When I was on the Great War battlefields recently......

[bigduke6]

Rog, dont start collecting medals........ there isn't enough time in the day for research, although I dont have many left now I kept the Roll of Honour I saved from a reclamation yard,

https://www.milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=55530

Still never found anything on the one in the South Lancs Regiment, which is a shame as it was a local Regiment and a Pals one too. Even contacting the Author of a Pals book dedicated to the 11th Battalion he had nothing on him........... can only guess a regiment move but even then with a new service number the old one was recorded, a Soldier of the same surname on the medal roll had 5 service numbers...

[Roger Payne]

It's all very poignant. It never ceases to amaze me how some people let the family medals go; how great uncle Harry's service & gallantry means less to them than funding next year's holiday in Benidorm.....

I would give an awful lot to be able to own my grandfather's medals.

[waco16]

Completely with you on that, Roger...

Around 25 years ago we had a major fire at our house that caused a huge amount of damage.
It started in the room where my Grandfathers medals were framed on the wall, on either side of the only picture we had of him in his uniform.

The fire brigade had swept all of the debris from the room into a large bin, that I spent hours going through trying to find his medals
I'm pleased to say all 4 were found, albeit in a bit of a state - Frame, ribbons and sadly the picture gone, but the medals themselves survived
That fire caused over £25,000 worth of damage - a lot of money 25 years ago - but the thing that caused me the most trauma was the thought of losing his medals

They're back on the wall again - in a new frame with replacement ribbons, but they are the same medals he was awarded

Eventually my son will have them and I know he will cherish and respect them in the way I do

[browningautorifle]

They're back on the wall again

How about a pic of those?

[waco16]

I'm away from home for a week, but will certainly post a picture of them when I return.

My Grandfather served in North Africa during WW2 - he never talked about his experiences so what little information I have was from my Grandmother before she passed away a number of years ago.

It seems that he was badly wounded during an action and left for dead - my Grandmother actually received the 'missing in action' telegram

The story gets a little confused, but it seems that he somehow ended up in an American field hospital, and many weeks later she received notification (she said he was traced through the hard work of the Salvation Army) that he was still alive.
He was invalided out of the army in 1943 as a result of his wounds.

So, while to a collector, his Africa Star, 1939 - 45 Star, War Medal, Defence Medal and Wound badge are probably only worth a few pounds - no amount of money would take them away from my family

[bigduke6]

For anyone who does display family medals as above, I would suggest keeping the originals out of sight and in a safe place unless there in a well secured room out of sight.

Anything in the eye of strangers I would Display copies of the medals and photos...... WW2 campaign medals were not named, so no need for copies you can buy the originals for the wall, the most expensive (when I was collecting many moons ago) was the Air Crew Europe Star ....... I would say its the Arctic Star now, this really was a disgrace by the government who only approved and issued it in 2012...........

WW1 Medals and previous, were named, good copies can be had, originals can be had and are cheap enough when they have been split from a group, many WW1 medals were pawned, one of my Grandad's pawned his in the twenties, (The British War Medal was solid Silver....) I think the QSA was also, its why many groups lack the silver.

I had an interesting group once, I had all the silver but was missing the mons star and victory medal, obviously been in a pawn shop but never made it to the smelters, Guy had been in South Africa and had joined up again at the start of WW1

The saddest one of all is seeing them on a car boot sale......... I've recovered a few off there, one pair which were not too old, a Long service good conduct medal and NI General Service medal...... the thing that caught my was the oak leaf, (mention in dispatches)

I tried to find the owner (I would guess it was his ex wife on the boot sale but didn't know at the time) didn't have much success, but did get a reply from a gent in the RM association, a guy in Australia had joined up with the owner...... on a bit of research I spoke to a Department of the RN, they confirmed everything they could but couldn't say about his MID, as it was awarded during the height of troubles in NI..........

Researching can draw you in at times, bit like reading a good book and your actually there...... makes the hairs on the neck stand up.....

[mrclark303]

I am the custodian of both my grandparents WW1 Victory and War medals.

I also have the *Canadian Army playbook from my dad's father, with the chilling 1917 line "Gassed, repatriated to Peterborough"

I also have my uncles Bomber Command DFC and Bar ribbons (two tours, 57 Sqn Halifax's at Snathe and 460 Australia Sqn Lancaster's at Binbrook) and one of his FE mission documents, relating to a particularly hellish mission, it ends with the line "crash landed Manston".

* My father's dad emigrated to Canada just prior to WW1 so enlisted with the Canadians, it took some years to recover from the mustard gas, alas the lung damage eventually took him at the age of 42.

One of many thousands who were taken tragically early by the terrible injuries of the Great War.

[Simon]

It's all very poignant. It never ceases to amaze me how some people let the family medals go; how great uncle Harry's service & gallantry means less to them than funding next year's holiday in Benidorm.....

I would give an awful lot to be able to own my grandfather's medals.

I'm lucky enough to be the temporary custodian of my Grandads Medals. AM2 Walter Booth. Enlisted with the Royal Naval Air Service, transferred to Royal Flying Corps and ultimately served with 64 Sqn Royal Air force until demobbed in late 1919.

[browningautorifle]

One of many thousands who were taken tragically early by the terrible injuries of the Great War.

We have a local cemetery that has a whole section of these men, all dying around 1950s... They all died up in the local priory and are buried in a section of pauper ground with small flat markers of bronze. Just a name and date, rank and unit to show they were ever here. Few have a VA marker in stone.

[bigduke6]

I'm lucky enough to be the temporary custodian of my Grandads Medals. AM2 Walter Booth. Enlisted with the Royal Naval Air Service, transferred to Royal Flying Corps and ultimately served with 64 Sqn Royal Air force until demobbed in late 1919.

Si, thats got to be a propeller tip picture frame ?