Published in Windlesora 30 (2014)
© WLHG
When Victoria Barracks was rebuilt in the 1980s, an interesting and unusual memorial was saved from demolition and re-sited at the new barracks.
Standing in front of the Officers’ Mess, is an impressive stone monument dedicated to a former Commanding Officer, Colonel Charles Napier Sturt (not to be confused with the English explorer of the same name). This memorial has four sides, each inscribed in his memory, and it was
originally designed as a functional drinking fountain. The drinking water has long since been disconnected, and the memorial now stands in the shallow waters of an ornamental pond. Wrought ironwork attached to the sides is thought to have been used for hanging baskets of plants. The inscription on the sides reads:
In memory of Colonel Charles Napier Sturt, Grenadier Guards
This fountain was erected by his comrades and friends
He commanded the Second Battalion Grenadier Guards from September Sth 1877
He departed this life at Winchester the 13th day of March 1887
The corners of the memorial bear the names of Crimean War battles linked with Colonel Sturt and his regiment, namely Alma, Balaklava, Inkerman, and Sebastopol.
Sturt was born on 9th August 1832, and joined the Grenadier Guards as Ensign (2nd Lieutenant) on 14th February 1851. He was promoted to Lieutenant-Captain in November 1854, Captain-Lieutenant Colonel in August 1861, and to Colonel in September 1876. He commanded the
second battalion from 1877 to 1880, and the regiment from July to August 1880.
Sturt retired on 7th August 1880, and died aged 54 in 1887. He served in the Crimean War at all the battles inscribed on the monument, and was wounded at Inkerman. Sturt was awarded the Crimean War Medal 1854-56 with four clasps, together with Sardinian and Turkish campaign medals.
Victoria Barracks (called Windsor Infantry Barracks until the 1880s) is traditionally occupied by regiments of the Guards Division. For security reasons, access to the barracks to see the memorial is not possible.
Derek Hunt
Windsor Local History Group 