1 Dollar - Elizabeth II Battle of Balaklava

Balaklava, October 25, 1854: the Light Brigade's charge into Russian artillery killed or wounded roughly 40% of the 673 men who rode it. The engagement was tactically pointless and operationally catastrophic, born from a miscommunicated order between Lord Raglan and the Earl of Cardigan. It became famous almost entirely because Tennyson immortalized it in verse six weeks later.

This issue is part of Perth Mint's ongoing Battles series commemorating British and Commonwealth military history. KM#91 references the Australian attribution, though the subject is entirely British — a quirk of the series that reflects Australia's colonial military inheritance rather than any direct national connection to the Crimea.