Ulsterman

Very nice! Some sort of higher official?

Very sad. That ship's sinking (in harbor?) decimated a brigade as I recall.

wow! A Gefreiter with an EK1 ! Rarer than an RK!

Well, you have got me searching. The first chap was a smith- and died at the collection area of the army before it crossed the border- probably of typhus, which made its first sweep through the massed ranks as all the troops gathered together. The other chap I think was in the Westphalian Line, but I am still looking.... and if they aren't related I'll eat my hat. The third medal is superb! I did not know Brunswick gave medals to KIA! I do not have even 10% of the documentation that has recently (as in the last 15 years) been uncovered for the Brunswickers since the old state librarians changed, but I do know that the muster rolls exist, so do equipment issues and ration lists and even the court martial records and EVEN the wound lists!!!!! ..... and your chap was probably no more than 20 years old and probably killed by a cannon shot to the legs. I can't say for sure, but I read in a recently republished letter that 70% of the Waterloo wound casualties were in the legs and caused by cannon shot. ...."of every 20 amputations, 18 are of the legs and caused by cannon shot"). There are two guys in Germany right now doing the final edits on a book on these medals and they plan to publish next year. If you are on Facebook, the 1815 forum run by Jon Franklin has a whole series of useful topics on the Brunswick troops.

Stumped I am!

Berlinerbrummel- by "story" I mean military career story, not the provenance.

I have one issued from new York. Interestingly- note the issue number...#35 in 1935. I suspect issue lists exist for these in the german Diplomatic archives- which survived the war in tact. Maybe even in the Canadian archives, as the embassies were usually occupied on the first day of the war.

Note the "Line" on the good conduct bar- as if the long service knots have fallen off. These are war time issue and worn I reckon, given the lack of the US campaign bar and/or victory medal. Two presidential citations? paratroopers?

I for one would LOVE to read Theodor VB's hand written memoirs!!!!

Hmmmmmm......squares you say? I am on an iPad, so details are a tad fuzzy.

I would wager it is original. The bars' construction my not be text proof, but it is not typically fake either. Also, the story it tells strikes true.

where does one get the rolls for the 1977 medal? I was actually awarded my towns' jubilee medal, for helping build the bonfire/ beacon, just like they lit when the Armada came.

Nice!

The Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts was founded in 1637/8 by Pilgrims who had received their military training in the London Company and other municipal "trained bands". These "trained bands" later formed the nucleus of the Parliamentarian army and Halifax's victories against Charles 1st in the first years on England's Civil War. The Massachusetts company saw much service in the New England French and Indian wars- notably King Phillip's War and the capture of Louisburg. The AHAC was a radical revolutionary group in the 1770s and many of its members fought at Bunker Hill and Saratoga. The AHAC however,being mindful of commercial opportunities and the value of good drinking companions abroad, saw no reason to cut its affiliation with the original London company and the two organizations remain affiliated to this day. The Company still exists today as a fraternal club (invite only) and in the past its membership was the creme d l'a creme of New England society. Their military history museum in Fanuil Hall in downtown Boston is well worth visiting and every year they parade and read the Declaration of Independence from the balcony. They also raise money for scholarships and other good causes- notably the USO and OXFAM. They are the only "private militia" which has state sanction in Massachusetts (and indeed, all of New England as far as I know). George Maynard, the MOH winner shown above was born in Waltham Massachusetts. A quiet man, he was a watchmaker by trade and loved to read and was a scholar. A distant sixth (?) cousin of Rick Research (isn't everyone though?) he enlisted in 1861 in the 13th Massachusetts infantry. He won his MOH at Fredricksburg below the heights where the Confederate army mowed down the frontal assault of the union troops in a bloody horror-show of suicidal courage. Union casualties were on a par with the British on the first day of the Somme. For those of you who have seen Glory-the film, that was the battle...... Six months later the Union veterans taunted the retreating Confederates at Gettysburg after Pickett's Charge with "Fredricksburg, Fredericksburg". Maynard won his MOH for saving wounded comrades under fire. Later he enlisted into the 82 US Colored Infantry- freed slaves under the command of "Gentleman White men". All of the White officers were socially denigrated for their service with 'Negros' and it took real personal courage and integrity to be an officer. If captured they were often shot on the spot by Confederates-especially by guerrillas in Louisiana, Arkansas and Missouri. Maynard did well and by the end of the war he was a Brevet Major. His uniform and medal- seen here- are still in Fanuiel Hall.

But the real star of the photo is this guy.....Major George Maynard, abolitionist , hero and watchmaker.....

here is a close up of the King and the officers standing next to him. The King looks tired and hot standing with all these portly American social climbers (and they are despite the fact they are the cream of old Yankee Boston society). Note the Sons of the American Revolution Society medals, the state shooting medals - and a few Spanish American war service medals ........ AND a British IGS! While the Honorable Company was mustered in 1898, it never left the shores of Boston Harbor.

So I have had a pretty good year at the flea markets . I passed up a few spectacular finds out of generosity- and stupidity if truth be told- but here is one I got that I am quite chuffed about- I got this one for $3 off a stand and my heart dropped. The seller had no clue who George V was and thought it was a bunch of Boston Masons....but oh how wrong he was.... Here is the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts reception on July 12, (The Orange walk coincidentally) 1912 at Buckingham Palace with his Majesty King George Vth. Lots of medals and pomp and the company originally were booked to sail to London on the Titanic..... But the real prize is the anti-monarchist, die hard Republican (who met Lincoln, Emerson and Thoreau) standing over on the far left corner.

WOW!!!!! PLEASE... whoops-would you be so kind as to show us the British Red Cross group in the third picture? that looks like quite a story. Thanks

No I am not, but it would be amazing to find out who the dog tag belonged to.

Can we see this uniform? There were scholars attached to the US army in WW1 whose job was to teach basic reading/writing skills to troops who were illiterate/quasi-illiterate (about 15% of the inductees). These volunteer Professors wore uniforms and had a patch similar to that ("E" being "Education Section"). I have no idea what BCS could be though.

Yeah- I recently saw a Purple Heart and Silver Star on the US forum that someone had pulled from a dumpster. How many of those are in garbage piles these days?

Well, "Ohio" at the time was also the name of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky and parts of Missouri. I reckon the Generals' story was a bit flush, but there is also the "biblical reference" of pyramids being made of bricks to consider. People sued references of their time. See here: http://en.wikipedia....builder_(people)

Well, that is interesting. TR Red cross medal, Brunswick war medal and something I have no clue about...the little blue stripe next to the white.... i thought Bavarian but ?????? The lack of the Silesian ribbon doesn't bother me as I expect someone thought, "well, I have the eagle so the ward is represented. It's too odd to be a fake IMHO. Indeed, unique.

WOW!!!!! Demir- by any chance are the muster rolls of Turkish regiments in the turkish archives????

Very nice!