Kiwi Medals

Here’s a single shoulder title for New Zealand Infantry, dating from ww2. I received it in a big bunch of stuff for a guy who was in Hiroshima in 1945.

This is a WW1 era collar dog for the Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry, or 1st Canterbury Mounted Rifles.

The 1st (Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry) Regiment was officially raised on 17 March 1911. It was one of 12 regionally based mounted rifles regiments formed as part of the new Territorial Force (TF) organisation that came into existence on that day. This part-time Territorial Force and a tiny regular force of professional soldiers formed the basis of New Zealand’s army at the outbreak of the First World War.

Instead of mobilising the TF, however, the government decided to raise a separate force to send overseas to fight – the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF). In 1914 the new mounted regiments of the NZEF were given provincial names corresponding to the military district in which they were raised – Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury or Otago. This gave them some sense of regional identity.

The NZEF mounted regiments were instructed to affiliate each of the three squadrons under their command with a TF mounted rifles regiment from their military district, and to issue the regiment’s badge to the squadron. The idea was to foster linkages with the established TF regiments that were not being sent overseas. So the badge of the 1st (Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry), TF, was worn by the 1st (Canterbury Yeomanry Cavalry) Squadron of the Canterbury Mounted Rifles Regiment, NZEF, throughout its service in the Gallipoli, Sinai and Palestine campaigns.

This badge, for the 11th North Auckland Mounted Rifles, is the left facing collar badge. This badge is twice as rare as the right facing example since the right hand one served as both the cap badge and a collar dog. You can see these examples here.

This is a cap badge for the 4th Waikato Mounted Rifles.

The 4th (Waikato) Mounted Rifles was formed on March 17, 1911. They were mobilised during World War I and formed part of the Auckland Mounted Rifle Regiment, and served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I and first saw action during the Battle of Gallipoli. As a part of the larger New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade (of the Anzac Mounted Division) they went on to serve in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign

This is a cap badge for the 6th Manawatu Mounted Rifles.

The 6th (Manawatu) Mounted Rifles was formed on March 17, 1911. They were mobilised during World War I as a squadron of the Wellington Mounted Rifle Regiment. They served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I and first saw action during the Battle of Gallipoli. As a part of the larger New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade (of the Anzac Mounted Division) they went on to serve in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign

This is a WW1 issue collar dog for the 3rd Auckland Mounted Rifles Regiment. The 3rd (Auckland) Mounted Rifles was formed on March 17, 1911. They were mobilised during World War I as a squadron of the Auckland Mounted Rilfe Regiment. They served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I and first saw action during the Battle of Gallipoli. As a part of the larger New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade (of the Anzac Mounted Division) they went on to serve in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign.

This ia a collar dog for the 16th Waikato Infantry Regiment, dating to WW1. Raised in 1915 and sent to Egypt and then Gallipoli, the 16th Waikato was slaughtered at Chunik Bair.

Yeah that’s right, pride. Meh, jingoism dates poorly

This cap badge is for the 4th Otago Rifles. The badge has the battle honour “South Africa 1901-1902” making it a pre WW1 2nd pattern badge.

The history of the 4th Battalion (Otago and Southland) Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment can be traced back to February 1860 when the Dunedin and Invercargill Militia Battalions were established. The militiamen of the day were not volunteer soldiers as all males between the age of 18 and 60 were liable for military service at that time. In 1861 the Tokomairiro and Clutha Battalions were formed. Local enthusiasm was not enough to gain Government recognition so volunteer soldiering was conducted on a quasi-official manner for some time. The first officially recognised volunteer unit in the Otago and Southland provinces was the Otago Rifle Volunteers, which was gazetted as a Company on 5th February 1862. In 1898 the 1st Battalion Otago Rifle Volunteers was established. The formation of this unit apparently stimulated further public interest as by 1892 the Battalion consisted of fifteen Rifle Companies.

During World War I the provinces produced the Otago Regiment with companies from the 4th Otago, 8th Southland, 10th North Otago and 20th South Otago battalions. The Otago Regiment served with distinction in Gallipoli and France taking particularly heavy losses in the battle of Passchendaele. New Zealand’s most decorated soldier ever, Sgt Dick Travis earned his VC and other medals serving with the Otago Regiment.

This is the cap badge of the New Zealand Women’s Royal Army Corp. The New Zealand Women’s Royal Army Corps (NZWRAC) had its beginnings in the New Zealand Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (NZWAAC) which was established as part of the New Zealand Defence Force in July 1942. Prior to this the first detachment of women of the Women’s War Service Auxiliary (WWSA), who became known as the “Tuis” sailed for the Middle East in September 1941.

They were attached to the New Zealand Forces Club, Cairo where they carried out welfare duties. NZWAAC became a regular corps of the New Zealand Army in April 1948 and the name was changed to New Zealand Women’s Army Corps. The Corps was granted the title ‘Royal’ in July 1952. In 1977 the Corps was deactivated. The NZWRAC Depot in Burnham Military Camp was established in 1948 for the training of all new recruits, non-commissioned officers, and later on officers also. The Depot was closed on deactivation of the Corps.

This is a WW1 period cap badge for the 10th North Otago Rifles Regiment. This regiment was raised in 1911, served in Gallipoli and France and was disbanded in 1921. There were no collar dogs for this regiment, the cap badge was used on the collar.

These are WW1 era cap and collar badges for the 11th North Auckland Mounted Rifles. These are either right hand collar badges or cap badges as they were made facing the same way. The left hand collar badge faces the other direction. This makes these ones twice as common as the left hand one if you get my drift.

I am drawn to these badges primarily because my maternal grandfather served in this regiment.

The 11th (North Auckland) Mounted Rifles was formed on 17 March 1911. They were mobilised during World War I as a squadron of the Auckland Mounted Rifle Regiment. They served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I and first saw action during the Battle of Gallipoli. As a part of the larger New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade (of the Anzac Mounted Division) they went on to serve in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign

This is the cap badge for the New Zealand Women’s Land Service.

The Women’s Land Service was formed to supply labour to keep New Zealand agriculture going during the War. From 1940, city girls from the age of seventeen were sent to assist on sheep, cattle, dairy, orchard and poultry properties. Many had the experience of arriving at a remote destination late at night and starting work the next morning as a farm-hand, when they had never been close-up to a sheep. They learned to ride horses, train and whistle up dogs, muster and shear sheep, plough and harvest crops, and to master all the myriad tasks of rural industries, often without electricity.

These three shoulder titles are from the New Zealand Mounted Rifles. They probably date from WW1.

The New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade, consisting usually of four units of mounted infantry, fought in World War I and World War II. Initially a milita, under the instruction of Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Henry Banks they formed the core of the New Zealand Army following successful service in the Boer Wars. During World War I, it was a part of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) during the Gallipoli Campaign serving in the New Zealand and Australian Division.

The brigade also served in the Anzac Mounted Division during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. Throughout this campaign the New Zealand Mounted Rifle Brigade consisted of the Auckland Mounted Rifle, the Canterbury Mounted Rifle and the Wellington Mounted Rifle Regiments. The Otago Mounted Rifle Regiment was sent to Europe and served on the Western Front before the Sinai and Palestine Campaign began. After World War I demobilisation the brigade ceased to exist in 1944 when individual units were absorbed into other regiments.