This photo taken in 1881 shows Malone as a Captain
in the Inniskilling (6th) Dragoons, but at Balaklava he
was a sergeant in the 13th. He was certianly much
brighter than the average soldier. He enlisted 31st
March 1851 and promoted to sergeant without having
been a corporal first.
Before the battle, he and three privates captured some
enemy cavalry and a waggon-full of supplies being taken
to Sevastopol. But it was in the Charge of the Light Brigade
that Sergeant Joe won his VC. His horse had been killed and he
was attempting to find his way back down the valley when he
came across a group of 17th Lancers. They were Sgt-Maj
Berryman and Sgt. Farrell who were protecting one of their
officers who was badly wounded. The three of them were
trapped there under heavy fire for a considerable time
and finally managed to carry him back to the lines.
The details are sketchy, but other accounts of survivors
tell of cossacks plundering the dead and wounded on top
of the constant hail of bullets from the surrounding hills.
All three NCOs won the VC. There were many acts of bravery
that day but Malone was the only soldier of the 13th to
receive a VC.
