Soviet Awards to non-Soviet personnel.

[desantnik]

In the 82 Airborne Division there is a wall of pictures showing former commanders. Two or three of the WWII-era guys also wear Guards badges and/or Soviet decorations too.

[Commissar]

Awesome! :D
I wish I knew more about American Soviet collaboration.

[UQWozza]

Just received the Oct/Nov issue of the OMSA Journal. This group is on the inside cover in an advertisement for Morton & Eden.

"Unique Second World War DFC, AFC and Order of Lenin group awarded to Wing-Commander H. N. G. "Ish" Isherwood, who led No 151 Fighter Wing in North Russia in 1941".

Sold on 10 June 2009 for 46,000 pounds ($78,000).

No 151 Wing Royal Air Force was a British unit which fought alongside the Soviets on the Kola Peninsula during the first months of Operation Barbarossa during World War II. More details on Wikipedia:

No. 151 Wing RAF - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Simon

[desantnik]

Cool. Any idea on the serial number of the Lenin?

[medals73]

The catalogue for that sale is online as a PDF at http://www.mortonandeden.com/pdfcats/38web.pdf and expect it to take a while to load.

This lot is #1342 (page 65).

The Lenin is #7384. But the extensive notes say the order book shows it as #7381? Apparently, when they passed these out they mixed them up.

The original awards, as presented by the Soviet ambassador Ivan Mayski at a
London reception in March 1942, were ‘screwback’ type badges which the men
wore alongside their British medal ribbons (as can be seen in Colin Colahan’s 1942
portrait of Ramsbottom-Isherwood in the Australian War Memorial Collection, and
also in a photograph of Miller and Haw included in John Clarke’s Gallantry Medals &
Decorations of the World, 2001, p. 192). After the introduction of the ‘suspended’
type Lenin badges in 1943, Ramsbottom-Isherwood’s and Haw’s pieces were
exchanged for the new type (and so, very probably, were the other two as well),
with specially-engraved serial numbers to match the originals. During the
exchange process it appears that some muddling of the actual badges occurred,
with the result that Ramsbottom-Isherwood’s Order Book no. 7381 is now
accompanied by badge no. 7384. In his Soviet Roll of Awards to British Recipients
1941-1945 John Clarke states that Miller’s badge was no. 7381 and Haw’s no.
7284, but the opportunity can now be taken to correct this record in that the latter
badge has recently been checked and found to be numbered 7382 (it is also, by
way of confirmation, a suspended type piece, and it is suggested that Haw’s Order
Book might previously have been misread as no. 7284 instead of 7384).

They split his miniatures out into a separate lot (1343)! :thumbsdown

His are the last two lots in the sale, so if that is all you want to see, just "zip" to the end.

Tons of Tsarist Tstuff. But some nice Soviet material too.

[desantnik]

I think I'm thoroughly confused by their description, but ... thanks :).

[medals73]

Originally Posted by desantnik

I think I'm thoroughly confused by their description, but ... thanks :).

What is confusing?

1- Screwback badges awarded by the ambassador. And, presumably, everyone got their right number.

2- Replacement suspension badges swapped out. Apparently the British ignored the numbers in passing them along and, while everyone got a Lenin, they didn't match their (returned?) screwbacks or their booklets.

3- The four all got their Lenins and no one cared about the numbers.

[desantnik]

If I understand correctly, Isherwood's Lenin is #7384 and his Order Booklet is #7381.

[medals73]

Originally Posted by desantnik

If I understand correctly, Isherwood's Lenin is #7384 and his Order Booklet is #7381.

Yes.

My guess would be that the four were awarded 7381, 7382, 7383, and 7384. When the ambassador handed them over, they matched the books.

When the suspension replacements came along, they were passed around (by British authorities) without much attention to the numbering and everything got jumbled. Isherwood turned in screwback 7381 and got suspension 7384 in exchange. What's the problem? Everyone got a Lenin. Not everyone cares (or cared) about numbers the way contemporary collectors do. And, besides, neither his DFC or AFC (the most important awards to him) would have been named or numbered or anything.

Errors in some later books have confused things even more.

So fas as I know, only Isherwood's and Haw's groups have come onto the market.

[desantnik]

OK - thanks. Now clear.