Since the early Middle Ages, the Royal and princely families of Europe have conferred a wide range of Orders of Knighthood and Chivalry both to reward loyal service to the Crown or Royal Family and to strengthen the bonds of loyalty which existed between sovereign and subject. Although many ancient Orders have fallen into disuse over time, many European states continue to award Orders for distinguished service. Badges of the highest quality are worn to show membership of an Order. The manufacture, and the materials used in creating these badges are exquisite and these decorative objects are studied and collected widely. In this volume, expert medal collector Peter Duckers describes the range of European Orders conferred before 1945, some of which stretch back hundreds of years. A brief introduction to a fascinating subject, this is an ideal reference book for anyone interested in collecting these rare and valuable objects.
Orders of knighthood and chivalry have existed since the Middle Ages, when they were intended to unite important noblemen in bonds of loyalty to their monarch, and act as impressive rewards for their services. They have survived into modern times as a means of rewarding people of all classes and occupations for their contributions at international, national, or local levels. Peter Duckers introduces the insignia of such orders, ranging from the 'Great Orders' of the Garter and the Thistle, to the Order of the British Empire. The insignia worn by the various ranks within the Orders are often of the highest quality and, like campaign medals and decorations, have become a popular area for collecting and research.
Fully revised second edition of Peter Duckers best-selling guide to military medals. This second edition of Peter Duckers best-selling British Military Medals traces the history of medals and gallantry awards from Elizabethan times to the modern day, and it features an expert account of their design and production. Campaign and gallantry medals are a key to understanding - and exploring - British and imperial military history, and to uncovering the careers and exploits of individual soldiers. In a series of succinct and well-organized chapters he explains how medals originated, to whom they were awarded and how the practice of giving medals has developed over the centuries. His work is a guide for collectors and for local and family historians who want to learn how to use medals to discover the history of military units and the experiences of individuals who served in them.
At a time of imperial expansion, British forces were almost constantly in action against major powers, in wars of conquest, or in expeditions on the fringes of Empire, such as the North West Frontier, southern Africa or Burma. This book outlines the medals issued to British soldiers and sailors for military service.
Too often historical writing on the Russian War of 1854-56 focuses narrowly on the land campaign fought in the Crimean peninsula in the Black Sea. The wider war waged at sea by the British and French navies against the Russians is ignored. The allied navies aimed to strike at Russian interests anywhere in the world where naval force could be brought to bear, and as a result campaigns were waged in the Baltic, the Black Sea, the White Sea, on the Russian Pacific coast and in the Sea of Azoff. Yet it is the land campaign in the Crimea that shapes our understanding of events. In this graphic and original study, Peter Duckers seeks to set the record straight. He shows how these neglected naval campaigns were remarkably successful, in contrast to the wretched failures that beset the British army on land. Allied warships ranged across Russian waters sinking shipping, disrupting trade, raiding ports, bombarding fortresses, destroying vast quantities of stores and shelling coastal towns. The scale and intensity of the naval operations embarked upon during the war are astonishing, and little appreciated, and this new book offers the first overall survey of them.
This book provides a glimpse into the complex, multi-layered and evolving institution and offers an introduction to the uniforms, arms and services of the Indian Army at the height of the Raj.
Britain has issued medals rewarding war service since at least the early nineteenth century, and increasingly through the period of its imperial expansion prior to 1914, but examples of many of the early types are now scarce. However, few families escaped some involvement with “the Great War” of 1914 18, and many still treasure the medals awarded to their ancestors for wartime service. Today, with a growing interest in British military history and particularly in family history and genealogy, more and more people want to trace their ancestors' past. This book looks in detail at the origin, types and varieties of the British medals awarded for general war service between 1914 and '18, and gives advice on researching the awards and their recipients.
British Gallantry Awards 1855-2000. This book surveys the British decorations and medals from the origins in the Crimean War of 1854-6 up to the end of the twentieth century.
Surveys the medals awarded to British personnel for military services from the First World War to operations of British forces in the opening years of the twenty-first century. The campaign medals awarded for the military actions have become a popular field for collectors, since the majority of British awards were officially named.
Describes and illustrates many of the medals, including the Victoria Cross award, and the men and women who have been awarded them together with the award citations which are always remarkable and sometimes astounding.
This volume comprises the Roll for this highly-regarded, but rather neglected, gallantry award with names of recipients, notification of award, list of place names, and arrangement of citations. All the awards of this medal, for World War I, are collected and fully described in this book which is designed to put the Indian Order of Merit in its rightful place, high in the list of gallantry awards.
In the days of Empire, thousands of British men and women spent their lives in India. The men found active employment in the Army, the police, commerce, the railways, or industry. The vast majority of these one-time inhabitants of India have left little evidence of their own careers and of the lives of the women, children, and families who shared their experience of life under the raj. This book records the history of one such family. Members of the Mein family served in India over the space of 150 years, and unlike so many others, left behind a fascinating legacy of photographs and documents chronicling their military service, their family life and the social environment of British India.
This work contains details about the Sea of Azoff campaign in 1855 in the war against Russia. It includes: medal rolls, by ship and an alphabetical list of recipients; a list of honours and awards; a chronology of operations, 1855; copies of letters and dispatches; an appendix listing military units at Kertch; and a detailed index.
This work contains details about the Sea of Azoff campaign in 1855 in the war against Russia. It includes: medal rolls, by ship and an alphabetical list of recipients; a list of honours and awards; a chronology of operations, 1855; copies of letters and dispatches; an appendix listing military units at Kertch; and a detailed index.
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