There were approximately 2600 Coast Guards who entered the Royal Navy to help fill a manning shortage during the Crimean War (1854-56). For the majority of these men there is no official record of this service.

In an effort to redress this I have just completed a three-year project (I work slowly!) to create a database intended to identify those men who did serve in the navy. This has been constructed from Ship’s Muster and Description Books, cross-referenced with the Medal Roll, it records the ship(s) they served on, their ships no., place of birth and age in 1854, together with where their medal was sent.

If you have an ancestor who was a Coast Guard during the Crimean War, I’m more than happy to do a lookup.

Martin