peter monahan

Very nice, Stuka Kris! Not to worry about the politicl correctness either. As Mervyn says, different times, different mores. I've always been fascibnated by old maps myself, probably dating from my childhood when I flipped through an atlas my father bouhgt, probably before my birth in 1955. Even as a teen, I was fascinated by how many bits of the Pacific were under the 'guardianship' of the British, French or Americans and now, 6 decades later, how many bits of the maps are just wrong! I can easily imagine a class of students looking at the 'old globe' and imagining what in English was called the 'dark continent', with all that implied both positive and negative. Perhaps some of them went on to see parts of that world too. I will always remember my first visit to St. Paul's Cathedral in London and a wall plaque there which commemorates 4 brothers. Three died in the Colonial Service in west Africa and one on campaign in India. The oldest was less than 30 at his death and I suspect none of them left much money behind or other 'spoils of empire' but rather what Kipling called 'the white man's burden' - the notion which seems so odd and arrogant today that they had a moral duty to improve the world! Long ramble there, but thanks for posting the globe pictures! Peter

Quick work and well done, Megan!

That is indeed an impressive 'chest'. I suspect some of our 'foreign medals' experts can make more of it than but from the ribbons ahead of the British cluster and the Pakistani ones after, a head of state from one of the princely states which went to Pakistan on Partition. Only 188 years old, you say? My nation - Canada - will be 150 years old next year! And our oldest buildings here - there are a few in Quebec City - are less than 400 years old. Nothing to some of the shrines and fortresses in your part of the world. Peter

Even if it does read 'CDS', errors in naming are not unknown. A nice find if it is to the Guards.

Yes, welcome aboard, Tariq. One of my life long interests is the old British Indian Army and its successor units and its nice to have someone with expertise - i consider myself only a dabbler - in this often obscure branch of military history and collecting. Peter

Indeed an interesting piece. The lion looks heraldic, which doesn't men NOT military but I feel a touch fancy in style to be a badge. However, I am by no means an expert on early British plates and badges and must admit that 'R V P' conveys nothing to me either. However, I'm sure some of the UK members can assist. Welcome to the GMIC, by the way. Always nice to get fresh blood and new perspecyives. Peter

I, from the depths of my ignorance - 40 years of largely sitting on the sidelines watching, as opposed to buying, selling and owning - was agreeing with Jock's assessment of the object. Don't disagree that it is worthy of research but as a 'gut feeling', it still smells. I hadn't payed a huge amount of attention to the remarks anent a 'quick flip' except to agree to myself that it leaves a bit of a sour taste. However, I wasn't offended by the remarks and have to agree with Mervyn, on calm second thought, that one man's quick flip is another man's investment in the hobby. Its certainly how I've paid for things in the past. On the topic of 'dealers', however one defines that term, I can only quote my father, a professor of philosophy: 'knowledge is neither good nor bad' and, by extension, sharing knowledge generally does not carry any moral burden. We are here because we like to see, discuss and research militaria. If someone uses the collective 'wisdom' of the group to sell something, rightly or wrongly identified, we are not morally culpable in either case. It's about intent, IMHO, and I don't intend to enrich or impoverish anyone by my historical maunderings. No harm, no foul, gentlemen?

Skimming rather than reading, I missed the 168 hours FP! That is harsh indeed. He must have been a very bad boy indeed but presumably one whom the CO decided could be salvaged for the regiment as opposed to being consigned to the glass house or shot. It would be interesting to see the details of the court martial. Here in Canada those records are available, though not on-line yet. Are they similarly accessible for British soldiers?

Not surprisingly, one doesn't often hear or read about the missions the SAS of various armies carry out under cover and or in civilian clothes and identities. Sussing out enemy artillery positions in Serbia/Bosnia comes to mind, as does the infamous Gibraltar IRA 'take down' several decades ago now. Not just residual paranoia on the part of the military.

Still makes joining a Sikh regiment a bit odd. Like the old joke: "McKey, present. O'Rourke, present. Jones, present. Feinstein, present. Brown, present. Schmidt, present. Liverpool Scottish, present and correct, sir!" Gotta be a good story there, whoever or whatever he turns out to be.

And if you want the lyrics of songs actually sung on the march in WWII, find a copy of "Songs from the Front and Rear" which was, at least when published in the 1970's, the definitive list of dirty army songs!

Lovely thing! H***ish hard to store and display any number of them however. Unless you turn them into coffee tables. [Joking!]

I think Brian has done an excellent job - 'diplomatic' as opposed to 'political' - of conveying his uneasiness with this piece. I'm no expert but my 'gut feeling' is 'No!' No one even felt the need to point out that the Young Pretender's lads probably had better things to do than be decorating drums! Even as "the Duke of Atholl's" it doesn't pass the smell test for me either. I tend to Jock's assessment - less diplomatic but to the same end!

Two factors come to mind, Dan. One, the Light Bobs wanted to be as distinct as possible from the 'straight legs' / 'grunts' / 'PBI'. Two, the Lights coveted, even if they rarely wore, rifle green. The Canadian Glengarry Light Infantry wore green and I bel;ieve a number of the British Victorian LI volunteer units did as well. So, they likely made could make the 'historic tradition' argument, one which often carries substantial weight even in these penny-pinching times. My two cents worth. Peter

I suspect 'malingering', even in a war zone, was capable of multiple interpretations. Maiming oneself - the infamous shot through the foot - to avoid combat would be at the 'high' end of the scale and might in fact become a capital offence. Feigning a belly ache to avoid work detail, OTOH, would be less serious, though probably enough to cost a fortnight's pay 'pour decourager les autres'. And it can't have been uncommon, though probably dealt with by a cuff round the lug hole in many cases and not through official channels.

I would tend to agree with Mervyn's guess that the original clasp was mislaid between the issue date and when the group was mounted. A small piece of metal, perhaps in an otherwise empty envelope or, worse, floating loose in a box or drawer would be very easy to lose over a number of years. if that's what happened then either your uncle or Spink's may have provided the tailor's copy to get the group finished for the dinner. A not uncommon occurrence with bars, rosettes and various other small 'devices' meant to go on medal ribbons or uniforms. Yes, we would love to see photos of the medals and of your uncle if you are inclined to share! Peter

Joine up under age the first time and got caught by the family, pressured into resigning and re-upped when he was able to? Interesting puzzle!

Don Didn't realize you spoke from personal experience. I stand corrected! And I was forgetting the behind the lines part of the equation, which would obviously influence one's potential options. Not a duty I'd ever consider signing up for, I don't think! Happy New Year! Peter

Ouch! That's cold. I'm not sure I believe it either, though the US has been accused of equally cynical tactics in all sorts of areas. That sort of thing tends to be counter productive, IMHO, because word inevitably gets out among the troops, which tends to do bad things for morale!

Not a lot of overhead invested in decorating the shop, but lovely work! I'm interested [as a part time cobbler] in the forward slant in the leg of the top boots and wonder whether it is deliberate. I'm guessing it would give an odd wrinkle around the ankle when worn. OTOH, making good Wellington boots is the true test of a cordwainer, so perhaps these are apprentice work or a rush job. Thanks for sharing, Chris. Peter

Ulsterman - the repro. tins I've only seen on-line, as most of the sellers in the UK wouldn't ship to Canada but as far as one can tell from multiple shots on ebay they look much like the originals. My repro. contents look just like Paul's [originals?].

Lovely! I drool in envy! Yes, I asked rhetorically on another forum a while back 'is it odd to open a random box in your garage and find a chapeau bras and a trench knife?" the joys of collecting. And forgetfulness!

Les, The descendants of the men killed in Siberia in 1919 might argue your "no bullets, artillery..." but in general your point is valid: the deaths didn't stop at an arbitrary time on an arbitrary day.

Yes, this is a fascinating collection. Many of which I covet for my own budding WWI collection! Thanks, Ralph, for taking the time.

Thank you, sir, for the unsolicited testimonial! BTW, my youngest will be arriving in SA at the end of January, for at least one term at the Uni in Cape Town. I'm thankful that she has decided to live in student housing, though off campus, and am scheming to get her a can of 'bear spray' to take with her. It is sold in stores here in Canada for hikers. The rest of the world knows it as 'Mace' and, of course, one is totally forbidden from using it on potential assailants! Or is there an SA equivalent?