"Taking the Queen's Shilling"

Other than birth, marriage and death, it's hard to say with certainty where any person was on a specific day in Victorian England.  In the case of William Winder, there is at least one other day where we know for sure where he was.  On September 26, 1839, William Winder was in Coventry, England, about 85 miles slightly northwest of Horsley.

Why was William in Coventry?  A laborer, unmarried (as far as we know) and probably unemployed, or at least underemployed, William most likely left Horsley looking for work and followed it wherever he found it.  By the end of September with the harvest nearing an end, William faced the challenge of supporting himself over the winter months.  The step he took was a drastic one - a "game changer" in modern parlance, for on that fateful day, William Winder "took the Queen's shilling" by enlisting in the 21st Regiment of Foot.

To appreciate the magnitude of William's decision, we have to recognize how differently military service was perceived during Victorian times.  First of all, the British army in the 1840's and 1850's was quite small equal to only about 1% of the population so army service was neither a common choice nor a widely shared experience.  Yet at the same time, the army constantly needed men to the tune of 11-12,000 per year due to death, discharge and disability.

Recruiting volunteers was difficult, if for no other reason that enlistment was theoretically for life or, in practice, 25 years.  In addition the public attitude towards the army was a far cry from today or at least what we like to think it is today.  After Napoleon's final defeat in 1815, there was no real threat of invasion and, if there was, the primary responsibilities fell to the navy.  While the navy, however, was pretty much out of sight and, therefore, out of mind, the army was in sight and in minds that were ambivalent about its value.  Although it comes from a later time, Rudyard Kipling' s poem, "Tommy Atkins," speaks eloquently to the issue.

"Yes, makin’ mock o’ uniforms that guard you while you sleep

Is cheaper than them
An’ hustlin’ drunken soldiers when they’re goin’ large a bit

Is five times better business than paradin’ in full kit.

Then it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy, ‘ow’s yer soul?”

But it’s “Thin red line of ‘eroes” when the drums begin to roll,
.
Is cheaper than them

It's probably reasonable to say William was typical of the men recruited into the British army at this time. Fairly short at 5' 5/8" with gray eyes and brown hair, his lack of literacy was shared with the majority of his peers.  The army reportedly preferred "respectable docile country lads" and there is no reason to doubt William matched this description.  Certainly like the majority of his fellow privates, he was very familiar with hard work in all kinds of weather and conditions.  Now, however, he would experience not just hard work, but military training and discipline and adventures probably beyond his wildest imagination.The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,

O it’s “Thin red line of ‘eroes” when the drums begin to roll."

"Tommy Atkins" by Rudyard Kipling