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The group to Captain G J (I?) Walsh


Picture courtesy of Spink

Coronation Medal 1902 (Capt. G..J. Walsh Leicester Regt.)
Coronation 1911 (Major G.J. Walsh)
BSA CM for Mashonaland 1897, no clasp (Capt. G.J. Walsh. 1/Leic. Regt.)
QSA (4) CC Tr Witt SA01 (Capt. G.J. Walsh. Leicester. Rgt.)

QSA partially officially renamed.

Major George Inverarity Walsh (1866-1913); initially served in the Honourable Artillery Company, prior to being commissioned into the 1st Battalion Leicestershire Regiment, 1888; Lieutenant 1892; served in the operations in Mashonaland under Sir Richard Martin in 1897; where he was employed as a Special Service Officer (M.I.D. London Gazette 18.2.1898); Captain 1898;

Served under Lieutenant General Sir Leslie Rundle as Deputy-Assistant Adjutant General, 8th Division, South Africa 1900-1901 (M.I.D. London Gazette 16.4.1901);

served as Adjutant, 1st V.B. Royal Fusiliers, 1901-1906; Major 4.7.1906; retired 1908; served as Staff Officer for the Overseas Troops at the 1911 Coronation; he was a keen follower of the South Oxfordshire and South Berks packs, and resided at Newnham Manor, Oxford.

David,
What a stunning group, I personally think the BSA medal is a work of art.

Paul

djb wrote: The group to Captain G J (I?) Walsh

Picture courtesy of Spink

Coronation Medal 1902 (Capt. G..J. Walsh Leicester Regt.)
Coronation 1911 (Major G.J. Walsh)
BSA CM for Mashonaland 1897, no clasp (Capt. G.J. Walsh. 1/Leic. Regt.)
QSA (4) CC Tr Witt SA01 (Capt. G.J. Walsh. Leicester. Rgt.)

QSA partially officially renamed.

Major George Inverarity Walsh (1866-1913); initially served in the Honourable Artillery Company, prior to being commissioned into the 1st Battalion Leicestershire Regiment, 1888; Lieutenant 1892; served in the operations in Mashonaland under Sir Richard Martin in 1897; where he was employed as a Special Service Officer (M.I.D. London Gazette 18.2.1898); Captain 1898;

Served under Lieutenant General Sir Leslie Rundle as Deputy-Assistant Adjutant General, 8th Division, South Africa 1900-1901 (M.I.D. London Gazette 16.4.1901);

served as Adjutant, 1st V.B. Royal Fusiliers, 1901-1906; Major 4.7.1906; retired 1908; served as Staff Officer for the Overseas Troops at the 1911 Coronation; he was a keen follower of the South Oxfordshire and South Berks packs, and resided at Newnham Manor, Oxford.

The suspender and deep relief does make it stand out as a medal. I wonder how much additional cost was created by the double striking needed to create that deep impression?

The group to SM S H Gilbert, an escapee for Boer custody.


Picture courtesy of Spink

QSA (4) CC RHOD OFS SA01 (11991 Tpr: S.H. Gilbert, 65th Coy. 17th Impl: Yeo:)
BWM & VM (240682 C.Sjt. S.H. Gilbert. Leic. R.)
Territorial Force War Medal (240682 C. Sjt. S.H. Gilbert. Leic. R.)
Coronation 1902
Meritorious Service Medal, G.V.R. (615194 R.Q.M. Sgt - A.C.S. Mjr. - S.H. Gilbert. Lab: C.)
Volunteer Force Long Service & G.C., E.VII.R. (7715 Serjt: S.H. Gilbert. 1/V.B. Leicester Regt.)

240682 Company Sergeant Major Sharrad Holland Gilbert, 'was born 10th November 1868 in a small room over his Father's Chemist shop in East Shilton. At the age of 13 he left school and joined the firm Crows Trinhlor for a seven year apprenticeship as a Hosier. During 1886 he joined the First Volunteer Battalion Leicestershire Regiment.

At the outbreak of the Boer War in 1899 Sharrad applied to serve with his service company, the Leicestershire Regiment. Despite his 15 years' service with the local Volunteers his application was rejected. Being a very determined man he approached and was accepted in an unknown branch of the service and enrolled in the ranks of the Imperial Yeomanry 65th Squadron, 17th Battalion Leicestershire, and served in South Africa for a period of fifteen months during which time he saw much action and was in fact captured by the Boers at Aberdeen in Rhodesia. However, he and several other prisoners over-powered their Guard and made a daring escape.

In 1901 the Imperial Yeomanry were recalled to England and Sharrad H. Gilbert's service was terminated. Immediately on his return to Hinckley he rejoined the Volunteer Battalion and remained in the 1st Battalion Volunteers until 1908 when the Volunteers were disabled and the new Territorial Army was formed. His service continued with the Territorial Army right up until the 1914/18 European War where again he saw action in France. He finally left the Army in 1921 after serving a total of 35 years.... The remainder of his civilian life was spent in and around Burbage.

He lived for many years in Britannia Road and in later years almost became a recluse. Unfortunately during the latter part of his life he went deaf and blind and eventually passed away on 11th March 1961 at the Manor Hospital, Nuneaton, aged 93. He is buried in the St. Catherine's Churchyard, Burbage, in an, as yet unmarked grave.

Apart from his military service Sharrad H. Gilbert on his return from the South African War wrote an interesting account of his services in the Imperial Yeomanry. The book was published by Simpson Marshall entitled Rhodesia and After.'

Good Morning Everyone.....

Just looking at the new DNW sale catalogue for December and found what has to be a very rare or even unique group.......

I will not post a picture because I am not sure about copyright......

Mike


LOT 758


A rare Great War C.B.E., A.F.C. group of six awarded to Group Captain J. C. Halahan, Royal Air Force, late Royal Dublin Fusiliers and Royal Flying Corps, who flew operationally in No. 4 Squadron in 1915, prior to becoming a Squadron C.O. and Wing Commander

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, C.B.E. (Military) Commander’s 1st type neck badge, silver-gilt and enamel; Air Force Cross, G.V.R., unnamed as issued; Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 2 clasps, Tugela Heights, Relief of Ladysmith (Lieut. J. C. Halahan, Rl. Dub. Fus.); 1914-15 Star (Major J. C. Halahan, R.F.C.); British War Medal 1914-20 (Col. J. C. Halahan, R.A.F.); Victory Medal 1914-19, M.I.D. oak leaf, naming erased on this last, contact marks, nearly very fine and better (6) £2400-2800


Footnote

C.B.E. London Gazette 1 January 1919.

A.F.C. London Gazette 3 June 1919.

John Crosby Halahan was born in 1878, one of six sons of Surgeon-Colonel Samuel Halahan of Sydenhurst, Chiddingford - two of whom went into the Royal Navy, two the Army and two the Royal Air Force. Young John, like his brothers, was educated at Dulwich College, and commenced his military career on appointment as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Dublin Fusiliers in May 1899. Quickly witnessing active service in South Africa, where he was present in the relief of Ladysmith operations and at Val Krantz, Pieter’s Hill and the Tugela Heights (Medal & 2 clasps), he gained advancement to Lieutenant in February 1900.

Appointed Adjutant of the 4th Battalion in March 1907, Halahan was advanced to Captain in June 1908 and placed on the Reserve of Officers in June 1912, following which he gained attachment to the fledgling Royal Flying Corps and took his Royal Aero Club Certificate (No. 354) in October of the same year.

Following the outbreak of hostilities, Halahan went out to France as a pilot in No. 4 Squadron in August 1915, flying the unit’s B.E. 2s in a reconnaissance and bombing role, and, as verified in R.F.C. Communiques of the same year, quickly fought his first combat:

‘11 September 1915: Captain Halahan (pilot) and Lieutenant Evans (Observer), No. 4 Squadron, in a B.E. 2c with Lewis gun and rifle, when on reconnaissance north of Bapaume were attacked by a hostile machine, probably an Aviatik, which bore down on the left rear of the B.E. 2c firing from a distance of half a mile. It was this premature opening fire which attracted the attention of Captain Halahan, who put his Observer on the alert. About half a drum was fired at the Aviatik, which sheered off and flew round the B.E. 2c being much faster: during this the Observers were firing at one another. After a short time the German threw overboard two silver balls which burst into a shower of white puffs. Thinking this was a sign to the A.A. guns giving the height of his machine, Captain Halahan dived to 200 feet when seven shells burst just above and all round his machine. After further shooting between the aeroplanes, the German dived and went quickly to ground in a long circular glide, landing in a field three miles south of Bapaume.’

And the same source reveals another combat fought by Halahan in the following month:

‘28 November 1915: Captain Halahan and Captain McLeod, in a B.E. 2c of No. 4 Squadron, while taking photographs of Clery, and the Observer doing a special reconnaissance, encountered a Fokker about 200 yards away. The enemy approach was at first unnoticed, but the Lewis gun was soon brought to bear on him and the B.E. 2c headed straight for him. The enemy, after a few rounds, turned sharply to his left and headed for Peronne, followed by the B.E. 2c. The hostile machine eventually disappeared apparently without sustaining damage.’

Halahan, who also participated in some of the earliest bombing raids of the War, departed No. 4 Squadron at the end of the year, but returned to France as C.O. of No. 12 Squadron at Avesnes-le-Comte in 1916, as part of Twelfth Wing, III Brigade, and subsequently commanded it throughout the Somme operations. In the following year, Halahan served as C.O. of No. 39 and No. 78 Squadrons, while in August 1917 he was appointed Wing Commander of No. 50 Wing and, in March 1918, No. 48 Wing, most of these senior commands being on the Home Establishment. He was awarded the C.B.E. and A.F.C. and attained the rank of Group Captain before being placed on the Retired List.

His only son, Squadron Leader P. J. H. “Bull” Halahan, gained fame as C.O. of No. 1 Squadron out in France in 1939-40.

Picture courtesy of DNW