Who Do You Think You Are Magazine Forum

[Maddyco]

Can anyone help me to decipher the list of medals awarded to my grandfather, please. He served in the British Army, between 1923 and 1945, in England, India and China but there also seems to be another entry on his papers just above the medals list that I can't make out. It looks like "Name of Society" NOR. I do know he was stationed in Norwich during the 1920s. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks, Maddyco

[brunes08]

I cannot help with the medals but I can offer some suggestions about the 'Society'. I think this is to do with his medical/ health insurance. If you look carefully you will see that it says 'sent to the Ministry of Health' stamped over the record. I've seen something like this before in family records. People paid their contributions to some insurance plan or other as, of course, there was no NHS then.

[AdrianB38]

I agree with the health insurance suggestion.

As for the medals, I believe he was "Awd [Awarded the] Defence Medal" (see http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/britishguide/defence.htm). I can't read the stuff under clasps for this, apart from where it seems to say RRofA - Royal Regiment of Artillery???? It may say which part of the RA just before this, but you'd need an RA expert to decipher that. I normally associate the Defence Medal with service in the UK - i.e. Home defence, but it seems that defending places like India also counted.

He was also awarded the War Medal 1939/45. See http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/britishguide/war_1939_1945.htm

Also the 1939/45 Star see http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/britishguide/19391945star.htm
and the Burma Star see http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/britishguide/burma_star.htm
I think the rest of the stuff under Clasps is about when the medals were issued. Best I can do - if anyone knows the Commands(?) of the RA in WW2, we'd be grateful if you recognise anything on that line for the Defence Medal.

Thanks to North East Medals for their pages.

[Jethro Tull]

I too think the insurance bit is correct, one thought I have on the writing next to the medals is that it could be the conditions which caused the medals to be awarded. Maybe. In particular the defence medal, this had hundreds of different qualifying criteria and services that it was awarded for. It looks like it could be something along the lines of 2 (2nd) Edn (edition) 1 Cond (condition) r.r.of a (rules and regulations of the army). Just a thought. The numbers would then correspond to the regimental rolls to where the medals where issued. This is just a guess though as I cannot read it clearly and I am no expert.
Dan.

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[Maddyco]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I will send a request for my grandfather's medals. Spoke to someone on the phone today regarding this. I don't have his death certificate, though, so that might hinder my request. In fact, I don't know where or when he died. The only clue on his army docs was that he was discharged in 1945 for being unfit to serve due to "chronic amoebic dysentry". He was stationed in Lahore. Sounds like he might have died there but I have no way of finding out.

Regards, Maddyco

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[Sylcec]

Have checked 10 year period 1945-1955 and drawn a blank on:
- India Office records: deaths
- British deaths at sea
- British Nationals Armed Forces deaths

Is he likely to have left a will? May be able to pick up a death date by searching English national probate index as regardless of where he died, the will would have been proved and/or estate administered in England if that is where his assets were held.

[Maddyco]

Thanks for your reply. I really don't know if he left a will or not but it's certainly worth investigating. I'm going to take myself off to the British Library at some point & see if they can help. I gather the staff there can find documents when all else has failed. Let's hope so.

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