Kev in Deva

Boer secret weapon for left-handers?? but at least you can read the flag now Kevin in Deva

Hallo Chris looking at your picture, was it printed from the wrong side of negative as the letters on the flag look backwards??? I copied and reversed it in Microsoft Office Picture Manager, please see attached. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Dave, all the UN medals have tiny silver numbers indicating more than one trip in the various UN missions, I believe 2, 2, 2. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Robert with regards the Picture & Portuguese equipment helmet, their distinctive helmets were made, of low resistence steel in 1916, in Birmingham, England, for the "Corpo Expedicionario Portugues." They were in green and a dark grey-green. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Paddy With regard the Centurion: Manufacturers: Leyland Motors, Leyland, England; Royal Ordnance, Leeds and Woolwich, England; Vickers-Armstrong, Elswick, England. Development of the A41 Centurion took place during the closing stages of the Second World War. Six prototypes were shipped to Germany, but they arrived too late to play any part in the allied victory. Production commenced shortly after the end of hostilities (with the vehicles eventually entering full-scale service in 1949) and continued until 1962, by which time 4423 had been built. Britain?s first post-war tank has a distinguished record of service in several wars, despite weaknesses which are strikingly obvious today. The 650hp Rolls-Royce petrol engine was very thirsty, without compensating by providing a good maximum speed ? and then there?s the question of the fuel?s dangerous flammability. The result was a woeful maximum speed of 34km/h and an operating range of well under 200km: compare this with its diesel-engined successor, the Chieftain, which managed over 400km per tankful at an almost impressive 48km/h. Some Centurions were provided with an armoured monowheel trailer carrying additional fuel, which boosted range if not manoeuvrability or the crew?s peace of mind. The main gun of early Centurions was a three-inch 17-pounder. On the Mk III vehicle, this was replaced by a 3.28" 20-pounder. Most (but not all) later models used a fully stabilised 105mm L7 series gun. At the time of writing, some derivatives of the Centurion were still in service* ? in Denmark, Isreal, Jordan (the Tariq derivative), Singapore, South Africa and Sweden. Predictably, most have new diesel power-packs. Technical specifications Engine: Rolls-Royce Mk IVB 12-cylinder liquid-cooled petrol producing 650hp at 2550rpm Maximum speed: 34km/h Fuel capacity & range: 1037l, 190km Armament: 105mm main gun, 7.62mm MG coaxial, 12.7mm RMG, 7.62mm MG (commander?s cupola), 2x6 smoke grenade dischargers Combat weight: 51.82t Length: 7.823m excluding gun (9.854m gun forwards) Width: 3.39m Height: 3.009m Armour: max. 152mm Crew: four * Australia made extensive use of them as well. After this followed the Chieftain and now the Challenger tanks, Challengers are in use in the Iraq war, there is one recorded incident of a Challenger taking out another Challenger in Gulf War 1 "Fog of War" 2003 British Challenger 2 tank came under fire from another British tank, blowing off the turret and killing two crew members, Corporal Stephen John Allbutt and Trooper David Jeffrey Clarke. (RIP). For information with regards Abrams please see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1_Abrams Kevin in Deva

Hallo Ralph A, great display are the loose swords from a BMVO as the style seems different? Kevin in Deva

Hallo Ardent with regards 2004 it would have fell short of the 90th Aniversary, which had a more significant meaning in regards of planned ceremonies. And a Presidential Inauguration would have been a quite seperate ceremony, is there any evidence that she choose that date personaly or was just following protocol?? I dont believe for a minute she planned it as a slight for Irelands World War I war dead, seeing as this date was seldom celebrated anyway in the Republic of Ireland, thanks to DeValera's bullyboys causing problems at the Island-bridge celebrations, after he said he wanted no celebration for the men who were traitors to Ireland, people stopped attending WW1 Commemoratons around the Republic of Ireland. Kevin in Deva

More like a snot-rag err..... handkerchief and Bon-Bons Kevin in Deva

Cross section view. Larger pictures available on request by PM. Kevin in Deva

Rear View. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Gentlemen, At a collectors exposition in Brasov a week ago, (November 18th) I acquired this sheath, its made from a combination of leather and canvas webbing, the leather has been given an application of black boot polish!! The sheath measures: approxamatly 15 cm. The opening for the blade is 30 mm. The sheath hangs from a canvas webbing strap, measured from the rear at 11cm, the strap opens to take a web-belt, there is a cross web strap to hold the knife in place, it fastens by means of a metal stud-knob which pushes through the canvas strap. The lower part of the sheath has a strip of canvas webbing around it held in place to the rear by a rivet. There are no markings on the item. The item is old and dates from WW2 or post WW2. It does not appear to be a commercial item but a military one. Can anybody offer any clue as to where the item comes from?? Kevin in Deva:beer:

Hallo EuRob have to say the medals make the bar, or vice versa , great looking combination and I was glad to help. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Chip, with regards the picture, I think the standing Portuguese soldier is being used as a stretcher bearer, the bag around his neck holds his gas mask, and on the ground to his right, judging by the puttees / leggings appears to be another Portuguese soldier who is wounded, the soldier with the medic is clearly a German. On the tailboard of the truck to my eyes is what also appears to be a medics tornister / pack with white circle (red-cross) on the flap. In all a great picture showing lots of details. I attach a picture of 2 typical medals issued for WW1 to Portuguese troops. Portuguese Victory Medal, and the Portuguese Cross of War. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Robert, the Portugese were involved in WW1 on the Allied side, even issued a Victory Medal along the lines of the British one, the standing soldier is a Portugese wearing the Portuguese ribbed helmet. I attach some info here under: With regards the Lys plain area. SPRING OFFENSIVE: APRIL 1918. " This year, (1918) however, there was a difference, of which arguably insufficient notice was taken. 'Against all precedent, the ground of the Lys plain began to dry in February and March.' There was enough anxiety for it to be thought advisable to remove from the front, or at least reduce the area held by, the weakest link in the chain of defence: the 2nd Portuguese Division in the vicinity of Laventie. Least committed to the Allies, sent to fight in a war in which they had little or no interest, less fully trained and slow to acquire Western Front expertise, the so-called "Pork and Beans" were seen as highly vunerable in the event of an attack. They were seen in precisely the same light by Ludendorff. He would later write that, one "Georgette" had been decided on, 'the sooner it could take place the more likely it was to surprise the Portuguese in the plain of Lys.' When the attack was launched, its timing was even better than Ludendorff could have hoped in that it caught the Portuguese in the act of being relieved. They broke and fled in confussion. Something of the shock of the German onslaught can be sensed in the diary account of a British Liaison Officer, attached to the Portuguese, Captain R.G.C. Dartford; his account, of which the following are brief extracts, also suggests that amongst those who did not retreat, including some of the attached British, there were many casualties: 9 April, Tuesday; Woke at 4.10 a.m. very heavy shelling. Guessed from the start it meant an attack. Phoned to Brigade - every communication cut already. Next 3 hours we could do nothing, but nearly got aphyxiated by the lack of oxygen owing to having to keep gas blankets down. Heavy fog on and everybody seemed isolated from others. I think the Boche must have taken our frontline about 8.30 and the B line 8.45 and was up to Battalion H.Q. by 9.15 or so. One message from X. de Costa (CO 29th Batt.) said he no longer had any command and that it was a question of individuals fighting out. He was killed we learnt after. So was Captain Montenegro, OC 20th Batt. (right flank) and nothing is known of Montalvao (left flank) and Woodrow and Sgt. Ransdale. ......... The Division seriously destabilized by the Portuuese failure was the 40th, which had the 119th and 121st Brigades in the front line. The commander of the 119th Brigade, Brigader-General F.P. Crozier, a senior officer of Irish extraction and doughty reputation, has left a terse but vivid description of the state of affairs on the eve of the German attack, and of the opening of the attack itself: On the night of the 7th - 8th April we arrive in the line south of Armentieres. On the right are the Portuguese. I don't like the feel of things - all is to quite. I go down to the Portuguese front with a colonel. We walk seven hundred yards and scarely see a sentry. We examine rifles and ammunition lying about. All are rusty and useless. 'Where are the men?' I ask my companion. A snore gives me the answer. Practically all the front line sleeps heavily and bootless in cubby holes covered with waterproof sheets, while their equipment hangs carelessly about. . . . . 'Our communication trenches are fearfully bad,' says the colonel, 'stretchers can't move with ease in them!' 'I know,' I say, 'I'll see what can be done about them, but from what I can see,' I reply, 'I think we'll be shot out of this at dawn, via the rear!' I go back to my headquarters in a farm, and report what I have seen. 'They're always like that,' says a member of the British Mission attached to the Portuguese, on the telephone. 'They shouldn't be there,' I say, 'that's the crime.' In the early morning a deafening bombbardment wakes me up. Before long my batman Starret arrives. 'Put this on', he orders, holding out my gas respirator, 'and get dressed at once. You'll be wanted. I'll pack the kit. Get you to the telephone place, it's strong.' I obey! All is mystery and gas. The Portuguese bolt and leave the way open to the Germans. ......... From a letter writen by Captain Graham to his wife some days later described in vivid detail what turned out to be far from a routine mission. . . . . his letter conveys strikingly the chaotic conditions behind the lines in the immediate aftermath of this massive German attack: On the 9th of April we were peacefully asleep at 4 a.m. at a little place called Croix-du-Bac, near Armentieres and close to Sailly and Bac-St-Maur and Steenwerk, when an intense bombardment began on our right. General John at once sent me post haste in an open motor to visit the Goose (i.e. the Portuguese), who were on our right flank, and from whom no telephone message could be obtained, to find out what was up. I started gaily out at 4.45 a.m., but when I reached the outskirts of the village (or town) of Estaires I found it being very heavily shelled. We managed to get through it somehow, though it was most unpleasent - a shell hit one house just as we were passing it, and it came down with a crash into the streets, scratching a lot of paint off the car and frightening the driver and myself quite a lot. With a sigh of relief we reached open country beyond, but at the next village (La Gorgue) we found the Hun was gassing it as well as shelling it, and our adventures were even more alarming! However, we arrived at last at Lustrem, the Goose's H.Q., just as two shells fell through the roof of the Chateau were the old bird lived. Needless to say (it was about 5.30 a.m. by this time) the only people left were three British officers and the old P. General himself, a pale but dignified figure, much shaken by the fact that one shell had fallen into his room, just as he was leaving the door. Not another soul anywhere to be found, for every bird had flown at the commencement of the bombardment, and no chance of discovering what was happening at the front line. I must not tell you what happened there, but knowing our oldest Allies as I do, you can well imagine. Enough to know that the right flank became expossed to the furious onslaught of a great number of Hun divisions at 5.30 a,m, but that we clung on, as thank God, the 40th always do, for six more hours, and only retired when we had to about noon. Meanwhile, as I was talking to the pathetic remnant at the Goose's H.Q., another British officer arrived, and told me the 40th was being heavily attacked and our HQ at Croix-du-Bac shelled - and I thought it time to go home and see what was happening. ......... By the end of April 9th at the maximum point the Germans had made an advance of three and a half miles. . . . . Excerpts taken from Malcom Brown's, The Imperial War Museum BOOK OF 1918 Year Of Victory. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Erik, I am very surprised not to see a " U N I F I L " clasp, seeing they are having a "U N T S O & U N I C Y P" or has Dutch-Batt contributions to Lebanon been forgotten already. or did I miss something in the write up. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Dan, I believe the Custer Battlefield with the locations of the dead were recorded after the event and if not mistaken, period pictures were taken showing the various location of the bodies If so, the area is a well documented one, and has been subject to many arcealogical surveys, far be it so with the alleged Sgt York path, also the ground where Sgt. York was, has been subjected to much in the way of shell-fire and countless numbers of spent cartridges as well as other fragments must lie around with many being of the .45 model (whereas the Custer site would hold a few hundred assorted cartridge cases.) Weather has to be taken into consideration western Euope is more wet than the Custer site, so more chance of items being found in the ground being in a more degraded condition. And again the point arises about the gun, was it in fact kept, and if so, is it the actual gun, carrying all the original pieces of mechanism such as firing pin, extractor, etc, because if even one of these has been replaced then the gun can no longer be proved to be "the one" belonging to Sgt. York. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Stijn David, while my German is not quite perfect, I believe it translate loosely to : "I could risk a small (thick) lip, because on my worn Africa jacket was stuck the cloth image of the silver achievement badge for the engineless flight, at that time still quite rare and desireable." Kevin in Deva

The rear. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Gents, just a small piece to add to this very interesting thread, a couple of years back my twin brother Kieron who lives in Norwood near London sent me a box with some WWII medals as a birthday present, included in the box was three small items I took to be mini medals at first glance (please see picture). The work on the 1911 farthing took a little time and patience to do, after fretting, with a needle file. As a sidenote anybody got any information on the one and only mini medal in set?? The third item is a Alpacca "Aries" zodiac sign. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Gents, just a small piece to add to this very interesting thread, a couple of years back my twin brother Kieron who lives in Norwood near London sent me a box with some WWII medals as a birthday present, included in the box was three small items I took to be mini medals at first glance (please see picture). The work on the 1911 farthing took a little time and patience to do, after fretting, with a needle file. As a sidenote anybody got any information on the one and only mini medal in set?? The third item is aAlpacca "Aries" zodiac sign. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Gents Also note the little tabs to the rear in the lower bar are very shiny compared to the top one, possibly a sign of them being recently worked on!! Kevin in Deva

Hallo smiler, I believe your badge is a German Navy Combat Diver badge originals to WW2 had very pronounced "teeth" on the sword fish blades, also lack of a maker mark might indicate a private make or a repro. More experienced members will no doubt add their views. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Danziger Congrats on your find If original then has to be extremly rare as only 88 first class, and 258 second class were awarded. Can you please post close ups of the rivets to the rear, of the first class and second class and the measurements of the crosses. I remember reading that it is known that in the 1960s a number of restrikes of the First Class were produced in Germany. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Carol I all is clear with regards the practise of Romanian units adopting children, a very nice gesture especially with respect to the children of fallen comrades, maybe some of the other members might know if any other military carried out the same practise and post the info here, with some pictures if they have them. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Dragos nice pictures, you manage to take anymore shots of the Brasov show?? I was the guy in the camo jacket, you should have come over and said hello. Kevin in Deva.