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Old Soldier help, please

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  • Old Soldier help, please

    This old chap is the spitting image of my mother's first cousin. I know it's not his father or grandfather, so I'm thinking it might be an uncle, but I need advice on a likely date, his age and what the medals are, if possible.....

    Thanks very much for looking......




    Last edited by Pippa Doll; 12-11-08, 21:46.

  • #2
    I think the two on the right are the British War Medal and the Victory Medal, the standard given to those who served in WWI, and the middle one a 14/15 star. As guess I'd say the Edward VII one relates to service in the Boer War, same too possibly for the Victoria one, or maybe earlier colonial conflict?

    Best I can do..hand over now to the experts!

    Edit: Naming Styles on British War Medals & General Guide

    Found the above site, the Victoria one is the Queens South Africa Medal 1899-1902, the Edward VII one is the Kings South Africa Medal 1901-2, so both Boer War related.
    Last edited by Richard; 13-05-08, 19:50.

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    • #3
      Thank you Richard.

      Do you think the photo is from the 1950's?

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      • #4
        the one with the lady with her arm out is the Victory medal
        Zoe in London

        Cio che Dio vuole, io voglio ~ What God wills, I will

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        • #5
          Thanks Zoe

          I know I have a photo of someone else with that lapel badge, but I don't know who it is! lol......*rummages*

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          • #6
            the two on the left are Queen's South Africa Medal and King's South Africa Medal

            as shown here Google Image Result for http://www.globalarray.net/user/20thcent/abogroup.jpg

            The little bars above should give theatres of conflict so if you can get a better scan you might be able to tell where he was serving
            Zoe in London

            Cio che Dio vuole, io voglio ~ What God wills, I will

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            • #7
              I'd guess at a rough birth date between 1875-1880 for him to have served in both conflicts, seemingly in both instances for the duration. He must be in his 70's there surely? So 1945-55? That's my best guess!

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              • #8
                That'll teach me to scroll down before posting

                I see you had your answers already

                *gets back under rock*
                Zoe in London

                Cio che Dio vuole, io voglio ~ What God wills, I will

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by samesizedfeet View Post
                  *gets back under rock*
                  Come back out immediately! I like it when people agree without reading the other replies!

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by samesizedfeet View Post

                    The little bars above should give theatres of conflict so if you can get a better scan you might be able to tell where he was serving
                    That's interesting.....I will have to dig out the original photo. The first scan I began with today was high res, but the words are not legible on that one.....Will have to get my magnifying glass out!

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                    • #11
                      His lapel badge is the British Legion...........

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                      • #12
                        Oh, is it!? Thanks Barbara!!

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                        • #13
                          i was thinking the same late 1800and the glasses about 1920,s brenda xxx

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by brenmac View Post
                            i was thinking the same late 1800and the glasses about 1920,s brenda xxx
                            The glasses look more like National Health issue which would date it after 1947.
                            Paul Barton, Special Agent

                            Hear my themetune on http://www.turnipnet.com/radio/dickbarton.wav

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                            • #15
                              I'm stuck with who he is now!! lol


                              I agree that the photo is a man in his 70's (ish) in the 1950's (ish), so he fits in with fighting in the Boer War and WW1 and was a member of the British Legion and could only afford NHS glasses (lol!).

                              *prods tree hard*

                              The family I thought he was from were either born too late to serve in the Boar war, or didn't live long enough to be photographed in old age. .......

                              Gggrrrr......frustrating.

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                              • #16
                                The NHS didn't come into existance till 1948 so his specs might just be the fashion?...

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                                • #17
                                  Conscription by the end of the First World war allowed for men as old as 55 to be called up, so he could have been born as far back as 1863. However, at that sort of age a man would more likely have served on the home front in which case he wouldn't have received a campaign medal.

                                  The Queen's South Africa medal was awarded to all who served in South Africa between 11 October 1899 and 31 May 1902 during the Boer War. The King's South Africa medal was never issued alone - always with the Queen's South Africa Medal. It was awarded to all personnel engaged in operations in South Africa in 1901 - 02 when fighting was confined to numerous skirmishes with isolated guerrilla bands.

                                  This tells us that he was born no later than 1884 or he'd have been to young to have served in South Africa.

                                  So we can be sure that the subject of your photo was born after 1863 but before 1884 - more likely towards the latter part of that period.
                                  Last edited by Paul Barton, Special Agent; 14-05-08, 14:11.
                                  Paul Barton, Special Agent

                                  Hear my themetune on http://www.turnipnet.com/radio/dickbarton.wav

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                                  • #18
                                    The family I've been looking at were born after 1886 :( and the individual I thought he might be was one of the later children, though i didn't know that when I first made a tentative guess as to his possible name.

                                    Maybe I'll have to think again about who he is..........It's quite a big photo too.....Probably at least 6"x8". Not something likely to belong to a very distant relation, I wouldn't have thought.

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                                    • #19
                                      If he holds the 1914/15 star, this pre-dates conscription, so he was either a regular soldier or a reservist. He would have been one of the lucky few who survived the whole war. He would have been at least 40 in 1914 so although he served in a theatre of war I would guess that it was not on the front line. After all, his medals show that he was there but they don't suggest he was in action. Is it possible he was on the General Staff? Do you have any possible names to start with? The ancestry site may prove useful here, as the number of people born pre-1884 must be quite limited - certainly those who survived the whole war to draw a pension.
                                      Last edited by Paul Barton, Special Agent; 14-05-08, 16:07.
                                      Paul Barton, Special Agent

                                      Hear my themetune on http://www.turnipnet.com/radio/dickbarton.wav

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                                      • #20
                                        The people he looks like are called Walker and Adams (I don't know so much about the Adams family! lol)!!

                                        The other thing that isn't quite right......I don't know how to say this without sounding snobby, but I'm going to say it anyway! lol He doesn't look quite "posh" enough to fit into the Walker/Adams family. Both sides of the family were Quakers and should have been conscientious objectors. Those who fought in WW1 (most of those who could, by the look of it) were officers and seem to have collected numerous gallantry medals, but never displayed them afterwards. I know my great-uncle, whose brother I hoped this man was, won the MC and two bars and was very anti-war afterwards (as he should have been before!)....there's no way he would have had a photo displaying his medals.

                                        I can put up their dates and stuff later, but I don't think it's going to help. It's unfortunate I don't know which twig of the family originally owned the photo. :(

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