Ulsterman

http://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_03_2013/post-171-0-65168400-1364267324.jpgCool. Are there two classes? Is it the custom to pin awardees' medals to a unit flag, or has the unit also been decorated with the medal here? My Italian is sadly lacking-is this a unit flag? Its from last years Italian Army Parade -along with this snapshot of a newer awardee (presumably for Iraq). Or is that only the merit medal in first place?

Perusing the US African Command website today I came across this image of an African officer on a training course in Italy. Anyone know where he is from? All I can tell under photo magnification is I think his name is Jeffrey Thanba-something. What medals does he have? I would love to own that ribbon bar.

http://gmic.co.uk/uploads/monthly_03_2013/post-171-0-73183200-1364266398.jpgI wish I was in Ethiopia for Patriots Day- in 6 weeks or so. There can't be more than @150-250 Patriots still alive. Their stories are jaw dropping.

This guy meanwhile is awesome. Note his bravery medal at the front- something that was NOT handed out lightly (esp. as it had a cash reward and land attached by imperial gift). He is a Patriot who must have begun fighting the Italians as a teenager warrior, probably a rifle/spear boy following his father. He later became a professional NCO and ended up in the Imperial Guard fighting in Korea and the Congo. He is lucky to still be alive. Note his UN medals and the Korean war veterans' associations medal (handed out by the Korean premier when he visited Addis a few years ago).

Me too! You will never see their like again. The more I read and research these elderly Patriots the more awed I am at their courage and dignity throughout their decades of suffering. They fought a hard war against the Italians, who answered the popular unrest by reprisals and mass executions that the SS would have approved of. Most older patriots live today in extreme poverty. Under the Marxist Derg regime, having served in Korea or being a member of the Imperial Guard was enough to get one tortured to death-(or shot in the head if you were lucky)- along with ones' family. In 1986 Mengistu made ALL representations of the old Emperor illegal and upwards of 40, 000+ "Monarchists" were murdered by death squads. This recent picture of the patriots' Day parade in 2010 is interesting because it clearly shows how the older imperial medals were exchanged. This man was a member of the Imperial Guard, an NCO and had served in Korea, yet he proudly wears a mixture of the Derg replacement medals and the old Imperial ones. If you look closely you can see the replacement Korean medal, the Derg wound medal, (center) a modern wound medal (far right) as well as Imperial awards (left side and above- also guard badges).

I think POW made.

I LOVE the ribbon bar and the medic's bar!

There recently was a DAK album for sale by Historical media that clearly showed some sort of locally raised and partially German uniformed group of men. I assumed they were Libyan HiWis but they were too rag tag to be regular military. It might still be on his website.

ohhhhhh...so jealous I am. Where did you get these?

Very cool. Tony Colson would have so loved to see these. these crosses are rarer than one might think too.

Wow! I note that Von Kleist died this week too.

Imperial Mexican?

Very cool! Honestly, with that captured rifle above, I think this thread should get the prize this month.

Very nice Merwyn. That should be in the Victoria and Albert! Have you perchance seen the new BBC series about Swifts' 18th century London Met constables?

Possibly because many of the "old hands" are still around-and in positions of political power. There are still more than a few fanatics on both sides who would be more than happy to start it all up again, despite the huge changes that have occurred in Ulster over the past 20 years. I read a Masters' thesis the other day about how the UDA and UVF's "philosophy of shared responsibility" (promoted by Andy Tyrie) was a catalyst for the transition to peace. There is some truth to that notion, but I reckon MI5 and some sandbagger types in the NIO had a lot more to do with it. THAT sort of stuff won't be made public for 100 years. If you were there than you remember the battalion Intelligence Officers' office with all the photos and note cards on the walls. Most of those guys are still alive and more than a few are still volatile. The nightmare was always that what happened in Sarajevo could happen in Ulster if the troops went and the campaign was expensive, bothersome and hugely painful. Better to let sleeping dogs lie.

Chris- any chance I can get hold of your article? I am going to call Holger tomorrow to ask him about his references to the medal awards summaries he talked about in his 1972 article on German Archives and sources.

The Somali Coast medal looks new to moi. Is it?

wasn't the SEHOx given out pre war? it is odd but you have to wonder who could be that junior an officer and yet get a 40 year civil LS cross. also, the Bavarian cross was given to soldiers for war valued service in the homeland, but I know there were exceptions for some non combat types at the front, staff types. .......obviously they mounted it Prussians first, being Berliners, then war time awards......probably chronological after the PWK. After seeing the 5/6 life saving medal bar that ended up belonging to a cavalry regimental commander, I hesitate before saying never.

No, almost no US units used brass numbers on collars in the civil war and the buttons appear French style.

The Grenadier company of the first Regiment was some of the few Imperial troops who wore a bearskin shako besides the Guards. Most of the actual bearskins were smuggled in from the USA. I have a ton of info. On the 1st if you would like. They saved their eagle in Russia, but the flag was burnt.

Nope. Different guy. There were over twenty Africans in the German army that had NCO rank. Most were bandsmen. this guy is Not deCher, who was Sudanese.

I think hes' from Piedmont @ 1860.

One I used to own...sigh....

My humble Bavarian....

I LOVE the campaign style units. The painting is SUPERB! Competition level. I am impressed. Do you use oils? I thought the 3rd had black facings? An element of the original 3rd regiment (flag shown above) was sent to Sante Domingo under the Consulate, where only 11 ever came back to Europe! The rest died of yellow fever and warfare. The Third Regt. was a regiment of very hard men indeed. In 1809 their 1st battalion in Spain was down to @ 90 men. One of their Voltiguers (Jean Marie Bussy von C.) recorded in his diary (still in a private collection in Lucerne) that he was wearing white Spanish trousers and a refurbished captured English scarlet jacket. Most died on prison hulks. The Third Regt. was re-recruited in 1811/1812 and sent with the other 3 Swiss regts to Russia where they suffered shocking casualties, but won ever lasting glory as a Brigade by holding the Russians back as the Grand Armee' escaped across the Beresinia. By the time they reached Vilna (December 1812/ Jan. 1813) the 3rd Swiss regiment only had only 60 men left! Interestingly some alumni of the 3rd were later in both the Foreign Legion and the Papal Zouves. Here they are at Poltask in June, 1812 (left) and the middle picture is Voltiger von C. from 1809 and the far right is an officer in Spain @ 1812 in marching order-note British jacket (from the Swiss army museum, from a sketch by Delmont).