WW1 brass plates

[oldscrote]

As some of you know my Dad died recently and I ended up being given a lot of bits and pieces of his by mum.Amongst them were this series of brass plates commemorating the various places and battles his dad ,my grandfather, fought in during The Great War I've never seen anything like them before and was wondering if this was a common thing to do.Grandfather started of in the army but transferred to the RFC later becoming a founder member of the RAF,he was a Warrant Officer 1 and was a gunnery instructor.He continued in the RAF after the war and some of the plates may commemorate later service although he spent the latter part of his service at Eastchurch,and boy do I have a load of black and white photos of those days.

I've checked this out with Krela and have full permission to post these,thanks Krela
















Also was this plate that must have been on a case or trunk of some sort and poignantly some one has added the word late as he died in by his own hand in 1938




The man himself looking a bit like Windsor Davies in 'It ain't half hot mum'



and a chest full of medals

 

[whodareswins]

Having a father that is is very much into WW1 and a certain regiment (written a book too), I have never seen anything like this before. Must of been something he did in his spare time I imagine.

 

[krela]

I'm wondering if these come from some sort of plaque that he may have received when he retired from the forces or for x years service?

 

[gushysfella]

I have seen this type of plack before think they off medal cases? GF

 

[oldscrote]

I'm wondering if these come from some sort of plaque that he may have received when he retired from the forces or for x years service?

A good thought, long service commemoration maybe.He first joined up with I believe the Hampshire Yeomanry in I think 1901 and was retired around 1928 so he had spent at least 27 serving King and Country

 

[oldscrote]

Heres one I missed. A bit odd this one starts of in India and ends up in Uxbridge



Was there a n RAF station there?

 

[sennelager66]

If you don't mind can i post on of the pictures to my dad who researches WW1 in depth and might throw some light on this for you.
It's really great to see some personal family history oldscrote. My father curates a museum in Belgium dedicated to those who fell during WW1 and he might have knowledge of the items above.

 

[krela]

Yes Uxbridge is actually one of the earliest RAF bases... The RFC moved there in 1917.

 

[krela]

In fact reading further it's where the RFC Gunnery training was based, which ties in perfectly with your knowledge.

 

[oldscrote]

If you don't mind can i post on of the pictures to my dad who researches WW1 in depth and might throw some light on this for you.
It's really great to see some personal family history oldscrote. My father curates a museum in Belgium dedicated to those who fell during WW1 and he might have knowledge of the items above.

Of course Senne be my guest,would certainly be interested to find out how he ended up in the trenches for 91 days without relief

 

[TeeJF]

I don't suppose they could be an example of what was sometimes called 'trench art' could they? Many servicemen would cut up spent shell cases and fashion toys or object d'art from the metal. Oc he was on RFC bases then he'd have access to the necessary tools to stamp the brass.

Just a thought.

 

[krela]

No they're not trench art. They're cut brass plates common to memorials and prize plaques.

 

[oldscrote]

I don't suppose they could be an example of what was sometimes called 'trench art' could they? Many servicemen would cut up spent shell cases and fashion toys or object d'art from the metal. Oc he was on RFC bases then he'd have access to the necessary tools to stamp the brass.

Just a thought.

It's a possibility but from what I know of the man I don't think he was the sort of chap to do that, probably considering it a waste of time and something only 'oicks' did

 

[AJK65]

It may be of some interest to you to know that the 22 April 1915 during the 2nd battle of Ypres saw the first use of Gas on the Western Front.

 

[GEMTX]

Wwi

Outstanding!!!!!!

 

[Ninja Kitten]

how interesting..and what a proud looking man..i like posts like this.

 

[krela]

There's something that's very personal about this, it's about location and personal experience rather than anything formal. If it was formal it would have more details like what detachments/departments he served in and stuff like that. My hunch is like I said above, that this was a present either for an in service anniversary or retirement. My opinion is that it's a personal present from someone like a long time C.O. or colleague who he served with for a long time, someone who knew him well on a personal level. It's got that personal touch to it.

I imagine they would have been mounted on a wooden plaque which maybe got damp and rotted or was damaged in some similar way, and the engraved parts were removed and kept.

This is pure conjecture though, just a hunch.

 

[sennelager66]

Very possible Krela. It could have come out of the mess and akin to regimental battle honours.

 

[Mike L]

Never seen anything like them but as the blanks all appear to be identical pattern they were either purpose made or part of a larger production run. What are the dimensions? Is the text stamped or engraved? Is font size all the same?
I imagine it must be something personal (rather than Regimental or Squadron) as it covers both Army and RFC/RAF service. Perhaps as already mentioned some sort of presentation piece where the original mount has not survived for some reason. And 91 days in the trenches without relief - amazing!
Great photos by the way.

 

[krela]

They appear to be hand stamped to me, that's half their charm.