Thomas Symmonds

Hello All - Will, glad you have joined in - "The black South African members were not issued with the medal and this appears to have been a political issue taken at the time." Are you then saying that these men (South African SANLC) did not get any BWM at all? Regards Thomas

Hello Rob - Do you know who it belonged to, but if I am to gauge anything about the contributors to this thread it would seem to be more about the individual pieces and their manufacturers, rather than the recipient's details perhaps ? I would also imagine that these types of medal groups are becoming thin on the ground - maybe due to being split up and sold off as single medals? I ditto JM, - a very nice group indeed. regards Thomas

... the naming on the WWI medals. The second lot was a bronze BMW to a man in the Maltese Labour Corp. Most would say I paid too much for it, but I wanted it and I was happy to pay up (besides I only pipped the next chap by 1.36 GBP - nail biting stuff!). Unfortunately it has not arrived yet so the pictures are from the auction. I would be interested if some one could elaborate on where these corps found themselves during the war. best regards Thomas

Hello Brian, and other members - I have recently picked up two lots to Labour Corps personnel. The first is a group to father and son. The son's is a typical WWII group of 1945 Star, Africa Star, War Medal and the Africa Service Medal. The father's BMW is not the bronze issue, but I thought it would carry as it is SANLC and compliments my first post. The recipient is Colour Sergeant W. George - I have his BMW and Vic medals. His trio is completed by his QSA - named to the Cape Infantry.

Hello Gentlemen- Thank you for a very interesting topic - very different to my usual readings. "I am fortunate to have complete sets or examples of these items in my collection." - Come on now Will, don't tease, pictures please ... regards Thomas

Hello Len - A good start, and with two ABOs! I ditto what Mervyn says about the bars - but that is probably part of what has attracted you to the QSA / Boer War medals. Good luck and I hope you get as much enjoyment out of this field of collecting as I have. When allowed it would be good to see close ups of the individual medals / bars / naming of the medals. Research and the stories of the men/women behind the medals is what drives me in collecting. (I shall be in touch re the other medals.) regards Thomas

And a view of Victory meal number 13 - lucky number I hope, somewhere... It has a very nice ,I am told, original Czech ribbon. .. and the close ups ... regards Thomas

Very nice Rob. I hope the others post their fringe Victory Medals too. A quick question to the knowledgable - I have a Victory Medal that was, according to the recipient's MIC, only issued in 1948. It is at least 1mm thinner ... the naming only just fits ... ... so what version does Laslo label this one as?

Hello All - The wearing if the medal by the US troops, at that parade, was a fantastic gesture. So, if it is against regulations, the person who made that descision for the troops to wear them, should be applauded - even if it is just a once off wearing of the medal. As so often said on this forum - "jusy my few cents worth" regards Thomas

Hello All - ... and just before this thread explodes with new posts, a "simple" trio that I picked up to a father and two sons. All three were in the Royal Navy, and all three joining up as "boys" at age 12 years. Father, Archie Moore Parsons seems to have survived the war, while his one son, Albert Parsons, was invalided out (deafness) and the other son, William Archie Parsons was killed when the "H.M.S. Bulwark" was sunk 26th Nov 1914. and the naming ... Regards Thomas

Wow ! That is a fantactic item. I agree with Mervyn though and think the star might well have been peculiar at the time, but think what a collectors dream it would be if they went ahead with that design, along with all the bars! A very different medal indeed. Thank you for putting it up Mike. I had honestly not heard of it before now. regards Thomas

I have seen these around and have wandered wether it was worth while pursuing them ... I would like to know what others think. Did all the separate states produce one? regards Thomas

I agree - very impressive, and a few close ups would be great. For me I interested in group awards with a QSA in them... regards Thomas

Hello Mike - Fantastic group, and good details. Thank you for showing. From what you describe he performed most of his duties, particularly the surveying, under very difficult circumstances and conditions. Aspects that might be difficult to understand given today's advancements in that field. regards Thomas

I managed to win this "Original Victory Certificate - French" at one of the on line auctions - Neate Auctions to be exact. I am very taken with it and am in the process of making a frame to take both it and the medal that accompanied it. They were awarded to a Sergeant Emile Roubard on 9 March 1929. If any member can make a full translation for me I would greatly appreciate it.

The next two miniatures arrived on Friday too, and they are SMALL ! Rob, your quote, " For your awareness both the Belgian and French vic mini's were produced in a number of sizes including: * Belgian - 12, 13.5 and 17 mm. * French - 11, 13, and 17 mm. " suddenly rang very true. My French mini Vic is very small - 11mm and the Belgium mini Vic is 13.5mm These "small" miniatures seem really strange to me, as next to any other "normal" miniature they look quite odd. And on a bar I would imagine that they would all but disappear. These miniatures don't have any maker's marks though - unfortunately.

And lastly, the maker's mark to my Greek Vic ...

Rob, my Greek Victory's clasp seems to be of a different metal ... it is tubular and has no join like yours does. I hope not a problem ... ?

Hello All - My little cache arrived yesterday, and it was all I could do to wait tilll now (Saturday, lunch-time, children asleep, wife on the couch, ...) to post them for you. First my Greek Victory Medal ...

... and the SANLC .. The other medal is to an Indian soldier - Bearer Hardial Murli, A.B.C. I am in the process (as with most of my medals) of completing research on these medals. There is always more to uncover .... A great thread. Thank you Brian for initiating it. Regards Thomas

Hello Brian, and other members - I have two bronze WWI BWM, and I think I can answer Mervyn's query in that I have one named to a Private A. Romonate S.A.N.L.C

Hello Noor - A fantastic group with an amazing amount of paperwork. The medals themselves of great, but there, to me, is always that small, nagging bit of disappointment that they were not named - always leaving that annoying tiny element of doubt - so the paperwork here is treasure! Do you have more on his service? That snippet about engaging U-boats sounds very interesting... regards Thomas

Even if all the information gathered reflects positively on the group, with a renamed medal(s) the best that can be said is that the group is a copy of what the soldier was entitled to. Unless the renaming is official ...

ukok - I have a really good looking Cape of Good Hope General Service Medal - with the "Transkei" clasp that I was after at the time. Attributed to Corporal G W C Smith - Bakers Horse, things all checked out. He was on the roll etc. From a supposed reputable dealer I never doubted it. Put it up with the rest of the collection, filled a nice gap - until I showed it to another collector... Not even for inspection more just a topic of conversaion... RENAMED!! and the more I look at it the more obvious it is. "Bakers Hse" is good - Corpl GWC Smith NOT. I now have a fancy looking paperweight! ... and I am back in the market looking for a Transkei CGHGSM.

Hello ukok - I am hesitant to ask - has the QSA been renamed? The photos are great, really good close-ups - I hope it is the angle of the photo, but the QSA's edge looks thinner from 4 o'clock to 8 o'clock ... ... more comments please! regards Thomas