of The Royal Leicestershire Regt, 22D63, q.v.</p>

Deposited on indefinite loan 1 June 1988

Lester was born in St Margaret's Parish, Leicester (1), probably in Humberstone Gate, the son of Henry, a shoemaker. He was baptised in St George's Church in nearby Rutland St on 28 Nov 1827 (3071/17). He enlisted in the 17th (Leicestershire) Regt in 1841 and served in the Crimea (1), Canada (5) and Ireland. He was discharged in Dec 1866 and around that time presumably successfully applied for a post of drill instructor in the Leicestershire Militia (4-6) but by 1879 was seeking employment in local schools (7-14). He was finally discharged from the permanent staff of the auxiliary forces in 1880 after by all accounts an exemplary military career (2-3).

The records should be useful for genealogists and military and social historians, the last especially because of the extra information provided in the records of Lester's private life.