A nice tidy Anglo-Egyptian War group belonging to one of the Birchall/Burchell/Birchell’s out there. This one is impressed to H.T.BURCHELL PTE. R.M.L.I. Harry Thomas Burchell (No 2473) enlisted in the Chatham Division of the Royal Marines on June 11th 1883. He served until discharged on 6th November, 1894. The Egypt medal has bars for Suakin (1st March to 14th May, 1885) and Tofrek (22nd March 1885). I have another Birchall from the same campaign here.
In my never-ending quest to find all the Birchall or similar named groups and singles on the internets, there is this example in the post this week. Named to 23416889 SIGMN.J.I.BIRCHELL R.SIGS., it is a EIIR General Service Medal with a bar for the Malayan campaign against the communist insurgency. This post-colonial bush war ran from 1948 to 1960 and was one of the few successful attempts to keep the communists out of S.E.Asia.
Visitors to this site will have noted, perhaps, my rather retro-racist love for WW2 anti-Japanese propaganda. A common theme to this kitsch is the invitation to “Slap Japs”. It was pretty widespread to use this kind of disparagement of the enemy to build morale on the homefront. This birthday card, dating from 1943, is an example of this theme. Other examples are here and here, oh and here and here.
In the great tradition of “a serviceman and his backpay are soon parted” we bring you tiny novelty underwear. As the demobilisation of the US Forces got underway from September 1945 these troops, soldiers, sailors and airmen were shipped through a small number of West Coast ports on their way back through the system and ultimately home to civilian life. Along the way enterprising merchants attempted to siphon as much of the serviceman’s demob pay as possible and this little item is just one example of the methods they used. I find it kinda interesting because beyond the obvious puns being used here, it also plays to the fear of the cuckold and the “Dear John” letter that servicemen endured.
Man this stuff just cracks me up. It’s a cardboard doll from, I would guess, the USA around 1943. The legs and one arm are articulated and if you hold the noose and pull the string, well Adolf just goes nutzi! Honestly, fuck Hitler.
Interesting partial group here. These two medals are part of a group belonging to Arthur H. Birchall, 2596. He was enlisted in 1915 as a Lance Corporal in the Durham Light Infantry and ended the war as a Lieutenant Colonel in the same regiment. His BWM and MC are lost to time. Something that is also interesting here is that another partial group of his, sans MC, recently went through the DNW auction house before being snapped up and relisted on EBay at an exorbitant markup.
Cheaply made and pressed out in their millions these little lapel badges helped fuel the American people in their struggle against the Axis. This example is labelled “Wanted for Murder, Adolf Schicklgruber alias ‘Hitler'”. This is a reference to Adolf’s grandmother Maria Schicklgruber who gave birth to Alois, Hitler’s father out of wedlock. Apparently Americans found Schicklgruber to be a more comical surname than Hitler. It also suggested Hitler was a bastard by proxy.
The last of the Ethiopian medals for the moment, this is a circular dark bronze medal with loop and isosceles trapezium-shaped ribbon bar bearing an Amharic inscription; the face with the heads of two warriors facing right, a flintlock rifle and bugle below, all within a cartridge belt; the reverse plain stippled; on a replaced ribbon in the Ethiopian national colours.
The medal was created after the Ogaden war of 1977-1978 with Somalia to commemorate the Ethiopian patriots who fought against Italian invasion and occupation between 1935 and 1941. It was designed by Colonel Tibebe Desta of the Ethiopian Air Force, a noted artist and imperial portrait painter, who organised the Grand Expo in Addis Ababa after the war with Somalia and was noted for his design of coins and medals both during the Imperial period and the Derg.
This example has the incorrect ribbon and is missing its suspension bar. Still a rare medal in any condition.
Another Ethiopian medal, this one a bronze trilobe medal with wreath and ribbon ring suspension; the face with a traditional Ethiopian portrait of Emperor Haile Selassie I wearing the Ethiopian Crown and circumscribed with the Amharic inscription in Ge’ez ‘Haile Selassie the First’; the reverse with crossed batons supporting a Trinity star circumscribed with an Amharic inscription in Ge’ez, on original ribbon mounted for wear with a clip with maker’s mark ‘MAPPIN & WEBB LD’ with one bronze palm bars denoting a second award of the medal. The medal was created to reward those engaged in military action against the invading and occupying Italian forces in the years 1935 to 1941 and was awarded both for acts of bravery in the face of the enemy and for long and distinguished service.
This medal is part of my small accumulation of WW2 Ethiopian medals. The Military Medal of Merit of the Order of St. George is a bronze trilobe medal with Trinity star and ribbon ring suspension; the face with an image of St. George on horseback slaying the dragon below the Amharic inscription ‘Hayal Kokebe Kibr’ (luminious star of victory); the reverse with a Trinity star with three crossed spears imposed above the date ‘1923’; three small edge knocks to the reverse, lower left, lower right and right; on original ribbon. The medal was instituted in 1923 and was the highest military decoration of Imperial Ethiopia, awarded rarely for acts of great bravery and outstanding military leadership in times of conflict.
In 1941, with the help of British and Commonwealth troops attacking from British Somaliland, the Ethiopians were able to defeat and drive the Italian occupying army from their soil. I am interested in the East African campaigns in the Sudan, Somaliland and Ethiopia, especially the Battle of Keren.
The medal was made by Mappin & Webb, in London, and is in the shape of a Coptic Cross, surmounted by an Imperial Crown. The Star of the Trinity is in high relief in the centre. A loop is attached to the top of the medal, with a hanger, and a multi-striped red, yellow and green riband. The inscription in Amharic on the medal reads: “Star of Victory 1933 [Ethiopian calendar]. Unforgettable Achievement” and on the reverse “Star of Victory 1941”.
Ethiopian men, carrying captured Italian weapons, gather in Addis Adaba, in May 1941, to hear the announcement of the return of the Emperor Haile Selassie.
This is a commemorative medal celebrating the 70th anniversary of the IMT trials of the major criminals in Nuremberg starting in 1946. The medal is Russian in origin but since I don’t see it listed online as an official commemorative I am going to assume it’s an unofficial “tin” medal. The words on the reverse mean “Fascism will not stand”.
A simple, yet evocative item. This is a 1916 dated British officer’s trench whistle. I deliberately looked for a 1916 date because the centenary of the Battle of the Somme passed this month. The whistle was manufactured by D’Courcy & Co from Birmingham.
Lancashire Fusiliers go “over the top”, first day of the Somme, July 1st 1916.
This is the second version of this novelty that I have. Content wise it is very similar to this one here. However there are minor differences, in the front and rear pages and small verbiage deltas. This one is not attributed to the Robbins Novelty Company but it is so similar that it’s either theirs or a knock-off.
Yeah I know this isn’t strictly war shit, but this is a prop from one of my favourite movies. This ticket is a prop handed to each of the extras who appeared in the St James Theatre location for the filming of the notorious “Springtime for Hitler” scene from Mel Brooks outstandingly acidic movie “The Producers”. I like this movie for three reasons, the casting (Will Ferrell is a mad man), the musical numbers (“Winter for Poland and France”) and finally, because fuck Hitler.
More home front nonsense here. This plate topper (designed to be mounted above the rear number plate of a private car) comes out of the States and perfectly captures the three axis stooges theme of mid-war anti-axis personality propaganda. A good solid yellow bucktooth Tojo, followed by Hitler and the giant-chinned Mussolini. These are just about impossible to find anymore. They didn’t have reflective paint like we do now so the paint contains ground glass to make it shine under light at night.
I love these home front items. They represent a great view into the social zeitgeist that existed or had to be manufactured in the middle of the largest war we have ever seen. They range in execution from the cheesy comedy to toxic racism. It really does show how hard they had to work to generate the hatred necessary for a democracy to defeat militarism. This particular one is a novelty representation of Adolf’s last testament. It was manufactured by the prolific D J Robbins Novelty Company of NY in 1943.
In the middle of a reassembling of my K43 shooter, I found this K43 manual designed to be rolled up and placed in the butt cavity (ooh err) along with the oiler and spare firing pin parts. These are hard to find in good condition because they just were not made to last. This one has suffered from exposure to gun oil, but it’s all there where it counts.
Pretty straightforward, a Canadian press photo of two Canadian soldiers inspecting a discarded Panzerschreck found in abandoned German positions in Europe, 1945.
Private R. Neel and Sergeant R.B. Swain of The Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada examining a German bazooka anti-tank weapon found in an abandoned trench in Hochwald, Germany, 5 March 1945. Bell, Ken., Photographer
This is a great example of the mid-war propaganda coming out of the U.S. home front. It’s a card designed to be mailed in the accompanying envelope. It uses a bit of misdirection in the delivery of the joke as initially you are led to believe that Hitler will be squashed under the heel of a boot. Instead he’s in the shitter and obviously not too happy about it. Made by the D J Robbins Novelty Company of NY in 1943. Charming.
Advertisement for these novelty cards. These were intended as “ticket lifters” and sold through convenience stores and barbershops.
This booklet, dating from 1946, is a facsimile of the surrender documents signed on the USS Missouri, in Tokyo Bay, on the 2nd September 1945. These were produced by the National Archives in the US for distribution to institutions and individuals in education. I have the German ones here.
The Hausser toy company was a well known and prolific producer of tin military toys in Germany, both during and immediately after WW2. This example is the third type Hausser Flak 36, manufactured during the war and up until about 1950. This one is post-war as evidenced by its olive green paint job. The same model made during the war was painted in a drab grey. The earlier models varied in their paint schemes as well as the method of attachment for the transport dollies. In this example they are attached using a screw tensioner. The gun has a receptacle for a contact cap and a working trigger.
Here’s a great group coming from my never-ending search for medals impressed to my surname. In this case its a WW1 Military Medal group combined with a WW2 service medal group, named to J.E.Birchall 91004, The Kings (Liverpool) Regt.
It came with a little certificate from his commanding General commending his “…skilful use of his Lewis Gun section during operations against Evillers and Mory Copse on the 23rd and 24th of August 1918”.
The village of Evillers was completely destroyed during this offensive. John Eric Birchall later served in WW2, as evidenced by his Defence Medal and War Medal. This service was as a Lieutenant in the Home Guard. Given his age, it was probably his MM that got him that rank.
This is an original paper transfer used on the head of a Panzerfaust round to provide basic instructions on use in the field. Many users of this weapon were untrained levies of youth and older men, so it was felt that providing these instructions on each individual tube would assist in getting a consistent result from the firing of what could be an alarming (to the user) weapon.
This is an Arnold tin clockwork submarine. Manufactured in 1938 for the German market it is obviously a U-Boat. Note the swastika on the conning tower. It is missing its key and guy wires but is otherwise functional. Post war the Arnold company made this same toy but with the swastika swapped for an American white star. This was sold to U.S. servicemen for their children. The Arnold company stopped making boats in 1950.
U-Boat KapitänLeutnant Joachim Schepke gives an Arnold company U-29 to Horst Plenk, son of the renowned German skier Toni Plenk. From Signal Magazine 1941.
Kiwi Medals 