captainofthe7th

Hi all -- I received this battledress jacket today and am interested in understanding when it might date from. It has been heavily tailored from an existing battledress and generally follows the 1949 style. No markings other than '836' penned on the belt and interior pocket, which I thought could lead to an ID as it follows the various emergency commission, Indian army, etc. type of short numbers. There are indeed a few names, but none for this regiment up to 1947. It has been very interesting to investigate, but believe I've used all my resources and need some help. Thanks, Robert

I'm not sure the Nigeria note is accurate. He was in Kenya and Swaziland in the early 1960s with the Gordons...I assumed the auction notes weren't done very meticulously. Robert

I'm very interested to find who won this auction: https://auctions.elstobandelstob.co.uk/past-auctions/elstob10034/lot-details/5a4c3e52-d387-4961-a58a-acc5014e066b?utm_source=barnebys&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=barnebys&utm_content=2021-02-20 Had I known it was available I would have bid generously....I have been researching Durbin for a few years and sadly his collection was scattered. "A LARGE QUANTITY OF DOCUMENTS FROM THE POST WWII ERA, all relating to Capt. J T D Durbin, Gordon Highlanders in the Nigerian campaign (quantity) The absence of a Condition Report does not imply that a lot is without imperfections. Please note carefully the exclusion of liability for the condition of lots contained in the Conditions of Sale.A large quantity, mostly well preserved and includes documents and booklets of strategic courses attended by Capt. Durbin relative to his seconded role in Nigeria." Thanks, Robert

Korean period -- anything showing uniform wear, gear, insignia, and group or notated photos. As it is an officers' world in researching the UK forces it's always nice to find notated bits for other ranks. Thanks, Robert

Hi Bas -- thanks for the reply, this is incredible. I'd love to support you and purchase your book - is amazon the best place or is buying direct from you better? I have pretty much accepted that I won't be finding much about Jillett. It seems like a misfit unit that no one really took responsibility for historical records and they were simply there for a crucial job. Feel free to email or message via my website. I am sure I will have more questions after reading your book and especially if you have unique sources. Thanks, Robert

Thanks for the reply! And after many years....we meet. I suspect this could be a centerpiece in any collection, but should you ever wish to pass it on, please let me know. At the time this was for sale I had little knowledge of British items and didn't understand the price point (plus emedals is typically on the higher end) nor did I appreciate his WWII service. Definitely a beautiful collection of items and a rare uniform. What sort of content is included in the photos and documents? If you are able to photograph or scan I am always looking for units photos or notated photos and rosters to help with future research and identification. Thanks Robert P.S. you're always welcome to email or contact via my website: http://www.rcmcollection.com

Hi all -- as I pick up documents, journals, and photographs I will be adding them to the Library & Archives portion of my website. So far there are only a few items, so this is really not anything extensive, but I have dreams. For my own interests I hope to pick up many of the issues of Tiger & Sphinx (if you have any to contribute or loan, I would appreciate it). https://www.rcmcollection.com/Archives I hope there may be something of use.

This is one group that I should have purchased when it was available. I regret not buying it and would like to find who owns it to beg and plead with them. Does anyone know? https://www.emedals.com/a-second-world-war-korean-war-group-to-the-royal-artillery

Definitely, and I've referenced your posts often. I have one French group I am researching but only U.S. groups for medals. Most of the Commonwealth and other UN types are out of my budget or not identified....

I just purchased this magazine which has some information on the games. It might not be anything groundbreaking, but I found the entire magazine interesting: https://www.rcmcollection.com/Archives/UNITED-NATIONS-P.O.W.s-IN-KOREA

I hope this uniform is a welcome addition to the topic though it is a bit more contemporary than most of what is posted. This came from the estate of Allan Browne who appears to have been a collector and there were a few RNF uniforms coming from him, but this was the only one marked "Brown" by the tailor so it was my choice if I could only have one, which was the case. I hope to learn more about him though I believe he was National Service so it may be a bit difficult. I'm in touch with the RNF museum, but things are on hold at the moment due to the virus. I found the tiny pips to be of interest. The cap and cap badge are added for display and I believe the badge may be for ORs, but I could not find a suitable officers' type and I think this will do for my needs.

Hi all -- I have another plea for help with this small group. There was a discussion here in which a few members had a lot of info regarding a French dog tag and I was hoping I could start a similar topic. I have reached out to a few French offices for help, but I have either not heard back or they've redirected my request. My biggest question is: do these belong together? I want this group to be authentic as it was one that I missed years ago and it recently appeared on ebay again. For the price it was worth the risk. Next question and perhaps my main goal outside of authenticity - who is Joseph Fargues and what is his service history? Who might I be able to contact to obtain his service file? I first emailed Service Historique de la Défense - they referred me to the Centre des Archives du personnel Militaire who referred me to the Archives de Paris who I have yet to hear back from. What's next? Does anyone here offer onsite research? Thank you, Robert

Hi Dan -- thank you once again. I have not researched much of the other Jilletts, though I was in contact briefly with the curator of the blog that your friend may have found. It's a frequent return in google when searching. There is a lot to read on their family history! The Jillett I am chasing is Richard Frank, born 9 Dec 1921 - so, from the poor end of the family. Perhaps that was some motivation for his joining up? I appreciate all the help! Robert

Hi Dan -- I would very much appreciate whatever your friend is offering. I enjoy those personal touches to accompany items and research. I've reached out to one of my researcher friends here and asked him to take a lot through the morning reports for the FEAF and 13th AF units to which Jillett (and Graves) may have been attached. I am not sure if, as foreigners, they would appear in the daily logs, but I have hope that they would and also that they're somewhat attainable based on the specific dates I have to reference. I'll keep the thread updated with those finds. I did find this website which is mostly U.S. based, but very informative about the jungle rescue operations: http://www.pbyrescue.com/ Most mention of Australians on that webpage have to do with RAAF detachments, not AIF / ground forces, but I think there are still many original documents that I'd have to read through as they're not searchable via text recognition. Thanks for the help, Dan, and pass along the word to your friend as well. I appreciate it. Robert

Hi Dan -- thank you for the information! And especially for being honest about the prospect that Graves' tales may be a farce. A great thanks to your friend as well. His mention of ANGAU (a new term for me) is something new that I can look into and especially if they have war diaries online. I'd still like to pick at this as I believe there must be some veracity to parts of Jillett's story, just not as I thought previously...do you think this is the case? I would assume at this point that it is not a jungle rescue unit but jungle rescue duty and I quickly went down the wrong path searching in this way. There is still some kind of tie between Jillett and Graves' service as their detachments from HQ NGF and 1st Australian Army align, as did some training including a camouflage school, which I first thought was for disguising artillery or anti-aircraft emplacements. Jillett's Canadian discharge is pretty explicit about WWII service: "Employed in New Guinea - Philippines as jungle rescue crew." I've attached this and will link to the Australian service files as well: Jillett: https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/NAAMedia/ShowImage.aspx?B=4473441&T=PDF Graves: https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=5663967&isAv=N Thank you so much for the help! Robert