Brett Hendey

Kevin Thanks for putting me right! Since my last post I have seen other reports on UN Korea Medals on the GMIC and elsewhere. Your book is still one of my favourites and I refer to it often. In the city where I live there is an informal 'medal club' that meets infrequently for 'show and tell' sessions and at the last meeting I took along your book and some of my Korean War medals and won a bottle of whiskey! You deserve a share of the bottle! I look forward to seeing the new edition of your book. Kind regards Brett

In his book on the medals of the Korean War, Kevin Ingraham records that there were 2 898 awards of the Croix de Guerre TOE during that war. Brett

This medal was also awarded for service in the Korean War and, like those for Indo-China and Algeria, it had a bar (Coree) identifying the conflict concerned. I hope to one day acquire such a medal for my Korean War collection. Brett

Very interesting, Demir. Other Turkish militaria collectors must envy you! Best wishes Brett

Pj Since the 39/45 Star and War Medal were Australian issues, the missing Pacific Star makes sense. The Australians were heavily involved on the land, sea and air in the war in the Pacific. Unfortunately, finding a missing named medal is virtually impossible and replacing it with an unnamed example is often frowned upon by collectors. Also, the Australian provenance means that there is at least one other medal missing - the Australia Service Medal, which was awarded to all Australians who served in WWII. The fact that the Australian medals have a name and service number means that the service papers of the man concerned are obtainable. I do not have a web address for the Australian War Records office, but googling it should work. The Australians are excellent record keepers, so the service papers should be very revealing. Also, Australians have great pride in their military history and medals to Australians are sought after and well priced. If a family link could be established between the Danish and Australian medals, it would open your way into the active and lucrative Australian medal market. Regards Brett

Judging from the British ribbon bars on the right, the person concerned was also entitled to the Pacific Star to go with the 39/45 Star and War Medal. Presumably the British medals are unnamed and it would be easy enough to add an unnamed Pacific Star to the group. Hopefully, there are family records that will indicate to whom the British medals were awarded. If the WWII and Korean War medals belong to the same person, it will be an even more valuable and desirable group. Many Danes served with the British during WWII and the Pacific Star suggests a link with the Royal Navy. Regards Brett

You are very fortunate to have such an inheritance. I am sure that Michael will come up with the right answer for you. You can be certain that you will have no trouble selling the medals. Regards Brett

As the name implies, the Cape Police were the police force of the Cape Colony and they were in existence long before the Boer War started in 1899. Cape Police records are preserved in the Cape Town repository of the National Archives of South Africa. A local researcher will be required to search for and copy any records relevant to this enquiry. The Archives in Cape Town will, or should have a list of local researchers and they can be contacted via the National Archives website. Regards Brett

A medallion such as the one shown was recently sold by City Coins, Cape Town (Sale 59, Lot 311), for SA Rand600, which is about US$80. Brett

I cannot recall seeing miniature ribbon bars in the militaria shop I frequent, although miniature medals are not uncommon and are mounted for wear mainly on mess dress. Interestingly, there seems to be no local demand for full-size ribbon bars and there must be dozens of them stored in boxes and seldom seeing the light of day. Brett

The Africa Service Medal ribbon was the first awarded to serving South African soldiers during the war and by the war's end it was commonly seen on uniforms, often together with the ribbon of the Africa Star. I don't know why the ribbon of the War Medal would have been issued later than those of the 39/45 Star and Italy Star, but I suspect it is the ribbon that has been squashed onto the bar. Single WWI War Medals were issued to South African troops that did not travel overseas and also soldiers that got as far as Britain but did not cross to France. Brett

Igor Do you have the name of the man to whom the medals were awarded? The book "Honors, Medals and Awards of the Korean War 1950 - 1953" by Kevin R Ingraham gives a good summary of the medals awarded to the French Battalion in Korea. He wrote that the battalion had "an enviable combat record". 3 763 men served of which 280 were killed, 1 008 wounded, 12 were POW's and 7 were missing. The unit won many awards and medals, including 2 898 Croix de Guerre des T O E. Ingraham goes on to record that the "'Battalion Coree', consisting mostly of Korea veterans, was wiped out by the Viet-Minh in one of the final, tragic battles of the First Indochina War". The medals of any one of these gallant men must be highly prized. Shown below is a made-up French Korean War group in my collection. It lacks the "Croix du Combattant Volontaire" with "Coree" bar.

Because I once collected medals to the South African Merchant Navy, a friend offered me one to the Dutch Merchant Navy and I bought it for what I thought was a low price. I still don't know if it has any value. The record I have of the medal is as follows: Netherlands War Commemorative Cross 1940 - 1945 with three clasps (Oorlogdienst-Koopvaardij 1940-1945; Middellandse Zee 1940-1945; Oost-Azie - Zuid-Pacific 1942-1945) awarded to: Captain Egbert Hoekstra Born on 6/10/1913 in Koudum, Friesland. Recorded as "Missing at sea 1940-41". Promoted to Captain in 1945. Harbourmaster at Surabaija, Indonesia. Expatriated on "Willem Ruys". Settled in South Africa, where he died.

Herman Thanks for posting the Dutch trio. We are seeing a good variety of Korean War medals on this thread. I hope there will be more. Regards Brett PS The British group mentioned in post #23 turned out to be made up with unnamed medals.

Brian I suggest you contact a researcher in South Africa, giving all the information that you have to hand. A good starting point would be with the records of the South African Mounted Rifles, which are in Pretoria. The researcher I use is Audrey, whose e-mail address is rhino.research@icon.co.za. I hope this helps. Regards Brett

Kim Thank you for keeping this thread alive with an excellent Swedish group. I hope that other members of this forum will add more rarities to it. Today I received another British Korean War group that was offered on a South African medal auction late in November. It isn't a rarity but I will in any case add a picture of the medal group later. Regards Brett

Brian I was pleased to find someone else with an interest in the Natal Police. I have a couple of spare Victorian NP buttons that are spherical in shape. If you want them, please pm me your address and I will post them to you. Regards Brett

Paul The reverse of the badge was inscribed exactly as you had indicated: DRAGO PARIS and H.385 Thanks again for sharing your expertise. Brett

Kim, thank you for clearing that up. Brett

Michael I admired this group on its previous posting and I am pleased to see it again. A truly impressive group of medals. Perhaps you can clear up something concerning Danish medals. In his book on the medals of the Korean War, Kevin Ingraham wrote: "Danish awards are a challenge due to the low number awarded and the requirement that they be returned on the death of the recipient." This must indeed be a "challenge" and I wonder if this rule applies in other countries. Regards Brett

Paul and Tim, thank you for your posts. I am constantly amazed by the depth of knowledge of GMIC members. I am disappointed that the unit concerned had no connection with the Korean War but, since I only had a record of the French infantry battalion in that war, it wasn't too surprising. Brett

Shown here is a made-up medal group representing those of a US serviceman. The National Defence Service Medal was a generous gift from Ulsterman, to whom I am greatly indebted. I hope that he will soon show US and Canadian groups on this thread as promised earlier. Brett

There is a memorial in Port Elizabeth that commemorates the 300 000 horses that died during the Boer War. Earlier this year, on 31 May, the anniversary of the day the war ended in 1902, another horse memorial was unveiled at the Weston Agricultural College in the Natal Midlands. This school is situated on the site of No. 5 Remount Depot near Mooi River from which horses used during the campaigns in Natal, Orange Free State and Transvaal were collected and dispersed. About 30 000 horses died at this Depot. Pupils at the school have collected horseshoes scattered round the property and these have been welded into an obelisk mounted on a pedestal to form part of the memorial. Most battlefield tourists to Natal probably bypass Weston, but the school museum and memorial are worth visiting by arrangement. Weston Agricultural College has a website that Google readily identifies. Brett

Thanks to Paul and Tim for your helpful replies. Paul I will be in the shop on Monday and will check the details you mention. Tim I was hoping that the badge did have a Korean War connection, hence my interest in it. The only other French badge that I know was associated with the Korean War was that of the famous Battalion Francaise - Organisation des Nations Unies (BF - ONU). I would very much like to acquire one of those. Regards Brett

Thanks again. This badge is from a collection recently acquired by a local militaria shop. They all seem to be of the same vintage, so perhaps the dates you have given will help with other identifications. Regards Brett