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Armourer

MILITARY HISTORY // EVENTS // AUCTIONS // COLLECTING

The

www.armourer.co.uk

Incorporating Classic Arms & Militaria

October 2017 • £4.99

CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE Collect the medals, muskets and sabres of the cavalry who charged the Russian guns at Balaklava

Operation Zipper

Far East offensive to liberate Singapore

Jihad in the desert

The British campaign medal for Sudan

V1 flying bomb

Hitler’s Vengeance weapon brought terror from the sky

German Spanish Cross The award to the troops who fought in the Condor Legion

Great War postcards

Collecting the comic adverts for the war in the trenches

Long Range Desert Group

The story and militaria of the legendary North African raiders

Display until 3 Oct 2017

PLUS 2IN MORTAR, WWI REICHSREVOLVER, ORITA SMG, CLASSIC SPORTING GUN

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Selling Your Militaria?

Warwick and Warwick have an expanding requirement for British and Worldwide uniforms, edged weapons, badges, headgear, firearms, antique arms/armour and militaria. Our customer base is increasing dramatically and we need an ever larger supply of quality material to keep pace with demand. The market has never been stronger and if you are considering the sale of your militaria, now is the time to act.

Free ValuationS

We will provide a free, professional and without obligation valuation of your collection. Either we will make you a fair, binding private treaty offer, or we will recommend inclusion of your property in our next specialist public auction.

Free tranSportation

We can arrange insured transportation of your collection to our Warwick offices completely free of charge. If you decline our offer, we ask you to cover the return carriage costs only.

Free ViSitS

Visits by our valuers are possible anywhere in the country or abroad, usually within 48 hours, in order to value larger collections.

Please telephone for details.

adViSorY daYS

We are staging a series of advisory days and will be visiting the following towns within the next few weeks, Galashiels, Dunfermline, Hamilton, Cirencester, Sudbury, Braintree, Ruislip, Isle of Man, Telford, Dundee, Edinburgh, Dumbarton, Honiton, Minehead, Lichfield, Durham, Stockton on Tees and Portsmouth.

Please visit our website or telephone for further details.

excellent priceS

Because of the strength of our customer base we are in a position to offer prices that we feel sure will exceed your expectations.

act now

Telephone or email Richard Beale today with details of your property.

Warwick & Warwick Ltd. Auctioneers and Valuers Chalon House, Scar Bank, Millers Road, Warwick CV34 5DB Tel: 01926 499031 Fax: 01926 491906 E-mail: richard.beale@warwickandwarwick.com www.warwickandwarwick.com

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REGULAR

Warners Group Publications, The Maltings, West Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH Tel: 01778 391000 • Fax: 01778 392422 Publisher Rob McDonnell robm@warnersgroup.co.uk Editor Duncan Evans duncane@warnersgroup.co.uk Tel: 01778 391103 Sub Editor Susan Hibbins Head of Design and Production Lynn Wright

ADVERTISING Group Key Account Manager Claire Ingram claire.ingram@warnersgroup.co.uk Tel: 01778 391179 Sales Executive Ben Jackson ben.jackson@warnersgroup.co.uk Tel: 01778 391129 Auction House Sales Executive Kristina Green kristina.green@warnersgroup.co.uk Tel: 01778 390296 Advertising Production & Design Nicola Lock nicola.lock@warnersgroup.co.uk Tel: 01778 392420

DISTRIBUTION Warners Distribution Andy Perry • Tel: 01778 391152

MARKETING Marketing and Brand Manager Nicola Lumb nicola.lumb@warnersgroup.co.uk Tel: 01778 395007

PRINTING This publication is printed by Warners 01778 395111

SUBSCRIBE TO THE ARMOURER For the latest offer call 01778 392489

Quarterly subscription (3 issues): UK £12.99 by direct debit Buy a digital edition at www.pocketmags.com

Keep up to date on Facebook www.facebook.com/armourermagazine Follow us on Twitter @The_Armourer Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.

All rights reserved. Dates, information and prices quoted are believed to be correct at time of going to press but are subject to change and no responsibility is accepted for any errors or omissions. Neither the editor nor the publisher accept responsibility for any material submitted, whether photographic or otherwise. While we endeavour to ensure that firms and organisations mentioned are reputable, the Editor can give no guarantee that they will fulfil their obligations under all circumstances. Whilst every care has been taken to compile current valuations, the publishers cannot accept liability for loss, financial or otherwise, incurred by reliance placed on the information herein. Quoted prices are indicative and are for illustrative purposes only. Always seek expert advice with regard to valuations.

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed by contributors and advertisers are not necessarily those of the publishers. Every care is taken to ensure that the contents of the magazine are accurate but the publishers cannot accept responsibility for errors. While reasonable care is taken when accepting advertisements, the publishers cannot accept any responsibility for any resulting unsatisfactory transactions. They will however investigate any written complaints.

Welcome

W

e go back to the Crimean War this month with our cover feature on the Charge of the Light Brigade at the Battle of Balaklava. Now, while this is etched into most people’s subconscious as a disastrous military folly, and it was certainly the result of muddled orders and miscommunication, it wasn’t a catastrophe as some would have it. The losses were severe, but the Light Brigade wasn’t wiped out and they did drive a wedge in the Russian forces.

The war in Crimea is notable for a number of reasons. The first is that it saw the introduction of the Victoria Cross. It was also the first war that received regular newspaper coverage from reporters actually at the front.

The fighting initially captivated the audiences back home but the reports from William Howard Russell (whose articles inspired Tennyson to write his famous poem) exposed the poor medical facilities and the bungling that led to the Charge. In our cover feature we look at the Charge itself, as well as the wider Battle of Balaklava in which it took place. Supporting features include collecting muskets and rifles, the use of sabres by the mounted troops and the highly collectable medals from the Crimean campaign.

It’s also somewhat ironic that one of the reasons for the war was to prevent Russian expansionism into the Crimea, as the Ottoman Empire contracted, thus threatening British interests in India. Keen-eyed readers will see that there is no accompanying battlefield tour feature this month. That’s because, all these years later, the Russians are in the Crimea again, but this time no

one has stopped them annexing the peninsula from the Ukraine. As a result, all tourism tours by companies in the Crimea are currently banned and you are advised to avoid the general region, thanks to ongoing military action between the Ukraine government and Russian-backed separatists in the east.

If Victorian-era conflict isn’t your interest though, don’t worry, because we have a fantastic selection of other features to read. How about Hitlers V1 flying bomb, the first cruise missile, and the development of the Reichsrevolver?

For the British and Commonwealth side, there is surely no more legendary outfit than the Long Range Desert Group – these mavericks roamed the North African desert performing recon and carrying out assaults. We also look at the portable and effective British 2in mortar – how it was developed and collecting the accessories today – and the webbing that the average British soldier had to use during WWII. Before I finish, I’d also like to point out this month’s My Militaria feature.

Phil Froom showcases some fascinating equipment that was supplied to Allied prisoners of war to help them escape and evade capture. Phil will be writing a more expansive feature on this for a subsequent issue. If you have a similarly quirky collection you’d like to share, drop me a line at the contact details listed on the letters page.

Duncan Evans • Editor

Subscribe from just £12.99 Subscribe to The Armourer for just £12.99 quarterly, saving 13% on the cover price. Turn to page 26 to find out more.

Subscribe and save today at www.armourer.co.uk www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Contents

Inside

WIN!

126

OCTOBER 2017 // ISSUE 146

84

88

78

REGULARS

3

Welcome

What the Editor has to say about this issue, in which we focus on the Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava.

7

News

What’s happening in the world of militaria, museums, exhibitions, collections and events.

12 Militaria for sale

Lenny Warren trawls the internet looking for unusual bargains or just plain bizarre items of militaria you can buy.

EVENTS

14In the sale rooms

Here’s what is coming up for auction in the next month, including badges and aviation at Bosleys and Third Reich items at Ratisbons.

18War & Peace Revival

The Revival was back at the Hop Farm in Kent with hundreds of re-enactors, military vehicles, exhibitions and dealers.

20 Tankfest

Who doesn't love the sight and smell of armoured vehicles? John Norris reports from the Tank Museum’s showpiece event.

4

23 Under the hammer

Discover what has been sold at recent auctions, including Zulu medals at DNW, rifles at Holts and WWI medals at Warwick & Warwick.

106

FEATURES

Long Range Desert Group 38The

The story behind the freewheeling, prototype special forces group in the North African desert, one of their most important missions and the highly collectable militaria.

50 64

50British 2in mortar

This classic, portable mortar for infantry troops was a success in WWII. Collect the accessories and weapons themselves.

60

German Spanish Cross

60

The award for the German troops who fought in the Condor Legion in Spain is examined in detail. Here are the prices and what to look for.

War comic postcards 64Great

It wasn’t all blood and misery – well, not according to these postcards, anyway. Ray Westlake heads to the post office with a collection of comic cards from the trenches.

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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REGULAR COVER FEATURES

COVER STORY

of the Light Brigade 28 Charge

Gerald Prenderghast looks at the Battle of Balaklava and the confusion of orders that led to the heroic, but foolhardy, charge.

45 Medals

in the Crimea There was a newly instituted award in the form of the Victoria Cross to honour the valour of the troops fighting Russian expansionism.

69Orita SMG

Yes, it’s finally here. The history and development of the Romanian alternative to German SMGs is revealed by Michael Heidler.

78Taking back the East

The little-known story of the British and Commonwealth plan to retake ports in Malaysia, then Singapore, from the Japanese.

55 Muskets and rifles

Graham Priest looks at how the different types of rifle used in the Crimea developed during the conflict and collecting them now.

101

It was the first of Hitler’s revenge weapons and the start of the flying bomb campaign in 1944.

Matthew Moss examines the use of bladed weapons and their effectiveness during the Charge of the Light Brigade.

SIGNALS

time it’s a high-quality rifle for no less a figure than the Prince of Wales.

Terror from the skies

74 Lance and sabre

112 Reviews

38

Bill Harriman and Duncan Evans take a look at the latest military book releases.

117 Festival Diary

Your guide to historic days out, shows and re-enactments around the country.

84WWI Reichsrevolver

106 Jihad in the desert

88Gearing up for action

110 The Photo Inspector 120 My militaria

Bill Harriman tells the story of the development of this handgun for the forces of Imperial Germany.

No soldier would be without his combat webbing. Graham Priest reveals the different types for British forces in WWII.

95A King’s rifle

Another tale of classic shooting guns: this

Mark Simner describes the British Army’s campaign in Egypt and Sudan, and the awarding of the Queen’s Sudan Medal.

Ray Westlake takes a close look at a period photo to identify badges, awards and unit information in this regular series.

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118 Auction Diary

Don’t miss that must-have militaria. It’s your dates for upcoming auctions.

Phil Froom shows off his fascinating collection of items for Allied troops trying to escape from captivity.

122 Collector’s focus

Neil Thornton showcases a silk bookmark from the Anglo-Zulu War, with accompanying note.

124 Your letters

Have your say on collecting militaria, features in the magazine and identifying mysterious objects.

26 SUBSCRIBE TODAY! SAVE MONEY ON THE ARMOURER www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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REGULAR

militarianews Duncan Evans reports on what’s happening in the world of military history and collecting COMMEMORATION

Passchendaele remembered Members of the Royal Family joined Theresa May and the King of Belgium at a service to commemorate the 275,000 Allied and 220,000 German soldiers who were killed, wounded or lost in the Third Battle of Ypres, commonly known as Passchendaele. The ceremony, which started on 31 July, was attended by 4,000 descendants of those who fought in the battle.

The commemorations began with a speech by Prince Charles, 100 years to the day after the terrible battle started. He said, “We remember it not only for the rain that fell, the mud that weighed down the living and swallowed the dead, but also for the courage and bravery of the men who fought here."

The Duchess of Cambridge joined with German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel and Queen Mathilde of Belgium in

RECORDS

New collection of records for Great War pipers There is a long history of Bagpipes and the British Army, and whilst they weren’t officially recognised until 1854, many of the Army’s battles since the mid1700s were fought with pipers playing. The original purpose of the pipes in battle was to signal tactical movements to the troops during battle.

By the time of WWI it was not only the Scottish or even

laying wreaths at the graves of German soldiers buried at Tyne Cot cemetery.

Later, Prince William joined Theresa May to represent Britain at the Menin Gate with 200 descendants and said, “Members of our families, our regiments, our nations, all sacrificed everything for the lives we live today. During the First World War Britain and

British regiments that had pipe bands, with Commonwealth countries such as Canada, Australia and even South Africa having regiments with their own pipers. The bagpipes’ importance in linking the men back to the history of their unit, and of their homeland, was not under appreciated. The sound and swirl of the pipes boosted morale amongst the troops and intimidated the enemy. However, unarmed and drawing attention to themselves, these extraordinary men were sitting ducks as they went over the top to pipe their men into battle.

Forces War Records has presented the transcribed collection of records for ‘Pipers of Scottish and overseas Regiments

Belgium stood shoulder to shoulder. One hundred years on, we still stand together, gathering as so many do every night, in remembrance of that sacrifice."

The service ended with the playing of the Last Post, a tradition that started in 1928 and has continued almost every evening since. As it ended, thousands of poppies,

Piper Records blog (Image coloured by Doug Banks) during the Great War 1914-18’ as a permanent memorial to the men involved and an invaluable

representing all the soldiers with no known graves, were released from the ceiling of the Gate.

In the evening the Cloth Hall in Ypres’ Market Square was illuminated as a series of events took place, including music and narration. The National Youth Choir of Scotland gave a performance while Dame Helen Mirren helped tell the story of the battle. A special version of War Horse, written for the event by Michael Morpurgo, was enacted in the Market Square.

Testimonies from both Allied and German soldiers were projected onto the Cloth Hall, including an interview with Harry Patch, known as the Last Tommy, who only spoke of the horror of Passchendaele when he reached his 100th birthday.

More information about the commemorations is at passchendaele2017.org. ■

resource for genealogists.

This collection records all of the men who belonged to these pipe bands during World War I. Apart from their general military information (names, service number, rank, regiment and battalion), this collection notes their fate (if applicable) and a brief outline of how the bands were utilised. This often states that the band was quickly withdrawn from frontline service.

Due to their importance for morale, the pipers were often no longer used even as stretcher bearers. It is quoted that over 1,000 pipers died during WWI. Go to the War Forces home page to start searching at www. forces-war-records.co.uk/ records.asp ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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News MEMORIAL

War memorial name furore

ARTEFACTS

WWII bouncing bombs resurface Armorel K. Trevelyan, commonly known as Kitty, was just 17 when she signed up for the Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) and left Meavy, near Yelverton in Devon, for the muddy battlefields of France. Kitty came from a well-off family but worked in the canteens, feeding the troops on the front line. She arrived in France in 1916 and served for 13 months before contracting measles and then pneumonia.

She died, aged 19, and was buried in the Commonwealth War Grave at Wimereaux in the Pas de Calais, France.

In her home village of Meavy she was largely forgotten for 100 years until the charity Wenches in Trenches uncovered her story.

It was responsible for getting her name etched on a war memorial in her home village in February of this year. However, as the memorial has statutory protection, permission should have been sought first. Dartmoor National Park Authority told The Armourer,, “This has arisen from the addition of the name ‘Kitty

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Trevelyan’ to the Meavy War Memorial by the parish council.

The memorial is a Grade II listed building and as such has statutory protection. Dartmoor National Park Authority has no objections to the principle of her name being added."

The National Park Authority is currently trying to work towards a mutually agreeable solution with the interested parties and is not currently insisting it is removed until a solution has been found.”

Meanwhile, the War Memorials Trust made this statement: ‘War Memorials Trust does not object to the principle of adding Kitty Trevelyan’s name to Meavy war memorial, nor has it asked for her name to be removed. However, we do believe that any addition of a name on a war memorial should be undertaken legally, with due consideration to the style of the existing names and in consultation with the local community. In May 2017 the Trust received comments from members of the public about the way in which Kitty Trevelyan’s name had been added to Meavy war memorial.'

In response to the various issues the Trust suggested consultation with the local community to decide how Kitty Trevelyan’s name should be commemorated and consideration of alternative ways of adding the name. For example, a new stone being added to the base of the war memorial to ensure Kitty Trevelyan’s name could be commemorated in the same way as the other names on the war memorial. ■

In the middle of July, three pieces of history were brought to the surface of Scottish Loch Striven for the first time in over 70 years. They were among an estimated 200 of the Barnes Wallis-designed munitions tested on the loch ahead of the Dambusters raid in 1943.

Lieutenant Commander Tony Hampshire, Commanding Officer of the diving group, said, “Northern Diving Group were delighted to assist in this fascinating initiative. We welcomed the opportunity to provide our mine-lifting and recovery expertise to preserve this piece of history.”

The Northern Diving Group experts were enlisted to dive to the bombs to check them,

FILM

Where are the French?

While the film of the epic story of the evacuation of Dunkirk and the rescue of the BEF has met with theatrical approval there has been some criticism from certain quarters over historical elements.

French film critic Jacques Mandelbaum commented, in the French newspaper Le Monde, ‘Where in the film are the 120,000 French soldiers who were also evacuated from

give the all clear, and then raise them to the surface.

Attaching specialist lifting equipment to the heavy metal Highballs, the NDG team then winched them out the water and onto their workboat the Cato. After being secured they were then moved to shore ready for transport in wet tanks containing a special salt-water solution to prevent corrosion.

The project to raise the Highball bombs was an important one as there are no examples on public display.

They will eventually be housed in the Brooklands Museum in Surrey and de Havilland Aircraft Museum in Hertfordshire in time for the 75th anniversary of the Dambusters raid. ■ Dunkirk? Where are the 40,000 who sacrificed themselves to defend the city against a superior enemy in weaponry and numbers? No one can deny a director’s right to focus his point of view on what he sees fit, as long as it does not deny the reality which it claims to represent.’

Christopher Nolan’s film concentrates on the British forces though, with only a brief mention of the French fighting on the perimeter of the town to keep the Germans at bay. The film went on general release on 19 July. ■

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October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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16th - 17th Century Italian Helmet

Historic Firearms & Early Militaria Live Salesroom Auction November 1-2, 2017 10:00 am ET

ALWAYS ACCEPTING EXCEPTIONAL CONSIGNMENTS

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Bid in person, by phone, absentee or live online View Catalog online at cowans.com. Request a printed catalog by emailing catalogs@cowans.com Contact: Jack Lewis firearms@cowans.com 1.513.871.1670 x227 6270 Este Ave. Cincinnati, Ohio 45232

cowans.com 14/08/2017 15:16

News MUSEUM

WWI ship sails again HMS Caroline, the only World War I Battle of Jutland ship still afloat, has reopened following the successful completion of winter repairs, and the installation of an ingenious engineering solution to make it safe for visitors, said The National Museum of the Royal Navy.

The ship, which was fully restored and opened to the public on 31May 2016, through £15,086,100 backing from Heritage Lottery Fund and £4,518,000 support from Tourism NI, has reopened following hull repairs conducted over the winter last year by Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries.

A highly complex permanent mooring system was used to make the ship safe for the public and also to protect the ship from lateral movement as it floats on the rising and falling tides.

Captain John Rees, OBE, Chief of Staff at The National Museum of the Royal Navy, in charge of the restoration and

project work, said, “Because of the historic fabric of Alexandra Dock, which is a scheduled ancient monument, and the complications of attaching an equally important and iconic vessel which weighs more than 4,000 tonnes to it, we had to progress the project very carefully and sensitively.”

The 122m-long light cruiser, built in 1914, was restored to its full glory with new decking, guns and a total refurbishment from bridge to engine rooms. Visitors are being offered a unique experience to journey back 100 years to a dangerous life at sea during World War I. The light

cruiser saw action in the famous Battle of Jutland on 31 May 1916, in which more than 8,000 lives were lost, and was the focus of international commemorations last year.

The living quarters of the captain, officers and ratings as well as the signal school, engine room, sick bay and galley and many other spaces are, once again, available to experience.

These hugely atmospheric areas of the ship are largely intact from the day the ship was completed in 1914.

In addition, state-of the art multi-screen video experiences, reproducing the sounds and

drama of the biggest naval battle ever fought, interactive installations, education suites and spaces for gala dinners and events will be open to the public.

Captain Rees said HMS Caroline stands shoulder to shoulder with the world’s most historically significant ships including Lord Nelson’s Victory and Queen Victoria’s Warrior, both of which are part of the National Museum’s fleet and are currently on display in the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

“HMS Caroline is a living legend. This is a world-class heritage asset and the only ship remaining from the Grand and High Seas Fleet of some 250 vessels,” said Captain Rees.

“We must not underestimate the value of this ship and the resonance of its history and position in Northern Ireland, so it is a matter of pride for us as well as a contribution to local communities that the ship is brought back to life as a museum and visitor attraction.”

The ship is now open seven days a week until 5pm. Check www.hmscaroline.co.uk for more info and ticket prices. ■

PRESERVATION

Lockyer to transform historic British guns into works of art When the founders of Lockyer of England saw a pile of 100-year-old guns destined for scrap, they decided to try to find a way to rescue them.

After months of planning, the company was launched to restore, decommission and transform the guns into unique pieces of sustainable art .

Managing Director George said, “We saw beautiful old British side-by-side guns destined for scrap and it bothered me how underappreciated they were. I saw these guns as works of art, as well as pieces of engineering, and we realised that was the way that we could save them.

We want people to appreciate each gun for its craftsmanship and its artistic value because

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a Lockyer ‘Art Gun’ is part of our sporting history – they are up to 140 years old.”

Each vintage gun at Lockyer is painstakingly restored then deactivated to current EU spec, so no gun licence is needed and it can’t fire live ammunition, but

can still dry fire. A team of experts make any repairs and restore and enhance the steel plate, which often features delicate engravings.

The barrel is taken back to its original steel and then given a finish of either original steel, graphite black, burnt bronze or

matt gold and reduced to 24in – that of an original coach gun.

Every Art Gun is then boxed up with a description of its own unique history.

The rescued guns are discovered worldwide, as well as people inheriting them.

Lockyer has already started receiving private commissions to turn bequeathed guns into works of art.

George said, “The guns come from lots of different sources and finding the guns has become something of an obsession! It’s exciting when we find a rare or particularly beautiful one. It’s amazing to think where that gun has been and what it’s seen during its lifetime.”

More details at www. lockyerofengland.co.uk. ■

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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See our website: www.andrewbottomley.com

ANDREW BOTTOMLEY ANTIQUE ARMS & ARMOUR Established 1968

TELEPHONE: 01484 685234 MOBILE: 07770 398270

Email: asbottomley@yahoo.com · Mail Order only The Coach House, Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, HD9 3JJ

FOR SALE...

A SELECTION OF ORIGINAL ANTIQUE WEAPONS

A superb English pin-fire pepper-box pistol of approx 7 mm calibre. Circa 1865. Ref 9979

A very fine and rare Japanese brass percussion pistol. Good condition. Circa 1840-1850. Ref 9981.

A fine English 6 shot double action 7 mm antique pinfire revolver with most original blued finish & folding trigger. Ref 8839

An interesting American antique percussion “Bootleg” single shot pistol circa 1850. Ref 9724

£1450.00

£2850.00

£690.00

£470.00

An unusual pair of continental Percussion pocket pistols with folding triggers. Circa 1840. Good condition. Ref 8562

C.R. Alsop Pocket Model .31 cal - A very rare American Civil War Percussion Revolver. 75/80% blued finish. Ref 6899

Pinfire revolver with Ivory grips, silver inlay & folding bayonet. Circa 1865-1875.

Very good condition. Ref 6010

Antique American .32 Rimfire tip-up Revolver circa 1874-1879, made by DERINGER company of PHILADELPHIA. Ref 8492

£860.00

£3000.00

£1800.00

£680.00

An English Queen Anne style cannon barrelled flintlock pocket pistol engraved BENNETT ROYAL EXCHANGE LONDON Circa 1780. Ref 9388

An English 5 shot bar hammer percussion pepperbox pistol. Engraved Rotherham.

The type used during the American Gold rush era. Circa 1840. Ref 9467

An American WHITNEYVILLE ARMOURY .38 Rimfire 5 shot revolver with unusual long barrel. Circa 1873. Good condition.

Ref 8464

An American Merwin & Bray style .30 rimfire single shot Derringer. Retaining approx 70-80% of its original blueing.

Very good condition. Ref 9369

£750.00

£780.00

£690.00

£680.00

Rare early American Naval Dirk with reeded hilt, complete with scabbard engraved with Anchor. C 1800. Ref 7662

Indonesia / Malay Keris or Kris with carved grip and silver covered scabbard Ref 6326

A very rare American powder horn with owners name. The spout or charger is engraved “JOHN Armstrong, Emmitsburg 1792”. Ref 8801

17th century Rare “Hounslow” style hanger or short sword. English C. 1640.

Good condition. Ref 6474

£850.00

£495.00

£1250.00

£1750.00

ANTIQUE WEAPONS ALWAYS WANTED Every item for sale is guaranteed to be authentic.

No Licence is required to purchase genuine Antique guns in the United Kingdom. p011.indd 5

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Buying and collecting

Militaria for sale Lenny Warren trawls the internet to find bargains, rare, interesting or bizarre items of militaria For many of us growing up in the 1970s, our childhood was filled with wonderful toys that would ultimately shape our future lives.

For me, playing with an Action Man, reading Commando comics and playing with Airfix soldiers would surely lead on to collecting militaria when I reached adult life. So, for this month’s column, let’s have a look back at those collectable militaria toys and figures from our childhood.

Who didn’t have an Action Man? Borrowing from the US range of GI Joes, Palitoy launched Action Man to the UK market in 1966. The first figures available were Action Soldier, Action Sailor and Action Pilot. Rather than being marketed as a ‘doll for boys’, it was termed ‘a moveable fighting action figure’. It became an instant success, and was named as Toy of the Year. As years went by, innovation followed with features such as flocked hair, gripping hands and Eagle Eyes. As well as the actual figures, there was a range of accessories, including weapons, vehicles and even an Alsatian guard dog for the German soldier.

This example of a Life Guard is in excellent condition, a 100% original vintage example which has been displayed rather than played with. I had one similar back in the ‘70s, although mine was decidedly grubbier. A very rare item with a correspondingly high price -

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£375 from www.eagleeyesactionstation.co.uk If it was too rainy to play soldiers outside, and I wasn’t playing with my Action Man, I’d often be reading a Commando comic. It’s amazing just how accurate these comics were generally, and many a ten-year-old boy would be heard discussing the relative merits of an MP40 versus a Sten or Thompson in school playgrounds up and down the country.

Commando is Britain’s longest serving war comic; it started in 1961, and still

F OR SA L E

offers stories of excitement, danger and courage under fire. Whilst the language has changed slightly from the 1970s, they are still riveting reads. The early editions are very collectable and also expensive; however, there are plenty of reasonably priced examples around for as little as a few pounds. This very early example, No.4 ‘Mercy For None’ is available for £200 at www.30thcenturycomics.co.uk With all that playing with toys and reading comics, it was inevitable it would lead to playing at soldiers, or more precisely, playing with soldiers, especially those from Airfix. Back in the 1970s’ heyday of production, Airfix produced 1:72 scale – popular with dioramas – and 1:32 scale – more fun for playing with – soldiers from WWI and WWII and also modern and Waterloo eras. The original Airfix company went bust in 1981, leading to a succession of new owners, with Hornby the latest. Pre1981 1:32 scale soldiers, with boxes in good condition, are the most collectable. Look out for Commandos, Afrika Korps and 8th Army, Russians, Americans and German troops: a typical set costs around £20. There is also a version from 1977 that looks as if it was made for an export market like Australia, and these are much rarer and correspondingly more expensive at around £65 per box. ■

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F o rth c o m i n g A u c ti o n s o f

Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria 27th and 28th September 6th and 7th December

The exceptional Second War GC group awarded to Chief Officer (later Captain) GP Stronach “In the full knowledge that the ship was likely to blow up at any moment he stayed on this burning vessel searching for survivors for an hour and twenty minutes - His action equals any in the annals of the Merchant Navy for great and unselfish heroism and determination in the face of overwhelming odds” Sold by Auction on 10th May 2017 for £216,000

We will be offering many lots of mixed Militaria in our September Auction

www.dnw.co.uk 16 Bolton Street Mayfair London W1J 8BQ Telephone 020 7016 1700 Fax 020 7016 1799 E-mail medals@dnw.co.uk

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Auction preview

In the sale rooms The weapons, uniforms, medals and militaria coming up for auction

Big badge auction at Bosleys

It’s a busy September for Bosleys as the 6th will see a live internet Military Badge Auction containing 649 lots of rarer, original metal and cloth badges. Items will include: Naval Armoured Trains badge: this naval unit came under the command of the RNAS and operated on the Western Front from September 1914 until March 1915. WWI badge collectors will find a rare selection of London Volunteer Training Corps cap badges and this is complemented by several London Regiment cloth shoulder titles. Remaining with cloth badges is a scarce Newfoundland Garrison badge and also a WWII 116 Indian Infantry Brigade badge. Special Forces collectors will find a fine example of a 5

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Commando flash. A troop of this unit participated in the famous Operation Chariot, the raid on St Nazaire. SAS collectors will have the opportunity to bid on a rare original first pattern theatre-made cast brass Cap Badge designed by Sergeant ‘Bob’ Tait, who served with L detachment Special Air Service in 1941.

Bosleys and sister company Marlows will conduct their annual specialist Aviation collectors’ sale on 14 September.

Already consigned is a fine 1942 Bomber Command casualty Distinguished Flying Cross group.

A small selection of rare, original SOE and Aircrew escape and evasion aids have been consigned and include a cigarette lighter with concealed compass

to the base, a collar stud compass and an unopened escape package containing rabbit snare, compass, boiled sweets, sewing needle and threads, razor etc.

WWI will be represented by a selection of RFC and RNAS cloth and metal badges, rare RFC/RNAS aircraft compass and an Officer’s RFC maternity tunic worn by an Observer.

WWII Aviation will see a good selection of Luftwaffe items, including flying clothing, equipment and log books.

Remaining with aircrew, there will be log books compiled by a wireless operator of 106 Squadron who had his log signed

by Dambuster Guy Gibson VC and also flew as a crew member with Flight Sergeant Lewis Johnstone Burpee DFM, who was killed on the dams’ raid.

The log has further Dambuster links with the signatures of Dave Shannon and John Hopgood. A pilot’s logbook compiled by Wing Commander Michael Renaut DFC DFC (USA), records two tours of operations.

Great Escape collectors will find a small quantity of ephemera of a Senior NCO from the War Crimes Investigation Team looking into the murder of the 50 Great Escapers.

Regular updates are on Bosleys website, see the back cover of The Armourer for details. ■

London best gun at Holts

Holts Auctioneers is selling a rare lightweight 12-bore deluxe self-opening side-lock ejector, by London gunmaker J. Purdey & Sons. The hammerless game gun was completed by Purdey in June 1965 and features attractive large scroll engraving.

Holts Auctioneers Chris Beaumont commented, “This is a lovely example of a quite scarce deluxe variant on the classic Purdey self-opening side-lock."

The gun features 28in nitro chopperlump barrels, 2½in chambers, self-opening action with removable striker discs, automatic safety with gold-inlaid ‘Safe’ detail, cocking-indicators, profusely engraved with bold acanthus scrollwork on a finely matted background. The underside has an oval engraved ‘J. Purdey & Sons. London.

England’, retaining some original colour-hardening and finish, 14in highlyfigured stock. The estimate is £15,000-£20,000.

Holts Auctioneers’ next auction in London is on Thursday, 21 September. ■

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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EVENTS Third Reich documents at Ratisbons The 19th Contemporary History auction at Ratisbons of Germany will feature a number of Third Reich Soldbuchs from across the armed services. If you want something from the Afrika Korps then how about the Soldbuch issued in 1941 to Sanitäts-Obergefreiter Rudolf Weigert? There’s an original photograph attached and while the cover has separated from the booklet, all the pages are complete. Weigert served with Luftwaffen-Sanitäts-Bereitschaft 5/XIII. From 20 January 1945, he served with I./Gren.Rgt.979 (Heer). He was also awarded the German-Italian Campaign

medal on 3 January 1943. Starting price for this auction lot is £90.36.

Or how about a veteran of WWI who served in WWII? This Soldbuch was issued to Major d.R. Kurt Molkentin in September 1939

by Artillery Regimentt 218. It has an original photograph attached showing Molkentin wearing both repetition clasps to the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class. His awards included a clasp to his 1914 Iron Cross 2nd Class, Wound Badge in black, Clasp to a 1914 Iron Cross 1st Class, and a War Merit Cross 2nd Class with swords. Starting price is currently £72.29.

All the details and overseas bidding at www.ratisbons.com. ■

Rock Island Premier Firearms auction

More news from the Premier Firearms auction at Rock Island, to be held on 8 September.

Among the highlights is a Winchester Deluxe Model 1876 rifle. This has the Second Model receiver with screw-fastened dust cover rail and dust cover with serrated rear edges. This rifle is complete with a Cody Firearms Museum letter with additional details. All deluxe Winchester Model 1876 rifles are rare, but rifles with unique, documented, special order features are exceptionally rare. Estimate is a hefty $55,000-$80,000.

Or how about a Colt 1860 Army Revolver with matching deluxe shoulder stock? This firearm has been in a number of famous collections and extensively written about. The revolver and the attachable

shoulder stock feature the rarely encountered Colt ‘Heavy Leaf’ scroll engraving.This style of engraving was used for approximately one year c.1870 and is attributed by Colt engraving expert R.L. Wilson to Conrad F. Ulrich. The engraving covers the top and sides of the barrel lug, the frame, hammer, bottom of the trigger-guard, both sides of the trigger-guard and back strap. A lightly cut, finely engraved line encircles both ends of the cylinder scene. The shoulder stock yoke, upper and lower tang and buttplate are also engraved with the heavy leaf scrollwork. The estimate for this desirable Colt is an eye-watering $160,000-$280,000.

For fans of WWII-era weapons there’s a Haenel CG MP43/1 assault rifle. It has an all blued

finish with the bolt and bolt carrier assembly still in the white with an original flat-sided walnut buttstock. The lower left side is stamped, ‘5401c/43’ with upper side factory milled marking of ‘MP43/1’ over an earlier receiver marking. The front underside of the receiver is stamped with ‘cos’ which stands for Merzwerke, Gebr. Merz Frankfurt, who was a supplier of stamped parts from 1942-45, along with a small ‘fxo’ wartime manufacturer’s code for the C.G. Haenel factory in Suhl, which was a long time supplier of German smallarms throughout

WWII. The estimate is a walletstraining $18,000-$27,500.

If you want something more modern, take a look at the Colt M16A2 carbine. This is a very scarce and desirable M16A2 Carbine with the short 10½in ‘Commando’ length barrel. This example has the transitional M16A1 upper receiver with the tear-drop forward assist, and the two-position flip rearsight, combined with the M16A2 lower.

Expect to pay between $14,000 and $22,500.

More details are at www. rockislandauction.com ■

❯ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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17/08/2017 14:40

Auction preview Gallant Scotman’s Victoria Cross to be auctioned The Victoria Cross won by a Scottish artilleryman chosen to receive Britain’s highest gallantry decoration by his comrades for his bravery during the relief of one of the most famous sieges of the Victorian era is to be auctioned by DNW on 27 September. The VC, won by Gunner James Park of the Bengal Horse Artillery during the relief of Lucknow in the Indian Mutiny, is expected to fetch up to £80,000 at the sale of Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria.

Tragically Park, who came from Glasgow, did not live to receive his Victoria Cross, dying from cholera aged only 23 on 14 June 1858 – the year after the siege and six months before his award was officially announced in The London Gazette. However, he would have been aware that he had received the ultimate accolade of being selected to receive the decoration by his fellow gunners.

“There is something very special about a Victoria Cross bestowed on a man as a result of a vote by those who had fought alongside him,” said Pierce Noonan, a director of Dix Noonan Webb. “These were soldiers who knew which of them had shown the greatest courage in the face of the enemy.

There could be no suspicion of

intervention by someone higher up the chain of command. It was an unusual example of democracy at work in the ranks of the Victorian Army.”

Park’s decoration, which is being sold by a private collector, is one of only 46 so-called ‘Clause 13’ awards of the Victoria Cross. When the original Warrant for the VC was drawn up there

were concerns that singling out one or two individuals for special recognition for gallantry might cause resentment among their comrades. In 1855 Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband, suggested that in certain cases the distribution should be decided by men of the same rank as the person to be rewarded. When the VC was formally announced

in 1856, the Prince’s proposal was included as Clause 13 of the Royal Warrant.

James Park was born in Barony, Glasgow, in January 1835. After working as a labourer, he enlisted into the Honourable East India Company Artillery in Glasgow on 6 February 1855 for twelve years’ continuous service. Park embarked for India on 10 July 1855, arriving in Calcutta the following October where he was posted to 1st Troop, 1st Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery. He served during the Indian Mutiny, which broke out in May 1857.

During the Mutiny the 1st Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery took part in the relief of Lucknow, where the British Residency was under siege from May 1857 until November that year when a column reached the city and evacuated the defenders. The Bengal Artillery behaved with great bravery and under Clause 13 Park and four comrades were elected by their comrades, ‘for conspicuous gallantry at the relief of Lucknow from 14 to 22 November 1857’.

Park was the youngest of the Bengal gunners so honoured.

The location of his grave in India is unknown, although he is commemorated on a memorial in the Royal Artillery Chapel in Woolwich, London. ■

Arms at Marlows The next Marlow’s Arms and Armour sale will be held on Thursday 23 November. The Edged Weapon section will comprise the following swords: An 18th-century Napoleonic French Hussars, a Japanese Cavalry, a Polish 1917 pattern, a Polish 1934 pattern, a 19thcentury Khyber short sword and an 18th-century Indian armour piercing tulwar.

There will also be a good selection of Indian knives, including an 18th-century scissor katar, an armourpiercing bladed katar, a jade-

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hilted kard, a Bichwa doublebladed knife with bronzed hilt and grip, a Khanjar curved T section blade knife with fine quality jade slab grip hilt, a temple headed steel axe and a cut steel shafted elephant ankus.

There will also be other interesting items, including a British No. 22 Pipin rifle grenade, a British No. 35 rifle grenade, a No. 23 grenade, and a number of German items. These include WWII day badges, medals, a selection of equipment, wall plaques and dress uniforms. More details at www.marlowsauctions.co.uk. ■

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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Military Collectibles Auction Tuesday 17th October 2017

Auction Commences10:30am, Viewing from 9:00am Auction Venue: The Spa Hotel, Mount Ephraim, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN4 8XJ

Auction Includes: Medals, Badges & Insignia, Uniforms, Headdress, Imperial German, WW2 German/Third Reich, Edged Wepaons, Military Equipment & More.

Live Online Bidding Unit 4, High House Business Park, Kenardington, NR Ashford, Kent TN26 2LF Please contact Matthew Tredwen : Tel: +44 (0) 1233 510050 Email: matthew.tredwen@candtauctions.co.uk

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Show report

A world of militaria at War & Peace Duncan Evans took a trip down to Hop Farm for one of the biggest events of the year

N

ow back at its spiritual home of Hop Farm, the War & Peace Revival brought the sights and sounds of wartime Britain back to Kent. There were three main areas to the festival: the re-enactment groups and the Arena, the entertainment marquees and Home Front displays and finally, the huge array of dealers.

You’d be hard pressed to find as many re-enactment groups in the same place; there were camps of tired and dirty-looking grunts everywhere.

These mainly covered WWII with American (Screaming Eagles) and German (Second Battle Group) troops showing off their trucks, jeeps and weapons, but there were also displays from Vietnam (Australian Rolling Thunder group), the Home Guard, RAF and WWI British forces. Each day a section of these would head off

for the Arena so that on the Tuesday there was a post-war British encounter, followed by a Soviet battle on Wednesday, Axis versus British forces on Thurday, then Axis v USA, Vietnam and Axis v Allies over the weekend.

The entertainment marquees offered singers and big band sounds throughout the day, with dances in the evenings, while the Home Front display showed a range of shops and services from the war.

For the militaria collector, though, it was dealer heaven with everything from deactivated weapons to flags, medals, documents, uniforms and photos. The Soldier of Fortune stand was the biggest and hidden away in the throng there was even a militaria authors’ marquee with regular speakers all day. ■

The singers kept the crowds entertained with classic tunes

Good to see some British stiff upper lip with these WWI chaps

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October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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Don’t forget the Home Guard. Having a rest at their camp, they were soon marching aroun d

18/08/2017 10:32

EVENTS

The RAF re-enactment camp showed a group of pilots and support staff relaxing between ops

An overview of the re-enactors’ encam pments with a replica Germ an fighter in the fo reground

Soviet MosinNagant rifles

A world of wartim e goodies on display in the Hom e Front shops

i

WAR & PEACE REVIVAL

Entrance: £20 per day, £100 for five-day ticket, military and veterans £10 per day, under 16s free.

Location: Hop Farm, Paddock Wood, Kent The dates for 2018 have been announced as 24-28 July. For more details keep your eye on www.warandpeacerevival.com

www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Show report

Heavy metal thunder at Tankfest

John Norris reports from the biggest show in the schedule of events organised by the Tank Museum at Bovington in Dorset

I

n its collection, the Tank Museum has over 300 vehicles from 26 countries, from which a selection is chosen to participate in mobility displays during Tankfest, to show how tanks have developed.

The highlight at this year’s show, held over the weekend of 24-25 June, was the appearance of the only operational example of a St Chamond tank, a design used by the French Army in 1917. Together with vehicles currently in service with the British Army, visitors were treated each day to an

impressive, action-packed programme of tank design spanning 100 years.

The show featured armoured vehicles used during World War II, including the German Panzer III, variants of the M4 Sherman, British Daimler Dingo and Universal Bren Gun Carrier. Tankfest always has an international theme and from the Cold War period were designs such as the American M60, British Chieftain and Soviet T-72, along with a version of the Leopard, known as the C2, used by the Canadian Army. ■

Group of re-enactors depicting 101st Airbo rne Division were one of a number of historica l depictions with displa ys of equipment on sit e

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ing from 1917 The only St Chamond tank dat from which we’ve k tan of showed the early design come a long way

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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Visiting from the Nethe rlands was this Britishbuilt Humber Mk IV Armo ured Car which was use d by the Dutch Army

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EVENTS i

THE TANK MUSEUM

Entrance: Daily adult ticket £23. Children 5-17 £14.50.

Family ticket (one adult and three children) £56. Two adults and two children £63.

Location: Linsay Road, Wareham, Dorset BH20 6JG. Nearest railway station Wool, distance one mile.

Directions: By road, follow the signs for the Tank Museum if travelling from either the A352 or the B3390.

The date for 2018’s Tankfest has been announced as 30 June-1 July. Full details of opening times and other events can be found on the website at: www. tankmuseum.org

This Scorpion 2 is another fast, light vehicle currently in service with the British Army

Despite the dust throw n up, the crowds enjoy ed the display of speed and mobility by this Jacka l which is currently in service wi th the British Army

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17/08/2017 15:20

Les Martin

Fine Antique Arms & Militaria

OCTOBER AUCTION NO.49 Sunday 8th October at 10 am featuring the

Ian T. Cummins Collection

• Air Arms & Accessories • Fine Antique Arms • Militaria • Military Collectables from all periods & era’s

All kinds of Collectable Militaria, Air Weapons, Firearms Etc. Original Items Only Bought Sold Exchanged, Valuations Insurance and Probate.

Our current auction maintains our excellent variety of items presented for auction.

We invite you to visit our website to view our online catalogue. A sample listing of our A.49 offerings is as follows: Several Colt percussion revolving rifles, cased Colt percussion revolvers, a Collier flintlock pistol carbine with a detachable stock, a percussion Collier, a Volcanic carbine, 3 Henry’s, Lemat’s, a Nordenfelt 5 barrel volley gun & a Forsyth volley gun, Winchester models 76, ’86, & 95 rifles & carbines, Tranters, Adams, magnificent English flintlock pistols by Proban, Twigg, Manton, Prosser, Egg, Wogdon & a Bresian ivory stocked wheel lock carbine plus so much more.

Melbourne Australia www.australianarmsauctions.com

British Badge Forum Members 10% Discount!

Visit our shop located in the heart of Staffordshire.

20 minutes from Marlows Stafford.

Contacts:- Roland Martyn Cell: 61 3428 54 33 77 Cheryl Martyn Admin: 613 9848 7951 Fax: 613 9840 7944 P.O. Box 1142 Doncaster East Vic. Australia 3109

Tel Shop: 01889 579002 Mobile: +44 (0)07976 152411 Email: Militaria@lesmartin.co.uk Shop: 5A Market Square, Rugeley, Staffs. WS15 2BL

15% + GST Buyers Premium applies.

www.lesmartinmilitaria.co.uk

Email: admin@australianarmsauctions.com

Registered Firearms Dealer Staffs 5481

www.militaryantiques.co.uk Visit our website @www.militaryantiques.co.uk for all your collecting needs.

Some of the items currently for sale on our website include: ■ BRITISH MILITARY HEADDRESS Victorian Officers Royal Fusiliers Bearskin ............................................. £1285 Officers Shako of the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) with Plume .............. £895 Victorian British Officers Home Service Helmet - 1st Cambridgeshire Rifle Volunteers .............................................................................................. £895 ■ WWI ITEMS Scarce WWI British Army Chaplains Service Tunic ................................... £580 Great War Royal Field Artillery uniform. Contained in original tin trunk as it was sent back from the front. With the tunic comes his original officers breeches, sam browne belt and cross strap, ammo pouch, leather sword frog plus associated leather straps ................................................................ £1285 ■ THIRD REICH MILITARIA Mint condition Luftwaffe Officers staff car pennant in printed fibre board £495 Waffen SS Officers peaked cap. Complete with original cap eagle and skull ....... ................................................................................................................. £4850 Third Reich HJ Dagger by WKC with Original Wrapping and Paper Bag . £1295 A rare soft back edition published in 1933 In paperback form of Hitler’s Mein Kampf .......................................................................................................... £80 Third Reich RAD Officers M43 Ski Cap. One piece silver wire Officers cap insignia ....................................................................................................... £395 Lovely example of a Third Reich Naval Officers Car Pennant ..................... £385 Third Reich German Army M43 ski cap. Two piece machine stitched bevo insignia ....................................................................................................... £395 Mint Third Reich RAD mans dagger by unusual maker for this dagger Alcoso. ... ................................................................................................................... £895 WWII Polish Combat Helmet Re-issued to German Troops ........................ £885

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All Items guaranteed original.

The price you see is the price you pay.

Free post and packing on any item worldwide with a copy of this advert.

Military Antiques PO BOX 376, West Malling, Kent, ME6 9DP England Email: robert.tredwen@btinternet.com We are currently seeking all militaria similar to listed above. Instant payment for the right items.

Commission sales also considered. We are particularly looking for all SOE, BUF, Third Reich Daggers, Personality Items etc.

15/08/2017 14:25

EVENTS

Under the hammer Duncan Evans reports on the latest militaria sold at auctions around the country

Zulu medal leads the way at DNW A Zulu War medal awarded to Corporal James Bushe made £60,000, at the Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria auction at Dix Noonan Webb.

Bushe, of the 2nd Battalion 24th Foot, was wounded in the nose during the defence of Rorke’s Drift. He was mentioned by Lieutenant Chard in his account of the action written for Queen Victoria. Bushe was one of only ten survivors of the 24th Foot wounded in the defence – four of whom won the Victoria Cross. Another Zulu War medal was awarded to a survivor of the massacre at Isandhlwana, fetching £6,000. The medal was awarded to Trooper W. Sibthorpe of the Natal Carbineers.

There were some interesting medal groups to WWI participants, including an OBE

group of four, awarded to Surgeon Rear-Admiral R.W.G. Stewart of the Royal Navy. This consisted of the OBE (Military) 1st type, hallmarked London 1918; The Order of St John of Jerusalem, Officer, in silver and enamel; plus British War and Victory medals. It was sold with comprehensive research for £500.

From the Julian Johnson Collection came a fine Great War

CMG, CBE, ‘1917’ DSO group of eleven awarded to Brigadier C.C. Norman, Royal Welsh Fusiliers and Sierra Leone Battalion, West African Frontier Force, who was wounded during the Boer War at Tugela Heights, 24 February 1900.

This collection sold for £7,500.

On to something a little different: a well-documented Italian Front OBE, Order of St John and Italian Al Valore

Militare group of seven awarded to Mrs Nina A.S. Hollings, Joint Commandant of Red Cross Radiographic Unit No. 4, Italy.

This haul consisted of an OBE (Civil) Officer’s 1st type badge, silver-gilt (hallmarks for London 1918), on lady’s bow ribbon; The Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Officer’s badge, silver and enamel, on lady’s bow ribbon; Italy, Kingdom, Al Valore Militare, bronze, the reverse engraved, ‘Hollings, Nina, Cormons Gorizia, 18 Dicembre 1915-30 Agusto 1916’; Italy, Kingdom, War Medal 1915-18, bronze, with two silver stars on ribbon; Italy, Kingdom, Victory Medal 1918, bronze; Italy, Kingdom, United Italy Medal 1848-1918, bronze, mounted as worn; together with the related miniature group. Estimated at £1,200 it sold for £5,500. ■

Windsor-Clive family rifles exceed expectations Holts Auctioneers recently sold six rifles owned by the Windsor-Clive Family and each rifle soared past its estimate, to reach a sold total of £88,700.

Of particular note was the fine John Rigby & Co. .450 nitro express double rifle, estimated at £10,000-£15,000, which sold for £56,000.

Holts Auctioneers Chris Beaumont commented, “This collection of rifles really demonstrated the perfect combination of elements that work best at auction. A diverse collection of both the very best quality and rare specifications, combined with wonderful unspoiled condition and a solid ‘one family since new’ provenance. It very deservedly

took the honours of top result of the sale with a hammer price of £56,000 – almost certainly a record price for a rifle of its type.”

Other lots included an Alexander Henry & Co. .22LR ‘Winchester Model 1903’ self-

loading take-down sporting rifle which sold for £700.

There was a Mauser, rare .22 Savage high-power ‘Kurz-action’ bolt-magazine sporting rifle.

Estimated at £3,000-5,000 it sold for £8,500.

Next up was a John Rigby & Co. .303 cal. bolt-magazine sporting rifle, serial no. 2620, featuring a 25in nitro barrel, block-mounted open sights with two folding leaf sights.

Estimated at £1,500-£2,000 it sold for £5,500.

Lastly, a John Rigby & Co. Fine .450 (3¼in.) Nitro Express 1879 Patent Sidelock NonEjector double rifle, serial no.

16873, with 28in Krupp-steel nitro chopperlump barrels was estimated at £10,000-£15,000 but made £56,000. The maker confirmed it was completed on 6 April 1906 for Lord Windsor, as a “... best top lever non ejector hammerless double rifle, pistol hand, vertical bolt, special smokeless”. ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Auction room sales Canterbury Auctions goes Japanese There was an oriental theme to the top lots at the August Canterbury auction with a good Edo period (19th century) Japanese suit of armour (Nuinobe-Do Gusoku) fetching £4,200. The armour comprised a heavily constructed black lacquered Kabuto (helmet) and lame neck guard, with matching iron Hanbo (face mask) and gilded copper crest. The russet iron Kote (sleeves) red lacquered Haidate and Suneate (leg armour) were all matching and backed with yellow silk brocade. The armour was

contained within its original box with an old paper label.

Also Japanese, a mounted collection of twelve differing steel arrowheads (Yajiri) of various forms and sizes mounted on a green cloth background with hardwood frame, 21in x 17in sold for £1,100. There was also a 20thcentury Japanese kendo fighting mask which made £780.

On the medal front a Knight’s Grand Cross of The Order of The Royal Victorian Order (KGCVO) sold for £1,100. The badge was in the form of a Maltese Cross, the white enamel cross with central gilt and enamel crowned oval panel with monogram. Another item worthy of record was Russian tripod-mounted 15 x 110 observation binoculars with silver painted finish, manufacturer’s plate bearing Russian lettering and the number 495, on an adjustable wooden tripod with a spirit level. Complete with accessories, filters and original paperwork it sold for £1,300.

On to classic firearms now and a pair of 18th-century .65 calibre officer’s pistols by Nock of London, bagged £1,100.

The 7.5ins browned octagonal Damascus steel barrels featured blued steel hammers and locks

decorated with scrollwork and maker’s name, with walnut stocks and chequered grips.

There was a 19th-century .44 calibre percussion Adams’ patent revolver, retailed by Calisher & Terry of London, which fetched £1,750. The gun had a 6in nickelplated barrel with nickel-plated action profusely decorated with scrollwork, chequered hardwood grips and a finely engraved nickel-plated buttcap.

For something a little bigger, how about a double-barrelled flintlock, side by side, 16bore muzzle-loading shotgun

by Duers Egg of London for £1,900? This had 32in plain steel barrels with flat top rib bearing the manufacturer’s name and ‘London’ in gold coloured metal inlay. The barrel was further decorated at the breach with gold coloured metal bands; the locks and hammers were decorated with scrollwork and bore the maker’s name. Finally, there was a large, 18th-century .60 double-barrelled flintlock pistol by Henry Nock of London which made £960. This had 7in bright steel barrels with bright steel action decorated with stand of arms and ‘H. Nock’. For full results, navigate to www. thecanterburyauctiongalleries. com/sales/fine-art-antiques/ fa010817/ ■

Medals and militaria at Warwick & Warwick The June auction at Warwick & Warwick saw 120 lots of medals and militaria come under the hammer. One of the highlights was a 1793-1814 MGSM with single Vimiera clasp to Robert Milligan of the 91st Foot who had been taken prisoner of war by the French, and which easily beat the estimate of £800, selling for £1,357.

For WWI collectors there was an impressive Military Medal and Bar group of twelve to Private George Reid of 1/7th Bn Gordon Highlanders and later Royal Pioneer Corps which achieved

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£1,180. WWII medals were there as well with a Military Cross group to Major Frederick Thomas William Nixon, Royal Engineers.

He was twice Mentioned in Despatches and earned the MC for his actions in helping to bridge a river under heavy fire in Italy in April 1945.

The group finally sold for £1,475.

There was an 1850s’ Adams style 80 bore self-cocking revolver in fitted case selling to a commission bidder for £826.

Prices for anything German are sky high so it was no surprise to see a Luftwaffe cloth pennant sell for double its estimate at £238, despite some staining and a number of small holes. ■

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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C.S. Arms, Inc.

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A French Napoleonic period papier-mâché bonbon box showing a scene of a gentleman courting a lady.

Bellow the scene is “Fidelite De Justine mise a l’epeuve.” £95.00

WW1 British Gor Blimey trench cap to the Suffolk regiment. This one is most likely for a dispatch riders as the glasses appear to have been with it for a very long time. £780.00

BRITISH VICTORIAN COURT DRESS TUNIC

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FRENCH WW1 HORIZON BLUE PATCH

British Victorian dark blue court dress frock coat in stunning condition with three types of bullion work to the cuffs collar and rear tails and pockets. £550.00

French WW1 Horizon blue sleeve patch for a dog handler with the head of a dog in dark blue cloth on horizon blue cloth backing. £55.00

BRITISH 1796 HEAVY CAVALRY SWORD

BELGIAN 7MM PIN FIRE REVOLVER

A British 1796 heavy cavalry troopers sword. This one is as issued, with the full circular guard and hachet point tip to the blade. £950.00

Cliff Sophia

9150 John S. Mosby Hwy. (Rt. 50) Upperville, Virginia 20185 PO BOX 602 for US Mail (540) 592-7273 SophiaCSArms@aol.com

Belgian 7mm pin fire six shot revolver in good working order with fold down trigger. There is the Liege proof mark to the cylinder. £180.00

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Some interesting current items from my stock Rare British Enfield Pattern 1860 Rifle Conversion by Benjamin Roberts. 577” calibre.

Unconverted 1860 rifles are rare as most were converted to a Snider breech. This particular rifle with a 1863 lock plate was converted by Benjamin Roberts in 1867 with an unusual breech loading mechanism similar to a Westley Richards “Monkey Tail”. Exceptional condition with much original colour and extremely rare. ..................................................................................................................£3500.00 British Enfield Pattern 1860 2 Band Rifle . 577” calibre.

Unconverted Pattern 1860 rifles are seldom encountered as most were converted to the Snider breech conversion. Not only did this one escape conversion but it is in extraordinary good condition and has seen little use, if any at all.............................................................................................£2400.00 Interesting Needham Conversion 58 calibre Rifle w/bayonet for the Fenians Raid 1870 A total of 5,020 muskets were converted in Trenton, New Jersey by Needham, an English company, for use by the Fenians for a planned Canadian invasion. Needham conversion rifles were commissioned by the Fenians an Irish-American secret society. Immediately after the Civil War, the Fenians Brotherhood plotted to invade Canada to pressure England to grant independence to Ireland. A rare rifle and unusual to be offered in the UK ....................................£1750.00 Stevens New Pocket Rifle circa 1872 with matching numbered skeletal stock Stevens were a prolific USA manufacturer and produced a popular parlour target pistol that evolved into the pocket rifle. Excellent example with rosewood grips and stock numbered to rifle. Obsolete calibre and a choice of two barrel lengths in stock..................£900 - £1200.00 Excellent cased Colt London Navy revolver Colt Navy revolvers manufactured in London were reputed to be higher quality than those made in the USA because Colt had hoped to capture the British military market. This example is in superb condition with the original full set of accessories and would be difficult to improve on..............................................................................................................................£14,500.00

ALWAYS SOMETHING INTERESTING FOR THE COLLECTOR, SHOOTER AND INVESTOR. SEE MY WEBSITE FOR FULL DETAILS.

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Tel 01646 680391 / 07969 132060 Email Dscheeres@aol.com www.pembrokefinearms.co.uk

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17/08/2017 15:44

The Charge of the Light Brigade

COVER STORY

H

Gerald Prenderghast describes the famous, but disastrous, episode during the Battle of Balaklava

aving been coerced by the Turks into supporting their war against the Russian Tsar, Nicholas I, Britain and France dispatched a combined force to the Crimea

from the Bulgarian port of Varna on 5 September 1854. The British were under Lord Raglan and the French were commanded by Marshal Armand Saint-Arnaud. The 65,000 men and 137 guns of

the Allied army arrived at Kalamita Bay on the Crimea Peninsula some days later and disembarkation of the whole force began on 14 September.

By 18 September this force and a small

Medals for Crimea

Peter Duckers looks at the medals awarded for the Crimean campaign, including specific clasps for battles and the introduction of the new Victoria Cross, on behalf of Queen Victoria.

PAGE

45

Muskets and rifles

The role of the rifle and musket changed throughout the Crimean campaign. Graham Priest explains the developments that took place during the fighting.

PAGE

55 Lance and sabre

The cavalry were armed with sabres - fearsome weapons once the horses closed with their enemy.

Matthew Moss looks at the effectiveness of the edged weapons used PAGE during the Charge.

74 28

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COVER FEATURE Turkish contingent were able to begin moving towards Sevastopol; the capture of the fortress and naval base there was now the major objective of the Allied campaign. Their crossing of the Alma river on 20 September was opposed by General Menshikov’s Russian troops and after driving them off, the Allies moved over the river. Here they halted until 23 September, before continuing south and arriving on 26 September in sight of the narrow Balaklava inlet which was to be the main British supply base. Unfortunately, the three days lost in resuming their march allowed most of Menshikov’s forces to reach Sevastopol and reorganise.

The Allied armies now took up siege positions on the Chersonese Peninsula to the south of

Sevastopol, where the port’s defences were weakest, the British having been committed to the defence of the right flank but with too few troops to have any reasonable expectation of success.

Their main supply point at Balaklava was also outside the main perimeter and so had to be provided with its own separate defensive system, consisting of an outer line of six redoubts or fortified artillery positions manned

by Turkish troops and located on Causeway Heights, 2,000m to the north of the harbour. In addition to the gun emplacements, there was an inner defensive line composed of the 93rd Sutherland Highlanders and a RA field battery, which was supported in turn by a detachment of Royal Marines,

additional Ottoman troops and artillery positioned along the heights above the port. Running next to Causeway Heights were two shallow depressions, the North and South valleys. Some 1,500 men of Lucan’s Cavalry Division and a troop of Royal Horse Artillery were also bivouacked at the western end of South Valley, making a total of 4,500 men and 21 guns available to defend Balaklava.

Russian General Liprandi, moving up from the south and with a force of 25,000 troops and 78 guns at his disposal, quickly realised the weakness of his enemy’s position and decided to neutralise the Ottoman redoubts on Causeway Ridge, before sweeping Continued on page 30.

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The Charge of the Light Brigade

fitzroy somerset, 1st baron raglan

THE COMMANDERS Lord Raglan, C-in-C British forces and one of the men responsible for the confusion which led to the reckless charge of the Light Brigade

Continued from page 29. down over the British and capturing Balaklava and their supply train.

Early on the morning of 25 October, his infantry moved up to Causeway Heights through the village of Chorgun and surrounded the redoubts, with Lieutenant General Ryzhov’s cavalry in support. Despite artillery fire from the British, by 7.30am, Redoubts, 1, 2, 3 and 4 had been captured and Raglan, watching from his position to the west on Sapouné Heights, saw that all that remained between 25,000 Russians and Balaklava were Lucan’s cavalry, 550 Highlanders and the remaining Turkish troops who had survived the attacks on the redoubts. Ragan belatedly ordered the infantry divisions commanded

by Cathcart (1st Division) and the Duke of Cambridge (4th Division) to reinforce the British positions, but they would take over two hours to form an effective defence and Balaklava would certainly be overrun well before that.

Raglan then ordered Lucan to move his cavalry to the left, before changing his mind 30 minutes later and ordering

30

Map showing the route the Allied army followed from Kalamita Bay to Sevastopol Right: Raglan’s original order, written by Airey

Commissioned into the 4th Light Dragoons as a Cornet (Second-Lieutenant) in June 1804 , Raglan purchased a Captain’s commission just before his appointment as ADC to Sir Arthur Wellesley in July 1808. He served throughout the Peninsula campaign, including Waterloo, where he was severely wounded, resulting in the amputation of his right arm at the shoulder. After the Treaty of Paris was ratified he came back to England, serving as both a Member of Parliament and in several military posts, his final appointment before the Crimea being MasterGeneral of Ordnance in September 1852. In October 1852, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Raglan of Raglan.

Appointed Commander of British troops in the Crimea on 21 February 1854, with the temporary rank of General, his initial objective was the defence of Constantinople, although he was later ordered to besiege Sevastopol and, with his French allies, moved south from Kalamita Bay to bring this about.

The carnage at Balaklava followed and although Raglan and the French beat the Russians decisively at Inkerman, poor logistical supply by the home government and the vicious Crimean winter resulted in Allied troops dying in their hundreds. Raglan was blamed by both press and government for this disaster and when the Allied assault on Sevastopol of 18 June 1855 ended in complete failure, he became ill and died of the effects of dysentery and clinical depression on 28 June 1855. ■

eight squadrons of heavy cavalry, commanded by General James Scarlett, to be detached to support the Turks.

While Raglan was fussing over his cavalry, Liprandi had brought forward Ryzhov’s squadrons, a total of between 2,000 and 3,000 cavalrymen, to begin the attack on Balaklava.

Ryzhov advanced to the crest of Causeway Heights, where he saw Scarlett’s detached force moving left across his front and the Highlanders and Turks deployed before the village of Kadikoi. Sending 400 Ingermanland Hussars against Campbell’s infantry, Ryzhov remained on the Heights with the rest of his men.

As the cavalry thundered towards his position, Campbell drew his men up into a double line and, with only Balaklava and the British supply train at their backs, told them simply what was required of them:

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COVER FEATURE

pavel liprandi

THE COMMANDERS Following an illustrious career in the Imperial Russian Army, Liprandi was given command of the 12th Infantry division in 1854. After fighting on the Danube, Liprandi’s division was marched to the Crimea, with the intention of using it to attack the Allies from the rear, via the village of Chorgun, and occupy the British supply port of Balaklava.

Liprandi began well, capturing the village of Chorgun on 18 October before investing and capturing the redoubts on Causeway Heights on 25 October after a hard fight with the Ottoman garrisons. Having occupied Redoubts 1, 2 and 3 and destroyed Redoubt 4, he brought Ryzhov’s cavalry forward to continue his advance and it was at this point that everything began to go wrong for the Russian General.

First, the cavalry sent to attack the 93rd discontinued action after receiving only three volleys, assuming that the Highlanders were a token force which was about to be reinforced, whereas perseverance on the part of their commander, would have cleared the route to Balaklava, since Raglan had no troops to throw in their way. Secondly, Ryzhov’s cavalry failed to take advantage of the British cavalry’s preliminary manoeuvring when a charge downhill might have scattered the Heavies, before the Russian cavalry was thrown into confusion and forced to retreat in the face of Scarlett’s charge.

It was only the stupidity and incompetence of the British commanders, resulting in the destruction of half the Light Brigade, that allowed Liprandi to remain in occupation of his positions on Causeway Heights, although he was a better soldier than Raglan and deserved more luck and better subordinates than he had, especially in his cavalry commander. The occupation of the redoubts forced the Allies to confine their

“Men, remember there is no retreat from here. Ye must die where ye stand ...”

Campbell’s aide, John Scott, replied, “Aye, Sir Colin. Needs be we’ll do that.” The Highlanders’ first volley crashed out harmlessly at long range, although the second, supported by fire from an RA battery and the Marines,

General Pavel Liprandi, commander of the Russian forces at Balaclava

activities to a narrow area between Balaklava and Sevastopol, where they could remain in their siege positions, well out of range of the Russian guns on Causeway Heights. Liprandi took part in the later Battle of Inkerman, during which the Allied armies prevented the Russians from raising the siege of Sevastopol and he also led Sardinian troops at the battle of Tchernaya. He died in 1864 and is buried in St Petersburg. ■

caused the Russians to swerve to their left, where they were met by a volley from the Grenadier company of the 93rd, which caused them to retreat, believing there to be a larger force behind the Highlanders. The action was later made famous by a passage from correspondent William

Russell’s dispatch to The Times: ‘The Russians dash at the Highlanders. The ground flies beneath their horses’ feet; gathering speed at every stride, they dash on towards that thin red streak topped with a line of steel.’

During the action against the 93rd, Ryzhov’s cavalry had remained on

Above left: Map showing the main features of the Battle of Balaklava, including the actions involving the 93rd, Ryzhov’s retreat and final position, Raglan’s position and North Valley, the site of the Light Brigade’s ill-fated charge. Above right: Map depicting the main features of the Charge of the Light Brigade www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Charge of the Light Brigade Causeway Heights, while the Heavies continued to move across his front until, having negotiated a vineyard and the camp of the Light Brigade, the presence of the Russians was brought to the short-sighted Scarlett’s notice by his ADC. The General immediately turned his troops, dressed their line and began to move up the slope towards the astounded Russians. The British had hardly achieved a gallop before two squadrons of the Scots Greys and one of the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons ploughed into the front ranks of the Russians and, as the enemy closed in upon the Greys, a second squadron of Inniskillings and one of the 5th Dragoons attacked the rear of the lines which had moved to envelop their comrades. The 4th Dragoons now attacked the rear of the Russian force, hacking their way from flank to flank with the loss of only one man, while the Royal Dragoons, ignoring their orders to remain in reserve, fell on the Russian right. Ten minutes later, the action was over with the Russians streaming back across Causeway Heights, most only halting when they reached the eastern end of North Valley.

The Charge begins Anxious to exploit the Heavy Brigade’s success and drive the Russians from the Causeway Heights, Raglan decided not to wait for Cathcart’s and Cambridge’s infantry divisions. Instead, believing that only a show of force was necessary

The sick and wounded at the waterfront in Cossack Bay waiting for embarkation to head home

to send the Russians fleeing from their positions on the Heights, he sent his third order of the day to Lucan: ‘Cavalry to advance and take advantage of any opportunity to recover the Heights. They will be supported by infantry which have been ordered.

Advance on two fronts.’

Confused by the ambiguous nature of the order, Lucan moved the Light Brigade into the North Valley, leaving the Heavies in the entrance of the South Valley, and then waited for the infantry. Raglan, however, had meant the cavalry to move independently and when an unknown staff officer shouted that the Russians were dragging away the captured British guns, he became impatient and dictated his last order to Lucan via General Airey: ‘10:45. Lord

Raglan wishes the cavalry to advance rapidly to the front – follow the enemy and try to prevent the enemy carrying away the guns – Troop Horse Artillery may accompany – French cavalry is on your left. Immediate. R Airey.’

Raglan read the order, then called forward Captain Louis Nolan, Airey’s ADC, to deliver it. As Nolan turned his horse, Raglan shouted, “Tell Lord Lucan the cavalry is to attack immediately.”

It appears that it was this final, verbal order which sealed the fate of the men of the Light Brigade.

Upon receipt of this fourth order, Lucan appears to have been puzzled by yet another imprecise set of instructions from his C-in-C. He could not see any guns being moved from the Causeway Heights and when he asked Nolan for

The Bay with modern harbour and the ruins of defensive positions on the hills (Petar Milosevic)

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COVER FEATURE In this William Simpson artwork , you can see the railway at Balaklava and old defensive positions on the hills

some clarification, the junior officer told him to attack immediately. When asked what the cavalry should attack, Nolan became infuriated and waved his arm vaguely to the east, retorting indignantly, “There, my Lord, is your enemy. There are your guns.” Infuriated in turn by Nolan’s insolence, Lucan refused further speech with him and riding across to his brother-in-law, Cardigan, who he cordially hated, abruptly ordered him to attack the guns at the bottom of North Valley.

Cardigan responded with a short tactical appraisal, “Allow me to point out to you that there is a battery in front, battery on each flank, and the ground is covered with Russian riflemen.”

Lucan replied simply, “I know it ...

But Lord Raglan will have it. We have

Cossack Bay in Balaklava, showing the crowded anchorage and the squalor and disorganisation ashore

no choice but to obey.”

The Light Brigade was formed up in two lines, with 11th Hussars, 13th Light Dragoons and 17th Lancers composing the front line and 4th Light Dragoons and 8th Hussars behind them, with the Heavies following in support. At 11.10am on 25 October, the Lights began to move down North Valley and it was only after they continued towards Obolensky’s battery at the end of the valley, rather than wheeling and attacking the redoubts on the Causeway Heights and the captured British guns, that Raglan and his staff realised the enormity of the error that had resulted from the C-in-C’s poorly worded orders. Unfortunately, nothing could now be done.

Nolan was the first to be killed, hit

by a splinter from an artillery shell as he dashed forward ahead of Cardigan.

At 11.15am, eight Russian guns on the Causeway Heights began firing upon the Lights, whose front line was now more than halfway down the valley, and over the next 400 yards they also came under fire from the guns to their front. Reaching a distance of around 250yrd from Obolensky’s battery, Cardigan ordered his bugler to sound the Gallop. Lord George Paget recalled, “And so we went through this scene of carnage, wondering each moment which would be our last … It required a deal of closing in, by this time, to fill up the vacant gaps ... At about 100 yards, Cardigan ordered his bugler to sound the Charge and, having fired their last round of canister, some of

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Join us on the

BATTLEFIELD TOUR 13th to 15th October 2017 in association with Battlefield Partnerships

Your chance to visit Plugstreet, Hill 60, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, the Menin Gate and other important locations at the Front in the First World War With military experts, Q&A sessions & guided tours, we have put together this bespoke battlefield tour with the needs of family historians first and foremost in mind See www.family-tree.co.uk for further details

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17/08/2017 26/06/2017 15:51 14:43

COVER FEATURE

Officers of the 93rd Sutherland Highlanders in the Crimea the Russian gun crews turned to run, although many others drew their weapons and prepared to fight, being well aware of the fate of foot soldiers who tried to run from lancers.”

Captain Godfrey Morgan (later 1st Viscount Tredegar), survived the Charge and left an account of what happened after Nolan’s death: ‘When we got about two or three hundred yards the battery of the Russian Horse Artillery opened fire. I do not recollect hearing a word from anybody as we gradually broke from a trot to a canter, though the noise of the striking of men and horses by grape and round shot was deafening, while the dust and gravel struck up by the round shot that fell short was almost blinding, and irritated my horse so that I could scarcely hold him at all. But as we came nearer I could see plainly enough, especially when I was about a hundred yards from the guns. I appeared to be riding straight on to the muzzle of one

Men of the 13th Hussars, photographed after the Charge

of the guns, and I distinctly saw the gunner apply his fuse. I shut my eyes then, for I thought that settled the question as far as I was concerned. But the shot just missed me and struck the man on my right full in the chest. In another minute I was on the gun and the leading Russian’s grey horse, shot, I suppose, with a pistol by somebody on my right, fell across my horse, dragging it over with him and pinning me in between the gun and himself. I only remember finding myself alone among the Russians trying to get out as best I could. This, by some chance, I did, in spite of the attempts of the Russians to cut me down.’

Despite a hail of shot from three sides, many of the Lights reached the guns and engaged the gunners, the remains of Ryzhov’s cavalry, who were sheltering behind the artillery and Russian Lancers, who charged into the Valley from the Heights on either side.

They suffered heavy casualties during

this engagement and were soon forced to retire, whereupon the surviving Russian artillerymen opened fire on the battle being waged before them, indiscriminately killing both Russian and British cavalrymen. The British continued to retreat up the valley, aided by the actions of the French light cavalry, the Chasseurs d’Afrique, who cleared the Fedioukine Heights of the two half batteries of guns, two infantry battalions, and a unit of Cossacks to ensure that the Light Brigade would not be fired upon from that flank, before providing support for the survivors of the Light Brigade as they withdrew, many on foot. Lucan and his Heavy brigade did not advance further than the mouth of the valley and although Lucan subsequently claimed that he had halted because he saw no point in having a second brigade destroyed, and was also in the best position to render assistance to Light Brigade survivors returning from the charge, many

Painting depicting the Charge of the Light Brigade by William Simpson. The depiction is hardly realistic; there are too few casualties and the Brigade attacked in two lines, not three

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The Charge of the Light Brigade

A dinner held in 1895 was attended by many of the survivors of the Charge thought that his almost pathological hatred of his brother-in-law was the real reason behind the delay.

By 12 noon most of the survivors had returned to the British lines, the whole affair having lasted no more than 50 minutes from the time the order to advance was given until the remains of the Brigade returned to their starting point. Almost immediately the survivors began to question the role of the Heavy Brigade. Troop 1 Sergeant Major George Smith of the 11th Hussars wrote: ‘Who, I ask, is answerable for all this? It was not unlike leaving the forlorn hope, after storming a town, to fight their own way out again instead of pushing on the

2

3

Postcard commemorating the Charge of the Light Brigade survivors’ reunion in 1904

supports. We cut their army completely in two, taking their principal battery, driving their cavalry far to the rear.

What more could 670 men do?’

CASUALTY LIST FOR THE LIGHT BRIGADE Regiment

Officers, killed, wounded or missing

Other ranks (ORs) killed, wounded or missing

4th Dragoons

4 officers

55 ORs

8th Hussars

5 officers

44 ORs

11th Hussars

3 officers

55 ORs

13th Dragoons

3 officers

38 ORs

17th Lancers

7 officers

67 ORs

Total

22 officers

259 ORs

Total casualties: 281 from an original force of 670, a total of 42% killed, wounded or missing.

Horses killed: 335

The fall out Light cavalry is for reconnaissance and skirmishing, as well as pursuing a retreating enemy. It was the job of the heavy cavalry squadrons to break an infantry line with the weight of their charge, and both Lucan and Cardigan

4

5

were well aware of this. Consequently, Lucan was at fault for not questioning Raglan’s original order or sending Nolan back for clarification. If cavalry was required to charge Russian guns or infantry, it was a job for the Heavies.

However, while Lucan was the real culprit, none of the other officers involved emerged with any credit. Raglan’s orders were almost incomprehensible, Airey’s drafting was ambiguous, Nolan did not fully explain the tactical situation to Lucan, Lucan failed to question Nolan adequately and Cardigan moved his men towards the guns without proper clarification.

Lucan also failed to provide the necessary support with the rest of the cavalry and artillery.

Raglan blamed Lucan for the whole debacle, which he refuted, in turn blaming Raglan and Lewis Nolan for the disaster. Lucan managed to avoid official responsibility and was rewarded with a knighthood in 1855. He received two further promotions, to General in 1865 and Field Marshal in 1887, a year before his death. ■

6

1. Private in the 8th (King’s Royal Irish) Hussars. The busby, tunic worn only over one shoulder, sabretache and the short-barrelled carbine are all characteristic of Hussar regiments during this period. 2. Cornet assistant surgeon Henry Wilkin of the 11th Hussars, one of the survivors of the Charge. 3. An officer of the 11th Hussars, showing the tight red trousers which gave this regiment the nickname the Cherry Pickers. 4. James Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, the man who led the Light Brigade against the Russian guns, then turned and rode back up the valley, leaving his men to their fate. 5. George Bingham, 3rd Earl of Lucan, the officer in overall command of the cavalry at Balaklava and the man mainly responsible for the slaughter of the Light Brigade. 6. Watercolour depiction of Captain Louis Nolan

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14/08/2017 14:49

The Long Range Desert Group Edward Hallett charts the founding of the LRDG and looks at its role in Operation Caravan

E

ven today the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) has an air of romance about it – battle hardened men bursting out of the desert to raid enemy airfields in jeeps and trucks, shemaghs flapping in the wind as they destroyed Axis aeroplanes before slipping away into the night. Tough men, fiercely independent and feared by the enemy.

There is a degree of truth in this portrait but much of the work of the LRDG was far more mundane - long days lying motionless by desert roads watching and recording enemy troop movements to be passed back to headquarters in Alexandria. Although remembered today for their raids, the LRDG was primarily a reconnaissance unit rather than a conventional

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raiding force. However, as it is through their raiding activities that the LRDG cemented their place in history.

History of the LRDG The Long Range Desert Group was the first British special force unit to be raised in the deserts of North Africa. It was the brainchild of the inter-war desert explorer Brigadier Ralph Bagnold. Although the British had created desert patrols in World War I with modified Model T Fords to fight against Senussi tribesmen, by the 1920s the doctrine had been lost to the Army. During the 1920s and ‘30s a number of private expeditions in the Sinai, Palestine and the Transjordan had

relearned the lessons of the Great War, especially with regard to survival in the desert. Bagnold was one of these pioneers and at the outbreak of World War II he was posted to Egypt.

Bagnold put forward two papers to those in command proposing the creation of a long-range reconnaissance group that would drive deep into the desert for weeks at a time, equipped with radios to observe Axis troop movements and then transmit the information back almost

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MISSION FEATURE instantaneously to give the Allies real-time intelligence. On 23 June 1940 he was given permission to form this group by General Wavell with a virtually free hand to get the new unit operational by the end of the summer.

The LRDG was constituted around small patrols of two officers, 28 other ranks and four replacements equipped with one patrol car and ten modified 30cwt Chevrolet trucks. Each patrol was heavily armed and carried enough ammunition, water and rations for three weeks, with sufficient fuel for up to 1,500 miles of travel. Fuel and supply dumps were soon established in the desert to allow the patrols’ endurance to be extended. The patrols were not primarily fighting units; their main role was longrange reconnaissance behind enemy lines in areas such as Tripolitania and Cyrenaica. They watched troop movements and enemy responses to British operations, seized documents and prisoners and gathered topographical intelligence.

Brigadier Bagnold, founder of the Long Range Desert Group They also had an important role as pathfinders, guiding conventional troops across the desert to targets.

The men recruited to the LRDG came from a wide range of backgrounds and Bagnold had the freedom to recruit men who were already proficient in the skills the LRDG needed, such as mechanics, wireless operators and navigators. Bagnold deliberately targeted troops from the Dominions, believing that the outside life of many of those from Australia

and New Zealand would give them a natural toughness and resilience.

Australia flatly refused to release anyone, but New Zealand was happy to provide men.

They were supposed to be attached to the LRDG for just six months, but many stayed for several years.

Alongside this contingent were British officers and men, with a steady trickle of replacements from other units. Attrition was low in the LRDG and the stigma of being returned to unit ensured high standards and a resultant high level of morale. One member recorded, ‘In the LRDG we had one immense advantage – all our men were volunteers. There was never any lack of them and always a long waiting list. It was common enough for men to go down in rank when they joined. The best stayed for years, the worst left quickly.’

The LRDG valued individuality and initiative highly, and unsurprisingly this was reflected in their appearance; they were rarely in uniform and hardly ever followed regulations.

Beards were common, both to reduce the risk of sunburn to the face and due to the lack of water on patrols for shaving. Due to the polyglot

Left: The most popular lorry in service with the LRDG was the 30cwt Chevrolet Right: Embroidered shoulder slides were originally produced in red on a black background. Many are now pink or white due to the effects of the sun

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The Long Range Desert Group

Above left: An LRDG driver, wearing the popular cap comforter. Above middle: Preparing breakfast in the desert. Above right: Two patrolmen clean their weapons in the desert in 1942

Above left: A LRDG patrol laagered up for the night in the desert. Note how the vehicles are spread out in case of air attack nature of the unit most men brought the uniform of their parent unit with them when they joined and it quickly deteriorated in the harsh desert conditions. One officer explained, “A stranger meeting an LRDG patrol returning from a month’s trip in Libya would have been hard put to decide to what race

The Chevrolets coped well, even with steep desert escarpments

40

or army, let alone to what unit they belonged. In winter the use of battle dress made for some uniformity, but in summer, with a month old beard thick with sand, with a month’s dirt ... skin burnt to the colour of coffee, and clad in nothing but a pair of torn shorts and chapplies a man looked like a creature from another world.”

An example of an L3 tankette, half a dozen of which opposed the raiders at Barce

Operation Caravan The raid on Barce Whilst most of the LRDG spent their time on long-range reconnaissance, raids did take place from time to time.

One of the most famous was on the Italian airfield at Barce in 1942.

Barce was an Italian-held town and airfield in Gebel Akhdar in northern Cyrenaica and the raid was planned as a diversion from much larger raids being carried out by the SAS at Tobruk and the commandos at Benghazi at the same time. The LRDG provided two patrols: the New Zealanders of T1 patrol and the British guardsmen of G1 patrol. Both patrols set off on 1 September 1942 from Faiyum in Egypt, with a total of 47 men in twelve lorries and five jeeps, under the command of Major Jake Easonsmith.

The column made steady progress and by 13 September it had crossed 1,150 miles of desert and was within 15 miles of the Barce Township. The attack began at 11.30pm with the lorries approaching the town with headlights on to mimic an Italian convoy. The two patrols continued together until midnight when they split into two units; T1 patrol was to

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MISSION FEATURE

Men gather around a lorry to eat, a New Zealander is particularly distinctive in his ‘lemon squeezer’ hat.

The crews of the lorries used their heavy machine guns to supress the Italians of the Campo Maddalena garrison attack the airfield whilst G1 Patrol was to go to the barracks at nearby Campo Maddalena to neutralise it as a threat, disrupt communications and do what damage it could to the railway station.

T1 patrol soon reached the airfield and the small force of four 30cwt Chevrolet trucks and a single Willys jeep forced the gate and drove onto the base. The patrol quickly set light to a petrol tanker and trailer and a fuel dump and threw hand grenades into some of the airfield buildings. Then, driving in column, the patrol drove around the airfield firing a mixture of ball and tracer ammunition from their machine guns at the aircraft dispersed around the airfield. Any machines not destroyed in this initial attack had incendiary time bombs planted on them. The attack lasted just an hour but had destroyed or damaged 35 enemy aircraft without any casualties.

The second of the two patrols, G1 was also having a good night, despite the noise from the airfield alerting the barracks. Some of the garrison had taken up position on a low veranda outside the barracks but a shower of grenades, followed up with bursts of heavy machine gun fire, made short work of them. After the initial success,

Heavily laden trucks could easily bog down in the desert. Here patrolmen use sand mats to increase the traction and drive a lorry free of the dunes

A number of lorries were equipped with wireless sets, used to report back to base a shortage of grenades encouraged the patrol to withdraw; however, a pair of Italian L3 light tanks blocked the only exit from the camp, forcing the patrol to exit via a gap in the outside wall, and a jeep was lost in the process. A truck was soon badly damaged and left behind with one of its four-man crew being captured. The patrol then began the difficult process of extraction and made for the rendezvous at Sidi Selim.

T1 patrol was also encountering

The Long Range Desert Group adopted a scorpion as its badge. These are most commonly found in bronze or silver, like this example

Just one original LRDG Chevrolet truck has survived; found in the desert in 1984, it is now in the Imperial War Museum stiffening Italian opposition, with four more L3 tanks engaging the men of the LRDG in the streets of Barce. With the way blocked, Captain Wilder drove his 30cwt Chevrolet at full speed into one of the tanks, forcing it off the road but wrecking the truck in the process.

This cleared the way for the rest of the patrol, and the crew of Wilder’s truck escaped in a jeep. However, in the frantic race to escape, this overturned, pinning the men under the wreckage, either unconscious or wounded. A following truck rescued the men and the patrol made for the rendezvous with G1 patrol. Not all escaped unscathed: during the withdrawal one of the lorries was cut off by an Italian armoured car, crashed into a concrete shelter and all its crew was captured.

The patrols now faced a pursuit

by Italian forces who sent up aircraft to follow the escaping raiders and at 10.30am six CR.42 fighter bombers found the patrol. For the rest of the day repeated attacks picked off vehicles and men and by the end just 33 men in two jeeps and one Chevrolet remained. That evening it was agreed that the patrol stood the best chance by splitting into separate groups and making for British lines. Some went in vehicles and some, www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Long Range Desert Group

The Fiat CR 42s dispatched to chase the LRDG were effective Italian biplane fighter bombers

It was not always smooth sand beneath the LRDGs wheels; here a lorry negotiates a particularly rocky section of desert Left: Two patrolmen watch for enemy troops, wrapped up in tropal coats to protect themselves from the cold of the desert night Below: Wrecked Italian aircraft litter the airfield at Barce following the LRDG raid

like Roy Duncalfe, went on foot as he recalls: “The day following the Barce raid we were shot up by enemy aircraft; having no vehicle, it was a case of these boots were made for walking. Darkness came, with Paddy McNabola and me together and the prospect of a long walk to where a getaway vehicle had been left at Bir Gerrari. We decided to walk mainly by night when it would be cooler and we would also have the the stars to guide us. Our only water was a partly filled bottle and on the third day this had almost gone, so we decided to turn back towards the foothills of Cyrenaica. We were fortunate in reaching a Bedouin encampment where the sheikh informed us that a British officer had been there yesterday and would be back again in five days. The sheikh’s son took us to a cavern about three miles away, leaving us with a supply of water, flour and salt.”

Roy waited for six days but with no sign of the British officer he and Paddy resumed their trek across the desert.

When they reached the rendezvous there was no sign of the truck, but they did find three welcome tins of runner beans! After wandering in the desert for several days and after various scrapes they found themselves back with the Bedouin sheikh and remained there until the end of October when the British lines caught up with them.

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Collecting the LRDG Some specialist insignia was adopted, the most famous of which was the scorpion cap badge. It was designed by Gunner CO Grimsey after being stung three times by a scorpion. The badge depicts a scorpion inside a wheel and was produced in bronze, silver and gold (allegedly made from the rings of captured Germans!). Note that these badges have been widely copied for both the re-enactor market and to dupe the unwary. Other insignia includes embroidered shoulder titles with the letter LRDG embroidered in red on a black background. These can also be found in pink and white lettering but this is due to the power of the Libyan sun bleaching

the original thread.

Britain did not issue named medals for WWII so it is hard to find a set attributable to an LRDG patrolman.

However, New Zealand did and due to the numbers of New Zealanders who served with the unit collectors can find attributable medal sets, though prices tend to be high. ■

Members of the LRDG showing an eclectic range of headgear

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MEDALS FEATURE

Medals for Balaklava Peter Duckers looks at some of the medals awarded for one of the most famous actions in British military history

COVER STORY

S

ome of the more famous incidents of British military history over the past 300 years are well known, even to people who are not military history enthusiasts. The names Waterloo, the Somme and the Battle of Britain will strike a note of recognition. The Charge of the Light Brigade is an instantly recognisable name, even if people don’t know what a light brigade was or even when the charge took place.

The nature and notoriety of the

light cavalry action near Balaklava harbour on 24 October 1854 was such that medals awarded to the men who took part in the action have always been much sought after.

The officers and men of the Light Brigade, comprising the 4th and 13th Light Dragoons, the 17th Lancers, and the 8th and 11th Hussars, under the command of Major General the Earl of Cardigan, all received the British campaign medal for the Crimea, with appropriate clasps, and the Ottoman medal awarded with it.

Collectors have always rated the Crimea medal as attractive and distinctive, especially given its unusual ‘oak leaf’ clasps, so it comes as a surprise to find that at the time there were some who thought it inappropriate and its design was openly criticised. Some thought that the delicate colours of the ribbon – pale blue with narrow yellow edges – were ‘effeminate’ and not ‘military’ enough; others derided the clasps, one writer likening them to ‘the labels on public-house wine bottles’!

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Medals for Balaklava

This shot by photographer Roger Fenton shows a group of the 13th Light Dragoons which is known to include men who rode in the Charge (Mein collection) Right: The Crimean War Medal, showing all four of the ‘land’ clasps awarded. This example awarded to Sergeant John Eccleshall, 17th Lancers (local collection) Such was the extent of the criticism that this design of clasp was never used again, which is a shame.

The medals to the Army were issued bearing the battle clasps to which the recipient was entitled – for the Alma, for Balaklava and for Inkerman and for siege of Sevastopol – and were generally awarded unnamed, there being some desire for haste in getting them to the soldiers ‘in theatre’, such had been the criticism launched against the government and military authorities for the generally inept administration of the campaign.

However, the war correspondent of The Times, William Howard Russell, described the less than edifying way in which some were actually distributed in the field in September 1855: ‘The proceedings at the distribution were tame and spiritless to a degree. A regiment was drawn up, with the commanding officer in front; behind him stood a Sergeant with a big bag.

“John Smith” was called.

“Here.”

The Colonel dipped his hand into a bag, took out a small parcel and said, “John Smith, were you at Alma, Balaklava and Inkerman?”

“Yes.” The Colonel handed him his parcel, and John Smith retired to his place in the ranks carrying the said packet in his hand, which he opened at the “Dismiss”.’

Perhaps the John Smith alluded to never saw a shot fired except at a distance. He might have been on peaceful guard at Lord Raglan’s Head

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Quarters on the 5th of November – yet he wears the clasp for Inkerman. He might have been engaged in no more sanguinary work than that of killing oxen and sheep for the division in the commissariat slaughter-house and yet he will show on his breast ‘Crimea’, ‘Alma’, ‘Balaklava’, ‘Inkerman’. [The British Expedition to the Crimea, 1877 edition] It is hardly surprising, if this process was common, that one finds medals with clasps which cannot be traced to the recipient. In general, however, it is not errors in clasps awarded which beset the collector of Light Brigade medals. Since most were awarded unnamed, many are found privately engraved or impressed in a range of local or regimental styles. This has left the field open for the faker and forger over the years. Since Light Brigade medals have always been keenly collected and therefore valuable, this has gone on almost since the medals were issued.

Approximately 660 men of the Light Brigade rode in the Charge, but it has famously been said that if there had been the number of men in the Charge for whom medals exist, they would have overwhelmed the Russians! Since a simple engraved medal to a proven ‘charger’ can command thousands of pounds, probably no other British campaign medals should be as closely examined in terms of their naming as those to Light Brigade recipients. For obvious reasons, those which come with other officially named medals to the same recipient (e.g. for the Indian

Mutiny or Long Service and Good Conduct) attract more interest since they are deemed to be safer.

Provenance is also important; a medal with original documents or with a traceable descent from the recipient’s family or on the collectors’ market will always be preferred. This is not to say that simple engraved medals are to be avoided – they just need to be examined carefully.

Much more popular with collectors are medals which had their recipient’s details officially impressed at the Royal Mint. There were not too many of these, though they are often found to men who were casualties (killed in action or died of disease or wounds) and transmitted to the next of kin.

Not all Mint-impressed medals, of course, represent awards to casualties – there were other reasons for their production – but as official issues they are regarded by collectors as safer, with a guaranteed authenticity, than are engraved types. Having said that, care is still needed; in the 1980s criminals in

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MEDALS FEATURE

1

2

3

Medjidieh

the Turkish Crimea. The reverse carried a trophy of arms with the flag of the recipient’s country (British, French or Sardinian) to the fore, though, as is well known, many awarded to British recipients were of the Sardinian type since the ship carrying most of the British version sank en route. These medals were issued with a small ring suspension and a half-width ribbon, but they are usually found with the suspension amended (often to match the British Crimea medal) and with a full-width ribbon. British personnel thus ended up with at least two medals for their Crimea service.

Leg. of Hon.

Liverpool actually produced a machine to mimic the official naming style and fraudulently named a large number of previously unnamed medals to known Light Brigade men or interesting recipients. Most of their fakes are known and many were withdrawn from the market once confiscated, but there may be other fakes of their production still out there. As with other Light Brigade medals caveat emptor is a motto worth paying heed to.

As Britain was fighting in aid of the Ottoman Empire, every British recipient of the Crimea medal also received an Ottoman medal, generally referred to as

French MM

Right: The silver Turkish Crimea medal. Reverse, showing the flag of Sardinia to the fore, as awarded to most British recipients

Britain’s allies during the war, France, the Ottoman Empire and Sardinia, were fairly generous with their own awards and numbers of the French Legion of Honour and Medaille Militaire, along with the Ottoman Order of the Medjidieh and the Sardinian Al Valore Militare were conferred on British personnel. In most cases, it is not possible to establish in any detail why a recipient was awarded a foreign decoration, but recommendations at least for the French Medaille Militaire and the Sardinian medal survive and have been published (e.g. in full in War Medals of the British Army by Thomas Carter and W.H. Long, 1893, with subsequent reprints).

The regiments of the Light Brigade received the following foreign decorations (all grades) or medals, though in some cases it is not possible to be certain that they were specifically for the Charge as opposed to generally meritorious service during the long Crimean campaign: Al Valore

harbour, the Fenton’s famous view of Balaklava attacked by was h whic base l nava sh Briti r majo ght about brou and 1854 the Russians in October ction) the Battle of Balaklava (Mein colle

4th Light Dgns.

4

4

5

9

8th Hussars

3

4

5

5

11th Hussars

3

5

7

9

13th Light Dgns.

2

3

2

5

17th Lancers

3

4

2

7

Totals

15

20

21

35

This gives an approximate number of 91 foreign awards to Light Brigade

4

1. The French Legion of Honour, 2nd Empire, of the Crimea period. Shown is the Fifth or chevalier class. 2. The obverse of the Sardinian Al Valore Militare in silver. The reverse is engraved with the recipient’s details. It became a national award in 1861 and is still conferred.

3. The Ottoman ‘Order of the Medjidieh’. The 5th Class is shown, the commonest grade awarded for the Crimea. Higher grades were given to more senior officers. 4. The obverse of the French Imperial Medaille Militaire, established by Napoleon III in 1852 and still awarded today

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Medals for Balaclava

Above: Medal group to Pte. Thomas Harrison, 11th Light Dragoons, with the French MM awarded for his gallantry at Balaklava (local collection) men, plus a few others to the likes of Lord Cardigan (Legion of Honour and Medjidieh) and regimental officers on other duties. A few foreign awards were also made of men of ‘I’ Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, which accompanied the Light Brigade for the initial part of its advance against the Russians.

As a fairly typical example, the French Medaille Militaire is recorded as being awarded to RSM James Kelly, Sergeant John Andrews, Privates Thomas Guthrie and George McGregor of the 4th Light Dragoons for ‘gallantry and distinguished conduct in the charge of the Light Cavalry Brigade on 25th October 1854; served during the whole campaigns of 1854-5. Were present at the battles of the Alma, Inkermann, Traktir and expedition to Eupatoria in 1855’.

As examples of the Sardinian award, two recommendations give the flavour of the type of action for which it was conferred. Troop Sergeant Major William Waterson, 4th Light Dragoons, received the medal for a display of ‘very gallant conduct at the action of Balaklava in the light cavalry charge, particularly in the retreat of the regiment after they had sabred the artillerymen at their guns’. Sergeant Robert Davies, 11th Hussars, received the medal for his actions when ‘having passed through the [Russian] battery during the charge of the light cavalry, perceiving a Russian field piece to be limbering up to retreat, [he] called Pte. T. Bambrick, who was riding next to him, to follow and endeavour to capture it; in going to perform this duty, he was attacked by two Russian

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Above: Group with French Legion of Honour and Turkish Medjidieh with British awards Left: The Distinguished Conduct Medal for the Crimea. It retained the ‘trophy of arms’ obverse until 1902 when the monarch’s profile was adopted

lancers, one of whom he cut down, the other shot his horse. When on the ground he received a lance wound in the right thigh; he then caught a loose horse and rejoined his regiment’.

Strange as it may seem, at the time of the Charge in October 1854, there were no official British gallantry medals; it was in fact the experience of the Crimean War, ably reported by the first on-the-spot newspaper correspondents, which helped to push the authorities into creating a new national system of awards. The result was the institution of the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) in December 1854, the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (CGM, an equivalent for the Royal Navy and

Royal Marines) in September 1855 and finally the Victoria Cross, inaugurated in January 1856. All three were made retrospective for the Crimean and Baltic campaigns, so the army awards, the VC and the DCM, are seen to members of the Light Brigade.

In the end, 84 VCs were awarded to Army personnel for Crimea. For the Charge, the following six men were awarded the Victoria Cross: • Tpr. Samuel Parkes – 4th Light Dragoons [VC in Ashcroft collection] • Major Alexander R. Dunn – 11th Hussars [VC owned by Upper Canada College, Toronto] • Sgt. Joseph Malone – 13th Light Dragoons [VC in Ashcroft collection] • Troop SM John Berryman – 17th Lancers [VC in private collection] • QMS. John Farrell – 17th Lancers [VC location not known] • Sgt. Major Charles Wooden – 17th Lancers [VC in regimental museum] All are interesting personalities or had interesting careers. Remarkably, three of the six, Berryman, Malone and Farrell, received the VC for the same incident. While returning on foot from the Charge, their horses having been shot under them, they stopped under heavy fire to rescue a severely wounded officer, Captain Webb of the 17th Lancers, and carry him out of range of the guns; unfortunately, he later died of his wounds. All three received the medal from Queen Victoria at the first VC presentation in Hyde Park on 26 June 1857.

Major Alexander Roberts Dunn (1833-68) of the 11th Hussars was the only officer to win the VC in the

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John Berryman VC, in later life

MEDALS FEATURE Left: A Crimean VC, obverse. The Russian War of 185456 saw the first awards of the Victoria Cross Below: Group showing the Crimean DCM with British and Turkish campaign awards

Charge, the first Canadian to win the VC, and (later) the first Canadian to command a British regiment (the 33rd Regiment), as the Army’s youngest Colonel. Among many remarkable VCs, his is outstanding. After the Charge, seeing that Sergeant Bentley’s horse failed to keep up, Dunn turned and rode back to help the Sergeant, who was now being attacked by three Russian Dragoons. Dunn sabred the first, so that he fell from his saddle, giving Bentley time to recover. Dunn then killed the other two Russians as they continued to hack at them both.

Dunn later killed another Russian Hussar who was attacking a dismounted Private and then returned to Allied lines. He too received his VC from Queen Victoria at the first investiture in June 1857. Dunn was accidentally shot dead in a hunting accident when serving with his regiment in Abyssinia during the 1868 campaign and was buried in the nearby cemetery in Senafe, Abyssinia (Ethiopia).

QMS John Farrell (1826-65) of the 17th Lancers went on to serve during the Indian Mutiny, reaching the rank of Quartermaster Sergeant. He died at Secunderabad in August 1865 and is buried in an unmarked grave in Secunderabad Cemetery.

Sergeant Joseph Malone (1833-83) of the 13th Light Dragoons served in the cavalry until 1883 and reached the rank of Riding Master (Hon. Captain).

He died of bronchitis serving with his regiment in Natal in 1883.

John Berryman (1825-96) of the 17th Lancers, who was severely wounded in the Charge, went on to serve not only in the Indian Mutiny but also in the Zulu War; he took part, then as Adjutant of his regiment, in the charge of the 17th Lancers at Ulundi on 4 July 1879, so he participated in two famous regimental charges, 25 years apart!

He remained in service until 1880, attaining the rank of Major.

Samuel Parkes (1815-64) of the 4th Light Dragoons is an interesting recipient. He rode in the Charge as Orderly to his CO, Lord Paget, and was wounded and taken prisoner as a result of the action for which he received the VC, attempting to fight off Cossacks who were attacking the wounded Trumpet Major Crawford during the retirement from the guns.

Parkes was interviewed by the Russian General Liprandi, who, impressed with his stature (he was well over six feet tall) is said to have remarked “If you are Light Dragoons, what sort of men are your Heavy Dragoons?” Later in life, Parkes claimed to have lost his original VC and apparently claimed a replacement – as was allowed under strictly controlled circumstances – but the story of the real VC and its replacement is complicated.

He joined the Hyde Park Constabulary and died in 1864.

Charles Wooden (1829-76) of the 17th Lancers was rather belatedly awarded the VC, in October 1858, on the recommendation of Surgeon Mouatt, VC (6th Dragoons). Both had gone out to rescue Captain Morris of the 17th Lancers, who was very

seriously wounded in the Charge and crushed under his horse. Turkish soldiers had made an attempt to reach him but were forced back, so Wooden and Mouatt went out under heavy fire to rescue him. After roughly dressing his wounds, they succeeded in getting him back to British lines but only Mouat was recommended for the VC. Pressed by Wooden, who rightly considered that he was as entitled to the VC as Mouatt, the latter wrote to the Horse Guards supporting Wooden’s claim and it was eventually gazetted in October 1858. Wooden ended his career as Quartermaster of the 104th Regiment of Foot (late Bengal Fusiliers) in 1872 but, sad to say, committed suicide in April 1876.

At the first public presentation of the VC by the Queen, in Hyde Park on 26 June 1857, large crowds thronged to see the ‘heroes of the new Order’ and some expressed surprise that it was such an ordinary looking object, a tuppence worth of bronze! But it was what it stood for, not its appearance, which mattered and it has remained unchanged in design to this day.

The new Distinguished Conduct Medal was also awarded to men of the Light Brigade and 40 DCMs were conferred on its members.

Interestingly, there are exactly eight each to the five participant regiments in the Charge, which looks like a regimental allocation at work, though not all of these can be shown to be specifically Charge related – some Crimea DCMs were given for generally distinguished or gallant conduct during the campaign or in other actions. ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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17/08/2017 14:30

The British 2in mortar T

Edward Hallett takes a look at the history of this weapon, its accessories and what is available for the collector

he mortar had proved its worth during WWI. It was cheaper and more portable than artillery and needed far fewer men than traditional guns.

During the 1930s the British Army started looking for a modern light mortar to issue to infantry troops. The mortar needed to be small enough and light enough to be carried easily by one man, but have an effective enough range and payload to be a force multiplier.

The War Office looked at a number of different designs in use by other countries and the most

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promising was a 50mm light mortar developed by Spain. Although the mortar was declared unsuitable as it stood, it was the ideal starting point for the Armament Research Department, and in November 1937 ten prototypes and 1,600 rounds of both high explosive and smoke ammunition were tested. The tests were very satisfactory; the weapon proved simple and reliable and in February 1938 orders were placed for production models. By the outbreak of war 500 were in service allowing training to begin.

The mortar was to undergo a number of modifications to simplify it and reduce the weight further. Early

examples had a large cast base plate, but the most common version of the mortar was the simplified MK VII, which used a simple spade base.

The 1959 Infantry Training Pamphlet on the 2in mortar described it as, ‘A simple weapon, used to fire smoke and illuminating bombs. Its maximum range with smoke bombs is 525yrd. One man can handle and fire the mortar; other men are required to carry the bombs.’ The 2in mortar was constructed of a steel tube, with a cast steel spade on the end which was placed on the ground to absorb the recoil. Due to the small overall length of the mortar

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ARTILLERY FEATURE 2in mortar team of the 2nd Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment, keep up covering fire during the advance on Pinbaw, December 1944

The 2in mortar is a steel tube, with a trigger mechanism and base plate that was used in the light infantry support role

The weapon is fired with a large metal firing lever at the base. A firing lanyard could be attached to the hole on the end of the lever

A heavy spade base passed the recoil of the weapon into the ground and provided a firm platform for firing

The high-explosive bomb was painted brown with coloured bands, indicating the explosive filling. The top cap was removed before firing

The 1950s’ weapons pamphlet on the 2in mortar includes this helpful illustration showing the various parts of the weapon a traditional fixed firing pin would have been too dangerous, so the 2in mortar is fitted with a cocking mechanism and a trigger that can be used to fire the bomb when the operator wishes.

This trigger could either be used as issued, or was frequently fitted with a plaited string lanyard. The barrel of the standard mortar is 21in long and overall it weighs 10.5lb; a shorter and lighter version was produced for airborne troops.

The breech piece of the mortar was removable from the barrel allowing the operator to clean and maintain both parts more easily. The mortar was a simple and effective weapon to clean and maintain in the field and was well liked by those who were issued with it.

Deactivated or de-milled 2in mortars are available in both the UK and US,

The wartime parachute illuminating bomb had a black body with yellow stencilled markings on the case although the methods of rendering them unusable vary. Expect to pay about £350 (UK) and $1,000 (US).

The bombs A variety of different types of ammunition was issued for use with the mortar during its long service life.

The main purpose of the mortar was to lay down cover for the infantry it supported, either in the form of smoke or high explosives. It was also used to provide illumination on the battlefield at night, and for each of these roles specialist bombs were issued, as well as dedicated training in ammunition so crews could practise loading and firing the weapon safely. Although the use of bombs might vary, they were all launched the same with a four-grain

Ballistite charge in the tail in the form of a removable cartridge.

When one thinks of a mortar, the first thing that comes to mind are high-explosive rounds, and the 2in mortar used a 2.5lb bomb made of solid drawn steel containing a charge of 5oz 13drams of baratol or amatol explosive.

The bomb was painted buff with a red and green band. Inert examples of the bombs are hard to find and can sell for up to £100 each. An impact fuse was fitted to the nose of the bomb, with a removable metal cap to protect it before use; the bomb on impact had a blast radius of up to 150 yards.

Smoke bombs were particularly useful in providing temporary cover on the battlefield and, indeed, the mortar was issued to crews of the 6-pounder anti-tank gun precisely for this purpose. www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The British 2in mortar

The internal components of the high explosive mortar bomb

The high-explosive bomb used a complicated impact fuse that used an internal ball bearing to fire off the explosives when it hit a solid object

Post war parachute illuminating bombs were painted white and issued with individual transit tins to protect them Initially this complicated sight was issued with the mortar. Later a white line was painted down the tube for aiming

The internal parts of the parachute illuminating bomb The smoke bomb came in two varieties; one was a smoke bursting bomb filled with white phosphorous, the other gave a cloud of low lying smoke for two minutes and was filled with Composition SR269. Both types had a green-varnished, thin steel body and the smoke screen was released through vent holes on its base.

The third and final use on the battlefield was for illumination and, again, a couple of varieties of bombs were issued, both traditional ‘star’ type flares and a parachute illuminating flare that used a small parachute to allow the flare to float gently down over the battlefield and offer illumination for a few minutes. The parachute illuminating flare had a black painted tin-plate body with a small tin-plate lid.

Inside was a cardboard flare attached with wire to a small cotton parachute.

The details of the bomb were stencilled on the outside. Post-war the body was

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changed to a white painted version, the lid having a raised ‘P’ on it to allow identification at night. Wartime illuminating bombs can sell for up to £100; the white painted post-war examples are more affordable with nice examples available for £30.

Firing the mortar The 1938 copy of Section Leading explains the envisaged doctrine behind the use of the 2in mortar: ‘The 2in mortar forms a reserve of fire power in the hands of the platoon commander. In attack it will be kept well forward, prepared to come into action at a moment’s notice, to assist in maintaining the momentum of the attack, by neutralising the fire of hostile posts which are holding up the advance. It is of little use at night.’

The 2in mortar was simple enough to be used by one man on his own,

but the manual recommended a team of three, a corporal and two men, to handle and fire the weapon. Once a target had been determined, there were two prescribed ways of firing the mortar, either kneeling or lying behind it. For either position the firer made sure he was directly behind the mortar and lined up the centrally painted white line with the target. The muzzle cover was then removed and the weapon angled at around 45 degrees.

The bomb was placed in the tube and given a gentle push to ensure it seated itself correctly. The firer then grasped the lanyard, (making sure his hand was nowhere near the muzzle of the mortar) and prepared to fire. The mortar was rocked back and forth in either a high or low angle trajectory. High angle was between 45 degrees and vertical and the bomb would go high into the air and land almost vertically. A low angle was between 45 degrees and horizontal and

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ARTILLERY FEATURE

The cleaning kit was held in a webbing pouch that could be slung over the shoulder. This example was made in Canada in 1945 gave a much flatter trajectory.

High-angle fire allowed the operator to fire at targets behind a tall building or hill where the bomb needed to fall steeply or where a low-angle shot would not have cleared an object between the firer and the target.

High angle was also normally used for parachute illuminating bombs to ensure the flare was lit as high in the sky as possible. A low angle was used at other times as it reduced the effect of wind on the trajectory of the bomb.

Fired at a 45-degree angle, a bomb would travel approximately 525 yards; at 85 degrees (i.e. almost vertical) the range dropped to 200 yards, the closest effective range at which to use the weapon. Mortar operators were trained to be able to judge these angles quickly through experience and would also be expected to aim off to allow for the effect of the wind. The 1959 manual explains: ‘To lay the mortar for line and elevation you hold the mortar firmly with your fingers as far round the barrel

The 2in mortar continued in service for many years after the war

The hand-guard and muzzle cap are now exceptionally rare accessories. These examples are modern reproductions

as possible, line up the barrel with the target or the aiming mark you have selected to allow for wind, keep your body and head directly behind it, using the white line as a guide: then adjust the angle of the barrel to the range.’

Once the target was lined up and the mortar loaded, the firer was to, ‘keep perfectly still and pull the firing lanyard backwards and downwards without jerking it, until the bomb is fired’. The user then observed the fall of the bomb and made adjustments to walk the shots onto the target.

Accessories to buy A large selection of accessories is available for the collector – some are easier to find than others! The mortars were issued with webbing muzzle covers and hand-guards to go around the barrels. Sadly, original examples are virtually unobtainable today; however, a number of excellent reproductions are available that allow the mortar to be finished off. There are reports of a specialist short sling for the mortar, but most period photographs show a standard Lee Enfield rifle sling being used instead.

When first issued, the mortar used a complicated metal collimating sight, with a pair of spirit levels to help aim the weapon which clamped over the barrel. This was quickly dropped when it was found that a white painted line down the barrel was perfectly adequate for aiming the weapon at the ranges normally used on the battlefield. The operator just adjusted the angle by rocking the mortar back and forth on the spade and this was far quicker and just as accurate as the sights. As can be imagined the sights are now rather hard to come by, but if you want your mortar to be complete (there is a space in the transit case for the sight) expect to pay £80 for a sight.

The cleaning kit included an impressive folding brush made of wood and brass.

The head was removable and the shaft folded in half for stowage As with most weapons, the 2in mortar came with a specialist cleaning kit housed in a small webbing wallet. A large diameter bore brush was provided, and a neat bayonet and screw fitting allowed the head to be removed and the shaft to fold in half. Accompanying this was a small take-down tool and a bottle of oil. Both British and Canadian-made examples of the cleaning wallet can be found. The wallets fetch around £40 each and the bore brush £25.

The bombs themselves were issued in specialist carriers. The most common pattern during World War II was a set of three cardboard tubes, closed by metal lids, separated by wooden dividers and with a webbing carry handle on the top. In 1945 a replacement carrier was just coming into service with a metal frame around it as part of the new jungle equipment being issued. Neither carrier is easy to find and they easily fetch £100-£150 each. Webbing bags were also available that could hold six bombs at a time – these are often associated with airborne troops but do not seem to have been used very much.

These are available, normally in mint condition, for around £75.

The 2in mortar was a very successful weapon and remained in use by the British Army into the 1980s, although after the war it was predominantly used for launching parachute flares and laying smoke screens rather than high-explosive bombs. It was replaced by the very similar L9A1 51mm light mortar in the late 1980s, but the Indian Ordnance Board’s 51mm E1 mortar is a copy of the wartime design and is still used today by the Indian Army. ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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14/08/2017 14:50

WEAPON FEATURE

Rifle versus musket in the Crimean War

Graham Priest looks at how the different types of rifle used in the Crimea developed during the conflict

COVER STORY

Bayonet attack by the Guards at Inkerman (Officers’ Portfolio, Dickinson Bros 1856)

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he reasons why Russia, Turkey (Ottoman Empire), France, Piedmont (Kingdom of Two Sicilies) and Great Britain fought a major war from October 1853 to March 1856 are covered in the main feature on page 28. Basically they mirrored modern-day politics where an expansionist Russia gained influence against a weak Ottoman Empire to the detriment of European interests.

To military historians the conflict allows comparisons between outdated Napoleonic War (1803-15) systems and the advance of communications and arms technology. The war was the first to be photographed and also marked the debut of general issue rifle-muskets.

France had the most advanced theoretical technology with its concept of the breech and bullet designed by Henri-Gustave Delvigne (1800-76) and updated with a small iron basal

plug by Capitaine Claude Étienne Minié (1804-79). As an officer of the Chasseurs d’Orléans, Minié had adopted a cylindro-conoidal bullet (after Captain John Norton’s principle of 1832) smaller than the diameter of a rifled barrel, with cannelures and a conical cavity in its base, that could be loaded quickly. Discharge gases expanded the iron base of the ball so that the lead engaged the rifling in the tube.

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Rifle versus musket in the Crimean War Unlike the previous models with a tight mechanical fit, load, speed and accuracy were facilitated.

However, due to financial circumstances only about 15% of the French possessed a rifle-musket or rifle. These were issued to Voltigeurs (skirmishers), Chasseurs (hunters) or Zouaves (light infantry in Algerian uniform). The muskets were a miscellany of types retrofitted to percussion ignition from flintlock or new percussion.

A significant proportion were converted 17.5mm calibre percussion smooth-bores such as the fusil d’infanterie modèle 1822 T (transformée) or new made mle.1840 and mle.1842.

The former was 1.47m overall, weighed 4.08kg and carried the baionnette modèle 1822 or mle.1822/47. The walnutstocked, iron-mounted musket had two barrel bands with stock springs and a substantial iron open-topped nosecap with foresight. A steel rammer passed through the latter adjacent to a tenon under the barrel to support the bayonet. The side-action lock had its flint parts removed and replaced with a hammer. The very similar mle.1840

Piedmont Bersaglieri with Carabina mod.1848 and sciabole-baionette da bersaglieri mod.1848 (Von Mukenburg Lot n.408 – Asta n.45 and Gerolamo o Girolamo Induno)

French fusil d’infanterie modèle 1853T and bayonet held by a Zouave c.1855. Baïonnettes modèle 1822, modèle 1822 modifiée 1847 and modèle 1822 modifiée 1847N (Henri Adam, Armes Tarbes, Roger Fenton and Priest)

Pattern 1853 rifle-musket and bayonet dated 1856. Inset the 77th Regiment in winter dress with the weapon c.1855 (Priest and Roger Fenton) and 1842 had purpose-built back-action locks; the former only being made in small quantities. French muskets were formed in shorter lengths for use by specialist units. The baïonnette modèle 1822 was a lengthened version of the 1777 design. The bridged median locking ring socket was 67.6mm long and the triple fullered triangular blade 460mm. The shank was located on the tube 180° from the three-step mortise and the bolt that secured the clasp was a similar distance from the sight-opening. In 1847 this device was strengthened by the adoption of a more elliptical sectioned shank blended into the blade shoulder and a reinforced locking ring. As such a bayonet fitted

68th Regiment in winter dress with the Musquet, percussion, rifled for conical balls, Pattern 1851 (Roger Fenton c.1855)

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WEAPON FEATURE

Above: Ottoman soldiers in the Crimea armed with the French style flintlock fusil d’infanterie modèle 1822 (Jean-Marie Criel) Below: French muskets and a rifle. Top to bottom: Fusil d’infanterie modèle 1822 T, modèle 1840, modèle 1842 and carabine modèle 1853T (Henri Adam, Armes Tarbes)

Bersaglieri with fucile da fanteria mod.1844.

Baionetta a manicott e gheira mod.22 per fucile mod.1842 inset (Gerolamo Induno Milan and Priest) earlier muskets it was termed baïonnette modèle 1822 modifiée 1847.

The rifles of the French Army were mainly limited to the carabines à tige Thouvenin used by Chasseurs after 1853, fusil d’infanterie modèle 1853T and modèle 1854, dit de la Garde Impériale.

The first had a pin inside the powder chamber to deform the bullet so it fitted the rifled barrel. These fouled easily. The 1853 used a Minié ball and was built on the stock of an infantry musket, but had a new rifled barrel in 18mm calibre with a rearsight.

At some 400,000 the French forces were double the size of the British.

Under the jurisdiction of the Board of Ordnance (BO) troops were disadvantaged as they underwent one of the most fundamental changes to their arms for at least 150 years.

Until the first ‘Rifle Musquet, Pattern 1853’ BO contract of 6 October 1853 regiments had been armed with a series of muskets based around the 0.753in calibre ‘Brown Bess’. Designated Land, Sea or India patterns, they featured walnut stocks, pinned barrels and brass furniture. Locks evolved from flint to a percussion cap system in 1834, socket bayonets, attached to foresights, gained under-barrel

clips from 1838 and in 1851 the bores were rifled. However, George Lovell, Superintendent at the Royal Small Arms Manufactory at Enfield Lock (RSAF), had noted European developments with the Minié round and had persuaded the authorities that a rifle-musket was de rigueur. The Duke of Wellington was the fly in the ointment, as his stipulation that the weight of the round had to match that of a musket ball kept a large 0.702in calibre. At least all infantry troops were to be equipped. Technical problems meant that production commenced in 1852 and the death of the Iron Duke in September of that year suddenly allowed a superior 0.577in calibre design to rise to the fore. Less than the final 35,000 had been set up for issue to troops in January 1853. All except 1,000 were in service by April 1855. The pattern was dropped a few months later as the Pattern 1853 began to appear.

The 4th Division arrived with (and kept until early 1855) the smooth-bore Musket, New Pattern 1842, 55in (1.4m) in length and with a 17in (434mm) bladed socket bayonet retained by Lovell’s spring catch (1844). These saw little use, the troops being held in reserve at the Battle of the Alma.

All the other 30-plus line battalions gained the Musquet, percussion, rifled for conical balls, Pattern 1851 en route to the Crimea. This was of similar dimensions to the musket except for the four-groove rifling in smaller calibre and the presence of a large backsight.

The bayonet, either converted from the P.1842 or new made, had a reduced socket diameter to fit the smaller barrel. The 93rd Highlanders (‘The Thin Red Line’) used these to effect at Balaklava. By 1855 any reinforcements that arrived with muskets had these exchanged for the P.51 rifle-musket.

This was the main firearm for the www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Rifle versus musket in the Crimean War

Russian socket bayonets. Top to bottom: shtyk 1845, 1839 and 1828 (Priest)

Musquet, percussion, rifled for conical balls, Pattern 1851with bayonets Pattern 1842, 1842 altered to ‘51 and Pattern 1851 (Trustees of the Weapons Collection, Land Warfare Centre, Warminster, Roger Fenton and Priest)

Russian Luttichkiskiy shtutzer obrazets 1843 goda (Liège model 1843 short-rifle) and bayonet copied from the Brunswick design (Stroud Auctions Ltd and Southams Auctioneers and Valuers) remainder of the campaign until withdrawn under a General Order of 5 March 1856 when: ‘The issue of the new Enfield Rifle Musket to the Infantry ... (had) ... been completed...’.

Royal Marines used another variant, the Pattern 1842, altered from smoothbore. Externally similar it was rebored to 0.758in four-groove rifling, had a backsight and the original bayonet.

A variety of carbines were issued to artillery and commissariat soldiers but it was the non-interchangeable P.1853 rifle-muskets that were rushed to Rifle Regiments, followed by Guards and then Infantry of the Line as soon as they became available after 31 August 1855. This revolutionary 0.577in calibre design, rifled with three grooves, with iron barrel bands and a locking-ring supported socket bayonet set the standard for all nations. Still 55in (1.4m) overall it was a more modern, streamlined design. It arrived too late for engagements at the Alma, Balaklava, Inkerman (5 November 1854) but did service in the ongoing siege of Sevastopol (17 October 1854 to 9 September 1855).

Piedmont supplied 18,000 troops (see The Armourer July 2017 pp. 98102). The divisions used a copy of the French fusil d’infanterie modèle 1842, termed fucile da fanteria mod.1844 with baionetta a manicott e gheira mod.22

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per fucile mod.1842. The Bersaglieri (marksmen) carried a more up-to-date Delvigne system Carabina mod.1848 with a brass-hilted sciabole-baionette da bersaglieri mod.1848.

Ottoman firearms were probably mainly flintlocks. The Times correspondent, William Russell, noted that when 15,000 reinforcements arrived in 1855: ‘They were armed for the most part with flint firelocks, but they were very clean and bright.’

One contingent had: ‘Minié rifles of English make’. An authority claimed that 1,000 P.1851 rifle-muskets were donated to Turkish forces. The 300,000 Ottoman soldiers were probably armed with Belgian- or French-made fusil d’infanterie modèle 1822 if the few contemporary pictures are examined.

Imperial Russia employed some 700,000 troops (with a 1,000-strong Greek legion) in the Crimea. Such a vast force stretched arms plants at Tulsky Oruzheiny Zavod (Tula 1712), Sestrovesk (1724) and Izhevsk (1807) to the limit. Employment of serf labour and outdated technology had caused weapons’ quotas to be missed for decades. An 1835 Komissiya po oruzhiyu (Arms Commission) created the kremnevoye ruzh’ye obrazets 1839 goda (flintlock Model 1839 musket) but intelligence indicated that percussion systems were being

introduced elsewhere. In 1844 flint longarms began to be converted to percussion ignition and newly built 7.1 line (0.71in/18mm) calibre udarnoe pechotnoe ruzh’ye obrazets 1845 goda (M.1845) assembled. James Naysmith introduced English steam hammers and machinery at Tula. Russian muskets were based on the French style with brass barrel bands, arctic birch stocks and under-stud bayonet fittings. Each type was 58in (1.48m) overall with the side-action lock of the flint model being replaced by a back-action when the M.1845 was cloned from the fusil d’infanterie modèle 1842. The obrazet 1839 and 1845 shtyk was also a copy of the French mle.1822 or mle.1822/47 except for minor details.

Most rifles in Russian hands were Luttichkiskiy shtutzer obrazets 1843 goda (Liège model 1843 short-rifle) copied from the British P.1837 Brunswick design. Pierre-Joseph Malherbe made 5,000 in 1843. These used a belted ball in 0.75in calibre, had a hinged rearsight and typical British 30in pinned barrel mounted on a walnut stock with brass furniture. A bar on the right of the muzzle carried a brass-hilted gladius style sword bayonet.

Also issued was a rifled-up version of the 1845 musket with the Minié type system. The obrazets 1854 goda had a backsight and the socket bayonet was

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WEAPON FEATURE

Russia kremnevoye ruzh’ye obrazets 1828/44 goda (flintlock Model 1828/44 musket) converted to percussion. Inset is sub-officer Afanasiy Vasilyev, 4th Company, 2nd Druzhina regiment of militia c.1850 (College Hill Arsenal FLA1503 and Priest) Right: Russian udarnoe pechotnoe ruzh’ye obrazets 1845 goda and shtyk built in 1848.

Inset is Vasiliy Startsev, sub-officer of 4th Company, 2nd Druzhina regiment of militia with a similar musket (Priest) given a bladed foresight to extend the visual distance.

Tactics in the Crimea largely dated from earlier wars. On the battlefield Russian infantry were trained to advance in column and deliver massed volleys at ranges of up to 164yd (150m). Discharge was followed by a bayonet attack. Small snaypery (marksmen) units used rifles to pick off officers and individuals from greater distances. Their officers were aristocrats with little military knowledge, who spent minimal time with their men and cared about them even less.

The expeditionary forces mainly employed similar approaches to the Russians but were hampered by poor logistics and national differences. The French had the only trained officers, medical services, supplies of winter clothing and a planned commissariat.

British regiments and the others soon depended on these for ammunition and materiél. Unfortunately arrogant upper-class British or illiterate Turkish commanders disliked this situation so the co-ordinated approach required to fight the war was lost. However, the fortitude of other ranks and the superior quality of their rifled weapons tipped the balance.

In 2017 top prices quoted for British P.1842 muskets were £1,159 ($1,500), P.1851s £1,931 ($2,500) and P.1853s

Above: The Charge of the Light Brigade, as seen from the Russian side of the battle (Wood, E., The Boy’s Book of Battles) £2,124 ($2,750). Bayonets ranged from £50 to £250 dependent on design, condition and scabbard. A French fusil d’infanterie modèle 1822T sold recently for €535 and a fusil d’infanterie modèle 1853T was quoted at £520-694 (€600800), with bayonets for £87-130 (€100150). A Russian Luttichkiskiy shtutzer obrazets 1843 goda sold for £4,750.00 and muskets hover around £500-800.

Bayonets range from £60-500. Luckily in the UK many foreign weapons from this era are not recognized so can still be found at bargain prices.

Acknowledgements: Thanks to Pierre Renoux, the Trustees of the Weapons Collection, Land Warfare Centre, Warminster, and those mentioned in the captions. ■

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Bayonets derived from French design.

Top to bottom: modèle 1822 modifiée 1847, Italian Baionetta a manicott e gheira mod.22, Russian shtyk 1845 and Ottoman modèle 1822 (Priest)

FURTHER READING

• Calamandrei, C., Baionette Italiane 1814-1991, Editoriale Olimpia, Firenze, 1992.

• Pellaton, F., et al., Fusils et Carabines de Collection, Crepin Leblond, Paris, 1995.

• Priest, G., The Brown Bess Bayonet 1720 -1860, Tharston Press, Norfolk, 1995.

• Roads, C.H., The British Soldier’s Firearm 1850 -1864, Herbert Jenkins, London,1964.

• Wilkinson-Latham, R., Uniforms and Weapons of the Crimean War, Batsford Ltd., London, 1977.

www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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18/08/2017 10:35

The Spanish Cross Jamie Cross looks at the German award for participation in the Spanish Civil War

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he start of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, between the Republicans and Franco’s Nationalists, gave Adolf Hitler a much-needed testing ground for his modern German forces. All the arms of service (Kreigsmarine, Luftwaffe and Werhmacht), spent some time in this campaign, fighting on the side of the fascist Nationalists. Dive-bombing techniques were perfected, tank designs rectified and the Kreigsmarine was used to patrol an exclusion zone around Spanish waters. With the conclusion of Franco`s victory over the Republicans and the awarding of many Spanish orders and medals to the ‘Legion Condor’, as it was called, Adolf Hitler decided that a German piece of insignia or award was needed to reward his troops. Originally a cuff-band was authorised, but this appears to have been quickly shelved, although original examples do exist. So, the Spanish Cross was devised and was given to all members who served in Spain or around the territorial waters of Spain.

The award was instituted on 14 April 1939 with Hitler declaring, “To show my appreciation and thanks for the service of

German volunteers during the destruction of Bolshevism in the Spanish freedom fight, I establish the Spanish Cross in three classes.”

Although Hitler stated three classes, the award was actually in four classes and two grades, and therefore it can be encountered in the following formats: • Bronze without swords, 7,869 issued • Bronze with swords, 8,462 issued • Silver without swords, 327 issued • Silver with swords, 8,304 issued • Gold without swords, none issued, although they were made • Gold with swords, 1,126 issued • Special class gold with swords and diamonds, 28 issued The version of the award with swords was given for combatants and it was necessary to be either a volunteer in the ‘Legion Condor’ or to have taken part in any hostile action. The Bronze version was for front-line combat service. The Silver version was awarded to those who took part in specific battles or fought in a number of battles. The Gold award with swords went to those soldiers who distinguished themselves in combat or performed particularly heroic feats.

Additionally, the award could be given for special acts of bravery or for serving on an armed ship for three months in Spanish waters. The Bronze and Silver award without swords would be given to technicians and supply staff who served in the Spanish region but did not take part in any combat.

The award itself is a pin-back cross that is constructed of many different pieces. It consists of eight separately attached components forming the central circular disc with a swastika in the centre, placed on a large convex Maltese cross. Between each of the four arms of the cross is soldered or welded a Luftwaffe flying eagle holding a swastika. On the finer quality crosses, the swastika is actually cut out.

On most crosses you will usually find a massive hinge and hook with a broad bladed pin fixing. Some of these crosses are maker marked, whilst others are unmarked. A couple of the maker marks encountered have been B & N L, and CEJ within a box. Sometimes you will get the markings for CEJ with a silver content, while others just have an 800 or 900 silver mark stamped on them.

A picture of an unknown Luftwaffe holder of the Spanish Cross

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MEDAL FEATURE i

TYPES OF SPANISH CROSS

Shown below is a selection of Spanish Cross with swords and without swords. Notice the standardisation of them.

L/1 Spanish Cross

Petz Spanish Cross

Spanish Cross BNL no swords

Spanish Cross BNL no swords, variant

Spanish Cross CEJ with swords

When worn the cross would be pinned to the left breast tunic pocket and if the recipient were subsequently to hold the German Cross, it would be worn below this. When awarded, the cross was presented in a square box, usually green in colour with red/beige flock lining. It also came with a very large A5 size award document that was printed and had the recipient’s name and rank typed onto it as well as the award date. To the bottom left-hand side, you will find an embossed seal of a wreath with an eagle holding a swastika. All bear a facsimile of Adolf Hitler’s signature which is positioned to the bottom centre of the document. All documents tell you the grade and the class of the award.

Miniatures of the award could be and were worn on the lapel of any member of the armed forces whilst in civilian clothes. Former soldiers were also authorised to wear said miniatures if entitled to so. These come in three

Top (left): Shown above is the rare pre-award document showing entitlement to the award Top (right): A Spanish Cross award document in bronze to a Luftwaffe recipient. Notice the award is with swords.

This was given to Obergefrieten Friedrich Gabler Above: Spanish Cross next to miniature pin badges

www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Spanish Cross

MEDAL FEATURE

Above: This is a Souval Copy of the Cross of Honour for relatives Right: Finding the medal in its award case will add to the value main sizes: 12, 16 and 22mm. There is no formal ribbon bar for this award and as such only the full-size version was worn on the service tunic. If, in the case of some Luftwaffe aces, a Diamond version was awarded, it replaced the lower grade, with the holder only wearing the higher grade. The lower grade award, though, was kept by the recipient. There is no 1957 replacement award of the Spanish Cross that I am aware of.

Copies of the Spanish Cross have ranged from high quality to cheap lead castings, detail being good to very poor.

Some crosses have their eagles attached to the swords by glue, whereas others are welded directly to the swords. Any crosses with these features should be avoided. Any crosses that are RZM marked also should not be entertained, together with those that have weak pin fixings which would not stand up to the modern-day wear and tear that you would expect a military badge to be put through.

Certain updated copies have been seen with a screwback fixing. I have only seen this on one converted original, although others could exist.

One other original variant is worth mentioning, which also follows the design of the Spanish Cross, and that is the Cross of Honour for relatives of the dead in Spain. This cross is in fact smaller than the pin on breast cross and was worn from a ribbon bar. The cross has no swords but is constructed in the same manner as the bigger cross with the addition of a medal loop to the top. This cross is again very rare, as only 315 were awarded, and it has often been copied. One such copy is marked with L/12 and the Godet maker mark, which is completely wrong for the L number code.

What to pay Here are the approximate values of Spanish Crosses. Please bear in mind that rare and pristine examples are

more valuable than tired or damaged examples and documents awarded to known personalities will command more than an award to an unknown German soldier.

• Bronze without swords: £ 750-£900 • Bronze with swords: £ 725-£900 • Silver without swords: £1,250-£2500 • Silver with swords: £1,000-£2,000 • Gold without swords : £1,500-£3,000 • Gold with swords: £1,800-£3,250 • Special class gold with swords and diamonds: Unknown Although rarer than the crosses, the documents relating to the awards do turn up. These are the prices you can expect to pay to collect them.

• Bronze without swords: £350-£500 • Bronze with swords: £375-£500 • Silver without swords: £1,500- £2,000 • Silver with swords: £450- £650 • Gold without swords: Not issued • Gold with swords: £800-£3,000 • Special class gold with swords and diamonds: Unknown ■

Left: Close up detail shots of what to look for to avoid fakes Right: Look for markings and clearly defined insignia

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Comic postcards of the Great War W

Ray Westlake looks at the popular postcards from WWI that were used to write home

ith war came the need for more men, men who possibly for the first time would find themselves away from home and their loved ones. Kitchener had pointed his demanding finger and makeshift tented camps had sprung up on every available open space overnight, so went off the butchers, bakers, candlestick makers and under-aged to fill them. “Write soon,” was the message that echoed down the street as the men set out for their great adventure. And write they did – mobile phones, emails and text messages would be several generations off yet – for mums, wives, brothers and sisters needed to know that all was well.

So it would fall to the already popular postcard to set minds at rest back home regarding the welfare of the civilian now turned soldier. By the million, cards produced by local photographers showing smiling groups of khaki-clad sons, husbands and sweethearts (“He

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seems to have put on a bit of weight”) poured by the sack load daily from the camps. There they were, marching, training and parading, some still in their civilian clothes. These cards, of course, are now cherished by both collector and historian, thanks to the wealth of information regarding uniform, badges and equipment which they often contain.

But, great adventure though it may have been, it was the needs of war that had turned bus drivers, milkmen, officer workers and bank clerks into soldiers.

Perhaps – we are British after all – we must be encouraged now to point chins to the sky and see the funny side. Enter then the comic postcard with its humour very much of the day. From the artist’s brush 1: The Secretary of State for War made a personal appeal for volunteers.

2: But this was also used for humorous purposes as with this spinster 3: This relates to a packet of pins being given as change in lieu of a farthing

came tented camps portrayed as holiday resorts and friendly sergeant majors with only the troops’ welfare at heart. Here too, and as an aid to recruiting, was the idea that a uniform would attract the girls, if not before joining up, then certainly upon return from the Front having done one’s bit. The language of the soldier, words like ‘attack’, ‘advance’, ‘front line’, ‘contingent’ and ‘draught’ were also used to good and humorous effect by the artist. Regiments, eager to let us know what they had in mind for the ‘Hun’, would also produce cards, some printers using a stock image to which would be added name of unit.

Neglected by collectors for decades, comic cards of the Great War have now gained recognition as important aspects of history, both military and social.

It would be impossible to document every card produced; the idea here is to illustrate a few examples of what is still available to the collector, thankfully in good numbers and at low cost.

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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DOCUMENT FEATURE Kitchener calls

6: This wouldn’t be so funny when the troops were bogged down in Belgium

Lord Kitchener’s now famous ‘YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU’ poster definitely makes the viewer feel that the demanding finger was pointing directly at him or her. The Field Marshal and former Commander-in-Chief, India, was not known for his conversational skills with the ordinary man. As her umbrella and handbag fall to the ground, the lady in Lawrence Colborne’s postcard cries, “This is so sudden!” in her honest belief that it is her, and her alone, that the Secretary of State for War wants. After all, the word YOU is so bold and heavily underlined.

Along similar lines, the artist of “LOR! AND HERE I’VE TRIED FOR THIRTY YEARS, AND CAN’T GET ONE!” shows a puzzled middle-aged spinster wondering just what was the secret of Kitchener’s success as she reads a newspaper placard reporting his ‘Half a Million Men’ recruited within one month.

It must have been difficult for the civilian to adapt himself to Army life.

The language and customs of former occupations often lingered until the military swept them from the mind.

Take the shop assistant portrayed on one postcard, for example. An officer now, it would seem, he addresses three newcomers to the rifle as they sight their weapons: “FIVE HUNDRED YARDS AT

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7: A stuffed mailbox and a pun on the playing of The Last Post 8: A little mockery of the conditions was always popular TWO-THREE A YARD, AND WILL YOU TAKE PINS.” A packet of pins, of course, was often given in lieu of a farthing change.

“THE COLONEL SENDS THIS WITH HIS COMPLIMENTS AND HOPES THE NIGHT AIR WILL HAVE NO ILL EFFECT UPON YOUR HEALTH,” says the greatcoated sergeant bearing a cup of tea. With row upon row of tents in the background, the rain pelting down, the soldier looks happy as, umbrella in one hand, rifle in the other, he stands guard. The far greater unbearable conditions of the trenches still yet to come, the soldier would always look for the funny side. This card is No 4779 from the ‘Humoresque’ series.

Wearing a belt large enough to encircle two London buses, a soldier’s belly grows even larger as he downs yet more beer from a gallon container. ‘FORMATION OF A LARGE CONTINGENT FOR THE FRONT’ captions the artist in French, followed by ‘ANOTHER BIG DRAUGHT GOING TO THE FRONT’, this time in English.

Here then is the typical, doublemeaning postcard usually associated with the seaside of

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4: Beer-hungry glutton is mocked in French and English 5: A little casual sexism was fine for getting the troops in order

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more peaceful times, and the artist on this occasion, not surprisingly, is Donald McGill. Cropping up again – the skill is in the words remember – Donald McGill this time shows a startled recruit receiving good advice from a sergeant.

“Treat you rifle as you would you wife,” instructs the NCO, “rub it all over every night with an oily rag.”

With the all-important writing home in mind, one soldier rushes to get his postcard off. Signed ‘Glanville’, the image shows a pillar box yet to be cleared of its evening contents, those war-time ubiquitous tents in the background, a setting sun and more military terms ‘ACTIVE SERVICE’ and ‘THE LAST POST’.

No warm setting sun, though, in Albert Carnell’s postcard showing a flooded camp. Out from his tent peers a far-fromhappy looking soldier wondering if the rain will ever stop so he can get to the post box. But “DON’T WORRY” is the message on the card to be sent home, “I’m quite comfortable at WITTON!” www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Comic postcards of the Great War 10 9

Proudly announcing that it was the Army’s new marching song, the cover to the Thompson Publishing Company’s new wartime song sheet, ‘Are We Down Hearted? NO!’, showed a Union flag alongside a portrait photograph of Lord Kitchener. The song, by Robert Harkness, would soon gain popularity in the camps and find its way as a caption onto many postcards.

The great demand in military camps for postcards saw printers quick off the mark with several generic designs, some amended with chosen regimental names, others with blank spaces to be filled in by the purchaser. Frequently seen are cards showing the Kaiser hiding in a barrel with a customised caption such as ‘The Northamptons are coming’.

Of the latter variety, one delightful image shows booted and puttied legs only, the caption reading “HERE ARE MY LEGS AND FEET – IF YOU WANT TO SEE MY FACE COME TO...”

With training over, that two-sizestoo-large uniform trimmed down to fit, the ears still ringing from bellowing NCOs, it would be time for leave and a visit home. But just what did artist Reg Maurice have in mind when he captioned his “I’VE CLICKED” card showing a private receiving his ‘Sleeping Out’ pass? Perhaps the insert showing a girl making her way to London’s Piccadilly had the answer.

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Not sure who the ‘Boys’ were, but obviously, in one postcard dated 24 December 1914 captioned ‘THE ONLY PHOTO OUR BOYS CAN GET OF THE KAISER’, they had clear minds as to how they would snap the German leader. The emperor home for Christmas, possibly.

Well on his way to becoming one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century, Frank Dobson, while serving as a lieutenant in the 5th Border Regiment, produced a sketch illustrating that battalion’s exploits on the Somme in 1916. He mentions the attack on High Wood on 15 September 1916, in which among the 5th there would be more than 100 casualties, and how the enemy were ‘ran to ground’ on the Flers Line just over two weeks later. Just a few would take part in that action, most of the battalion having been sent to isolation camp after an outbreak of dysentery.

The 5th Border Regiment was made up of Territorials from Cumberland and the Hunt is important to that county; Frank Dobson skilfully linked the connection

9: This was a popular marching song that found its way onto postcards 10: Either the Kaiser was running scared or heading home for Christmas 11: A successful Hun(t) bags a brace of German prisoners 12: Life for the soldier involved living in one hole or another, regardless of the year 13: Cards like this were in great demand in camps, urging volunteers to join in

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14: This private on home leave has an idea of where to spend his time 15: Trojan horse style antics from the Duke of Cornwall infantry emerging from a pasty 16: Another themed card shows the London Scottish causing problems for the Kaiser and his men

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DOCUMENT FEATURE 17

17: The reality of life in the trenches was now apparent

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18: Soldiers in foreign fields were picking up the lingo 19: More early 20th century humour, based around brands of beer

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20: The soldiers coming back scarper when they see what awaits them, while another works out if he was actually responsible

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21: A disapproving chaperone keeps these two love birds apart

22 in his sketch and wording. See how, in his hunting pink, John Peel leads off two German prisoners – a successful day’s hunting at the ‘Som-e-Hun (T)’ indeed.

With the Trojan Horse in mind, and the subterfuge that the Greeks used to enter Troy, the German leader would have done well to look out for gifts from England’s most southerly county. In ‘A CORNISH PASTY FOR THE KAISER’, his taste buds popping, a fork at the ready, the emperor looks astonished as men of the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry burst out from a fine example of that traditional dish.

If the boys from Cornwall don’t put paid to the Kaiser, perhaps those Scotsmen resident in London and part of the Territorial Force will. Early to the war, they fought at Messines in October 1914.

The London Scottish are seen in a Daily Express cartoon turned postcard, seeing the Kaiser off via a thistle. The Scottish emblem is suitably adapted for military use with a cluster of bayonets. “BRAVO! LONDON SCOTTISH” shouts the caption, and “STOP YER TICKLING JOCK!” pleads the German leader.

The damp and dreary life that was the military camp was bad enough, but far beyond the imagination of any human being were the vile conditions of the trenches. Thick mud-slime, never receding water, the stench of rotting flesh, the thought of death at any second, were all part of the daily routine. But the two

soldiers standing in almost shoulder-high water, in one Reg Maurice postcard, seem to be coping, as one turns to his mate Ted and enquires “I WONDER WHEN THE BLINKIN TIDE GOES OUT.” Equally appearing not to be too bothered by what was going on, despite a bullet hole in his tin helmet, another Reg Maurice image shows a goggle-eyed soldier gazing to his left at … well, the caption, “SHE AINT ARF ‘TREY BON’!”, should explain.

There would, of course, be casualties.

Photographic postcards showing wounded soldiers in their regulation blue jackets and now enjoying the comforts of some converted-as-a-war-hospital stately home were all too familiar. On the humorous side, one card from the Regent Publishing Company shows a nurse informing her patient that he is to have no solids, but sops. One definition of this unappetising meal being was pieces of bread soaked in gravy, sauce or even tea. But his head is bandaged: the soldier mishears and believes he is being offered a more agreeable liquid from Samuel Allsop & Sons, that well-known brewer based in Burton-upon-Trent. Ever helpful, however, he replies, “Allsops or Bass, I don’t mind which.” Bass was another Burton brewing company.

What are we to think of the suggestion offered by one postcard? Captioned ‘WHEN THE BOYS COME HOME’, three women stand chatting surrounded by

22: Returning from the war, the chattering women remind him of artillery fire toddlers of perhaps a year or less in age.

Unseen by them, two returning soldiers run off in terror while another looks on with puzzlement at the gathering. Could it be that quick calculations as to how long he had been away had been made?

Two postcards to end with, both from a series published by a company based in Gerhard Stalling Str, Oldenburg, Germany. Captioned ‘DAS SPERRFEUER’ (The lock fire), sweethearts show their love for each other by drawing hearts in the dust. But seated between them is the ‘sperrfeuer’ in the form of a disapproving chaperone. A small sketch on the back of the card, included to explain the term ‘sperrfeuer’, shows a line of infantry firing from the ground, while shells explode all around. Looking at the tiresome lady seated, I can see the point. In ‘TROMMELFEUR’ (Drumfire), a group of girls deafen a German soldier with their chatter. Hands over his ears, memories of the trenches and bombardment return.

Original, standard militaria postcards can be bought for as little as £5, while those featuring portraits can be even less. The popular comic postcards tend to be slightly more expensive, at £5£15, whereas postcards with a story to tell – such as one from a POW camp, fall into the £10-£15 range. There are plenty to choose from and they make an excellent and affordable entry to militaria collecting. ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Four important 14th & 15th Century Japanese Swords Ex-Christies 1970s from an important Meiji Sword collection.

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15/08/2017 15:06

WEAPON FEATURE

The Orita SMG

Michael Heidler looks at the development of Romania’s WWII weapon

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t was 30 August 1940, the day of the Second Vienna Award, when Romania found itself surrounded by greedy and powerful neighbours. The Romanian government had asked Italy and Germany to arbitrate in its dispute with the Soviet Union, Hungary and Bulgaria. A solution was found but it was obvious that the territorial gains of WWI would have to be given up. And so Romania lost 30% of its territory and almost 25% of its population to the three countries on its borders. Because of this national catastrophe, King Carol II appointed the Minister of Defence, Ion Antonescu, as the new Prime Minister on 4 September, and abdicated two days later. Even if this could have prevented Romania being dragged into a war with its neighbours, it was clear that the country was still in a very dangerous position. Antonescu searched for allies and he found them in the shape of the Axis powers. On 23 November 1940 Romania joined the Tripartite Pact between Germany, Italy and Japan.

The military co-operation began with the dispatch of a military mission to Bucharest. It consisted of the Heeresmission (Army Mission) under the command of Generalleutnant Hansen, who was

Romanian soldier with an Orita model 1941 with tangent sight and early safety

also the head of the entire Wehrmacht mission, as well as of the Luftwaffe mission under the command of Lieutenant General Speidel and the Wehrwirtschaftsstab (Defence Economy Staff) under Colonel Dr Spalcke. The aim of the mission was to organise and train the Romanian Army according to modern standards and to secure the important Romanian oil sources.

During this uncertain period, the Romanian arms industry was not inactive. The Army was still largely equipped with weapons and equipment from Czech manufacture and Romanian licence manufacturing.

But at a time when many nations had not yet recognised the value of a sub-machine gun, a group of weapons’ specialists was already working on the development of such a weapon at the Cugir arms factory located in Transylvania. Captain Marin Orita was responsible for this project and in his honour the weapon was named after him. It is repeatedly stated that the Czech designer Leopold Jašek is the real inventor of the Romanian sub-machine gun, but this was not the case. He was not involved in this work. Due to co-operation with Vickers Armstrong Ltd from 1925 onwards, the Cugir arms factory (founded in 1799) had

Romanian soldiers in the South Ukraine in 1942 firing their weapons. The rifle is a Czech bolt-action carbine Vz.24

An unaltered early model is very rare today.

Nearly all of them were fitted with the new type of safety during their service life

❯ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Orita SMG Some standard 32-round double stack single feed magazines. Note the massive follower

Early model 1941 in a presentation case. Note the shorter magazines on the right

Disassembly is easy, but the reassembly is very difficult due to the grip safety mechanism Left: Sectional drawing of the early model from a technical document already gained some experience in the manufacturing of parts for artillery pieces. In 1930 the company was taken over by Československá Zbrojovka from Brno and from then on Czech infantry weapons and ammunition were produced under licence for the Romanian Army.

In the course of the year 1941, the new sub-machine gun went into testing. The Orita is officially mentioned for the first time in an army manual for the sub-machine guns used by the Romanians in 1942. However, the production was delayed so much that larger quantities of the Orita could not be delivered to the troops before 1943. At that time, the Romanian Army had already been at war with Russia for two years. A total of 14 divisions fought together with the German Army Group South (Heeresgruppe

Süd). Although poorly equipped, the Romanians participated in the reconquest of the abandoned areas of Bessarabia and North Bukovina, the battle of Kharkov and the conquest of the Crimea, losing two divisions at Stalingrad. The war situation from 1943 onwards strained the relationship with the German Reich. The losses at the front were high, the economy was suffering from unpaid oil and grain deliveries and Romania became the frequent target of Allied bombing raids, especially the oil fields of Ploieşti, which became an important target for BritishAmerican attacks from August 1943 onwards.

The new weapon, with the designation ‘Orita model 1941’, The front sight carrier is pinned onto the barrel.

Perforated guard wings on either side protect the sight

arrived at the front in a difficult time.

A simple design for mass production would have been expected, but the Orita is different: it is a sub-machine gun of high quality, with a milled receiver and first-class blued finish.

Very few sheet metal parts were used.

It is a blow-back design, chambered for 9x19mm calibre and fires from an open bolt. There is no mechanical locking of the bolt. During the production period, the development progressed steadily and modifications in design were implemented in the ongoing production. There are, therefore, a few different variants to be found, but the official model designation remained the same until 1949.

The technically most complicated part of the Orita is the bolt. To prevent the risk of a premature ignition of the cartridge, the designers decided against a fixed firing pin. Instead, the bolt got an incorporated firing pin and inside hammer. Since the firing pin does not stay permanently

A brace of Oritas at the heart of a Romanian WWII soldier display

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WEAPON FEATURE The Orita model 1941, with later stock and installed grip safety

The cartridges are staggered in two rows, which merge to one row for feed

Markings of a Orita model 1941 (serial number 001993) to the front of the bolt, there is no risk of detonation before the bolt is completely closed. When the bolt closes, the hammer hits against an outside projection in the way of the bolt and a pivoting movement starts.

The hammer rotates in the bolt and the other end of it strikes the firing pin that moves forward to hit the primer of the cartridge. This design is very safe because the hammer cannot hit the firing pin before the bolt is closed.

The Orita’s rate of fire is about 600 rounds per minute. It is very easy to control when shooting bursts. The first model had a vertical fire selector switch, located on the right side of the receiver, which later fell victim to the simplification process. It was.

Depending on its position, the letter ‘A’ for full-automatic mode (switch pushed down) or the number ‘1’ for semiautomatic mode (switch pushed up) is visible in a small cut-out.

In the course of production, the early tangent rearsight, ranging from 100m to 500m was replaced by a flipup sight with an open V-notch. Now only two positions were possible: 100m and 200m. With such an optimistic assessment of the possible fighting range of a sub-machine gun, the Romanians were not alone at that time.

The sight of the German MP28/II was adjusted for a maximum distance of a wishful-thinking 1,000m. The distance between front and rearsights of the Orita is 39cm (15.3in). The frontsight is well protected by sturdy perforated guard wings on either side.

Schematic drawing: The firing pin and the hammer are part of the bolt. After hitting the fixed locking piece, the hammer pivots, striking the firing pin which in turn strikes the primer of the cartridge The Romanians put a lot of thought into the safety options of the Orita.

On the very early model there was a push-through safety button located directly in front of the trigger. When pushed from the left to the right, it blocked the bolt. This safety was very unreliable and some accidents occurred because a round could be accidentally fired when the weapon was dropped on a hard surface while it was cocked.

The later models, therefore, no longer had this kind of safety device and it was often removed from already issued weapons. An empty hole is visible in front of the trigger-guard if the spot was not filled. The later models had a vertical sliding safety switch attached to the right side next to the rearsight. This manual switch is pushed down for ‘safe’ and the respective position marking

Post-war made Orita from 1949. The cocking handle differs from the early fold-down type

Left: Bolt of a post-war Orita made in 1949 is visible in a round cut-out. The cocking handle is located on the left side and it folds down when not in use.

After the war some modifications were made to simplify the production and to improve the safety of the weapon. The surviving wartime Oritas were also reworked. The new designation was ‘Orita model 1941/48’. The fire selector and the vertical sliding safety switch were removed so that it fired fullautomatic only. But the most remarkable modification was the new grip safety to prevent accidental discharge. It was added to the stock behind the trigger-guard and had to be kept pressed during firing. As long as the safety is not pressed, a flat thrust rod blocks the trigger and also pushes a spring-loaded catch upwards to block the bolt in its forward position. When the shooter presses the safety, the thrust rod is lowered, thus releasing the trigger as well as the bolt. This modification was easy to handle for the soldiers, but it made the manufacturing process more expensive and time consuming, and when the receiver is taken out of the www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Orita SMG stock, the reassembly is very difficult.

Shortly after the introduction of the grip safety the design of the wooden stock had to be changed. The stocks of the early models were prone to break at the thinnest point right behind the receiver and now, with the new grip safety, the stock was even more weakened. So the designers replaced the one-piece wooden stock with a sheetmetal frame, to which a buttstock was attached. Horizontally grooved wooden plates were fixed to the sides of the frame. Often traces of the removed fire selector and safety can be found on the reworked weapons. All models are field stripped the same way: just unscrew the serrated cap from the end of the receiver to release the return spring.

Now the bolt can be taken out. That’s it. No further disassembling is necessary except for repair.

The Oritas are fed by detachable box magazines inserted from below.

They fit perfectly into the thickwalled magazine well and serve the shooter as a front grip. The serrated magazine release button is located on the back of the magazine well. The 32 cartridges are staggered in two rows, which merge to one row for feed. This design often leads to unreliability on other sub-machine guns but, thanks to the two long deep ribs indented into each side of the magazine body from top to bottom, the internal friction is sufficiently reduced and no complaints have been reported so far.

It is said that also smaller magazines with only 25 rounds capacity have also been produced in limited numbers.

The magazines can be filled without a magazine loader. However, a special and very unusual tool was issued: a crank-operated loader has a vertical cartridge guide rail above a sheet-metal housing with an interior rotating wheel with four prongs. The guide rail can be loaded with a maximum of 15 cartridges that are pressed into the magazine by means of the prongs when the crank is operated. When not in use, the handle of the crank can be folded down and snaps into a cut-out.

The whole tool is very cumbersome and nowadays is a rare accessory for anyone collecting the weapon.

The Orita sub-machine guns have proved themselves well in combat.

The robust construction was a great advantage, even if the production output of a simpler weapon could have been higher. However, it would

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not have changed the end of the war. On 23 August 1944, King Mihai carried out a coup against Antonescu and had him arrested. Antonescu was subsequently executed on 1 June 1946.

That same evening, Mihai announced the break with the German Reich and the cessation of all combat operations against the Allies. Two days later Romania declared war on Germany.

The total number of Orita submachine guns made (and modified) by the Cugir arms factory up to the end of the war and afterwards remains unknown today. The serial numbers of the model 1941 were six-digit. On the model 1941/48 it was changed to five-digit numbers. Their official service time in the Army ended in 1957-58, but, together with other WWII weapons, the Oritas were kept in use by the Patriotic Guard (Garzile Patriotice) until 1989 for training purposes. In 2004 the Cugir arms factory was split into two companies within the ROMARM group: the S.C. Uzina Mecanica Cugir S.A. and the S.C. Fabrica de Arme Cugir S.A. Of the former 16,000 employees in 1989, only about 6,000 are left today. ■

Above: The flat thrust rod blocks the trigger and pushes a spring-loaded catch upwards to block the bolt. Note the hook connected to the grip safety, that engages in a recess of the thrust rod

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TECHNICAL DATA

Calibre: 9x19 mm Overall length: 894mm (35.2in) Barrel length: 278mm (10.9in) Rifling: 6 grooves, right-hand twist Weight, empty: 3.45kg (7.6lb) Magazine capacity: 32 rounds Rate of fire: 600rpm

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COLLECTING THE ORITA SMG

I saw one in used condition (but with no damage) at a gun show last November for €650 but it had already been sold.

There was another one in as-new, factory condition, for €800, though that failed to find a buyer. I personally bought one for €400, but that was back in 2006. So, €600-€700 Euro looks like the going rate for one on the market today.

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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14th September 2017 10.00am

AVIATION COLLECTORS AUCTION Next Arms & Armour Miltary Auction: 23rd November 2017

Ravon Court, Drummond Road, Stafford, ST16 3HJ Contact us for free valuations.

For further details, contact Kevin King 07789 628030 / 01785 214100 or info@marlowsauctions.co.uk

Check out our new website www.marlowsauctions.co.uk

EDGED WEAPONS & BAYONETS WW1 Heinke & Co Royal Navy Diver’s sawback Diver’s Knife & Scabbard ............£975.00 Luftwaffe Forestry Officials Dagger, Stag horn scales & scabbard. VGC...............£1250.00 Victorian ‘Prostitutes’s’ Garter Dagger, Cruciform blade, silver scabbard ..............£295.00 C 1800 French Hunting Dirk, marine ivory hilt, etched blade & scabbard ..............£745.00 Gallipoli Turkish Machine Gunner’s Multi –Tool Trench Knife & Scabbard ............£1275.00 JE Middleton Sheffield hand Made Bowie Knife 10 inch blade & scabbard ...........£345.00 WW2 1938 / 44 Japanese Officer’s Shin Gunto, Seki Nori Saku, VG Hamon .......£1275.00 Superb 1827 Patt Presentation Sword to Capt AF Horden CBE AFC KPM.............£1475.00 C 1820 French Marine Ivory Hilted Hunting Dirk & Scabbard, Etched Blade ..........£745.00 Mappin & Webb Sheffield Victorian Horseman’s Knife, complete with rivets ..........£395.00 Harrods 1915 Officer’s Sterling Silver Multi Blade Clasp Knife. Best Quality ..........£675.00 Original 1862 US Civil War Navy Officer’s Model 1860 Cutlass with Scabbard ......£875.00 1864 Patt Cavalry Trooper’s Sword & scabbard by Mole to 4th Light Dragoons..£1,595.00 1916 Matching 1908 Pattern British Cavalry sword & scabbard. Enfield made .....£645.00 Napoleonic 1796 Other Ranks Sabre & Scabbard by Wooley, Deakin & Dutton .....£795.00 WW2 Original Middle East Fighting Knife ‘Death’s Head’ & Scabbard ..................£1745.00 SA Dagger 1933 Patt Original by Anton Wingen & Scabbard rarity 4 .....................£575.00 Luftwaffe General’s Presentation Sword, Scabbard & Knot. 100% original ..........£8250.00 WW2 Japanese Officer’s Showa-To Seki Katana, Scabbard & Knot, Kane Aki .......£975.00 1943 Japanese Officer’s Katana, Murato Oil Tempered Blade, by Kiyo Kane ......£1100.00 Napoleonic 1796 Officer’s Light Cavalry, Gilt & Etched, Sabre & Scabbard ..........£1295.00 WW2 1883 Patt Japanese Officer’s Naval Dirk & Scabbard. 12 ¾ inches VGC ......£675.00 1899 Patt Heavy Cavalry Trooper’s Sword, Wilkinson, 2nd Dragoon Guards .........£675.00 Matching Numbers WW2 Japanese NCO’s Katana & Scabbard, original finish ......£695.00

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MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS WW2 King Tiger Round 88mm KwK 43 APHE with steel container. Original ..... £1200.00 WW2 Russian 1944 85mm T34 Tank Arrow Head APCR/T round, mint cond ..... £695.00 American WW2 American Inert MKII H.E. ‘Pineapple’ Frag Grenade all original £275.00 WW2 German Inert 88mm APHE round, KwK 36 Tiger 1 & Flak 18 A/Tank gun . £845.00 1942 British WW2 6pdr 7cwt, Tank & Anti-tank wood and brass drill round ...... £275.00 WW2 1943 British APCBC tank & Anti- Tank round all original paint VGC........... £575.00 German WW2 ‘Night Fighter’ inert MK 108 30mm Explosive Cannon Round .....£195.00.

WW2 campaign Wash bowl, aluminium, leather bound cover, shipping labels RTR.. £195.00 WW2 ARP, SECOMAK type 447 portable Siren , Mint in shipping crate .............. £575.00 C1900 Pair of Masai Lion Spears, original 6 ‘shaft. 54cm long slim blade......... £475.00 WW2 NFS Tommy Helmet, original transfer & badged to Pressed Steel Co Oxford. .. £245.00 Imperial German WW1 Reservist’s Schnapps flask & cigarette case, original .... £295.00 Japanese Naval Rising Sun Flag back pack flag, 18 inches x 14 inches. VGC ... £245.00 WW2 1943 American 60mm Mortar Projectile and correct 1942 dated fuse ..... £225.00 German WW2 City Police Shako by G. Posse Berlin. Excellent condition ............ £575.00 WW2 German Kiegsmarine U Boat Turret 7x50 Binoculars by Carl Zeiss, VGC. ... £1475.00 Brass 8 day Naval Bulkhead Clock, Barkers of Kensington, Key, serviced & cleaned. £495.00 Rare, Italian Renaissance Form battle Shield, Ornate Decoration, 23” Diameter ........£975.00 Miniature Uberti Colt Army model 1873 .45 calibre 6 shot revolver US 7th Cavalry. ..£675.00 Victorian Gamekeeper’s / Forrester’s Hunting Axe & belt cover, Hill & Son London ....£595.00 WW2 Japanese Naval Officer’s Visor Cap with bullion badge and original case.........£475.00 Victorian Ebony & Brass tipstaff, 111/2 inches, crown topped & cavity for warrant ...£475.00 WW2 Kriegsmarine Coastal Defence 10 x 80 Zeiss tri-pod mounted Bincoulars .....£3750.00 Cased 1944 Nazi made 15.2cm (6 inch) HE shell & Fuse for captured Soviet Guns. .£495.00

14/08/2017 14:52

Lance and sabre COVER STORY

Matthew Moss examines the edged weapons and their effectiveness during the Charge of the Light Brigade

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Main image: While the 10th Hussars were not part of the Light Brigade, this contemporary image shows Hussars parading with their Pattern 1821 Light Cavalry Swords drawn at the ready Above: The Pattern 1853 introduced Charles Reeves’ patented solid hilt. This had a solid tang which spanned the full width of the sword’s grip. Note the rivets which hold the sword’s grip panels in place (C&T Auctioneers)

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ate in the morning of the 25 October 1856, some 670 cavalrymen of the British Light Cavalry Brigade began their ill-fated charge down a valley just north of the small port of Balaklava. The battle had been raging since the early morning and had already seen a magnificent charge by the Heavy Brigade which broke General Ryzhov’s Russian cavalry.

The Light Brigade consisted of the cream of the British Army’s light cavalry, including the 4th (The Queen’s Own) Regiment of Light Dragoons, 8th (The King’s Royal Irish) Regiment of Hussars, 11th (Prince Albert’s Own) Regiment of Hussars, 13th Regiment of Light Dragoons, and the 17th Regiment of Light Dragoons (Lancers). Light cavalry was intended to be the highly mobile

and flexible scouting arm of the Army.

Mounted on smaller, fast horses their primary task was reconnaissance, scouting and skirmishing. On the battlefield, their role was rapidly to exploit any advantages or enemy weaknesses such as undefended artillery batteries or broken enemy units.

Opposing the Light Brigade were some 19 battalions of Russian infantry, nearly 50 guns firing from enfilading positions on both sides of the valley and, ahead of them, a body of Cossack cavalry. In his famous poem Alfred, Lord Tennyson would accurately dub this the ‘Valley of Death’.

The charge climaxed as the brigade reached the battery of guns spread across the valley floor. The British troopers found themselves in a vicious mêlée facing both the Russian gunners and

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EDGED WEAPONS The Pattern 1853 had been designed as a universal weapon to arm both the light and heavy cavalry – perhaps up to 40% of British cavalry in the Crimean were equipped with the new sword. With the adoption of the Pattern 1853 it was intended that manufacture and supply would be simplified by having a single universal pattern for all cavalry; however, this idea was not well received. Some felt that the 1821 sword’s grip offered better ergonomics and blade alignment. The more cylindrical grip of the Pattern 1853 had a tendency to allow the sword to turn in the hand.

While the Pattern 1853’s three-bar guard was similar in design to the earlier Pattern 1821 sword, the 1853 Cavalry Trooper’s Sword introduced Charles Reeves’ patented ‘solid hilt’. This hilt had a solid tang which was the full width of the sword’s grip, which in theory produced a stronger weapon.

The difference in hilts can be seen in the profile of the swords’ grips: unlike the wire-bound grip of the earlier Pattern 1821, the 1853 sword had two leather side pieces simply riveted in place.

The officers of the Light Brigade did not carry the new 1853 sword; instead they continued to use the Pattern 1821 Light Cavalry Officer’s Sword. Early examples of the 1821 Officer’s Sword had a pipe-backed

rather than flat-backed blade, but this was quickly found unsatisfactory for both cutting and thrusting. As officers’ swords were expensive items to replace it is likely that some may still have been carried at Balaklava, as the earlier pattern was not officially replaced until 1845. As you would expect of an officer’s privately purchased sword the P1821 Light Cavalry Officer’s Sword was finished to a higher standard and had a better than the ordinary trooper’s sword. It often featured etched blades and fish-skin grips bound with twisted copper or silver wire.

Cut and thrust The British troopers’ swords proved to be grimly effective and accounts from the battle attest to how both the cut and the thrust were ably used by the men of the Light Brigade.

Private Grigg of the 4th Light Dragoons recalled an encounter with a mounted Russian artilleryman: “I made a cut at him and caught him in the mouth, so that all his teeth rattled together as he fell from his horse.” Grigg was obviously a deft swordsman because when charged by a Cossack Lancer he “knocked it [the lance] upwards with my sword,

Below: This close-up image of the Pattern 1821’s hilt and grip shows how the grip was more akin to the earlier Pattern 1796 Light Cavalry Sabre. Note also the three-bar hilt, which gave much improved protection to the cavalryman’s hand (Easton Antique Arms)

enemy cavalry. Each trooper was armed with a variety of weapons which included pistols, lances and, of course, swords.

A tale of two swords The Light Brigade was predominantly armed with the 1821 Pattern Light Cavalry Trooper’s Sword, which had replaced John Gaspard Le Marchant’s legendary 1796 Light Cavalry Sabre. However, some troopers were probably armed with a newer sword: the Pattern 1853 Cavalry Trooper’s Sword. It is known for certain that at least some of the 11th (Prince Albert’s Own) Hussars were equipped with this. Both had similar slightly curved blades and were designed for both cut and thrust. The 1821 and 1853 swords had 35.5in, flat-backed, single-edged blades and weighed roughly 2.5lb.

Right: In 1853 a new universal pattern cavalry sword was adopted to replace both the Pattern 1821 light and heavy cavalry swords. The more cylindrical profile of the Pattern 1853’s grip caused the sword to roll in the hand (National Army Museum)

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Lance and sabre auction and from dealers for anything ranging from £150 to £500 depending on the weapon’s condition. The finer, privately made Pattern 1821 Light Cavalry Officer’s Swords and presentation swords frequently appear at auction, often fetching between £500 and £1,000.

Pattern 1853 Cavalry Trooper swords seem to be less common and are frequently more difficult to find.

When they do appear for sale they range from £290 to £500, depending on the condition and provenance of the individual sword.

A much cheaper option for collectors and re-enactors might be the replicas of the Pattern 1821 Light Cavalry Sabre, available for around £60. ■

Right: This contemporary photograph by Roger Fenton shows an officer of the 11th (Prince Albert’s Own) Hussars, Henry Wilkin, who survived the charge Below: The 17th Lancers carried both a sword and a lance. The nine-feet long, ash Pattern 1846 Lance was their primary weapon. Note the two-tone red and white pennon near the tip of the lance (National Army Museum)

Below (left): Unlike private soldiers, cavalry officers purchased their own swords, which were much better made and more ornate (National Army Museum) Below (right): In 1853 a new universal pattern cavalry sword was adopted to replace both the Pattern 1821 light and heavy cavalry swords (National Army Museum)

pulled up quickly, and cut him down across the face”.

The temper of the British swords and their sharpness is attested to by the number of accounts from the battle that describe the severing of enemy limbs.

A trooper of the 8th Hussars noted that during his first encounter with a Russian gunner, who attempted to unhorse him with his rammer, he cut the Russian’s hand clean off with a savage cut.

Sergeant Bentley of the 11th Hussars recalled how Lieutenant Alexander Dunn came to his rescue when he was surrounded by Russian cavalrymen: “I saw him cleave one almost to the saddle … he severed a Russian lancer’s head all but off with a single stroke.” Colonel Mayow of the 17th Lancers killed a Russian cavalry officer during the mêlée by cleverly knocking off the Russian’s “shako with the point of his sword, and then laid his head right open with the old cut seven”.

A Hussar of the 8th recalled how effective giving point was when faced with a charging Russian lancer he dodged the lance and killed his opponent with a thrust which “entered his breast and went clean through him, coming out at his back”; the Hussar was forced to “draw it out with a wrench as he [the Russian] rolled over”.

Private William Butler of the 17th Lancers, who had switched to his sword

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once his lance was lost, engaged two Cossacks taking both with the point and leaving them on the ground, while Private Edward Firkins, of the 13th Light Dragoons, struck down a Cossack with a thrust through the Russian’s neck.

The 17th Lancers would have been armed with both sword and a lance of either the 1840 or 1846 patterns. These were approximately nine feet long and made from ash, light in weight - about 4lbs, but deadly in well-trained hands.

Contemporary accounts recollect how some lancers lost their weapons during the charge and closed with swords, though Private John Penn of the 17th Lancers recalled killing a Russian gunner with his lance. Penn’s lance “going through his body” couldn’t be pulled free and Penn switched to his sword.

The Charge of the Light Brigade embodied the dash and bravado of Britain’s light cavalry. French Marshal Pierre Bosquet is said to have exclaimed, “C’est magnifique, mais ce n’est pas la guerre. C’est de la folie.” – ‘It is magnificent, but it is not war. It is madness.’

Collecting the weapons For those looking to collect the swords used during the Crimean War and the famous Charge of the Light Brigade there are numerous options. The Pattern 1821 Light Cavalry Sword can be found at

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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LEONS Militaria Ltd est. 1995

The finest in antique arms and armour, naval and aviation items, scientific instruments & militaria The only military antiques, collectables & medal specialist in London’s Mayfair

Tel: +44 (0) 207 491 2221 Mobile: +44 (0) 798 964 9972 Email us at: leon@leonsmilitaria.com

www.leonsmilitaria.com Grays Antique Centre, 58 Davies Street, London, W1K 5LP Store opening hours: Monday to Friday 10:30-17:00. Saturdays by prior arrangement

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Taking back the East Graham Caldwell recounts the little-known operations Zipper and Tiderace, which led to the Japanese surrender of Singapore and Malaya

Landing Craft Tank Mk4: carries 6x40t or 9x30t tanks or 12x3t trucks. Used in Operation Zipper

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n Sunday, 15 February 1942, in the boardroom of the Ford Motor Company, Lieutenant General Arthur Earnest Percival sat opposite Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamasita, the ‘Tiger of Malaya’, and surrendered Singapore and Malaya, including 130,000 British and Allied troops, after only seven days of fighting. Winston Churchill called it, “The worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history.”

In 1981, a tableau of extremely lifelike waxwork figures of those very personalities was discovered in a storeroom near the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. These were shipped by the Singapore Development Corporation to form part of a tourist attraction at Fort Siloso Military Museum on Santosa Island, Singapore.

They remain in situ to this day as a reminder of the Japanese occupation, before it was ended

by British Empire forces in September 1945.

Operation Zipper By the autumn of 1945 Churchill saw the opportunity to take back Singapore and British Malaya (now Malaysia). The British Chiefs of Staff authorised the 14th Army of South East Asia Command (SEAC) to allocate a four-division amphibious seaborne invasion off the west coast of Malaya by XXXIV Indian Corps from landing craft, including floating DD tanks, shore bombardment, plus air cover provided by the 21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron (flag of Commodore Geoffrey Nigel Oliver with over 180 aircraft) comprising the escort carriers Hunter, Stalker, Archer, Khedive, Emperor, Pursuer and Trumpeter. The protection fleet included the battleship Nelson (flying the flag of Vice Admiral Harold Walker) the Free French battleship Richelieu, the cruisers Niagara, Cleopatra, Ceylon and Royalist, plus 15 destroyers and three hospital ships.

Lieutenant General Ouvry Lindfield Roberts (GOC XXXIV Indian Corps) had under his command the 25th

Upper mid left: This waxworks scene of Lieutenant General Arthur Percival surrendering Singapore to Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamasita in 1942 is on display at the Fort Siloso Military Museum, Santosa Island, Singapore Left: The Malaysia landing beaches as they look today: main picture Morib beach, where over 300 vehicles were lost in its soft mud flats. Inset: Port Dickson beach

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OPERATION FEATURE

Above: Landing Ship Tank Mk2 had a capacity of 18x30t tanks or 27x3t trucks, plus eight jeeps, plus 177 troops. US built and made available to Britain under LendLease

Operation Zipper. Because no resistance was expected, the 72nd Indian Field Hospital was brought forward to D+3 Indian Division (Major General Henry Lowrie Davies) landing on D-Day with its own three brigades on Morib beach quickly to occupy Port Swettenham, Kelang and Kelanang Airfield; plus the 37th Brigade of the 23rd Division, landing over Kg Bagan LaLang beach; this was the maximum capacity of the landing craft available. Later, on D+3, the 23rd Indian Division (Major General Douglas Hawthorne) with its two remaining brigades, would land at Port Dickenson and Cape Rachado and capture all surrounding airfields.

The invasion was supported by the 5th Indian Division, 50th Tank, 3rd Commando and 5th Parachute Brigades by D+8 and the capital, Kuala Lumpur, taken by D+12. The 26th Indian Division was held in reserve.

Within six weeks of landing ashore, strong forces would drive south to liberate Singapore (Operation Mailfist using the 5th Indian Division) whilst others swept into northern Malaya (Operation Broadsword). A prelude was to be the smaller-scale landing The Burma Star was awarded for service in Malaya following Operation Zipper in 1945 without the need to qualify for the 1939-45 Star first (Authors’ collection)

liberating Penang (Operation Jurist).

The Far East version of D-Day was scheduled for 9 September 1945.

What the Japanese reaction would be toward the hundreds of thousands of Allied prisoners of war and civilian internees if the invasion forces caused the Japanese to retreat down the peninsula wasn’t sufficiently considered

by SEAC’s planning staff.

Field Marshal Count Hisaichi Terauchi, Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Southern Army Expeditionary Group, had under his command all Area Armies and their subsidiary Army

Left: Corps and divisional sleeve patches of the three principal formation headquarters used for Operation Zipper HQs in South-East Asia and the South Pacific. This was an enormous territory, taking in all land and air forces in Indo-China, Siam, Malaya, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Celebes, Philippines, Burma and New Guinea, and the 1st Southern Expeditionary Fleet, plus the 7th Area Army and 3rd Air Army based in Singapore. Terauchi’s order, after the fall of Okinawa, directed his camp commandants to kill all captives as soon as the enemy started to make any inroads into his South-East Asia theatre command. Even after Japan officially surrendered, Terauchi initially ignored his Emperor’s orders and intended to continue hostilities.

Zipper was ready to go with the first wave of assault ships planned to arrive off the west Malayan beaches at first light on Sunday, 9 September 1945, with landing ship and escort fleets embarking from Bombay, Madras, Calcutta, Rangoon and Ceylon with over 100,000 troops. They expected to face the might of the Japanese 21st Army in Malaya, with two reinforced divisions, four independent mixed brigades, which included a tank battalion each, plus air cover support from the 3rd Air Army. Then www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Taking back the East

Above left: The 33,900t Battleship HMS Nelson shows off her forward armament in triple turreted 16in guns. Fitted out as a flagship, she required a complement of 1,631. Above right: Rear Admiral Bazudi, Governor of Penang (centre) his Chief of Staff Commander Hidaka (left) and Rear Admiral Jisaku Uozumi, Bazudi’s deputy (Readtiger.com)

Above left: A long line of Japanese officers wait to surrender their swords to the 25th Indian Division at Kuala Lumpur, Malaya, 13 September 1945. Above right: Lieutenant General Ouvry Roberts, GOC XXXIV Indian Corps, greets released Malaya POWs, cunningly provided with rations, comfortable barracks and new uniforms by the Japanese (Histomil.com) word suddenly arrived seven days prior to D-Day that Japan had signed the formal instrument of surrender on 2 September 1945 on board the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.

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COLLECTING INSIGNIA

Zipper unzipped SEAC decided to go ahead as scheduled with a scaled-down Operation Zipper, but without DD tanks or naval and air bombardments. The decision to proceed with a soft landing was based on it being too late to cancel, plus the need rapidly to repatriate Allied POWs in Malayan and Singaporean camps; hence it was decided to attach the 72nd Indian Field Hospital to the 23rd Indian Division in addition to its own medical services.

Sergeant Lyndon (Len) Hanks RAMC, an Operating Theatre Ward Orderly with the 68th Indian General Hospital in Chittagong, India, in 1945, must

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The seven WWII Japanese Field Marshal’s (Gensui) all wore the 3-star insignia of a full General, but were distinguishable by the Gensui breast badge, which is extremely rare. Quality fakes (top left) sell for under £80, but a real one (above) recently sold on eBay for the bargain bid of ¥1,000,999 (£6,900).

have thought that so far he’d had a reasonably easy war, because he had only trained in Britain, and then spent nearly two years treating wounded soldiers evacuated to India. Then on 12 August Sergeant Hanks received a surprise posting to the 72nd Indian Field Hospital, currently assembling at the docks in Bombay. Eighteen days later he found himself at sea as a member of Operation Zipper, heading for the Malaysian beach at Port Dickson, where he disembarked on D+3 (12 September) immediately qualifying him for the Burma Star, the campaign medal now extended to cover service in Malaya post-Zipper.

Various accounts by the men involved tell of an eight-day sailing in convoys stretching back as far as 40 miles, the troops unaware of the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima on 6 September and Nagasaki three days

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OPERATION FEATURE

SEAC chiefs discussing surrender terms, Singapore, September 1945. Adm. Lord Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander is in the centre of the two tables Below: Disarmed Japanese soldiers, the officers still carrying their swords, march out of Singapore and into captivity, watched by men of the 5th Indian Division

Above: Mountbatten’s shoulder-board rank insignia of a full Admiral. From 2001 a fourth star was added to comply with NATO and US 4-star rank. ‘GR’ and ‘ER’ devices signify Equerry to both King George VI and his consort, Queen Elizabeth (Aangirfan) later. Because the beaches were never properly photographed, it was just as well that the landing was unopposed.

Landing ships stationed three miles offshore waited to unload, observing chaos on the beaches. This was due to the muddy subsoil just below the sand, which caused heavy vehicles to become submerged and landing craft stranded a mile off the beaches. Morib beach was totally unsuitable for unloading vehicles, many of which became bogged in the soft mud flats, which aerial reconnaissance had missed at high tide, causing over 300 vehicles to be lost.

The official surrender in Tokyo Bay had made the offensive drive to Singapore obsolete, now replaced by a mainly Royal Navy affair named Operation Tiderace; but SEAC believed that it was entitled to its own official surrender ceremonies for the territories controlled by Field Marshal Terauchi,

who kept Lieutenant General Teizo Ishiguro (21st Army Malaya) and General Seishiro Itagaki (7th Area Army Singapore) waiting for orders to comply or resist. As it turned out, Terauchi had earlier suffered a stroke on learning of the loss of Burma and his initial belligerence towards ignoring the Imperial Headquarters surrender terms mellowed, whereas Itagaki’s hardened, causing the latter to fly to meet with the Field Marshal in Saigon on 15 August. Terauchi now ordered that further resistance was futile, upon which Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten, Supreme Allied Commander SEAC, received a signal from Itagaki confirming that there would be no resistance to the British landings in Malaya and Singapore.

The occupation of Malaya began on 2 September 1945 with a subsidiary landing by the 3rd Commando Brigade

(Brigadier Campbell Hardy) 180 miles further up the coast at Penang, called Operation Jurist. The Brigade disembarked from three landing ships, supported by a portion of Vice Admiral Walker’s 3rd Battle Squadron, comprising the battleship Nelson, escort carrier Attacker and Hunter, cruiser Ceylon and three destroyers; thus, Penang Island became the first state in Malaya to be liberated from Japanese rule.

The surrender to Walker took place aboard HMS Nelson by Rear Admiral Bazudi, Governor of Japanese Forces Penang Island, accompanied as witnesses by his Chief of Staff, Commander Hidaka and Lieutenant-Governor Rear Admiral Jisaku Uozumi. Bazudi fainted shortly afterwards from the shock of it all, including having to surrender his prized sword to Admiral Walker, and was immediately rushed to hospital.

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Taking back the East

Above left: General Itagaki signing the surrender of the Southern Army Expeditionary Force S.E. Asia on behalf of Field Marshal Terauchi in the presence of the Allied SEAC chiefs, Singapore, 12 September 1945. Above right: This large waxworks tableau can be seen at Fort Siloso Military Museum, Santosa Island, Singapore. It depicts the Japanese surrender of all their forces in S.E. Asia at Kuala Lumpur on 13 September 1945

by Lieutenant General Teizo Ishiguro, commanding the 29th Army; his Chief of Staff, Major-General Naoichi Kawahara, witnessing his signature.

Ishiguro thereupon surrendered his personal sword and all Japanese forces to Lieutenant General Roberts, who took the salute at a great Victory Parade at Seremban two days later.

Whilst Operation Zipper was winding down, Sergeant Hanks, after being stationed in Port Dickson for only 15 days, was posted out of Malaya with the 72nd Indian General Field Hospital, now attached to the 23rd Indian Division (which also sailed) for a humanitarian emergency mission to Java in the Dutch East Indies (presentday Indonesia). Operation Persil became necessary to repatriate over 100,000 Dutch POWs and internees and to protect them from a sudden uprising by the Indonesian Nationalists.

Operation Tiderace After Operation Zipper was securely lodged ashore and local surrender ceremonies were in full swing, Operation Mailfist became redundant.

The 5th Indian Division (Major General Robert Mansergh) was ferried to Singapore in five landing ships

by Admiral Walker’s fleet, instead of having to fight on foot down the Malay Peninsula in the face of Japanese opposition. The Singapore armada included the free French battleship Richelieu, which inadvertently struck a magnetic mine and limped into Singapore seven days late on 11 September. Walker’s fleet and the landing ships arrived in Singapore

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Harbour on 4 September, meeting no opposition and preceded five days earlier by a flight of nine Catalina flying boats bringing draft surrender documents and medical supplies for the expected hordes of liberated POWs. Preliminary surrender discussions took place aboard the heavy cruiser HMS Sussex between Lieutenant General Philip Christian (GOC XV Corps and personal representative of Mountbatten) supported by Major

The only tangible evidence of Operation Zipper. Memorial on Morib beach left by the 46th Independent Beach Group, which oversaw the landing of 42,651 troops and 3,968 vehicles (worldpress.com)

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Len Hanks at his wedding to Doris Slater in 1950. Inset: Sergeant Hanks RAMC in Singapore 1946 (Authors’ collection)

HEIRLOOM SURRENDERED

Field Marshal Terauchi, Supreme Commander Southern Army Expeditionary Group (right) surrendering his family heirloom swords to Lord Mountbatten in Saigon, 30 November 1945 (left).

Terauchi’s 1420 Wakizashi sword (centre) is displayed at Windsor Castle, whilst his 1292 Katana sword (top) is on display at Broadlands, Romsey, Hampshire.

(Royal Collection Trust and Broadlands Estates)

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OPERATION FEATURE General Mansergh. General Itagaki, accompanied by Vice Admiral Shigeru Fukudome (Commander 1st Southern Expeditionary Fleet) headed the Japanese delegation, which waited over two hours after the appointed time.

Upon arrival of the British delegation a Japanese aid accused the generals of being two hours late, only to be met with the reply, “We don’t keep Tokyo time here!” Local Japanese forces were immediately surrendered, totalling 77,000 in Singapore and a further 26,000 in Malaya.

On 12 September 1945 Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten received the formal surrender, at Singapore City Hall, of all Japanese forces in Field Marshal Terauchi’s Southern Army Command.

Because the Marshal was too ill to travel, Itagaki and Lieutenant General Tokazo Numata, signed on the Field Marshal’s behalf. That night over 300 Japanese officers committed suicide using grenades in the Raffles Hotel after a farewell Sake party.

Whilst Terauchi was genuinely incapacitated in Saigon, Mountbatten decided he should not be excluded and flew to Terauchi’s headquarters on 30 November to accept his personal surrender. This included Terauchi surrendering his family heirloom swords, which were a 1292 forged Katana long-sword (now on view at Broadlands in Hampshire) and a 1420 forged Wakizashi short-sword (currently displayed at Windsor Castle).

Photographer, David Steen visited Mountbatten at Broadlands in May 1979 and was shown Field Marshal Count Terauchi’s Katana sword displayed over the mantelpiece.

Mountbatten told Steen, “Terauchi could have handed me his service sword, but he felt he hadn’t punished himself enough so he sent to Tokyo for his most priceless weapons.”

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General William Slim, Commander Allied Land Forces SEAC, one of the Allied chiefs accepting the Japanese surrender of all forces in South-East Asia at the Singapore ceremony, later related that when he faced the Japanese delegation, ‘Their plight moved me not at all. I knew only too well what these men and those under their orders had done to their prisoners.’ Both Slim and Mountbatten, were determined that swords must be handed over to impress upon the Japanese population the Imperial High Command’s loss of face and utter defeat of their armed forces.

After Operation Zipper

A modified photograph of Lieutenant General Yuzo Matsuyama, GOC 56th Division Burma, who surrendered his ancient sword (forged in 1605) in Rangoon, Burma, August 1945 (Orbis Publishing)

JAPANESE SWORDS By the 1950s a million Japanese swords were in the US alone.

The vast majority, whilst genuine, were machine-made in the 1930s and valued from £500 to £2,000, dependent on condition. Samurai Sword categories: are Kantana (long) the Wakisashi (short) plus the NCO’s sword, but very old heirloom handmade swords are worth £5,000 upwards. Beware of very good machine-made Chinese copies (picclick.com)

Count Hisaichi Terauchi was moved to Rengam, near Johor, Malaya, by order of Lord Mountbatten and died there, aged 67, of a second stroke on 12 June 1946. Seishiro Itagaki was arrested as a Class A war criminal and charged with war crimes relating to the deaths and maltreatment of POWs and civilian internees. Tried by the Far East International Tribunal, he was hanged at Sugamo Prison Tokyo on 23 December 1948.

Lord Mountbatten went on to hold several high appointments in India, the Navy and as the first Chief of the Defence Force in 1959, only to be assassinated by an IRA bomb when out on a fishing trip in Ireland on 27 August 1979.

Sergeant Len Hanks returned home and married my own maternal aunt, Doris Slater, in January 1950. He was forever traumatised by what he had witnessed when treating released POWs in Malaya and Java, refusing ever to talk about the war. At the age of 76 he passed away peacefully in Birmingham.

In 1974, to complement the Japanese waxworks of the 1942 British surrender tableau at Fort Siloso on Santosa Island in Singapore, Madame Tussauds created a large tableau of the Japanese surrender ceremony that took place in 1945, positioned at the opposite end of the museum’s Surrender Chamber, which has become a much-visited international tourist destination.

Acknowledgements: Broadlands Estates, Romsey, Hampshire; Malaya Historical Group; Sam Loverso for map origination and selected graphics; Richard Catalano at www. imperialjapanmedalsandbadges.com ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Modell 1883 German Reichsrevolver

Bill Harriman looks at the development of a revolver for the German Army

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fter about 1870, most major powers had replaced their percussion cap, muzzleloading revolvers with models which used a centre-fire metallic cartridge. In Europe, however, little importance was attached to revolvers which were regarded as ancillary weapons suitable for small numbers of specialist soldiers and sailors who needed a compact weapon for self-defence. The cavalry was still expected to concentrate on the sabre and lance as its offensive weapons.

Officers were expected to buy their own pistols with probably the only proviso that they were chambered for the current service cartridge. Given the amount of revolvers that were being patented in the 1870s and 80s, there was plenty of choice.

This was in direct contradiction to the situation that prevailed in America where every cavalry trooper and many artillerymen were given a revolver for both offence and defence. Bearing in mind that the Americans were fighting highly mobile, Native American warriors, this is not surprising.

The German 2nd Reich lagged behind many other powers when it came to adopting a revolver. This was not because the Germans were in any way militarily inefficient but because there was no sense of urgency, since revolvers were not considered important. It was far more important for the new Empire to get its standardised infantry rifle into the hands of the troops. Those who needed pistols would have to make do with the myriad assortment of muzzleloaders already in service.

This inertia notwithstanding, in 1877-78 a committee was convened at the Spandau Arsenal to examine contemporary revolver technology.

This committee suffered from two deficiencies: it was inexperienced in assessing contemporary advances and even it was able to do so, it was too conservative to take advantage of them.

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WEAPON FEATURE

Reichsrevolver M1883 together with M1891 holster and two original 10.6mm cartridges

The inexperience came from the fact that the Germans had never considered the large-scale issue of revolvers.

The consequence of this was that when the committee finally made up its mind and recommended a design, it was obsolete as soon as it was issued.

The revolver that was finally adopted on 21 March 1879 was conceived primarily as a cavalry weapon. It was 10.6mm in calibre, single action, six shot, gate loaded and solid frame. This was unsurprising as most European military revolvers of the time were solid frames. Break-open frames were viewed with suspicion as they might wear and blow open on firing, injuring the user. Despite the fact that any complicated mechanisms were

rejected out of hand, the Modell 1879 Reichsrevolver was fitted with a safety bolt, albeit one that could not be applied at full cock. It was not fitted with any extractor mechanism but relied on a rod carried on top of the cartridge box to knock the empties out.

It has been suggested that the lack of any extractor mechanism was driven by concern about patent infringement.

However, when the Gewehr Modell 1888 was adopted, the government seemed unconcerned that it infringed both Mannlicher and Mauser patents. It’s more that as revolvers were weapons of last resort, rapid reloading was seen as an unnecessary luxury.

In 1883, the Modell 1879 was improved by reducing the barrel length and making the grip smaller and more rounded (collectors term this as ‘bagshaped’). The new pistol was much handier due to its reduced size and weight; it was 400g lighter.

Reichsrevolver M1883 from the right-hand side Other than

that there was no difference in the Models. Still no ejection system was provided. Again, some believe that the cylinder arbor was intended to be used as an ejector rod. It is certainly easy to remove; however, the potential for it being dropped in action would seem to be too high for this to be an officially recommended practice.

The Modell 1883 also had a recessed cylinder head, like its predecessor.

This completely encased the cartridge on firing, surrounding it with metal.

Whilst this sounds a good idea, it is only a solution to the problem of poorly made ammunition, which suffered either gas leaks around the primer or case head separation. In reality it was simply another belt-andbraces feature dreamt up by an overcautious committee.

The M1883 revolver was made by the following companies: – The Royal Arsenal at Erfurt (approx 62% of all production) – Suhl syndicates Schilling & Haenel and Rosenberg & Sauber (approximately 29% of all production) – F. Von Dreyse, Sommerda (approximately 8% of all production) www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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The Modell 1883 German Reichsrevolver – Waffenfabrik Mauser (approximately 1% of all production).

The M83 was finished in a dull salt rust-induced blue (similar to the Luger) that is very durable. Hammers, triggers and cylinder arbors are finished bright.

All major components bear the pistol’s serial number, with each individual frame screw marked with the last two digits. The cylinder is what collectors term ‘church window’, fluted, rather than the simple rounded top flute of the M79. Each chamber is marked with a tiny number 1–6. There have been various fanciful notions of why this was done. The most unlikely was advanced by revolver expert, W.H.J. Chamberlain, who cited range safety. Chambers 1-5 were loaded and the hammer allowed to rest on empty chamber 6. However, the numbers, at just 1mm high, are difficult to discern with the naked eye. In any case Standing Orders could simply state that no more than five rounds were to be loaded, the order of chambers being irrelevant. A simpler explanation is that the numbers were to guide an armourer, e.g. ‘Pistol 9759, chamber 4 needs polishing’.

Whilst all issue revolvers were single action, some officers’ models, made for private purchase, had double-action locks and in the case of some made by

Model 1891 holster for M1883 Reichsrevolver Dreyse, trigger-cocking actions (like British Tranters) which cocked the locks and then used a secondary trigger to fire them. Most commercial models had chequered grips. Generally, the issue models have very heavy trigger pulls, making aiming very difficult.

The cartridge for both types of Reichsrevolver were typical for the era, with large round-nosed, soft lead bullets weighing. They were originally loaded with 1.5g of Neues Gewehr Pulver M71 (New Rifle Powder, M71), as used in the Mauser rifle cartridge. Later this was reduced to 1.35g, perhaps with the adoption of the shorter-barrelled

M1883 revolver with cartridge in the loading gate

Regimental marking on the backstrap of an M1883 Reichsrevolver

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M83. The bullet had two cannelures for a beeswax/paraffin lubricant. The base resembled the Mauser ‘A’ base type. The headstamp generally carried the manufacturer’s code letter, the month and date of loading and a small star denoting the type of brass used.

Blank and dummy cartridges were also issued, the latter with a thin sheet brass bullet. Cartridges were put up in boxes of twelve. The 10.6 revolver cartridge developed a muzzle velocity of about 670fps, giving it a muzzle energy of about 250ft/lb.

The M83 was issued with a special holster, the M1891. This had a halfflap which was more to secure the pistol rather than to protect it from the weather. It also had a small twelveround cartridge pouch on the front, keeping the ammunition close to the pistol. This idea of combined cartridge pouch and holster was not new. Some saddle holsters from the muzzle-loading era had integral tubes for a small number of paper cartridges, whilst Harding’s Patent holster magazine of 1857 had a japanned tin frame for holding skin or combustible cartridges.

Specimens of M1891 holsters are very rare today as many were destroyed after the Great War. Another reason for their scarcity might be that some were converted to holsters for the 9mmPistole 08 Luger before purpose-built holsters were designed and issued.

Contemporary depictions or instruction manuals for the M1883 are rare. To date, the only one I have discovered dates from 1897 and is a four-page spread in Dithey’s Handbook for One Year Volunteers in the Infantry.

The Einjahrige or One-Year Volunteer Enlistee (Einjährig-Freiwilliger), despite the name, was actually a conscript who served a short-term form of active

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WEAPON FEATURE M1883 Reichsrevolver in M1891 holster

military service. The scheme was open for enlistees up to the age of 25.

Such enlisted soldiers were usually high school graduates, who would opt to serve a one-year term rather than the regular two- or three-year conscription term, with free selection of their chosen military service branch and unit, but throughout they were obligated to equip and subsist themselves at entirely their own cost. This limited this option to officer-material young men from mostly affluent social class families wishing to pursue the Reserve-Officer path. Upon completion, the Volunteer was posted to the Reserve where he could pursue commissioned rank.

This section is entitled ‘Instruction of 20th February, 1885’. It is reasonable to surmise that widespread issues of the M83 were not made before this date.

The M83 revolver, its holster and ammunition were still being offered in the Adolf Frank Alpha catalogue of 1911.

These were certainly revolvers intended for officers as several types are described, including one with Colt 1873 SAA style ejector rod. These pistols cost between 30 and 60 marks depending on quality and finish. Using the conversion table in the catalogue this equates to £1 10 shillings rising to £3.00. By comparison, a P08 Luger with shoulder stock and holster cost 150 marks (£7 10 shillings) and a C96 Mauser pistol with shoulder stock and holster cost 140 marks

(£7.00).

Although obsolete by the outbreak of war in August 1914, both the M79 and M83 were issued to second-line troops such as Artillery Train drivers, as the Germans were desperately short of P08 Lugers. Probably the older revolvers were less susceptible to jamming in the mud of the trenches than their, more modern, self-loading counterparts.

One feature always found on the M79 and M83 revolver is a regimental property mark. This makes both types especially attractive to collectors because it identifies the unit(s) to which the revolver was issued. Further research into regimental history can then be conducted, often showing where the revolver was used during its service career.

In UK law both models of Reichsrevolver can be held by persons of good character without any form of certification using the antique exemption at Section 58(2) of the Firearms Act 1968. The 10.6mm cartridge appears in Appendix 5 (the

so-called Obsolete Calibres List) of the Home Office Guide on Firearms Licensing Law, 2016. As this exemption requires an antique firearm to be held as a ‘curiosity or ornament’, any attempt to fire it would immediately prejudice this and leave the owner open to an accusation of the unlawful possession of a prohibited weapon. On conviction this carries the mandatory custodial sentence of five years.

It was this that prompted me to acquire the M83 that illustrates this article. It was made at Erfurt in 1893 and bears the marking on the back-strap ‘22. R. 8. 3.’

(22nd Infanterie Regiment, 6th Company, Weapon 3). Infanterie Regiment, Nr. 22 was the 1st Upper Silesian Regiment and had the honour title ‘Keith’. Readers may ponder why a German Regiment was named after a Scot. The Honourable James Francis Edward Keith (1696-1753) was a Jacobite; then, in exile, a mercenary who served with the Russians and the Prussians. He was killed at the battle of Hochkirche in 1753. When the 22nd Regiment was formed in 1813, it was given his name in memory of his service to King Frederick the Great.

The pistol came with an original M1891 holster. This was made by ‘H. Becker & Co, Berlin’. It bears various depot stamps and the date 1908. It also has the mark ‘BAG’ which stands for Bekleidungsamt Garde or Guard Clothing Depot. To my mind the fact that this was issued to the senior regiments in the German Army makes it very special and a rare survivor.

The Reichsrevolvers are interesting pistols that will find ready places in several different collections. However, the most powerful attraction may be to those UK collectors who wish to own a German pistol used in World War I. ■

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FURTHER READING

• Walter, John, German Military Handguns, 1879-1918 1879-1918, Arms & Armour Press, 1980.

• Schroeder, Joe, Arms of the World 1911, The Fabulous ALFA Catalogue of Outdoors, Follett, 1972.

Arms and the Outdoors • Reckendorf, Hans, MilitärFaustfeuerwaffen des Köngreiches Reiches, Preussen und des Deutschen Reiches Selbstverlag Dortmund-Schönau, 1978.

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Gearing up for action Graham Priest looks at WWII Pattern 1937 webbing bayonet frog manufacture Rifle, No.1, Mk I and Rifle No.4 Mk I together on 8 January1942. The P.37 frog has a Tab, Securing ... to hold the spike bayonet scabbard (Planet News Archive)

M. Wright’s weaving shed c.1925 (Don Wix)

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ne of the many tasks that occupied thousands of workers during WWII was the production of cotton webbing, some used as bayonet frogs. This article looks at some of the domestic manufacturers who produced the ‘Frog, Bayonet, Webbing Equipment, Pattern 1937’ (P.37) as war work after 1939.

Linen, hand-woven, narrow tape versions of webbing had been used on the domestic and industrial scene since being introduced in the early 18th century. Anson Mills (1834-1924) industrialised the process in 1879 when he produced a one-piece woven cotton cartridge belt for the United States Army. The design rights were obtained for Britain for the London branch of the Mills Woven Cartridge Belt Company by William Lindsey in 1899. After limited interest from the War Department, which favoured leather kit, this morphed into the Mills Equipment Company (M.E. Co.) on 1 October 1906. However, authorities were soon persuaded that cotton had huge advantages over leather so the Great War (1914-18) saw frequent use of the ‘Web Infantry Equipment, Pattern 1908’ by British Empire and

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Dominion forces.

The load-bearing design was constantly reviewed during the next two decades so when war with Axis countries began in 1939 the issue was ‘Web Infantry Equipment, Pattern 1937’, intended to support the development of mechanised transport so that the soldier was relieved of the need to carry his entire belongings with him at all times.

The official description stated: ‘The Pattern 1937 Equipment has been designed to meet modern conditions of warfare. Mechanization, the introduction of the Bren Gun and the Anti-Tank Rifle, necessitate changes in the personal equipment of the soldier to aid mobility as well as to facilitate the carriage of ammunition, grenades, food and water, and other items necessary in the field. The equipment is actually a development of the 1908 Pattern Web Equipment. It is considerably lighter in weight than the 1908, and has a basic principle which enables it to be adapted to suit all Arms.

It is easy to assemble and adjust; and possesses the important feature that no articles are suspended below the waist line (except the bayonet and officer’s haversack) to impede the wearer ...

The equipment is made throughout of strong and durable webbing, which is waterproofed and dyed in the yarn before being woven. The result of the waterproofing treatment is to render the fabric practically impervious to the weather, which might otherwise tend to make it hard or shrink. The webbing is thoroughly shrunk before being cut and made into articles of equipment, and where practicable and necessary selvedged webbings woven to the correct width are employed to give added strength.’

After the Great War sales of webbing had plummeted and M.E. Co. had been reduced to two plants in Tottenham.

As peace began to be threatened the original ‘No.1 Factory’ (sold 1921) was repurchased and in August 1936 land was acquired for a ‘No.4 Factory’. In April 1939 a new Dalton Works was created at Harold Road, Tottenham.

In January 1940 another building was added at the Trading Estate in Edmonton. Eventually 7,000 employees worked for the company.

To circumvent loss of production through aerial bombing, the Ministry of Supply assessed the skills and locations of many other companies that could manufacture webbing throughout the

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WEBBING FEATURE Left: 1938 dated markings on ‘Frog, Bayonet, Webbing Equipment, Pattern 1937’. The large ‘WD’ and broad arrow indicated War Department ownership (Priest) ( )

Bagcraft Ltd. 1945 (Priest) Priest Priest)

Typical marking arrangement. Viewer’s symbol left. ‘AC’ was Associated Cutters (1938) Ltd. Production 186,060 from 194045. Made in 1943 (Priest) Above: Making service haversacks at Barrow, Hepburn and Gale Ltd. (Fox Photos. Ltd) Right: P.37 frog with ‘Sword-bayonet, Pattern 1907 Mk I’ (Bayonet, No.1, Mk I) and ‘Bayonet, No.4 Mk I’. Note the Tab, Securing ... (Priest) United Kingdom. Eventually at least 55 firms were contracted to produce bayonet frogs between 1939 and 1945.

The Ministry of Supply ledger in the National Archives, Kew, showed that the first orders (294/A/283) were placed with Barrow Hepburn and Gale Ltd. and M. Wright and Sons Ltd. in July, French’s Ltd. and Hampton and Sons Ltd. in September and M.E. Co. in November 1939. Eventually thousands were manufactured. Companies such as R. Parkyn Ltd. produced as few as 500 but others, like M. Wright and Sons Ltd., made at least 1,080,000. One M.E. Co. frog order (298/A/W.854) for 30,000 on 17 March 1944 was, ‘... with button hole’, but no other contracts referred to this feature. The final orders (298/A/K.1899) were placed in March and April 1945.

The Frog, Bayonet, Webbing Equipment, Pattern 1937 was, according to the War Office: ‘... made of narrow webbing with a loop for suspending from the waist belt ... (with) two horizontal loops for securing the scabbard. The scabbard is inserted and pushed through until the stud on the outside comes out between the two loops.’ The body was 8.25in (210.7mm) long and 1.5in (38.3mm) wide with a

0.5in (12.8mm) strap fixed to the outer belt loop (2.25ins (57.5mm) span) to secure the bayonet hilt. When initiated the top scabbard loop was 1.125in (28.7mm) and the lower 1.5in wide. However, to simplify manufacture 1.25in (31.9mm) wide web was substituted. The ideal frog weight in the ‘Table of Weights’ was 1.75oz (50g). Wartime quality control was tolerant for this item so some frogs had narrower 1.375ins (33.8mm) wide bodies and even different lengths. This was the accepted width of rifle slings and allowed the same looms to weave cloth for multiple items in a very efficient manner.

As the war progressed allowance was made at M.E. Co. to weave the button hole for the No.4 Mk I bayonet scabbard into the original design.

Ministry of Supply viewers were posted to, or rotated around, the factories.

Approved frogs, probably the samples, were stamped with an alpha-numeric surmounted with a ‘broad arrow’.

Not all the companies in the 1939 ‘SUPP 4/158’ document were identified and space does not allow a full discussion of each. Trademarks from black or purple dye stamps to the body rear identified some products. Only

Two P.37 frogs with 1.5in and narrower 1.375in wide bodies. Note the crude buttonhole (Priest) www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Gearing up for action 1

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1. Blackman Leather Goods Company Ltd. 1942 (Priest). 2. Mary Harris Gowns 1944 (Priest). 3. Hampton and Sons Ltd. 1940 (Priest).

4. J. and A. Hillman 1942 (Priest). 5. S. Noton Ltd. (London) 1945 (Priest). 6. A. Gill Ltd. 1941 (Priest) a few of the organisations received a dispersal code. This was intended to prevent the enemy from identifying a particular target.

The manufacturers Bagcraft Ltd., Airedale Mills, Micklethwaite Lane, Keighley, Yorkshire. Diverted operations in London from leatherwork to avoid the Blitz. Premises were an unoccupied early 19th century (with 1869 extensions) stone corn mill and malt kiln. Some of buildings survive as residences. Production 473,140 (194044). Mark ‘BAGCRAFT LTD.’.

Barrow Hepburn and Gale Ltd., Grange Mills, Grange Road, Bermondsey, London, SE1. Established in 1760 for the production of leather consumer goods.

Manufacturer of military leather and web equipment

by 1927. Staff expanded to 5,000 in the 1940s with an output of 34.5 million items. In 1948 they had 1,000 acres of factories and employed 2,500 workers.

Became the Barrow, Hepburn Group c.1974. Production 359,893 (1939-44).

Mark ‘BHG LTD’ or ‘BHG LD’. Dispersal code S9.

The Bath Cabinet Makers, Bellots Road, Twerton, Bath, Somerset.

Furniture maker from 1892 until 1959. Webbing used in furnishings.

Production 55,000 (1941). Mark ‘BCM’.

Dispersal code S151.

Blackman Leather Goods Company Ltd., 173 Bermondsey Street, London, SE1. Made bags, belts and some military. Production high of 130,030 (1940-44). Mark ‘BLACKMAN’ ‘BLACKMAN L.G.LD’.

The Crown Bedding Company, Redfern Road, Tyseley, Birmingham, 11. Established to make beds and mattresses in 1919. Registered as

‘Slumberland Ltd.’ in 1947. Still exists as part of the Duport group since 1970.

Production 18,500 (1940-41). Mark ‘CB CO LTD’ or ‘CB’. Dispersal code M66.

French’s Ltd., 32 Moor Lane, London, EC2. Manufactured trunks, bags, suitcases, fancy leather goods, straps etc. from 1922. Still working in 1947.

Production 68,625 (1939-44). The mark is unknown.

Foxcroft (Littleborough) Ltd., Featherstall Mill, Littleborough, Lancs.

Founded by Robert Foxcroft in 1867 and became Robert Foxcroft and Sons Ltd. by 1913. Made fibre suitcases, attaché cases, trunks, shop fixture boxes and travel goods. Production 6,500 (1940). Mark ‘FL LTD’.

A. Gill Ltd., 2-12 Warser Gate, Nottingham. Founded by Albert Charles Gill to produce lace c.1897-1900. Still making dresses, veils, gowns, lingerie and millinery in 1951.

Bath and West Co-operative Cabinet Makers Ltd., Twerton, Bath premises (Sally Festing)

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WEBBING FEATURE 10 7 11 8 9 7. R. Parkyn Ltd. 1944 (Priest). 8. M. Wright and Sons Ltd. 1945 (Priest). 9. Mills Equipment Company 1942 (Priest). 10. Teddy Toy Company Ltd. 1941 (Priest). 11. ‘PSS’ Princess Silk Shade 1942 Production 87,770 1940-44 (Priest) Production 55,745 (1941-44). Mark ‘AG’ or ‘ALBERT GILL’.

Mary Harris Gowns, Team Valley Trading Estate, Gateshead, Northumberland. Made affordable high-fashion clothing from the early 1930s onwards. Expanded to four plants with 900 employees. Made haversacks, hospital equipment and webbing as war work. Mary Harris died in October 1990. Production 22,940 (1943-45). Mark ‘M.H.G.’.

Hampton & Sons Ltd., 8 Pall Mall East, London, SW1. Cabinet makers and antique dealers from 1830 onwards.

Acquired by Waring and Gillow in 1903. Survived until 1957. Production 1,035,000 (1939-40, 1942-43). The mark was ‘H & S Ltd.’.

J. & A. Hillman, 39 Victoria Street, London, SW1. Made leather belts and couplings from 1937 onwards.

Production 331,680 (1940-45). The mark was ‘J. & A.H.’.

Midland Gearcase Company Ltd., Spring Road, Acocks Green and Allcro Works, Hall Green, Birmingham. Car

and bicycle components, luggage straps etc. Closed 19 September 1950.

Production 41,000 (1940-41). Mark ‘M G Co LTD’. Dispersal code M171.

S. Noton, Endurance Works, Blackhorse Lane, Walthamstow, E17.

Founded in 1928 to manufacture luggage. 450 employees in 1947.

Production 136,965 (1941-45). Mark ‘SN’. Also S. Noton Ltd. (London).

Production 25,000 (1941). Mark ‘SN Ltd’. S. Noton Ltd. (Oldham) Goddard Street, Oldham. Founded in 1877 as a fibre and metalworks. Production 46,000 (1940-41). Mark ‘S.N. LTD’.

R. Parkyn Ltd., Manchester. Possibly linked to Knibbs Ltd. (102,380 194043) Motor industry. Closed 15 October 1958. Production 500 (1944). The mark was ‘R.P.LTD’.

J. Pickering and Son, Moore Street, Sheffield, Yorkshire. Founded in 1824 to make polishing paste with a new factory to make tin boxes in 1900.

Production 16,500 (1940-41).

Tan Sad Ltd., Great Bridge, Staffordshire and Avery House,

Joseph Pickering and Sons Ltd., Moore Street, Sheffield. 1970s (Edward Mace)

Clerkenwell Green, London, EC1. Founded in Freeman Street, Birmingham in 1922 and became Tan Sad Chair Company in 1931. Closed in 1975. Production 15,000 (1941). Mark unknown. Dispersal code M242.

Teddy Toy Company Ltd., 45 Golden Lane, London, EC1. Made leather helmet liners and webbing in wartime.

Closed 1950. Production 15,000 (1941).

Mark ‘T.T.C.’.

Waring and Gillow (1932) Ltd., Lancaster, 176 Oxford Street, London and Cambridge Grove, Hammersmith.

Made luxury furniture from 1695 onwards. Wartime work was aircraft parts, kit-bags, tents and camouflage nets. Closed 31 March 1962. Production 55,280 (1940-41). Mark ‘WARING’S’, ‘WARING and GILLOW’ OR ‘W and G’.

M. Wright and Sons Ltd., Quorn Mills, Leicester Road, Quorn, Loughborough, Leicestershire LE12 8FZ. Michael Wright founded the company in 1860 as a specialist weaver of narrow fabrics. Military contracts and webbing were made from the 1870s onwards.

Waring and Gillow, 164-182 Oxford Street, London, 1917 (Historic England) www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Gearing up for action Bomb damage at Grange Mills, Bermondsey, September 1940 (Fox Photos Ltd)

A P.37 frog with neatly stitched buttonhole (Priest)

A British soldier with ‘Bayonet, No.4 Mk III’ in an unmodified P.37 frog in NorthWest Europe 1944

P.37 frogs with ‘Sword-bayonet, Pattern 1907 Mk I’ (Bayonet, No.1, Mk I) and ‘Bayonet, No.4 Mk I’ with Tab ((Priest)) Right: ‘TD’ Trefano Ltd. 1942 Production 24,500 1943-44 (Priest) Far right: Stores reference A.A. 0996 with ‘M and S’ (Manufacture) 1945. Marks and Spencer.

Production 104,660 1940-45 (Priest) Still in business, now by use of modern materials for commercial and military webbing, tapes and elastics. Production 1,080,000 (1940-44). Mark ‘M.W. and S. LTD.’ or ‘M.W. and S. Ltd.’. Dispersal code M276.

Together with the Mills Equipment Company’s production of 84,330 (1939-44) frogs, plus 30,000 with integral button hole, (Dispersal code S237) Michael Wright provided a huge quantity of the Pattern 1937 frogs.

The ledger showed that in 1939 the lowest priced

A pale khaki P.37 frog in use by Indian troops of the 20th Division in Prome, 3 May 1945 (Imperial War Museum Ref. SE 4081)

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frogs cost 8 shillings and 5-1/2d (42 pence) per dozen or 8-1/2d (3p) each.

By 1945 the price remained virtually unchanged. Associated Cutters did charge 7-1/2d (3p) for one order (298/A/W.854) of 25 January 1943.

M.E.Co. sustained damage to Factories Nos.1 and 2 in October and December 1940 so a new establishment was set up at Oxlow Lane, Dagenham, after 25 December 1940. Eventually their building on the Edmonton Trading Estate was totally destroyed in a raid on 19 March 1941 but limited production continued despite the setbacks. After this time the loss of the M.E. Co. artificial steam shrinking plant meant that webbing was made on a more generous ‘cutting’ scale to allow for shrinkage.

In addition to a trade mark the frogs were stamped with a date and the Stores Reference of ‘A1/ AA 0996’. Sometimes other numbers or names were added by particular units or individuals during service.

The cotton was usually dyed khaki or drab but shades varied according to the source and the subsequent theatre of issue. Different coloured treatments were applied with ‘Blanco’ compound.

The frogs were originally intended to support the scabbard of ‘Sword-

bayonet, Pattern 1907 Mk I’ (Bayonet, No.1, Mk I) but after 1941 many carried the smaller ‘No.4 Mk I’ scabbard. These were insecure so a button hole was added to the upper scabbard loop. The condition of these openings depended on the needlework skills of the adaptor.

Collectors now seek particular designs or markings so prices have risen. Pattern 1937 frogs are less common than they once were but it might still be possible to acquire an example of each contractor’s output.

Acknowledgements: Appreciation to Roger Dennis, John Bodsworth and the late Anthony Carter. ■

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FURTHER READING

• Carter, A., Bayonet Belt Frogs, Tharston Press, England, 1997.

• Grace’s Guide to British Industrial History, internet 2017.

• Karkeeweb.com, internet, 2017.

• Landers, R., Saddle Up, Australia, 1998.

• National Archives, Ministry of Supply Records, SUPP 4/158, ‘Web Equipment’, 1939.

• The Quorn Village On-line Museum, internet, 2017.

• War Office, List of Changes in War Matériel, various dates.

• War Office, The Pattern 1937 Web Equipment 1939, 25 October 1939.

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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BRITISH ARMY INSIGNIA Most comprehensive range of current British Army Insignia from 50’s to the present day, including over 500 cloth TRFs and Formation Signs and over 150 obsolete anodised cap badges www.british-military-badges.co.uk Plus RSM rank, officers Cap badges, para wings, over 40 DZ’s and all Royal Marine and para insignia.

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14/08/2017 14:53

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14/08/2017 14:53

WEAPON FEATURE

A King’s rifle Gavin Gardiner reveals the story of a hammer rifle made for Albert Edward, Prince of Wales

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t always makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck when I handle anything of extraordinary provenance or rarity, and never more so than when an item has a Royal history. Items with a Royal connection rarely leave the Royal family - the array of weapons in the Royal Gunroom at Sandringham are testament to this.

Virtually every piece that a member of the British Royal Family has owned is held there, the only notable exception being those of King Edward VIII, whose abdication in 1936 created an awkward precedent.

Both of Edward VIII’s pair of guns passed through Sotheby’s early in my career and I was able to spend time

with both. We have also sold a number of other notable Royal guns, including the Duke of Cambridge’s Purdey, HRH Prince Albert’s pair of Charles Lancasters, a Westley Richards and a Purdey built for the Prince of Wales as well as one of Czar Nicholas’ Purdeys.

Perhaps the most interesting of the Royal rifles that I have handled, however, was one of King Edward VII’s Purdey hammer rifles.

Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, was born in 1841 and was the eldest son of Queen Victoria. He lived at a very interesting time in the evolution of the sporting firearm, and would have grown up familiar with late percussion firearms and witnessed the rapid transition to breech-loaders, with first pin-fire and then centre-fire ignition.

He was Prince of Wales from his birth until his eventual succession to the throne in 1901 at the age of 59. He had a long time to enjoy his life as a sportsman before the responsibilities of being Monarch took over and was an avid shot. A keen user of hammer guns through most of his life, he is notable in ending his shooting career using modern hammerless

Prince of Wales posing with the Purdey rifle, and his elephant and howdah, in India

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A King’s rifle

Above: The stock has a silver oval inserted Right: Detail of rearsight with graduation to 20 yards Left: The Prince of Wales Purdey rifle

ejector guns, having started it with a percussion muzzle-loader.

A lifelong Purdey customer, he bought his first pair of guns in 1862.

He received a further Purdey from his wife for his 26th birthday in 1867, and the pair to it the following year for his 27th birthday. Queen Victoria purchased a 60-bore (.500) Purdey hammer rife in 1868, no. 7642, for the Prince to use, and that remains at Sandringham today. He purchased his own Purdey rifle in 1873, a 60bore (.500/.450 No.1 Express) doublebarrelled hammer rifle, and this rifle and its story are the subject of this article. It first came to my attention when it appeared at auction a few years ago, having surfaced overseas and been returned to London for sale. When it was offered the catalogue description read as follows: ‘J. PURDEY A .500/.450 No.1 EXPRESS HAMMER RIFLE, NO. 9015, BUILT FOR HRH THE PRINCE OF WALES’ 28½-inch barrels with full length damascus rib, with folding leaf sight to 250, the rounded frame, non- rebounding back lock, bolted hammers and rotary underlever/trigger guard with fine scroll engraving and retaining traces of original hardening colour, fences with side clips, 14¼-inch figured stock with cheekpiece and engraved steel butt plate, the

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silver escutcheon with presentation inscription E T Rose XRH, From HRH The Prince of Wales, Terrai, Feb 28th 1876, 9lb. 15oz., black powder proof’.

The maker confirms that the rifle was ordered and built in 1873 for HRH The Prince of Wales.

The Prince departed for an epic, eight-month tour of India in 1875, returning in 1876. ‘Chapter X, Sport Abroad: The Indian Tour’ of Alfred Watson’s classic King Edward VII as a Sportsman covers this in detail, most notably describing the month spent hunting tigers in the Terrai. This rifle, the Prince’s own, was used extensively during this time and at the end of the month was presented to Lieutenant E.T. Rose of the 10th Hussars, The Prince of Wales’ own regiment. The Hussars

accompanied the Prince during his visit and were involved in many of its associated ceremonies.

The rifle remained in an unrestored condition and had clearly seen some use, though obviously none in a very long time. It still retained a little of its original finish beneath a slight crust of hardened oil and grease, and light surface rust patina. The silver oval inserted in the stock gave me my first clues as to the origins of the rifle, and it was from here that the research into the rifle’s history began.

I visited Purdey in London to examine the records and to find out when the rifle was originally built and for whom. Purdey maintain detailed records of virtually all of the guns and rifles that they have built, and these are maintained at Audley House in London, where Purdey have been based since the premises were built in 1882. It was a simple task to look up the serial number in the ledger, and this confirmed that the rifle 9015 was a 60-bore CF (centre-fire) rifle built for The Prince of Wales in 1873. It noted that it was for the ‘bottle neck’ cartridge, indicating the .450 No.1 Express.

The dimension book also details the workers were involved in its construction, and tells us that ‘jointing, stocking and screwing’ was by Lewis, ‘percussioning’ was by Glaysher, ‘cocking’

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WEAPON FEATURE

A tour of the barrel - under the crust of oil and grease a little of the original finish was retained

by Prentice, ‘engraving’ by Lucas and ‘hardening’ by Robins. It was a typical order of the day, and the same ledger page includes numerous double 12-bores as well as three other double breech-loading rifles.

It was now clear that this was indeed a King’s rifle, ordered when the Prince of Wales was 32 years of age, and just five years after he awarded Purdey its first Royal Warrant.

The rifle’s original purpose may have been to shoot stags at Balmoral. This was soon to change, however, as plans were afoot for a major tour to India, the first of its type by the heir to the throne. The tour was to take place in the autumn/winter of 1875 and would continue into the spring of 1876.

Purdey’s records for shooting and regulating the rifle show that it was returned to Purdey and regulated again on 22 June 1875. Previously regulated to a minimum range of 100 yards, the sights were altered and the new minimum range was now just 20 yards.

The folding leafs of the rearsight were regulated for 100, 200 and 250 yards and the records commented that the rifle ‘shot very well’. The tour would famously include a month of tiger shooting and much of this would be taken from a howdah atop an elephant among dense bush. Regulating the rifle at 20 yards made perfect sense, as many shots would be taken instinctively and at extremely close range!

The Prince left for India on 16 October

Presentation inscription from 1876 1875 aboard HMS Serapis and, after a brief visit to Egypt on the way, arrived in Bombay on 8 November. Ceremonial duties took immediate precedence, but it was not long before the Prince had an opportunity to use his guns, and sport commenced on the 22nd with some stalking. The Prince shot a fine buck at 200 yards, and the next day followed with a number of small game. On the 23rd he was introduced to the mysteries of pig sticking.

The Royal party departed for Goa on the 25th and then arrived in Ceylon on 1 December. The Prince collected specimens for the Royal Collection, including kingfishers, woodpeckers and snipe. Finally, on 6 December an elephant hunt took place, and the Prince shot his first elephant, a feat that demanded courage and resolution,

as well as skill with the rifle. The tour then moved on to Madras for racing, and Christmas was spent in Calcutta.

On 4 January 1876, the Prince left Calcutta bound for the Terrai, where Indian sport was at its very best. On 4 February, the Prince shot his first tiger, a full-grown tigress. On the 8th they made for a shooting camp set up on the edge of the Terrai and the first day’s sport included a leopard as well as many deer. On the 14th the camp moved on to Tandah and it was here that the Prince famously shot a bear from the howdah of his elephant.

On the 16th another tiger fell to the Prince’s rifle, and on the 18th, a line of elephants of some 600 yards was formed to beat for tiger. The Prince was at the centre of the line and a magnificent tiger was got up, but not shot by the Prince.

The party then moved to Nepal, as guests of Sir Jung Bahadoor, and this got off to an excellent start. The Prince shot his first Nepalese tiger on the first day after an exciting and picturesque hunt. On the 21st no fewer than seven tigers were shot, with the Prince accounting for six of them, including a man-eater. On the 23rd another tiger was shot and the next day a leopard fell to the Prince’s rifle. On the 25th there was a wonderful day’s sport after elephant and on the 26th another tiger hunt was organised. This must have been a significant event, as on the 28th occurred the event with was www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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A King’s rifle

South Audley House, Purdey shop exterior view

The record books at Purdey contain a wealth of information

commemorated by the plaque on this rifle, which led to its presentation to E.T. Rose at the conclusion of the tour. On 2 March the Prince shot another tiger, two more the following day and on the final day he shot the largest of the tour, a fullgrown male over ten feet long.

On the 5 March 1876 a farewell Durbar was held and the Prince presented Sir Jung Bahadoor with a number of rifles as well as a silver statue of himself in his uniform of the 10th Hussars. The party then began the long journey home and finally arrived back in London in May 1876.

The rifle had clearly seen a lot of sport in India, but it still remains a mystery how the Prince came to present this rifle to E.T. Rose of the

10th Royal Hussars or, indeed, the significance of the date 28 February 1876. The official account does not record the significance of this date, but clearly Lieutenant Rose must have done the Prince a significant service; a Purdey rifle was no small gift, especially not the Prince’s own.

The 10th (Prince of Wales Own) Royal Hussars had a long and distinguished history, having been raised in 1715 in response to the Jacobite uprising. They saw action in all of the major conflicts of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries before their amalgamation with the 11th Royal Hussars in 1969 to form the Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales Own), then becoming the King’s Royal Hussars in 1992.

The Longroom at Purdey is a treasure trove of history The Hussars left for their Indian posting in 1873 and took up their quarters in Bengal. Their tour was marked by the ceremonies associated with their Colonel, the Prince of Wales, in 1875-76, whom they entertained in due form and travelled with on the famous Royal tour. They were relieved in 1878 but their adventures did not stop there, as they were reassigned to the Kyber Pass Field Force and were involved in the famous battle under the command of General Sir Sam Browne. Victorious, they advanced to take Jalalabad and, in true Hussar

The record books at Purdey

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WEAPON FEATURE

Above: 10th Hussars at Jalalabad, including Rose Right: A map of the tour when big game shooting was an acceptable practice fashion, held the first steeplechase around the city on 23 December!

Of Rose himself we know relatively little other than that he was the third son of a baronet, who would marry well and live until the age of 65. His service record tells us a little, and an image of the 10th Hussars in Jalalabad around the time of the Royal tour shows him to be a typical dashing officer of the period. Edward Temple Rose was born on 2 November 1855, and was the third son of Rt. Hon. Sir John Rose, 1st Bt., and Charlotte Temple.

He was gazetted as a sub-Lieutenant in the 10th Hussars on 13 June 1874.

After the Indian tour Lieutenant Rose found his passage home on board the Indian troopship Jumna, leaving Bombay on 18 April 1880 and reaching Portsmouth on 15 May. On 4 March 1881, Lieutenant Rose sailed to Durban, there to be attached to the 15th Hussars. When the ship reached Durban on 28 March 1881, the peace had been signed with the Boers and he saw service on the Staff and was promoted to Captain on 8 August 1882.

He married Lady Cecilia Cathcart, daughter of Alan Frederick Cathcart, 3rd Earl Cathcart, on 26 July 1883, and resigned his commission on 12

Above left: Rose of the 10th Hussars Above right: HRH The Prince of Wales in a formal photo

February 1885. He lived until 1920.

In the course of his life and career he would have had ample opportunity to use the rifle further, spending further time in India and South Africa, so it is fair to assume that not all of the wear and patina on the rifle is the Prince’s own. Those few months in India in the Prince’s hands will have taken their toll as the conditions were hot and arduous, and rifles that have seen service in India rarely remain in perfect condition. The action, however, was as tight as the day the rifle first left Purdey, and the bores remain clean and bright, so it had been well cared for. It would be interesting to know whether the rifle still shoots as well as it did over 150 years ago.

The more recent history of the rifle is rather blurred and it remained unknown until its appearance at auction all those years later. Enquires to the vendor showed that he knew a little about it, but only what the presentation inscription told him, and the assumption that this was one of the number of rifles that Purdey built for the Indian tour.

Purdey records show that Her Majesty’s Government placed an order with Purdey, prior to the Indian tour, for 40-bore, 60-bore and 100-bore rifles to be presented to Maharajah Sir Jung Bahadoor, the Maharajah of Viziawagran, the Nawab of Iniwra and the Nizam of Deccan. The barrels were engraved ‘H.R.H. the Prince of Wales K.G., G.C.S.I. to (name of prince)’, and with a gold inlay of the Star of India inlaid in the stock. Mr Purdey recorded in the records that ‘all of these were taken by H.R.H. Prince of Wales to India as gifts 1875’. A budget of some £60,000 had been allowed for the Prince’s own expenditure, to include presents to the native rulers. Rifles from Purdey and Alex Henry, and others, were also acquired. They even procured a second-hand muzzle-loading rifle from Purdey themselves for this purpose. A number of these rifles have surfaced over the years.

This rifle had not been one of those procured for the tour; rather it was the Prince of Wales’ own rifle, which had been especially altered for the tour. The Prince used it extensively on the tour and we can speculate that all 23 tigers that he killed that month were shot with this rifle. What an officer from the Prince’s Own Hussars did to warrant receiving it as a gift is something that we will probably never know. ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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DBG Militaria would like to offer you original WW1 and WW2 British and German Militaria of all types with some Polish and Canadian equipment included.

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Please be aware items are posted daily from DBG Militaria so you can buy today and have your item delivered the next day to a UK address with items that have a postage charge.

Bob Sims Militaria Bob Sims Militaria

www.bobsimsmilitaria.com www.bobsimsmilitaria.com email: tiger.six@outlook.com Email tiger.six@virgin.net Mobile: 07885 443731 Wanted American, British and Allied Militaria BULLDOG MILITARIA For Sale & Wanted Special Forces, Paras, Glider Troops, RAF, USAAF, Log Books, Wings, American, British and Allied Millitaria Special Forces, Specialising in British Watches, US Marine Corps and Medals.

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14/08/2017 14:54

MISSILE FEATURE

Terror from the skies Barry Wheeler reveals the story of Hitler’s revenge weapon and the flying bomb campaign of 1944

C

ompared with the current satellite-guided cruise missiles, Hitler’s ‘Revenge Weapon Number 1’ or Vertgeltungswaffen 1 was a crude affair, but horribly effective. Intended to bombard and eventually force Britain to sue for peace during World War II, the V1 flying bomb proved a difficult weapon to defeat, but prolonged development and an Allied bombing campaign eventually overcame the unmanned menace.

In the early morning of 13 June 1944, four pilotless flying bombs landed in southern England, two exploding in London at Swanscombe and Bethnal Green, and one each at Cuckfield in Sussex and Platt near Sevenoaks, Kent; six people were killed. So began the V1 campaign ordered by Hitler to start on 10 June which would take the lives of 6,184 people and cause extensive damage to buildings and property, but which

failed to have any decisive effect on the outcome of the war.

Just off the N42 road in France, east of St Omer, is the Forêt Domaniale de Nieppe. On the northern edge of its wooded interior, along footpaths used by energetic locals and round circular bomb craters transformed into stagnant ponds, are the surviving remains of the V1 flying-bomb site known as Bois des Huit Rues. From the tree-lined D138 Wallon-Cappell road, there is little to see of the silent ruins except an information board in a parking bay, but within the trees can be found the layout of a typical launch site constructed in 1943 by workers of Organisation Todt.

Cordoned off from curious eyes by armed guards, the area was laid with connecting concrete roads, brick and concrete support buildings and, at the far end, the protecting walls for a Walter launching ramp pointing north-west towards England, and imprecisely targeted at Tower Bridge.

With the forthcoming invasion of Europe which would begin as D-Day on 6 June 1944, the coastal fringe of the near Continent was under constant observation by the RAF – any new or unusual buildings were subject to photoreconnaissance and detailed assessment.

British intelligence had been aware of a secret rocket development programme located on the north German coast at Peenemünde in 1942 and further details of both the winged V1 and its much larger and deadlier V2 rocket filtered through from agents and, eventually, via aerial reconnaissance early in 1943.

Strange complexes appeared along the coastal belt of northern France in the regions of Picardy, Artois and Normandy and were assessed to be launch sites for the pilotless bombs. A common identity feature was a prominent long, ski-shaped building, prompting the generic name ‘ski-sites’; these were long reinforced concrete shelters in which the bombs were to be stored.

Not all V1s made it to England. This example came down when the Argus engine failed after launching, breaking up the airframe. It was later found by Canadian troops

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Terror from the skies

Above: An official cutaway illustration showing the main elements which made up the V1.

Gleaned from various wrecked examples Right: Simplified diagram showing the basic actions of the Argus pulsejet.

Top, air enters the intake as the fuel flows; ignited by the spark plug, the explosion blows the shutters closed Left (top to bottom): September 1944 and at Le Nieppe, the heavily bombed site still had its Walter catapult in place Blast walls of the sole launcher at Bois des Huit-Rues. The Walter catapult was located between them A surviving V1 flying bomb on its Walter catapult at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford

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Protracted development Being a winged, unmanned, jetpowered drone, the V1 was a Luftwaffe programme which originated from early research into remotely-controlled target drones by engineer Fritz Gosslau.

In 1936, Gosslau joined the Argus aero-engine company and worked on the development of small unmanned aircraft capable of carrying explosives.

Instrumental in this project was the Schmidtrohr engine, a 660lb thrust As 109-014 pulsejet. This power unit had a grid of flap-valve springs in its inlet which alternately admitted fresh air and was then blown shut against ram pressure by ignition of fuel in the duct. By June 1942, the engine had been successfully tested and a previously reluctant German Air Ministry (Reichsluftfahrtministerium) finally agreed on the go-ahead to support a top priority production programme for what was now called the Fieseler Fi 103, the designation alluding to just another aircraft type while also being given the cover name Kirschkern (Cherry stone) with the added abbreviation for security purposes Flakzielgerät 76 – FZG 76 or

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MISSILE FEATURE

AA Target Device 76. The British would soon know the V1 by names such as doodlebug, flying bomb, buzz-bomb and the official operational code-word ‘diver’.

Air launches of early prototype V1s were flown from Condor bombers at Peenemünde-West in October 1942 and the first ground-based catapult launch of a powered bomb took place on 24 December 1942. Taking charge of the military deployment of the V1 was Oberst Max Wachtel, an artillery officer who established a training unit in July 1943 to determine the best way of operating the bomb in the many thousands envisaged by Hitler.

Flakregiment 155(W) was the main operating unit and personnel were recruited from within the Luftwaffe’s Anti-Aircraft organisation. However, the

transfer of sufficient numbers of men to train for the forthcoming campaign against England proved difficult, coming as it did with the urgent need for more AA units to combat the increasing Allied bombing raids on Germany.

In August, with initial plans calling for the launch of attacks against London in December 1943, trials of the flying bomb were still dogged by problems and failures. Some of the bombs crashed shortly after take-off, others turned on their backs when the gyroscopic equipment failed, while others broke apart after launching due to poor quality in the spot welding at vital structural points of the airframe. Indeed, poor quality workmanship forced the scrapping of hundreds of wings and centre-sections made at the outsourcing

factories. Performance too was variable with no consistency in the specified figures. By May 1944, trials showed that the bomb could cruise at 372mph, but a slight change in fuel metering saw that figure drop to 280mph, well within most Allied fighter speeds making the bomb vulnerable to interception and destruction before it reached its target.

Correcting the problem took the speed back up to 397mph and with further modifications the figure increased to more than 470mph.

With a speed where interception was considered negligible by the German planners, the pilotless aircraft would fly the 1,870lb warhead at heights between 1,000 and 2,000ft for up to 150 miles before the engine cut out and the bomb dived to the ground to explode on impact. However, the broad scattering across the south of England of the thousands launched from France indicated how random the V1 was when it came to range.

Meanwhile, large-scale production of the V1 was beginning at Volkswagen’s Fallersleben factory, joining Fieseler at Kassel to reach the 5,000 per month ordered by the Luftwaffe. Despite the relatively simple design, early production was slow as modifications were fed in from the development teams at Peenemünde.

Above: Within the underground production site at Nordhausen in the Harz Mountains, the US Army discovered this V1 bomb factory in April 1945, the weapons being built by slave labour Below: Camouflaged and awaiting launch on its Walter catapult, a V1 flying bomb is surrounded with the paraphernalia required to get it into the air

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Terror from the skies Right: Members of Flakregiment 155(W), known as Flakgruppe Creil, on arriving in France under the command of Oberst Martin Wolf, pull a bomb on its Zubringerwagen

metal ramp which could be assembled off-site and bolted together on previously prepared foundations together with a small number of camouflaged buildings and the vital non-magnetic square for setting the gyro-compass. Some 54 were duly established.

Finally, on 13 June 1944 the V1 campaign against London began. The bombs were transported from the storage buildings to the compass-alignment area and from there to be hoisted on to a cradle at the base of the 156ft-long Walter launch ramps. When ready and personnel were safely at a distance, hydrogen peroxide was mixed with calcium permanganate in the combustion chamber at the base of the ramps to produce pressurised steam and oxygen, the Argus pulsejet was started and as power increased the dumb-bell shaped firing piston blasted the V1 up the ramp. At the end of the ramp the

Below: A Propaganda Kompanie picture of a V1 after launch

The Allies respond As the factories began to plan production of the bombs, so the Allies were in turn formulating an attack on the Peenemünde research establishment to try and disrupt development of the ‘revenge weapons’. The raid took place on the night of 17-18 August 1943 when a Bomber Command force of 596 aircraft made the seven to eight-hour return flight to the Baltic base and laid waste to much of the residential area, killing many of the research and scientific staff, as well as some of the V2 rocket development buildings. The V1 trials area, west of the main base was, however, untouched. The RAF lost 40 bombers shot down and 245 crewmen killed.

Next came Operation Crossbow, Bomber Command’s attack on the launch sites and suspected infrastructure believed to be connected with the flying bombs and rockets. The first raid took place on 16-17 December 1943 on a target near Abbeville and other known launch sites were attacked over the following weeks and months through to August 1944. As the ski-sites were destroyed, the Germans began developing more simplified launch bases scattered across countryside which took advantage of farms and woods, making their detection increasingly difficult to spot. These ‘modified sites’, as the RAF called them, consisted of a modular

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Above: The ‘puttering’ sound of the pulsejet has stopped and a silence follows as the bomb tips forward and drops to the ground. This one hit the Daily Herald building in London Right (top to bottom): Preliminary assembly building to where the flying bombs were wheeled on their way towards the launch catapult Canteen, infirmary and accommodation building semisubmerged for safety Pre-flight workshop and temporary store before transport to the Richthaus nonmagnetic building

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MISSILE FEATURE Below: Entrance to one of the storage buildings. Walkways each side abut the centre strip indicate the width of the V1 transport trollies Inset: Erected by the French Forestry Office, an information board provides details of the V1 site at Bois des Huit-Rues with a plan for visitors to follow

Above: One of three ski-shaped V1 storage buildings at the site which survived the Allied bombing Below: Believed to be a still from a cinefilm made during trials of a Heinkel bomber modified to carry the V1

piston and the launching cradle fell to earth, producing large gouges in the soil (a visible indication to the photo-interpreters hunting for the launch sites), and the bomb was on its way!

There were two main types of bomb, the first having tapered wings spanning 16ft and the more widely used type which had constant chord wings spanning 17ft 6in. Overall length of the missile was between 25ft 4in and 29ft, depending on the warhead. Within these two types were six different variants of warhead.

Typical was the initial Fi 103A-1 which carried 1,870lb of Amatol 39A explosive, while the Fi 103B-2 carried a warhead containing the highly sensitive Trialen 105/106 which had a much greater blast effect, causing major damage quite out of proportion to its size. There was even a chemical warfare version, the D-1, but this was never deployed.

To protect London, the southern part of England became a multi-layered defence area comprising standing patrols of fighters, hundreds of barrage balloons

and large numbers of anti-aircraft guns.

As a result, only 2,419 bombs fell on London from well over 8,800 launched.

Only the most advanced of fighters could catch the bombs – the Hawker Tempest V, Spitfire Mk XIV, and the new Gloster Meteor jets – all gaining success in shooting them down. Some Allied pilots, out of ammunition, would fly alongside the bomb and position their wing beneath that of the bomb so the boundary layer raised the wing until the gyroscope toppled and it went out of control to crash in open country.

The campaign against Britain was pursued with vigour, even though many bombs failed to reach London and others crashed after take-off, supplies appeared to meet the needs of the firing units.

Against the bombardment continuing was the onward march of the Allied troops that landed on D-Day and soon the launch points were being overrun: the last V1 ground-launched from France was fired on 1 September 1944.

The German units withdrew and the

flexibility gained by use of the modified sites saw V1s now raining down on Antwerp as the main supply port for the Allied armies. Some 2,448 were targeted on the Belgian town which had already suffered attack from A4 rockets, severely retarding Allied operations with casualties well over 37,741, together with the loss of over 50 ships and barges sunk around the port area.

Additionally, air-launched V1s became a further threat to London when, between 18 and 21 July 1944, the first bombs were launched from Heinkel He 111H-22 bombers based at Venlo and Gilze-Rijen in Holland, some 50 falling on the capital. As the German units were chased out of Holland, so the Heinkels began flying from airfields in western Germany to launch more bombs aimed at cities in the Midlands. However, radar-equipped night-fighters hunted the Heinkels and exacted retribution on their numbers so that while some 1,200 V1s were airlaunched, less than half that number made landfall and the last one came down in North London on 14 January 1945. The V1 attack was finally blunted and stopped. Total V1 production reached nearly 29,000, many completed in the large underground slave labour plant Mittelwerke at Nordhausen in southern Germany. â– www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Jihad in the desert Mark Simner describes the British Army’s campaign and the awarding of the Queen’s Sudan Medal

K

itchener’s campaign against the Khalifa and his army in Sudan was the last of a series of conflicts that some today collectively refer to as the Mahdist War, which began as early as 1881. This 18-year conflict had its roots in the rise of the Mahdi of Sudan, a fanatical Islamic religious leader by the name of Muhammad Ahmed Ibn Al-Sayyid Abdullah. The Mahdi proclaimed himself to be the one true Mahdi – the redeemer of Islam. He was not the only individual to make such a claim, but his charismatic personality drew many to his cause.

A rebellion followed against the hated Egyptian authorities in Sudan. Despite being better armed and equipped, the Egyptian Army suffered numerous defeats against the Mahdi’s followers, and it would not be long before Muhammad Ahmed would command an army – which he later called the ‘Ansar’, meaning ‘helpers’ – of many thousands. A man who was once deemed little

Above left: The obverse of the Queen’s Sudan Medal (Mark A. Reid) Above right: The reverse of the Queen’s Sudan Medal (Mark A. Reid)

more than a religious nutcase had managed to firmly establish Mahdism, and it was a powerful threat to the Khedive of Egypt.

The British became involved in affairs in Sudan – and ultimately clashed with the Mahdists – following their invasion of Egypt in 1882. This seizure of Egypt had nothing to do with Muhammad Ahmed; indeed, the British had no interest in Sudan, but wanted rather to deal with the threat posed by Ahmed Arabi’s nationalist uprising against the weak Khedive. The British had loaned much money to the Egyptian ruler and wanted to protect their investment, not to mention securing the Suez Canal, the allimportant gateway to India.

When, in 1896, the British did finally decide to act in Sudan against the Khalifa – the successor to the Mahdi, who had died in 1885 – they did so because fellow Europeans, Italy, needed assistance. The Italians had suffered a heavy defeat at the Battle of Adwa and the Mahdists now saw an opportunity to seize Kassala in eastern Sudan. Fearing further defeat, the Italian ambassador to London asked the British Prime

The epic charge of the 21st Lancers, which resulted in much loss amongst the cavalrymen and their horses. A young Winston Churchill took part (Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection)

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MEDAL FEATURE 1. Ahmed Arabi, who led a nationalist uprising in Egypt that resulted in the British invasion of the country in 1882. 2. Brigadier-General Hector MacDonald, who commanded the 1st Egyptian Brigade at the Battle of Omdurman. 3. General Charles Gordon, who became besieged at Khartoum and was subsequently killed by warriors of the Mahdi in 188. 4. Major-General Horatio Herbert Kitchener, the Sirdar of the Egyptian Army, who defeated the Khalifa at the Battle of Omdurman

1

2

5

3

4

7 5. Major-General Archibald Hunter, who commanded the Egyptian Division at the Battle of Omdurman

6

6. Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer, who was consulgeneral of Egypt during the reconquest of Sudan 7. A young Winston Churchill, who, as a lieutenant, took part in the charge of the 21st Lancers at Omdurman Minister, Lord Salisbury, for help.

Salisbury agreed, although his decision to commit military resources in making a demonstration in northern Sudan – thus distracting the Mahdists from their bid to retake Kassala – was born more out of territorial ambition than charity towards fellow Europeans.

The coming British campaign in Sudan, then, began with its roots firmly in European politics, and the Battle of Adwa merely determined when to set the wheels in motion.

Following the British invasion of Egypt, there was a need to rebuild the Egyptian Army. The British, throughout the 19th century, raised local forces to bear the burden of military operations.

Prior to 1882, the lot of the Egyptian soldier had not been a happy one: the vast majority were drawn from the Egyptian peasantry who would resort to drastic actions to escape military service. This was a response to the poor conditions in which the soldiers lived, hardly ever receiving their pay on time, and knowing that they were unlikely to see their home villages ever again.

To solve this problem, far-reaching reforms were introduced. Soldiers were

better fed and clothed; they received their pay on time and were granted leave in order to visit friends and family back home. Better training for officers was introduced and equipment improved, such as the issue of the Martini-Henry rifle. By the time of Kitchener’s campaign in 1896, a number of Sudanese battalions were also raised, which incorporated Mahdist deserters, and a second army also existed in Egypt, made up of regular British regiments.

However, perhaps the most formidable weapon employed against the Mahdists was the Sudan Military Railway (SMR). The railway was used to transport men and animals to where was needed.

The troops assembled for the campaign numbered around 9,000, the vast majority of whom were Egyptian and Sudanese, although a handful of men from the North Staffordshire Regiment and the Connaught Rangers formed a Maxim machine gun section.

In addition, some 900 men of the North Staffords were retained in readiness at Wadi Halfa. Since the force was to operate in the Sudanese province

of Dongola it was named the Dongola Expeditionary Force. Although the railway would be extended to facilitate the advance, a number of Nile steamers were provided by Thomas Cook, which were stripped of their niceties to become troop vessels.

On 1 May 1896, the first clash between Kitchener’s army and the Mahdists occurred at a place called Akasha. Major John Burn-Murdoch was commanding three squadrons of Egyptian cavalry, conducting a reconnaissance of the surrounding area, when he sighted a force of around 1,300 Mahdist footmen and 300 horsemen. Since he had no infantry support, the major took the decision to retire, but as he did so the Mahdists spotted his cavalrymen. A fight ensued, during which a number of Egyptians became casualties in close-quarter combat. Eventually the Mahdists broke off when a battalion of Sudanese infantry suddenly appeared.

On 2 June, Kitchener’s expeditionary force was finally concentrated at Akasha and he felt ready to go on the offensive. A march to Firket was begun, for which the Sirdar – Kitchener’s www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Jihad in the desert

Above left: Period sketch depicting Mahdist warriors making a final stand to defend their Black Flag. Above right: Mahdist warriors attack during the Battle of Omdurman, fought on 2 September 1898 title as commander-in-chief of the Egyptian Army – split his force into two, including: a River Column under Major-General Archibald Hunter and a Desert Column under Burn-Murdoch.

Kitchener knew the bulk of the Ansar was at Dongola, but he first needed to deal with the Mahdist force at Firket under Hammuda Idris.

The River Column advanced to Firket along the Nile, while the Desert Column headed towards the east.

Hunter would attack from the north while Burn-Murdoch blocked any possible line of retreat for the Mahdists to the south.

On 7 June the Action of Firket began at 5am, when a group of Ansar marksmen opened fire on Kitchener’s force from the heights of Jebel Firket.

With these warriors cleared off, the advance resumed and the three brigades of the River Column assaulted the main Mahdist camp. The Desert Column also became engaged when Burn-Murdoch’s artillery opened fire. The Mahdists put up a determined fight, but eventually were defeated.

Kitchener’s gunboats would clash with Mahdist forces at Hafir on 19 September, but the Sirdar would finally march into Dongola on 23 September.

The Dongola campaign had been short but highly successful.

With the capture of Dongola, both Lord Salisbury and Lord Cromer, the British consul-general of Egypt, felt the Sirdar’s operations were at an end.

Kitchener, however, did not! The Sirdar believed it wise to continue to advance rather than leave the Egyptian Army in

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Dongola to stagnate while the Mahdists regrouped. Cromer had no objection to the campaign continuing, but he knew Egypt could not afford it. The Sirdar, therefore, returned to England to argue his case. He received help when it was learned that the French were sending an expedition to the Upper Nile. In response, the British Government agreed to foot the bill and the campaign was extended.

Pushing further into Sudan, the Egyptian force next clashed with the Mahdists at Abu Hamed on 7 August 1897. Commanding Egyptian forces was Major-General Archibald Hunter, who had with him three Egyptian infantry battalions and one Sudanese, supported by artillery, Maxims and

cavalry. Opposing them were 1,350 Mahdist footmen, of which around 500 were armed with rifles, and 150 horsemen. Hunter gave the order to conduct an assault of Abu Hamed, which was again met with stiff resistance from the Ansar. Ultimately, however, the Egyptians were victorious.

A far more serious action, the second largest of the entire reconquest, came on 8 April 1898. The Battle of Atbara, as it was known, was different from the former actions of the campaign because it involved substantial numbers of British troops that Kitchener had requested to reinforce the expeditionary force. Kitchener commanded the battle himself, with four brigades of infantry, including one British and

Men of the Cameron Highlanders assault Mahmud’s zariba during the Battle of Atbara, fought on 8 April 1898 (Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection)

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MEDAL FEATURE

Period sketch maps showing the three phases of the Battle of Omdurman three Egyptian, supported by artillery and cavalry. The battle involved a heavy assault of a Mahdist zariba near the Atbara River, the latter commanded

by Mahmud Ahmed. For the first time, British troops were greatly involved, although the Egyptian and Sudanese troops were heavily engaged. Again, the action ended in victory for the Sirdar, although Anglo-Egyptian losses were high, including: 82 killed and 478 wounded. Mahmud’s losses were estimated at 3,000 killed.

The largest and most important action of the entire campaign was the Battle of Omdurman, fought on 2 September 1898. Kitchener advanced towards Omdurman and made camp at a place called Egeiga on the Nile.

To protect his force a zariba was built.

The battle can be seen to have three phases. The first was the Mahdist attack on Kitchener’s force within the zariba, where thousands of warriors charged towards the Anglo-Egyptian troops, only to be gunned down by rifle and Maxim fire. Also adding their firepower were the gunners of the artillery and the gunboats on the Nile.

Following the repulse of the first attack, the 21st Lancers conducted their famous charge against a group of warriors in Khor Abu Sunt. Unfortunately for the brave cavalrymen, they fell into a trap organised by Osman Digna, and the lancers suffered many casualties amongst both men and horses. One notable participant of the charge was a young Lieutenant Winston Churchill.

Phase two began when Kitchener

recommenced his advance, during which the Mahdists again attacked.

A further disaster loomed when Brigadier-General Hector MacDonald’s 1st Egyptian Brigade became separated from the main body of the AngloEgyptian force and faced over 20,000 of the Khalifa’s warriors. However, MacDonald’s men held their own and repulsed the attackers.

The final phase of the battle commenced when Ya’qub Muhammad Turshain committed the Black Flag – the Mahdist reserve – to the fight.

Again MacDonald’s brigade came under immense pressure, and again the Egyptians and Sudanese soldiers made ready to meet their enemy. On the verge of defeat, MacDonald breathed a sigh of relief when soldiers of the Lincolnshire Regiment arrived just in time. Eventually the Mahdist attack fizzled out, and a general retreat of the Ansar towards Omdurman ensued.

The Khalifa was defeated, although operations continued. Kitchener next took the city of Omdurman, but he was too late to catch the Khalifa, who managed to flee. (He would eventually be killed at the Battle of Umm Diwaykarat on 25 November 1899.) Omdurman had cost Kitchener 45 killed and 425 wounded. Mahdist casualties were estimated at 10,800 killed, 15,000 wounded and 5,000 taken prisoner.

To recognise service in the 1896-98 campaign, the Queen’s Sudan Medal was issued. It is referred to as the ‘Queen’s’ medal to differentiate it from the ‘Khedive’s’ Sudan Medal, which was

similarly issued by the Khedive of Egypt to recognise service. The latter was always issued with the former.

In common with campaign medals of the time, the Queen’s medal was struck in silver (or bronze for noncombatants) and measures 1.44in (36.5mm) in diameter. On the obverse is the bust of Queen Victoria and the inscription ‘VICTORIA REGINA ET IMPERATRIX’, while the reverse depicts the winged figure of Victory sat on a plinth below which is the inscription ‘SUDAN’. Behind Victory can be seen the British and Egyptian flags.

The 1.25in (32mm) wide ribbon is half yellow and half black, with a thin red stripe separating the two down the centre. These colours allegedly signify the desert (yellow), the Mahdists (black) and the British Army (thin red line). It is attached to the medal via a swivelling suspender, affixed to the disc via a claw mount. No clasps were awarded with this medal, and so the collector must trace the service of the regiment of the recipient in order to ascertain which part of the campaign they were in.

Naming of this medal is found in engraved upright or sloping serif capital letters, while Indian issues (to officers’ servants) are impressed or engraved in running script. Those issued to Egyptian troops are often encountered engraved in Arabic script.

At the time of writing, the average value of a single Queen’s Sudan Medal to a British soldier is around £325-£375.

However, it should be noted that those named to men of the 21st Lancers will command much higher prices. ■ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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PHOTO FEATURE

The Photo Inspector S

Ray Westlake looks at a c.1900-8 Lance Corporal of the 2nd Volunteer Battalion Suffolk Regiment

ome 21 independently numbered rifle volunteer corps were raised in Suffolk between 1859 and 1861. From these, administrative battalions for greater uniformity in training and drill were soon created which, in 1880, were

amalgamated into two units of battalion strength. Numbered now as 1st and 6th Suffolk Rifle Volunteer Corps, both in 1887 took on new names. General Order 181 of that year brought the Volunteers closer to their parent regiment with the titles 1st and 2nd Volunteer Battalions

Suffolk Regiment. The 2nd VB, with companies located in Stowmarket, Eye, Sudbury, Bury St Edmunds, Hadleigh and Newmarket, the subject of this month’s photograph could well have been a resident of one of these East Anglian towns. ■

The grey cap has scarlet piping and displays the badge of the Suffolk Regiment with its triple-towered Gibraltar Castle (complete with key) central device enclosed within a wreath of oak. Here too is the motto, ‘Montis Insignia Calpe’ (Badge of the Rock of Gibraltar), officially granted to the regiment on 2 May 1836 in recognition of its service during the siege of 1779-83. Helpful in dating this photograph is the badge pattern, a War Office instruction of 30 January 1900 directing that all Gibraltar Castles should be shown with three towers and not two as before.

The unit clearly identified by its shoulder straps: the designation of ‘2’ over ‘V’ over ‘SUFFOLK’ is embroidered in scarlet.

Worked in scarlet cotton, the lozengeshaped badge indicates that the wearer had been recorded as efficient in rifle drill and practice in the last annual return of his corps. A further four years would see the award of the five-pointed star seen above, others being added every five years.

Gibraltar Castle again, this time the pre-1900 two-towered version.

Unlike the cap badge, which has it hanging just below the castle entrance, the key here lies horizontally.

Light-grey with scarlet collar, shoulder strap backing and cuffs, the latter with Austrian knots worked in scarlet cord. Buttons are of regimental type (device similar to cap badge) and with a Victorian crown. In silver wire, the single chevron has a backing of scarlet cloth.

Black leather, the general pattern white metal clasp having the usual Royal Crest and motto ‘Dieu et Mon Droit’.

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Books and militaria reviews

reviewsroundup

Duncan Evans and Bill Harriman review the latest releases in the world of military history and collecting

Four Flags – The Odyssey of a Professional Soldier DAVE BARR The author is a Vietnam veteran who, having served in the US Marines and then having failed to adapt to life in Civvie Street, emigrated to Israel illegally, serving in the Israeli Army and Paras. This book covers subsequent service with the Rhodesian Security Forces 1979-80 and then with the South African Defence Force from 1981-1983.

It was during service in Angola that his vehicle ran over a landmine and the detonation nearly killed him. He lost both legs and after 20 operations and fitted with prosthetics, returned to duty to finish his tour. Following military service, Dave Barr rode a Harley Davidson 83,000 miles around the world, making this the story of a truly remarkable individual.

Slybirds

GRAHAM CROSS

Whilst memoirs of service personnel serving their country abound, those from modern professional soldiers of fortune are few, making this a very valuable insight into lesser-known conflicts around the globe. ■ • ISBN 978-1-9115-1249-3 • Helion & Co. • 365 pages • Softcover • £19.95

Samurai in 100 Objects

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• ISBN 978-0-9934-1526-5 • Fighting High Publishing • 208 pages • Hardcover • £29.99

Tanks of the Second World War

STEPHEN TURNBULL

Using objects to tell a story or describe something is nothing new. For example, the British Museum’s Neil McGregor told The History of the World in 100 Objects a few years ago and a very effective history it was.

Samurai expert Dr Stephen Turnbull uses the same technique to give an in-depth picture of Japan’s warrior class through objects associated with it. He looks at swords, sword furniture, prints, Buddhist artefacts, armour, statues, castles, photographs and even a kamikaze plane to give a complete picture of these redoubtable warriors.

Every object has its own

The subtitle to this handsome, coffee-table format book is ‘A photographic odyssey of the 353rd Fighter Group during the Second World War’ which is a bit of a mouthful but perfectly explains what it’s all about. The Group flew P-47D Thunderbolts and P-51D Mustangs in the air war over Europe, supporting D-Day, Arnhem and the campaign in the west until the end of the war. It features well

over 400 photos, mostly black and white but with some colour shots too.

The author, Graham Cross is the historian for the 353rd Fighter Group as well as an expert on American air power and had access to many veterans and their families for this project. After an initial text-based introduction it’s mainly photographs and captions all the way, but it isn’t just fighter based eye candy; the level of detail is excellent. Printed on high quality, glossy paper and in a wide format, this is one for both those with a serious interest in American air forces and the general military history enthusiast who wants a nice book for the lounge table. ■

THOMAS ANDERSON

relevance and provokes further study. It is hard to read about, say, a helmet crest without wanting to find out more about Japanese armour. My favourite object? The Ashigaru breastplate pierced by an arquebus bullet. It represents the fate of the Samurai who were wiped out by firearms. ■ • ISBN 978-1-4738-5038-5 • Frontline Books • 206 pages • Softcover • £16.99

This is a very thoughtful look at how tanks developed from their genesis in World War I, through the inter-war years to the main battle tanks of World War II. It's a survey of developmental factors culled from combat experience.

The inter-war period section looks at the tanks of Britain, France, the USA, Poland, Italy, the USSR, Germany, Czechoslovakia and Japan. There follows a section of tanks in action in the war in Manchuria, the Spanish Civil War, the attack on Poland and Italy’s drive for an East African Empire. This is followed

up by a section on the early years of WWII, the full-blown use of tanks in all theatres in the later years, finally ending with post-war developments. Books with pictures of tanks abound but there are few detailed, conceptual studies of armoured warfare such as this. ■ • ISBN 978-1-4738-5932-6 • Pen & Sword Military • 218 pages • Hardcover • £25.00

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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SIGNALS SS-Major Horst Kopkow STEPHEN TYAS

As WWII reached its final, apocalyptic end, both Allied and Soviet forces, well aware that the Cold War would be next, set about seizing as many assets of the Nazi state as possible. Whether that was atomic and rocket research, stolen art, or, as in the case here, SS-Major Horst Hopkow. Hopkow was a Gestapo thug who was responsible for counterespionage against British SOE agents and the Soviet Rote Kapelle spy ring. By 1944 he had sent nearly 150 British agents, men and women, to concentration camps where most were summarily executed without a trial.

Arrested after the war by the British he made every attempt to avoid admitting his role. It was obvious he should have faced a war crime trial but instead his expertise was put to use for 20 years countering Soviet spies in the West. This is a fascinating book, if not easy to read thanks to the dense text, that reveals the extent of Kopkow’s activities during the war. It’s the postwar years that are skated over, which is where there are more questions than answers. ■

The Experimental Units of Hitler’s Condor Legion RAFAEL LOPEZ AND LUCA FRANCO Although the title of this Pen & Sword book might give the impression that it’s along the line of some secret weapon project, the units in question were equipped with the planes that the Luftwaffe were about to go to war with. It was Göring who urged Hitler to support Franco’s fascist Nationalist forces in the Spanish Civil War, with the aim of combat testing his Luftwaffe planes and pilots. So the Condor Legion was formed with two units,

VJ/88 and VB/88, which flew the Messerschmitt Bf 109, Heinkel He111, Dornier Do 17 and the Junker JU 86.

The book explains how they took part in various actions and includes photos of planes and pilots, as well as a colour middle section showing illustrations of all the aircraft. It’s not a big book at 96 pages but it’s certainly an interesting look at the forces which would soon darken the skies of the rest of Europe. ■

• ISBN 978-1-4738-7891-4 • Pen and Sword • 96 pages • Softcover • £14.99

Havercake Lad – Fortune Favours the Brave STEVE ELLIS

This is the first historical novel I have reviewed for The Armourer.

Many dismiss historical novels as mere tripe but I have a different view. They are a valuable entry into more serious history as they introduce theatres of war and campaigns and encourage further exploration from the reader.

After three years’ service in the British Army, Private Samuel Ogden travels to France at the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

Fiancée Alice is left in the village, marriage on hold. However, Havercake Lad is not a Mills & Boon style love story. It is a gritty tale of daily life as a rifleman in

frontline fighting.

Based on official military records, this novel plots many of the war’s key characters, events and battles. The character of Samuel Ogden is fictional, but the heroic activities of the men of the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment are based firmly on fact.

Steve Ellis explores the trauma of war, the psychology of killing and the personal consequences of being constantly surrounded by casualties and corpses of men you knew personally.

Recommended. ■

• ISBN 978-1-3269-9565-2 • Media Able Ltd • 416 pages • Softcover • £13.99 from Lulu

Messerschmitt Bf 109 JAN FORSGREN

• ISBN 978-1-7815-5598-9 • FontHill Media • 262 pages • Hardcover • £25.00

If the Experimental Units book has whetted your appetite for all things Bf 109, then this book on the design and operational history of the plane should be next on your reading list. It starts with the development of the aircraft by Willy Messerschmitt and covers all the variations, as well as why it was commonly referred to as the Me 109 by Allied forces. There are then chapters on the fighter in various theatres of war, with anecdotes from German pilots and Allied ones who had to face it. Only the Spitfire could match the Bf

109 in a dogfight and on the Eastern Front it racked up more kills against the hapless Russians than anywhere else. If there’s one criticism of the story it’s that each area is skated over in order to get everything in. There are copious photographs and statistics for sorties and deployment, though, and the author achieves his aim of providing a complete overview of the most famous German fighter of the war. ■ • ISBN 978-1-7815-5586-6 • Fonthill Media • 276 pages • Hardcover • £25

❯ www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Books and militaria reviews The Road to Passchendaele

The use of the Motor Car in Warfare c.1910

RICHARD VAN EMDEN

CAPTAIN H.H. PAYNTER This is another pamphlet in D P & G’s excellent, if pricey, Technical Publications series that reprints the texts of lectures given at the Royal United Services Institute in the early years of the 20th century.

Captain Paynter was a naval officer in the RN Motor Volunteer Corps, formed in 1903. Its purpose was not to look at the motor vehicle for draught purposes but at its tactical deployment in warfare. In that year, large-scale manoeuvres in Wiltshire were augmented by vehicles from this Corps both as dispatch carriers, to ferry umpires and foreign dignitaries about and also to transport Lord Roberts

and his staff.

A total of 35 cars and 19 motor cycles were used in what must be the genesis of mechanised warfare in England.

This lecture was given in 1905, when the internal combustion engine was starting to interest forward-thinking military men, looking at its possible potential for use in modern warfare. ■ • D P & G Technical Publications No 1047 • 15 page pamphlet £10.00 + P&P

• ISBN 9-781-4738-9190-6 • Pen and Sword • 388 pages • Hardcover • £25

ANTHONY TUCKERJONES

FRANK JASTRZEMBSKI

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some of the horrific things they witnessed. It takes the reader along with the troops as they slogged through the mud and rain, drawing back the curtains of time of those epic events, 100 years ago.

Simply fantastic, one of the books of the year, never mind of WWI. ■

The Panzer IV: Hitler’s Rock

Valentine Baker’s Heroic Stand at Tashkesssen 1877 Valentine Baker’s story was a Victorian scandal in the late 19th century. Dismissed from the army for sexually assaulting a governess in a train carriage, he spent the rest of his life trying to restore his reputation abroad. His greatest victory came when in charge of 3,000 Ottomans at the village of Tashkessen in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877.

The book starts with the story of the fateful incident on the train, which lead to a showcase trial of Victorian O.J. Simpson proportions. The actual battle that’s the title isn’t

There are few WWI narratives like this fabulous book from Richard van Emden.

In hardback format with glossy pages and numerous illustrations, it’s a hefty tome at 388 pages. It takes the events of 1917 as they lead inexorably to the mud and slaughter of Passchendaele via the battles of Arras and Messines. What makes it different though is that after every paragraph or couple of paragraphs of the author’s historical narrative, there are letters and quotes from the soldiers who were then, interspersed with photos from their own cameras - taken to the front without permission.

It’s not the odd quote here or there like most books, it’s a comprehensive commentary from the troops on the ground, in their own words. These range from formal to descriptive to funny and brutally honest regarding the conditions and

dealt with until the middle of the book. There are a number of battlefield illustrations, photos, paintings and sketches to help show the events and the people involved. It all makes for an interesting story, where the author is clearly sympathetic to Baker’s cause, that’s very much a prelude to the Crimean War that was to follow. ■ • ISBN 978-1-4738-6680-5 • Pen and Sword • 204 pages • Hardcover • £19.99

Another in Pen and Sword’s entertaining Images of War series, this time it’s the role of the Panzer IV, the most common German tank of WWII. It follows the usual format of a brief historical guide with copious contemporary photographs, a number of which have never been seen.

In the middle spread is a section of colour plates showing the different camouflage combinations used in different theatres, including the desert scheme for the Afrika Korps.

The most useful element for historians is in detailing which version of the tank was used where - for example it was the Aus H and J models that faced the Allies in the Normandy

bocage and towns.

There is also information on the Panzer IV-based Hummel that made its debut at Kursk and was involved in fighting right to the end in the streets of Berlin.

If you wanted a details technical analysis of the tank, this isn’t it. Instead you get to see it in action throughout the war and discover the variations that were developed. It’s a nice addition to the series. ■ • ISBN 9-781-4738-5675-2 • Pen and Sword • 128 pages • Softcover • £14.99

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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THETFORD MILITARIA FAIR Breckland Leisure Centre, Croxton Road, THETFORD, Norfolk IP24 1JD

SUNDAY OCTOBER 1 2018 FAIR DATES TBC

Open 10am-2pm, admission £3.00 (u/16s free)

Around 100 tables of quality Militaria, Free parking, licensed café Thetford is situated 2 mins off A11 close to Suffolk border.

NORFOLK FAIRS 07596 436260 PDF proof Paper proof 

antiques trade gazette

File Name: WALLIS & WALLIS.27 QUARTER PAGE www.norfolkfairs.com Cleared by:

Designer: CLAIR Time/Date:

Proofed by: Time/Date:

WESTSTREET STREET AUCTION AUCTION GALLERIES, SUSSEX, WEST GALLERIES,LEWES, LEWES, SX, BN7 2NJ ENGLAND BN7 2NJ TELEPHONE: +44 (0)1273 480208 FAX: (0)1273 476562 TELEPHONE: +44 (0)1273 480208 FAX: (0)1273 476562

AUTUMN CONNOISSEUR

AUTUMN CONNOISSEUR COLLECTORS' AUCTION COLLECTORS’ AUCTION 24th & 25th October 2017 Closing for entries: 15th September 24th &date 25th October 2017 Early entries receive more pre-sale publicity.

Closing date for entries: 15th September

Many lots already received including this fine cased Early entriesholster receive morebypre-sale pair of flintlock pistols Wilson ofpublicity.

St. Etienne.

Many lots already received including this fine cased pair of flintlock holster pistols by Wilson of St. Etienne.

Bid live online www.the-saleroom.com

Saturday 23rd September 2017 9am to 3pm

Future dates: 13th Jan 2018, 5th May 2018, 6th Oct 2018

Every lot illustrated Catalogue £16

Email: info@wallisandwallis.co.uk Website: www.wallisandwallis.co.uk WALLIS & WALLIS.27.indd 1

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AUCTIONEER LISTING

www.eastbristol.co.uk

■ The Canterbury Auction Galleries

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE ■ Bosleys

Canterbury, Tel: 01227 763337 www.thecanterburyauctiongalleries.com

Marlow, Tel: 01628 488188 sales@bosleys.co.uk www.bosleys.co.uk

LINCOLNSHIRE ■ Golding, Young & Mawer

CHESHIRE ■ Adam Partridge Auctioneers & Valuers Macclesfield, Tel: 01625 431788 auctions@adampartridge.co.uk www.adampartridge.co.uk

CUMBRIA ■ Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers Carlisle, Tel: 01228 904905 enquiries@laidlawauctioneers.co.uk www.laidlawauctioneers.co.uk

DEVON

Bourne Tel: 01778 422686 Grantham Tel: 01476 565118 Lincoln Tel: 01522 524984 www.goldingyoung.com

LONDON ■ Chiswick Auctions London, Tel: 020 8992 4442 info@chiswickauctions.co.uk www.chiswickauctions.co.uk

■ Dix Noonan Webb London, Tel: 020 70161 700 medals@dnw.co.uk www.dnw.co.uk

■ Greenslade Taylor Hunt Tiverton, Tel: 01823 332525 www.gth.net antiques.saleroom@gth.net

ESSEX ■ Reeman Dansie Auctions Colchester, Tel : 01206 754754 auctions@reemandansie.com www.reemandansie.com

GLOUCESTERSHIRE ■ Dominic Winter Cirencester, Tel: 01285 860006 info@dominicwinter.co.uk www.dominicwinter.co.uk

■ Baldwins of St James London, Tel: +44(0)207 930 7888 info@bsjauctions.com www.bsjauctions.com

NORTHUMBERLAND ■ Anderson & Garland Ltd Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tel: 0191 4303000 info@andersonandgarland.com www.andersonandgarland.com

SOMERSET ■ Tamlyn & Son Auctioneers Bridgwater, Tel: 01278 445251 saleroom@tamlyns.co.uk www.tamlynprofessional.co.uk

SUFFOLK ■ Durrants

Beccles, Tel: 01502 713490 AuctionRooms@durrants.com

AUCTION ROOMS

Hanham, Tel: 0117 967 1000 info@eastbristol.co.uk

Stafford, Tel: 01785 214100 or 07789 628030 mail@marlowsauctions.co.uk www.marlowsauctions.co.uk

AGRICULTURAL

Kenardington, Tel: 01233 510050 enquiries@candtauctions.co.uk www.candtauctions.co.uk

STAFFORDSHIRE ■ Marlows

ON SITE AUCTIONS

KENT ■ C&T Auctioneers and Valuers

BRISTOL ■ East Bristol Auctions

COMMERCIAL

www.southamsauction.co.uk

HOLIDAY COTTAGES

Leominster, Tel: 01568 611122 www.brightwells.com/antiques-fine-art

Taunton, Tel: 01823 332525 www.gth.net antiques.saleroom@gth.net

PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

■ Brightwells

Bedford, Tel: 01234 266366 guns@southamsauction.co.uk

■ Greenslade Taylor Hunt

BUILDING CONSULTANCY

HEREFORDSHIRE

RESIDENTIAL

BEDFORDSHIRE ■ Southams Auctioneers

SURREY ■ Ewbank’s Auctioneers

Woking, Tel: 01483 223 101 valuations@ewbankauctions.co.uk www.ewbankauctions.co.uk

WEST SUSSEX ■ Tooveys

Washington, Tel: 01903 891955 auctions@tooveys.com www.tooveys.com

■ Gavin Gardiner

Pulborough, Tel: 01798 875300 Gavin Gardiner Limited info@gavingardiner.com www.gavingardiner.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Auctioneers of Fine Modern and Vintage Sporting Guns, Rifles and Accessories

WILTSHIRE ■ Woolley & Wallis

Salisbury, 01722 341469 NedCowell@woolleyandwallis.co.uk www.woolleyandwallis.co.uk

YORKSHIRE ■ Tennants Auctioneers

Leyburn, Tel: 01969 623780 enquiry@tennants-ltd.co.uk www.tennants.co.uk

■ Sheffield Auction Gallery

Sheffield, Tel: 0114 281 6161 www.sheffieldauctiongallery.com

■ Gary Don Auctioneers & Valuers Leeds, Tel:0113 248 3333 contact@garydon.co.uk www.garydon.co.uk

For the most cost effective way to advertise your auction house in our next issue, please contact Kristina Green on 01778 392096 or email her at kristina.green@warnersgroup.co.uk p116_Auctioneer listing.indd 54

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SIGNALS

The FestivalDiary The shows, festivals and historical events happening around the country

SEPTEMBER

Battle of Britain at Duxford

2-3 September Holmfirth War Weekend Holmfirth Sands, Huddersfield Road, Thongsbridge, Holmfirth, West Yorks HD9 3JL The commemorative World War event features military vehicles, period music and dancing, 1940s memorabilia stalls, period costumes and uniforms, bar and afternoon tea. Entry is free.

Info: holmfirthevents.co.uk 2-3 September Vintage by the Sea Morecambe seafront, Lancashire The entire seafront and a number of hotels turn back the clock to create a vintage weekend at Morecambe. The attractions include a heritage bus, live music, vintage vehicles, lots of shopping, the Little Top Marquee and the Torch Club Ball at the art deco Midland Hotel.

Info: www.vintagefestival.co.uk 9-10 September Village at War Weekend Stoke Bruerne, Northamptonshire The village of Stoke Bruerne, located just south of Northampton, is hosting a Village at War Weekend, centred around the Canal Museum. This is the tenth year of the event and will feature glamorous singer Lola Lamour and George Formby act Paul Casper, along with Perfect Vintage, Betty Bluebird, Ruzzit Buzzit and Pearly King Rosie Rose. The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight will be overhead with a flypast on both days while Churchill, Monty and King George VI will be keeping up morale with rousing speeches and troop inspections.

On the canal will be a number of historic boats which carried vital supplies for the war effort while HMS Charlie will be offering boat trips into the mouth of the gloomy 200-yearold Blisworth Canal Tunnel.

Back on terra firma get your dancing shoes on for afternoon tea dances, watch fashion parades, browse a collection of military and civilian vehicles, watch exciting re-enactments, experience air raids and see what rationed goods you can pick up on the black market. The event will be populated by living history groups so look out for policemen, spivs, air raid wardens, the Home Guard, American GIs, the free French and Land Army girls.

Admission is £7.50 per adult (under 16s free). Parking in official event car parks is included.

Info: www. friendsofcanalmuseum.org.uk 16-17 September The 1940s Weekend North Norfolk Railway plc, Sheringham Station, Station Approach, Sheringham, Norfolk NR26 8RA Step back in time to the North Norfolk Railway 1940s weekend.

Come in uniform or 1940s civilian dress to add to the atmosphere. Don't forget your gas mask and ration books!

Hear the singing of American Tan and Timescape, air raids, the Sheringham Salvation Army Band, Nostalgia Unlimited and gramophone music. See Jitterbug dancers, re-enactment groups, a collection of 1940s vehicles and veteran and vintage bicycles. There will also be wartime rations and tea,

together with spam sandwiches, from the NAAFI at Weybourne.

Info: www.nnrailway.co.uk 16-17 September Hughenden Manor wartime weekend Valley Road, High Wycombe, Bucks. HP14 4LA This annual event commemorates the Manor’s top secret work for the Air Ministry and RAF, including making maps for the Dambusters raid and the sinking of the Tirpitz.

The weekend features 1940s song and dance, fashion and lingerie show, military and civilian re-enactors, period vehicles, the story of the Dambusters, escape and evade techniques for downed aircrew, exhibits from the photoreconnaissance RAF Regiment, civil defence, a Home Front exhibition and the chance to visit the exhibition in the Manor itself which is run by the National Trust.

Standard visitor admission fees apply but pre-registered 40s’ re-enactors get in free.

Info: www.eventplan.co.uk 23 September Duxford Battle of Britain Air Show IWM Duxford, Cambridge CB22 4QR The Duxford Battle of Britain Air Show brings to life Duxford’s

finest hour as an important World War II fighter station defending Britain from the Luftwaffe in 1940. The show features a massed Spitfire flypast, dog fights, pyrotechnics, showground and family entertainment, as well as all the regular Duxford attractions, as a ticket allows access to the museum site. Confirmed aircraft are the Avro Lancaster PA474, Spitfire, Hurricane, Douglas Dakota, RAF Falcons, the Great War Display Team, a Bristol Blenheim, Hawker Nimrod II, Tiger Moth and more.

Info: www.iwm.org.uk 23-24 September Hebden Bridge Vintage Fair Wharfeside Avenue, Hebden Bridge, North Yorks Head for Hebden for 20 stalls of vintage goodies alongside the river and watch out for the popup cocktail bar, cafe and live vintage-era music throughout the weekend.

Info: www.yorkshirevintagefairs. com 30 September The Scarlet Fez Cabaret and Dance The Canberra Club, Samlesbury Aerodrome, Balderstone, Blackburn BB2 7LF Get your 30s and 40s gear on and prepare to dance the night away at the Canberra Club which will be themed around exotic Egypt and the discoveries of Howard Carter. There will be music from the 1930s and 40s with The Vintage DJ, as well as a cabaret show and raffle.

Info: thegangster-squad.co.uk

LIST YOUR EVENT

If you want your periodthemed event, show or festival to be listed in The Armourer, please send details and a photo to armourer@warnersgroup. co.uk.

www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Buying militaria

The Auction and Fair Where to find your next prized militaria possession or bargain buy

AUCTIONS 6 September 2017 Bosleys The Old Military College, Remnantz, Marlow, Buckinghamshire SL7 2BS T: 01628 488188 www.bosleys.co.uk 14 September 2017 Bosleys The Old Military College, Remnantz, Marlow, Buckinghamshire SL7 2BS T: 01628 488188 www.bosleys.co.uk 23-24 September 2017 Lockdales 52 Barrack Square, Martlesham Heath, Ipswich, Suffolk IP5 3RF T: 01473 627110 www.lockdales.com 27-28 September 2017 Dix, Noonan & Webb 16 Bolton Street, Mayfair, London W1J 8BQ T: 020 7016 1700 www.dnw.co.uk 8 October 2017 Australian Arms Auctions PO Box 1142, Doncaster East, Victoria, Australia 3109 T: 61 3428 54 33 77 www.australianarmsauctions.com

13 October 2017 Adam Partridge Auctioneers and Valuers The Cheshire Saleroom, Withyfold Drive, Macclesfield SK10 2BD www.adampartridge.co.uk 17 October 2017 C&T Auctioneers and Valuers The Spa Hotel, Mount Ephraim, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN4 8XJ T: 01233 510050 www.candtauctions.co.uk 24 October 2017 Wallis and Wallis West Street Auction Galleries, Lewes, Sussex BN7 2NJ T: 01273 480208 www.wallisandwallis.co.uk

FAIRS 10 September 2017 Chatham Militaria Fair The Historic Dockyard, Chatham ME4 4TZ T: 07595 511981 www.chathammilitariafairs.co.uk 10 September GHQ Fairs The Maltings, off Bridge Square, Farnham, Surrey GU9 7QR T: 07919 455799 www.ghq.uk.com

y r a i D

10 September 2017 Scotch Corner Arms, Medal and Militaria Fair Holiday Inn Darlington, A1 Scotch Corner, Middleton Tyas, Richmond, Yorkshire DL10 6NR T: 01423 780759 www.northernarmsfairs.co.uk 10 September 2017 Wolverley Militaria Fairs Wolverley Memorial Hall, Wolverley, Kidderminster, Worcerstershire DY11 5TN T: 07816 853878 www.facebook.com/ wolverleymilitariafair

17 September 2017 Antique Arms & Militaria Exhibitions National Motorcycle Museum, Coventry Road, Bickenhill, Solihull B92 0EJ T: 07710 274452 www.birminghamarmsfairs.com 17 September 2017 Chelmsford Militaria Fair Marconi Social Club, Beehive Lane, Chelmsford, Essex CM2 9FH T: 07595 511981 www.chelmsfordmilitaria.co.uk 23 September 2017 Stockport Antique Arms, Medals & Militaria Fair Britannia Hotel, Dialstone Lane, Offerton, Stockport SK2 6AG T: 0161 624 6211

www.stockportmilitaria.org

24 September 2017 The Durham Militaria & Medal Fair The Community Centre, Bowburn Village, Durham DH6 5AT T: 01434 609794 www.themedalcentre.co.uk

24 September 2017 Militaria Fairs UK The Council House, Parkside/ Stourbridge Road, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire B61 8DA T: 07980 608211 www.militariafairsuk.com 1 October 2017 Thetford Militaria Fair Breckland Leisure Centre, Croxton Road, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 1JD T: 07596 436260 www.norfolkfairs.com 1 October Liverpool Arms, Medal and Militaria Fair Village Hotel, Whiston, Liverpool L35 1RZ T: 01423 780759 www.northernarmsfairs.co.uk 1 October 2017 Wakefield Medal Fair Outwood Memorial Hall, Victoria Street, Outwood, Wakefield, West Yorkshire WF1 2NE Tel: 01434 609794 www.themedalcentre.co.uk

COLLECTOR WANTS: -anything-

Coldstream Guards:

Especially: • Officers paggri badge • Boer war service dress tunic • Waistbelt clasp OR and WOI/II • OR’s service dress tunic WWI • White buff drum carriage (brass buttons large, medium, small)

Contact with other collectors wanted Please offer to: Wilfried Drygala, Email: w.drygala@t-online.de

Tel: 049 421 44 53 81 • Fax: 049 421 44 53 61

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E & CLASSIC A RMS

FAI

R

VINTAG N O T MP E K

Incorporating Air Guns, Deactivated, Swords, Bayonets and Militaria • Easy access off M3/M25 • Ample free parking • Trains to Kempton Park • Premier Inn/Travelodge • On and off site ATM’s • Hot/Cold Food/Drinks available

Kempton Park Racecourse Staines Road East, Sunbury-on-Thames TW16 5AQ

SUNDAY 15th OCTOBER 2017 Gates Open From: 9.30AM TO 3.30PM Admission: £5 TRADE ENQUIRIES PLEASE CONTACT: binners57@gmail.com

www.kemptonclassicarmsfair.co.uk Provisional dates for 2018: 25th March, 1st July & 28th October

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Collecting

My militaria collection Phil Froom, Cambridge, UK

I

An RAF Officer’s detachable collar with a collar stud in place. In front a variety of collar stud escape compasses, which were worn as standard studs, then could have the white covering scraped off, to reveal an escape compass.

began collecting militaria when I was about ten, inheriting my great-grandfather’s Boer War medals, then various other medals from across the family, along with cap badges, pay books and other related ephemera. I continued to collect in a very general sort of a way until I joined the Forces and it became obvious that I could not transport helmets, tunics and swords around the world, so I sold the larger items, converted the funds to medals, and continued to collect those.

After leaving the Forces, and finding some of my own old escape and evasion items in my loft, I grew interested in this very niche subject, and after spending a long period of time trying to research the few items I had, I began to stumble across more escape and evasion devices and gradually my collection grew. My own collection comprises a mix of the more usual items, one or two of the more unusual ones, and perhaps a few of the real rarities. Shown here is a group of escape devices, comprising a mix of everything.

On the right is an extremely rare travel chess set made

by Jaques of London, the main provider of E&E games and sporting goods to MI9, who shipped them to POW camps for the escape committees.

The large plastic box on the left is an Aids Box issued to air crews to provide 24 hours’ survival rations and escape aids, including a compass and hacksaw blades.

This is a rare item, as many have disintegrated over time.

Behind the Aids Box, a Maps Only Pouch, also issued to air crews and which contained relevant escape maps, a hacksaw blade and a compass. Earlier in the war there were numerous different versions of this pouch which contained maps for the operational route flown and currency of those countries.

In front of the chess set is a tropical belt containing a compass and escape maps concealed inside; the wearer obviously hoped to carry them into captivity if shot down. There is also a belt buckle compass and two different escape saws, one in waxed card and the other encased in rubber. These were included in escape kits and also sewn into uniforms for use if captured.

I have had to purchase most of my own items from dealers and other such sources, but some came directly from the families of air crew or those who actually served with MI9 (the British E&E agency) so are both attributable and, of course, more fascinating. ■

SHOW OFF YOUR COLLECTION

Want to share your militaria collection with fellow collectors? The Armourer is looking to showcase readers’ collections and will pay £70 for each one printed. Email armourer@warnersgroup.co.uk to tell us what you have.

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A group of escape buttons, produced in England by MI9 for a variety of different organisations and units. Seen here are Australian, New Zealand and Canadian buttons and also a General Officer’s escape button, plus RAF, RCAF, USAF, Royal Marines and General Service Corps buttons. Each unscrews to reveal an escape compass (seen at the front).

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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SIGNALS

A group of shaving brushes, each containing an MI9 escape compass (one in the foreground open), also a wooden brush, with a homemade map and an escape compass in the hollowed handle.

A variety of escape lighters. The brass lighters were generally issued to air crews and also included an escape compass inside a false sleeve on the lighter (as shown). The black lighters contained compasses hidden underneath a false bottom.

The chess set actually contains a compass and other escape material inside the board, as revealed by an X-ray taken of it by my local vet.

A mixed group of miniature compasses, some of which are officially issued British (MI9) and US (MIS-X) escape compasses.

Others are likely to have been used for E&E use, but are not actually officially issued items; however, their size obviously lends them to easy concealment in uniform and personal items.

These compasses are known as Swingers and Bar Compasses. Swingers are so named as they are suspended from twine or cotton and allowed to swing naturally to north as a fixed compass needle would. They were concealed in a variety of items and uniform.

A pair of pen clip and pencil pocket clip compasses produced by MI9. The pen clip would have been fitted to a fountain pen and used until needed, then, like the pencil clip, the clip was removed and balanced on a small indentation punched into the rear, when the magnetised clip would swing to north.

www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Collector’s focus

Bookmark to iSandlwana Officer Casualty Neil Thornton showcases a silk bookmark from the Anglo-Zulu War, with accompanying note

O

n the surface this item may seem nothing spectacular to look at: a simple silk bookmark with a letter stapled to it, the words hard to distinguish. It was perhaps for this reason that it recently sold for buttons in an online auction – thankfully to me. The seller, and almost certainly any potential buyers, must not have made the link between this basic item and one of Britain’s most devastating defeats in its history.

The note attached to the bookmark says: ‘This book mark was sent to W.S. Southeree by her brother G.W. Southeree from South Africa at the time of the Zulu War. All of the officers got killed and their kit was sold, the book mark being amongst the purchases made by G.W. Southeree.’

On 22 January 1879 the British camp at iSandlwana was attacked by an overwhelming force of approximately 25,000 Zulu warriors. The British Redcoats (24th Foot) stood fast and died almost to a man; none in the firing line survived the battle.

The remaining British column (those under Lord Chelmsford who were not in the camp at the time) retired to Natal and would ultimately launch a second invasion some months later. In the meantime, the possessions of those killed were auctioned to the surviving members of the regiment. There is a hint of irony in the bookmark’s annotation, ‘A Happy New Year’. ■

ABOUT THE COLLECTOR

Above: The bookmark belonged to an unknown officer who fell at the Battle of iSandlwana Above right: The short note attached to the bookmark, written by George Southeree’s sister Right: The iconic painting depicting the last stand of the 24th Foot in rallying square, by Charles Fripp

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As a keen 37-year-old military enthusiast from Runcorn in Cheshire I am interested in all eras of military history, but my main focus for collecting tends to be WWI and the Anglo-Zulu War. These two eras are also the subjects of my writing and I am currently nearing the end of my next manuscript, Led by Lions, which is based on WWI. Having recently written a book (my first) on the Anglo-Zulu War I was thrilled when this particular item came onto the market, which I managed to secure for a song. ■

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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‘THE INTERNATIONAL’ BIRMINGHAM ARMS FAIR Find us on Facebook: nal “The Internatio tique Birmingham An ia Arms & Militar Fair”

The UK’s most popular ANTIQUE ARMS & MILITARIA FAIR held in the luxurious & prestigious suites of the

NATIONAL MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM

Superbly located on Junction 6 off the M42 Motorway Come and see the best selection on offer in the UK,with over 100 dealers filling the 184 tables.

It’s the biggest & the best!

SUNDAY 17th September 2017 8.45am to 3.00pm

(dealer & keen collector preview 8.45am to 10.00am Adm. £8.00, thereafter £5.00)

Future dates: 19th November 2017, 18th February 2018, 24th June 2018, 9th September 2018, 11th November 2018

For further details or to register on our waiting list (all tables usually rebooked by existing exhibitors) Write to :-

ANTIQUE ARMS & MILITARIA EXHIBITIONS P.O.BOX 194, WARWICK CV34 5ZG

TEL. 07710-274452 • www.birminghamarmsfair.com

For Medals & Militaria contact

East Anglia’s Premier Dealer & Auctioneers of Collectables Our next auction is being held on

MARK AND DAVID HAWKINS OF

THE LANES ARMOURY 26 MEETINGHOUSE LANE • THE LANES • BRIGHTON • EAST SUSSEX • BN1 1HB • UK

TEL: 01273 321357 (INTERNATIONAL TEL: 00 44 1273 321357) EMAIL: mail@thelanesarmoury.co.uk

SATURDAY 23RD AND SUNDAY 24TH SEPTEMBER 2017

at 52 Barrack Square, Martlesham Heath, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP5 3RF Coins, Weapons, Militaria and Collectables Live online bidding available www.the-saleroom.com

To order a catalogue please contact Lockdales Call 01473 627110 or email sales@lockdales.com View the catalogue free at www.lockdales.com

INVITE YOU TO OUR AMAZING WEBSTORE

www.TheLanesArmoury.co.uk Probably the best source for original Samurai Swords, worldwide Antique Swords, Guns, Militaria & Armour in Europe

Family dealers since the Reign of King George V. Also, military book specialists

Chatham Militaria Fair To be held at THE HISTORIC DOCKYARD, CHATHAM, KENT, ME4 4TZ Open 7am- ADMISSION: £4.00.

Traders 18ft pitch – £40

NEXT FAIR: 10th September FUTURE DATES:

8 October, 12 November, 10 December

The easiest route to The Historic Dockyard by road is via the A2/M2 junction 1 then follow the brown tourist signs and use the A289 (Wainscott Bypass) and the Medway Tunnel straight to our front door!Chatham is only an hour’s drive from London, Dover and the Channel Tunnel and a short distance from the M25. The site is sign posted from junctions 1, 3 and 4 of the M2. Follow the brown tourist signs.

Contact: James on 07595 511981 or Email james@chathammilitariafairs.co.uk Check dates and details at www.chathammilitariafairs.co.uk

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To GOOGLE us worldwide, just enter LANES ARMOURY

Chelmsford Militaria Fair The only INDOOR MILITARIA FAIR IN ESSEX To be held at

MARCONI SOCIAL CLUB, BEEHIVE LANE, CHELMSFORD, ESSEX. Open 10am – 2pm. ADMISSION £2.50.

Traders 6ft table – £25.

NEXT FAIR: 17th September FUTURE DATES:

22 October and 3 December

From M25 Junction 28 follow A12 Colchester bound. From the A12 take junction 17 which is the Chelmsford, Basildon and Southend turn off, follow all signs to Chelmsford. Keep going until you reach roundabout with flyover, this is the Army and Navy. Take first left into Baddow Road, continue until you reach a mini roundabout and turn right into Beehive Lane. Continue straight for approximately 1mile and you will see the Marconi Social Club on the left. Signs will also be in place en route.

Contact: James on 07595 511981 or Email james@chelmsfordmilitaria.com Deactivated weapons, magazines, inert ammo and weapon accessories available on line at www.chelmsfordmilitaria.com

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Get in touch

yourletters your Let us know what you think of the new, improved magazine, or respond to any of the articles Facebook: www.facebook.com/armourermagazine Twitter: @The_Armourer Post: Letters Page, The Armourer, Warners Group Publications, West Street, Bourne, Lincs. PE10 9PH Email: armourer@warnersgroup.co.uk

MYSTERY TRUNCHEON One of the George IV truncheons in my collection shows – below a Crown and 'GR' – a five-pointed black star, with a gilt oval ring in the centre, on a gilt shield with a red border.

Can anyone helpfully identify this by any chance, and suggest who might have owned and used it?

Gavin Littaur, by email

BEACHES OF DUNKIRK Regarding your excellent article on Dunkirk, my uncle Bob, who was in the Green Howards, spent two days in a hole on a beach, taking pot-shots at the Stukas. He said he never shot one down, but he felt better for trying! For your readers' information, if they go to e-bay Deutschland (www.ebay.de) and tap in Dunkerque, they will be able to bid on quite a few original photographs taken by the German soldiers at the time. I honestly believe the average German soldier went to war with a rifle in one hand and a camera in the other. Great magazine by the way.

Tom Stafford, by email

GET YOUR TERMS RIGHT I like the new-look magazine but you need to look closely at your magazine’s very loose use of terminology. For example, on page 71 of the May issue, mention is made of portable anti-tank guns. Of the two mentioned, only the Carl Gustav is a gun and not exclusively anti-tank. An RPG is not a gun – the Milan is a guided missile and significantly outranges the

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other two.

The M62 90mm recoilless rifle is not in any way, ‘basically an upgraded bazooka’. Mr Prescott should know better. I also take issue with the use of the term ‘shotgun’ for the Model 14 series of rifles. None of the ammo mentioned in the article is for a smooth-bore weapon.

M.J. Mackie, Nottingham, Notts Ed says: In the part of the article on weapons of the Falklands conflict (May issue), the term ‘anti-tank weapons’ is used twice before the phrase using the word ‘guns’ turns up.

Clearly, having already defined this part as covering weapons, it was an error and should have been picked up. Unfortunately we were finishing off redesigning the magazine at the time so a few of these instances got through the net. The M62 (it was obviously the M67) and the shotgun references were production errors for exactly the same reason.

IS IT WATERLOO? I am glad to say that I have not had any more trouble with the

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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SIGNALS middle pages coming out of the magazine (as per my previous letter) and was just unlucky with that issue. Now, the Eagle badge in the September letters pages is of the French Imperial eagle and is a collar badge of the Essex Regiment. I think it was won at Waterloo. The band wore a large one on the pouch.

Geoff Pulman, Bridport, Dorset

OR IS IT THE PENINSULAR WAR? I refer to the letter from Mr Graham Davies in the September issue regarding the Eagle badge over the figure ‘8’.

This is based on the 1st Eagle captured from the French during the Peninsular War. At the battle of Barrosa, on 5 March 1811, the 2nd/87 Foot, in which Ensign Edward Keogh was engaged, attempted to take the colour of the 8th French Light Infantry regiment. He was killed in the battle but his Sergeant, Patrick Masterson, secured it. The Eagle found its way to the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, from where it was

subsequently stolen years later.

Thereafter, the 87th Foot was known as the Prince of Wales Own Irish Foot and granted the badge of the Imperial French Eagle and Wreath above a tablet, which was inscribed with an ‘8’. They were later to become the Royal Irish Fusiliers.

The badge, subject of the letter, has been in circulation for some years and has been produced in brass and nickel.

I suspect that it may be a restrike and I have yet to see an example worn on headdress or uniform. There exists a badge showing the Eagle above ‘8’ and surmounted by a coronet of Queen Victoria, after 1881, which was worn on a music pouch by band members.

I hope this information will be of assistance. Also, congratulations on a first-class magazine which has grown on me since the relaunch. I have taken The Armourer magazine for a number of years and for a time missed the old format but, as they say, the rest is history.

Roy Tipping, Rugby, Warwicks

NATIONAL ARMY MUSEUM, AGAIN As a regular reader of The Armourer magazine I wanted to add my voice to the comments on your letters page with regard to the refurbished National Army Museum. I had been a regular user of the museum and the reading room/Templer study centre for over 20 years and the museum felt like an old friend and fit for purpose.

After visiting the new museum at Easter this year I was so appalled that I wrote to Janice Murray, the Director, to complain. Her reply was dismissive and uninterested.

Her words were that the museum needed to appeal and say something new to a new audience, that she was sorry that I found so little to my liking (sarcasm) and that, anyway, it had been well received by the press and the

public, implying my views did not matter.

The museum has now been turned into a play centre for children with abstract gallery themes that do not tell a history but offer plenty of interactive playthings for children, that will doubtless be out of order very soon.

The formerly excellent museum bookshop is a shadow of its former self, whilst the cafe still has a tiny menu, but now it has 158 seats to fill with it. Why? There is lots of sterile white space and little content.

Does anyone notice any parallels with the Imperial War Museum refurbishment?

I live in Newcastle-uponTyne and will not be making any more journeys to London to visit it.

Robin Horton, by email

NEXT MONTH November issue On sale 3 October

Get your gas mask ready and head for the Anderson shelter because the theme of the November issue is The Blitz. It was 77 years ago that German bombers rained high explosives on London, then other cities, in an effort to destroy industry and break the will of the British people to wage war, but morale at home remained high throughout. We tell the story of those dark days and follow it up with articles on what medals were won and awarded by the services at home, the role of women in the WVS, a look at the German Heinkel He 111 medium bomber and, of course, the men of the Home Guard in defending against a German invasion.

In a related article we also look at the response of Bomber Command and how it took the fight back to German industry.

And if you collect all things German, then we have a real expert, Jonny Bay, giving you the lowdown on collecting Soldbuchs – the paybook and guide to where a soldier served, trained and even went on holiday in WWII. It’s not all bombs and shelters, though; we have our regular look at the world of shooting shotguns with Gavin Gardiner, while Gabriel Esposito looks at the formation and deployment of the Italian Army as it tested its strength in Ethiopia, prior to WWII. Going back further in time, there’s the fascinating story of disgraced Victorian soldier Valentine Baker and his attempts to restore his reputation at the Battle of El Teb. This is written by Frank Jastrzembski, author of Valentine Baker’s Heroic Stand at Tashkessen 1877. If you want antique gun action, though, have a look at the feature on early repeating flintlocks, how they were designed and used. For edged weapon interest Graham Priest compares the styles of cut and thrust, used in swordplay.

Finally, for modern militaria enthusiasts, we have a look at the development of the Swedish SMG compared to rival guns and what to look for when adding one to your own collection. ■

NOVEMBER ISSUE – ON SALE 3 OCTOBER Pre-order your copy online at www.armourer.co.uk www.armourer.co.uk // October 2017

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Competition

Book competition

ENTER ONLINE TODAY!

WIN two copies of…

The Road to Passchendaele

WIN three copies of…

The Panzer IV: Hitler’s Rock

The subtitle of this lavish book explains what it’s all about: ‘The Heroic Year in Soldiers’ own Words and Photographs’.

There have been plenty of WWI books to tie in with the centenary, but few like this.

Historian Richard van Emden tells the story of the events of 1917 through the words and photographs of the men who fought there. It’s a thick book, over 380 pages, on high-quality glossy paper, with plenty of photographs, which recounts the battles of Arras, Messines and then Passchendaele. In hardcover format, the fabulous The Road to Passchendaele retails for £25, but thanks to Pen & Sword we have two copies to give away. ■

Our other prize is from Pen & Sword’s excellent Images of War series. This one is all about the Panzer IV, the most common panzer of the German Army. The Mark IV served on every major front in WWII and this book showcases the development and deployment of it, in largely pictorial format.

There are plenty of contemporary black and white photos of the tank in action, along with a colour section in the middle showing camouflage schemes.

For fans of German armour, it’s a must-have title and thanks to Pen & Sword, we have three copies up for grabs. ■

WORTH

£50

WORTH

£45

WIN three copies of…

Valentine Baker’s Heroic Stand at Tashkessen 1877 If the tales of the Crimea have you hooked this month, then discover more about conflict between Russia and the Ottoman empire with this book about a disgraced British soldier. We have a feature on Valentine Baker next month, so here’s your chance to win a copy of the book that the feature is all about. Baker managed to get kicked out of the Army and created a Victorian-era scandal in doing so. This is how he tried to redeem himself. The hardback book retails at £19.99 but Pen & Sword has given us three copies for you to win. ■

WORTH

£60

HOW TO ENTER We have eight books to win in total, of the titles listed above, all thanks to specialist military book publisher, Pen & Sword. See the full range of books at www.pen-andsword.co.uk. In order to win one of these fantastic military history books all you have to do is answer the following question and go to www.armourer.co.uk to enter.

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QUESTION What is the full name of the battle of Passchendaele?

ANSWER (A) The Second Battle of Ypres (B) The Battle of Arras (C) The Third Battle of Ypres

RULES AND REGULATIONS Entries close at midnight 4 October 2017. One entry per person. To enter you must answer the question correctly and entries received after this date will not be accepted. Full terms and conditions can be found at www. armourer.co.uk

October 2017 // www.armourer.co.uk

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Pete Holder P.O. Box 1199, Guildford, Surrey GU1 9JR Tel: 01483 277788 Mobile: 07778 008008 WEBSITE: www.peteholder.com Email: info@peteholder.com

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