British awards and decorations have many fascinating stories.
There are two major categories: campaign medals and gallantry
medals.
Campaign medals are awarded to members of the British Armed
Forces, Allied forces and civilians participating in specified
military campaigns. More than 80 different medals have been issued
since the first (the Peninsular Gold Medal) was awarded to officers
in 1810, with five new medals already awarded in the 21st
century.
Gallantry medals recognise personal accomplishments by members
of the British armed forces or acts of civilian bravery - each
one with a remarkable story of heroism.
Collectors typically focus on medals issued by their own
country. In the United Kingdom the selection is huge and there are
no restrictions on their sale (as there are in the USA). The
Napoleonic, Crimean and Boer Wars, the Indian campaigns followed by
the First World War and ensuing major 20th century
British armed conflicts (18 different campaign medals were issued
in the Second World War alone), divide the collecting field.
There are those who focus on certain regiments, specific
military campaigns and even single decorations of the highest
order, such as the Victoria Cross.
Rarities are always prized (short lived campaigns with
comparatively few combatants, such as the Falklands conflict, tend
to mean fewer medals) while additional bars (especially those for a
well-known engagement or battle) can boost demand. These come
notably into play for Crimean and Boer War medals.
Above: the Waterloo Medal awarded to Trooper John Hughes
that took £900 at Bonhams in December 2010.
The comparatively recent move to scrap distinctions between
awards made to officers and other ranks has also limited the
availability of some medals. One example of this is the
Distinguished Flying Medal, the other ranks' equivalent of the
Distinguished Flying Cross. Established in 1918 and discontinued in
1993, these were awarded in such small numbers after the Second
World War that they have become highly sought after.
It was once highly controversial for recipients to sell their
own medals, but in the past five years or so it has become more
common, with heroes of Afghanistan and Iraq, among others, putting
their awards up for sale to raise money.
Again these have rarity value, either because they are newly
created awards or because so few are for sale. When in September
2010, Private Paul Darren Wilmott sold the Conspicuous Gallantry
Cross he had won just three years earlier for outstanding bravery
in action against the Taliban, only 30 had ever been awarded. It
took £42,000 at Bosleys of Marlow.
Outside the military, acts of civilian bravery attract a
plethora of medals, the highest ranking being the George Cross
(effectively the equivalent to the military's Victoria Cross)
instituted in 1940 to recognise the role of non-combatants on the
Home front during the Blitz. In this field, it is very much the
association of the particular medal which dominates pricing.
In general terms, what makes a medal worth just a few pounds or
a six-figure sum is much the same as objects in other collecting
fields - rarity, provenance and condition. Design is much less
important and it is not often that the materials from which they
are made have any intrinsic worth - the Victoria Cross, for
example, are traditionally thought to be cast in gunmetal from
Russian cannon captured at the siege of
Sevastopol.
Within these general parameters, however, there is a huge
spectrum of factors to consider from the level of gallantry of the
recipient, the fame of an action or campaign and the status of the
individual concerned. Medals are typically sold in groups, and the
combination of decorations can add to their rarity and
attraction.
Waterloo medals offer an excellent summary of the sorts of
factors that can affect price. It was the first medal created since
the one issued by Cromwell for the Battle of Dunbar in 1650. It was
given to all participating soldiers and a total of 39,000 were
awarded in 1816-17.
Accordingly, an infantry medal is scarcer than an artillery
medal and a cavalry medal rarer still. Make that a medal from one
of the leading horse regiments, such as the Dragoons, Life Guards
or Horse Guards, and then from a senior officer, and the value
climbs further.
Condition can come into play as well, especially when it comes
to cavalry medals, which were worn in the field, as the constant
jerking up and down on horseback meant that they tended to be more
knocked and damaged than infantry and artillery medals.
In terms of hard cash, this can mean a trooper's medal in
reasonable condition from an ordinary foot regiment can sell for
under £100, while a senior cavalry officer's medal in good
condition can sell for thousands. Compare, for instance the £10,000
paid at Bonhams on December 15, 2010 for the Waterloo Medal awarded
to Captain Edwin Sandys of the 12th Light Dragoons to the £900 paid
for that awarded to John Hughes, a trooper from Sandys' own troop,
in the same sale.
London supports a wealth of auction houses and dealers, with
large volumes of medals changing hands on a regular basis. The
current health of the market is illustrated by the number of
auction houses outside the capital starting to hold specialist
sales or even setting up separate medals departments. At the top
level, the dominance of Lord Ashcroft as the world's leading
collector of Victoria Crosses has helped push up prices for some
time. His extensive holding is now on display in a specially built
wing of the Imperial War Museum.
As anniversaries of conflicts approach, interest often grows.
This may well be seen in 2014 for the centenary of the outbreak of
the First World War and in 2015 for the bicentenary of Waterloo.
While medals values have been climbing over the past few years,
unlike other collecting fields however, the nature of the medals
world means that few collectors acquire pieces specifically with
investment in mind. It comes as close as you can get to a purely
academic and emotional field of collecting.
Those involved tend to have a serious interest in history, and
owning a medal brings them that bit closer to the act of bravery
and the individual it commemorates.
The Medal Yearbook by John W. Mussell, Token
Publishing. ISBN-10: 187019246X ISBN-13: 978-1870192460
British Military Medals: A Guide for the Collector and
Family Historian by Peter Duckers, Pen and Sword Military.
ISBN-10: 1844159604 ISBN-13: 978-1844159604
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