Kev in Deva

The white "helmet" seems to have an odd shape to it, how about a French Colonial I tropical sunhat?, perhaps these troops have moved into a recently vacated French Barracks to do a course, While at first glance the Shako is typical I believe for German Police units, when cropped and enlarged there appears to be a tri-color Rosette and under this a hole in the material where the insignia has been removed, the bill / peak of the shako is also more rectangular in shape than the one on a Police shako. I think they are all sporting items of French military headgear, as why would P.O.W.s be posing with French items? Kevin in Deva, :beer:

Hi Paul R, we get the message . . . . . really we do . . . . Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Helmet to the rear is a French Adrian helmet the one to the front a brass firefighters helmet note the wearers two service ribbons, military service and the Ost Front medal. Also many of them have their rank markings covered over on the shoulders boards which leads me to believe they are men from various units on some type of a course. In my opinion they are on a break from the course and there is no indication that the French Policeman is guarding them. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Next I must try and find out were they screw back or broach pin to the rear. So let the search begin. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Number 4:- Anti-Aircraft Artillery. (?) Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

Number 2:- Signals. Number 3:- Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

Sadly not mine, and I cant recall ever seeing any offered at the Fairs I attend here in Romania, pictures were from recent online auctions that recently ended and I post here for reference. There could be up to 40 Trade badges from what I have been told. Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

A very nice design. I see the certificate dates to 2009 so a good indication to the year of issue. Kevin in Deva, :beer:

A known Walt who's mini medal bars and insignia migrate to various locations on his person with no ryme or reason, the same for the wear of various military association ties. Kevin in Deva.

In bold above, factually incorrect, these awards were issued to members of the R.I.C. as well, the Designer was of British Nationality, and if struck in the Royal Mint in England particularly in the case of: MEDAL COMMEMORATIVE OF QUEEN VICTORIA'S VISIT TO DUBLIN, APRIL 1900 then how can you claim:- when the R.I.C. received all three of them as them as well. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Noor, your splitting hairs, the Royal Irish Constabulary and the Dublin Metropolitan Police enforced British Laws in Ireland, their wages and pension were paid for by the Crown. The people in Ireland at this period were deemed to be British subjects. The medals were British in design, and paid for by the British. By the way, in the Medals Yearbook of 2006 states that the two medals were designed by G. W. de Saulles Online Source:- http://irishconstabulary.com/topic/517 MEDAL COMMEMORATIVE OF QUEEN VICTORIA'S VISIT TO DUBLIN, APRIL 1900 By Command of Her late Majesty Queen Victoria, and in gracious recognition of the services rendered by both Forces on occasion of Her Visit to Ireland from 3rd to 26th April 1900, a Commemorative Medal has been issued to all officers and men of the Royal Irish Constabulary and Dublin Metropolitan Police who were then on duty in Dublin. The Medal is also held by the members of the Civil Service staffs of the Royal Irish Constabulary and Dublin Metropolitan Police Offices, Dublin Castle. The Medal, specially designed at the Royal Mint, was struck in bronze, and its design consists, on the obverse, of the effigy of Her late Majesty, with the legend "Victoria Regina"; and, on the reverse, of the figure of Erin welcoming the arrival in Kingstown Harbour of the Royal Yacht with the Queen on board. At Erin's feet lie her Harp, with shamrocks and roses. Below, in the exergue, is the date "1900". The brooch by which the Medal is fastened is also of special and appropriate design. MEDAL COMMEMORATIVE OF THE VISIT OF KING EDWARD VII TO IRELAND, 1903 By Command of the King a bronze Commemorative Medal has been issued to all Officers and Men of the Royal Irish Constabulary who were on duty in places visited by Their Majesties the King and Queen on the occasion of the Royal Progress through Ireland in July and August, 1903. The Medal is also held by those Members of the Civil Service Staffs of the Royal Irish Constabulary and Dublin Metropolitan Police Offices, who were actually on duty at Dublin Castle during the Royal Progress. The obverse of the Medal bears the effigy of His Majesty, as designed for the London Metropolitan and City Police Medal struck in Commemoration of the Coronation; it is inscribed Edwardus VII. Rex. Imperator. The reverse is identical with that of the Medal struck for presentation to the Irish Police on the occasion of the visit of Her late Majesty Queen Victoria to Ireland in 1900, save that "1903" is substituted for "1900". MEDAL COMMEMORATIVE OF THE VISIT OF KING GEORGE V TO IRELAND IN 1911 By Command of His Majesty a silver Commemorative Medal was issued to all Officers and Men of the Royal Irish Constabulary, and of the Dublin Metropolitan Police, who were then on duty in Dublin. The Medal is also held by the Members of the Civil Service Staffs of the Royal Irish Constabulary and Dublin Metropolitan Police Offices, Dublin Castle. The ribbon of the 1911 Visit Medal is dark green flanked by two red stripes, reflecting the colours of the RIC. Pictures of all three medals can be seen by scrolling down towards the bottom of the page in the above link. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

A Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year 2011 to all our members and their families, wherever located, and if you have to work, stay safe and well. Kevin, Adriana & Family, Deva, Transylvania, Romania :jumping:

His police service was under British Crown rule, as such he would have been along the lines as any member of the Royal Irish Constabulary (R.I.C.)and probably his pension was paid via the U.K. So what you have, in fact is a British Medal bar for Police Service to a Irish born subject of the Queen / King as the case may be. Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

I took the liberty of posting your pictures on a Romanian Forum and here is some of the replies:- Reply 1:- Reply 2:- Reply 3:- Kevin in Deva. :beer:

With regards the two pictures in your last, how can we be sure that the Police medal with clasp & star are original as a issue item? The second picture shows the normal clasp that was common to the Portuguese victory medal however, from the front it appears not to be pulling the ribbon out of line as much as the pictures posted previous. My understandings from reading Mr. Laslo book with regards the Portuguese Decree's concerning the Portuguese Victory medal award and Commemorative Medal of the Campaigns of the Portuguese Army, Mr. Laslo mentions:- Decree No. 5:400 of April 12 1919 with regards the "Clasp "Batalha de La Lys, 9-IV-918" for those wounded in the Battle of Lys. Provisions for the "FRANCA 1917 - 1918" clasp because of it being associated with the Victory Medal. Decree No. 6:568 of 24 April 1920 :- completely revised the service criteria of Decree No. 6:186, including the provision for three month's combat service and eliminated those articles of Decree No. 6:186 pertaining to those eligible. (Clasps:- "FRANCA 1917 -1918" or "MOCAMBIQUE 1914 - 1918." for the Commemorative Medal of the Campaigns of the Portuguese Army.) this was later amended by Decree No. 8:993 of 17 July 1923 to include those military personnel referred to in Law No. 1:123 of 4 March 1921. (Establishment of clasps for the Commemorative Medal of the Campaigns of the Portuguese Army for service during the war in the maritime defense of the "Entrenched Camp of Lisbon" and the cities of Funchel (Madeira Islands) and Ponte Delgada (Azores). Those clasps bear the legend:- "C.E.L.,Defensa Maritima 1916-1918", "Funchal, Defensa Maritima 1916-1918", "Ponta Delgada, Defensa Maritima 1916-1918" Decree No. 6:186 :- stipulates the design criteria. (later amended by Decree No. 7:464 of 25 April 1921. With regards Decree No. 6:186 Mr. Laslo writes:- " as with many Portuguese medals a ribbon buckle of dull (matte) bronze was also prescribed. The ribbon buckle appears to have no special significance and may have been primarily intended as a decorative device for securing the two halves of the suspension ribbon when folded over the French style mounting bar typically used by the Portuguese.= Decree No. 6:186 - the names of eligible Army personnel published in Divisional orders from rolls provided by subordinate commanders, and its likely that a similar arrangement was established for Navy personnel. So it appears Mr.Laslo had good access to the Portuguese Archives, (the same can not be said for those countries that ended up in the Eastern Block, (Czechoslovakia, Romania,) or as in the case of the Siamese / Thailand example, civil service indifference to certain information and statistics. All we can hope for is to see some period pictures of these Portuguese clasps in wear on recognizable dated pictures of military persons or veterans. Or a publication in English of the original Decree material from the Portuguese Archives. Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

Hallo Gents, just a thought but, was the 2 bronze star buckle originally intended for the Victory Medal? Too my eyes it appears to be pulling the ribbon in on the right-hand side, suggesting to me it was meant for a narrower ribbon. Is the ribbon original PortugueseIAVM ribbon or a version of the US/UK replacement ribbon? Hopefully we can get confirmation from a Portuguese G.M.I.C. member with regards the ribbon insignia and clasps. The "Bible" The Inter-Allied Victory Medal of World War 1 /2nd Revised edition) by the Late Alexander J. Laslo, only makes mention of the Silver Star :- "Decree Number 6:756 of the 10th July 1920 established a silver star suspension and service ribbon device to recognise those persons who served in combat as defined by Decree No:6186. This five-pointed star has a radius of 3mm and was to be placed in the middle of the ribbon buckle. The star is secured to the ribbon by two prongs which are pushed through the (ribbon) fabric and then bent over." Kevin in Deva.

Hi rusticalex Many thanks for your recent additions to this thread Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

With regards the Austrian and Hungarian WW1 Commemorative awards:- There is also a non-combatant version of the Austrian (same medal) with no swords on the ribbon and the Hungarian non-combatant variation of the medal with no bayonets on the medal and another type of ribbon. Kevin in Deva. :cheers:

I would settle for the ribbon bar alone, I have been told the gentleman in question is deceased. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Off the top of my head mine is for a Acting-Corporal I would ask the original owner, but at the mo, he is back in Afghanistan. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Can we have a bigger picture? Kevin in Deva. :beer:

In my personal collection are versions with:- "R" "RR" "C" "S" and as noted above there are unmarked versions to be found and medals in quality silver, reputedly awarded to Officers. http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=7352&view=findpost&p=251937 Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Hallo I.G. I have taken the liberty of cropping and highlighting the bar picture for clarity. A very interesting piece congrats on your find. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

While the tank is of French design and manufacture it is shown here in use with Americans, possibly crewed by Americans,I believe they also had the same tank model in the US, so altogether not a wrongly worded comment. Kevin in Deva. :beer:

Great collection Paul all neatly laid out on a white U.S. military towel! Kevin in Deva. :beer: