peter monahan

Interesting question! I have no dea, but it seems not unlikely that others of the 'stans' have passed similar regulations. I have taken the liberty of moving this post to the 'Mongolia' forum, where I suspect those most likely to know the answer are more likely to see it. Peter

Any details, Frank? Are they being turned out as 'real' or simply the Russian version of heavy metal teen jewellery?

Pity! Lovely piece though.

Fabolous stories. And a great photo too. Thanks for posting. I never met him , but there was in the 1970s and '80s a Canadian officer whose medal entitlement included his WWII German decorations. He was, I think, a very young, late war enlistment in the Wermacht and after the war emigrated to canada and joined our army as a career. And eventually got permission to wear his German medals in uniform, which may have been productive of a few awkward moments from time to time. It certainly got him talked about! I'd never known that internees could joing the labour Corps / Pioneers either. It makes perfect sense, though: putting useful men to work in a place where they could do no harm if their sympathies were with the Axis. Clever that.

That was my thinking too, Dave: wall plaque, car badge or something of the sort.

The other possibility is that he was a member of the Volunteer Corps. Thought they weren't technically 'Royal', he term may have been used in the document because that's how it was supplied by your ancestor. I'm not sure whether this is more or less likely than that he was a Veteran, and doesn't help with the dating issue either, as the Volunteers were supposed to have been disbanded well before 1822, but again, he may have referred to past service. perhaps worth exploring alongside the Veterans.

Don't know how I missed this when you posted it. Fascinating! I wonder how many times over the last 100 years somebody has looked in that cupboard, said 'Oh, shite!' and quietly closed it up and gone away again. Hard to believe that nobody knew, but stranger things do happen.

Welcome to the GMIC, Nigel. I'm on the wrong side of the Atlantic, and not a police collector, so can't help with these but I'm sure some of the members will be able to provide research hints and possibly even hard data on the two PCs. Glad you've joined us! Peter

Sounds like a fairly special gong! Please do let us know what you find out at the museum, or elsewhere.

I think you're right, Larry. OOpps!

There wouldn't be much point to a bayonet which prevented the rifle being fired while it was mounted! What it di to one's aim is amnother story entirely. In fact, if memory serves, wasn't there a British regiment badly cut up whilst using plug bayonets? That very early form actually went into the muzzle of the musket. In the case I'm recalling, the pulgs were fixed just before a charge, by Highlanders, perhaps at Preston Pans, who decimated the British soldiers.

Possibly a 'Windsor carrier', the Canadian variant with the longer chassis and extra bogie wheel in the rear?

Very nice! I'm a little surprised he didn't keep any cap badges as well. I especially like the old fashoined razor. And I mean, old fashioned for WWI, I think, with the shorter blade, which I associate with the 19th century. With his number on both sidrs and the case - very practical.

Marvellous! Thanks for sharing.

I know the feeling well!

Glad to hear he's got a peaceful place to call home! I think that's what all old soldiers want.

Nice find. I know a very little about the Napoleonic poeriod, mostly from the British side, and I'm a little surprised to see a stamped name plate/maker's mark on soemthing that early. I have no Italian, bar a few rude words, but the name 'Neapolitan Military Union' suggests a group or company to me, rather than a military unit. I wonder if these might have been made for a military academy or something similar which wore/wears period uniforms. However, if they are the same as the pair you tagged on the web site, they're valuable and you should get some expert advice. Try speaking to a reputable auction house: send them the photos and ask what they think. Knowing where they came from might be important too. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

The military has a long history of 'just growing' things. The classic examples seen today, in fact, seem to be most associated with Highland gear: the evolution of a bonnet with a plume on it into the 'feather bonnet'; the very peculiar pointed back canvas spats some pipe bands still wear and the pleating on some regimental kilts, which hide more material than they reveal for the sake of having identical verticals on each 'panel'. Never let the practicalities get in the way of a good look! And, of course, the habit of sneaking in 'regimental distinctions' despite the best efforts of higher ups is, I think, endemic to all armies and an important part of the tribal nature of regiments and their members.

I was out yesterday speaking to high school students about the war. When I get over the flu and unpack the car I'll try to remember to photgraph the contents and my tin and post it here. As far as I can tell - not far - the contents seem to be aithful copies of some of the individual tins. Tony, I can well imagine that the tins took a long time to deliver to NoK. As I sufggested, I believe the Indian Army ones chased the jawans out to mespot in 1917 or so. I'm writing up the 70 men from my community who died in the Great War and the medals. crosses, scrolls and plaques all went out 1920 at the earliest.

he must be getting on by now! I suppose the car dealership is long gone and he's living on all the 'loot' he allegedly gathered in his years as a 'Wild Goose'

Not sure what the regs are on UK medals thse days, but I don't believe it is 'wrong' to overlap medals. That said, if I were going to go that route I'd overlap all of them just a touch, as you've done with your last gong, for symmetry. I'm sure the MOD and British legion have protocols for this, but I tend to use the 'eyeball rule' - does it look OK? My tuppence worth.

Lovely! I was able to get an originakl tin last year and there is a company in the UK producing a 'set' of photos of Mary, the King and the Queen, a Christmas card and two small packets of cigarettes and tobacco. I gather from my research that everybody who was in France in 1914 eventually got these, though some of the Indians not until 1916! A very evocative thing, and perhaps the last 'personal' touch by a British monarch, befoe the sheer scale of the war put paid to such gestures. BTW, I'm going to ask our Chairman to move this thread to the British Empire area, where moew of the interested members are likely to see it.

Shams My guess is that 'cord' is short for 'whipcord', a tough wearing fabric often used in the unifroms of mounted units in particular in the 19th century. Almost a canvas in some of its manifestations. Here's a thumbnail sketch of what it was: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whipcord

Those are lovely! Thanks for sharing them.