This is a group awarded to 23849729 Sgt J.S. Birchall Royal Signals. One medal is the GSM with the Northern Ireland Bar. The other is the LSGC medal with the Regular Army bar.
Archive for Family Groups and Singles
A Birchall Group from the Troubles
Posted in 1945 + Medals, Family Groups & Singles with tags Family Groups and Singles, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom on April 19, 2013 by The DudeA Birchall Casualty Group from Passchendaele
Posted in 1914-1918 Service Medals, Family Groups & Singles with tags Family Groups and Singles, Passchendaele, United Kingdom, WW1 on April 18, 2013 by The DudePublished in the Reporter 6th October 1917.
BARDSLEY SOLDIER. Sgt-Major W. Birchall Dies from Wounds. It was with much regret that the people in Bardsley learned this week that 350051 Sergeant-Major WILLIAM BIRCHALL, Manchester Regiment, T.F. C Coy 1/9th battalion, had passed away as the result of wounds received whilst serving with the forces in France. News that he had been wounded in the right leg came through to his wife and his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Josiah Birchall, of Bardsley, last week, and on Wednesday morning of this week a letter came from the Rev. G.M.Wheeler, Church of England chaplain, stating that he never recovered from his collapse, and passed peacefully away to his rest and reward.
By all who knew him in Bardsley, Sergeant-Major BIRCHALL was respected and beloved for his kindliness and ever present desire to do a good turn to anyone in need of it. He joined the Volunteers 17 years ago. He visited New Zealand after his sister’s death, which took place at her uncle’s in Dunedin, and whilst he was away he joined the Dunedin City Guards. He was away rather over 12 months, and on his return he entered the Territorials. He was colour-sergeant when they were called up for service in August 1914, and went to Egypt and the Dardanelles [He landed at Gallipoli 9th May 1915].
During that campaign he was slightly wounded in the chest. Later he came to France. He was there wounded in the neck by a piece of shell, and on recovery rejoined his regiment, and removed with them to Belgium, where he was wounded on the 16th September, sustaining a compound fracture of the right leg. He died on the 25th September, and was buried in the military cemetery near the clearing station by the Church of England chaplain, Re. G.M. Wheeler.
He was 36 years old. The family are associated with Bardsley Church and School, and are much asteemed in the village. He leaves a wife, Mrs Edith Birchall, of 27, Ann St, Roslyn, Dunedin, New Zealand, and two children, a boy and a girl. (William Birchall is buried in the Mendinghem Military Cemetery pictured below).
William’s gravestone
A Birchall Military Medal Group from the Somme
Posted in Family Groups & Singles, Valour Medals with tags Family Groups and Singles, Somme, United Kingdom, WW1 on April 18, 2013 by The DudeThis Military Medal was awarded to Richard Burchell R.F.A. service number 686, gazetted 21st October 1918. He was a driver in the Royal Field Artillery. The rank on the Military Medal is Acting Lance Bombadier while on his medal card it shows it as the obsolete rank of Lance Sergeant. He was awarded the Military Medal for actions including driving shells up to the guns while under direct fire from German artillery. According to his records he was reduced in rank in May 1917 after being AWOL for 3 days. Court martialled and sentenced to Field Punishment Number 2 and ordered to forfeit a weeks pay. Apparently after being wounded at Beaumont Hamel he was evacuated to a base hospital and returned to the line on October 5th 1916. He was lucky not to forfeit the Military Medal. His Territorial Service Medal shows his movement to the Royal Artillery and his peacetime rank of driver.
A Birchall Group from the Boer War
Posted in 1850-1900 Medals, Family Groups & Singles with tags Boer War, Family Groups and Singles, United Kingdom on April 16, 2013 by The DudeThis is a group from my family consisting of the Kings South Africa Medal with South Africa 1901 Bar and South Africa 1902 Bar and the Queens South Africa Medal with Transvaal Bar and Orange Free State Bar and Cape Colony Bar. It is marked to 3573 W. Birchell RL: Berks Reg.
A Birchall Group from the Crimean War
Posted in 1850-1900 Medals, Family Groups & Singles with tags Crimean War, Family Groups and Singles, Turkey, United Kingdom on December 5, 2009 by The DudeHere is one of my family groups, the earliest one I have, comprising the Crimean War Campaign medal with the Sevastopol Bar impressed to J.Birchall, 56th Regiment. The accompanying Turkish Crimean Medal is a Sardinian example and is unnamed.
The Crimea Medal was a campaign medal approved in 1854, for issue to officers and men of British units (land and naval) which fought in the Crimean War of 1854-56 against Russia.
The medal is notable for its extremely ornate clasps, being in the form of an oak leaf with an acorn at each extremity, a style never again used on a British medal. The suspension is an ornate floriated swivelling suspender, again unique to the Crimea Medal.
Five bars were authorised, the maximum awarded to one man was four. The medal was issued without a clasp to those who were present in the Crimea, but not present at any of the qualifying actions. A five bar specimen is held in the Royal Collection.
This medal was also presented to certain members of allied French forces. These medals, in addition to the five British clasps, were often issued with unauthorised French bars; Traktir, Tchernaia, Mer d’Azoff, and Malakof.
The medal was awarded with the British version of the Turkish Crimean War medal, but when a consignment of these were lost at sea some troops were issued with the Sardinian version instead.
Kiwi Medals 