WW1 / WW2 / 20th Century

Fabulous & Incredibly Rare Museum Piece. An Original WW2 SOE {Special Operations Executive} Secret Espionage Agent's Suitcase Radio Transmitter & Reciever Of An SOE Agent {Male Or Female} of the 'Secret Army', In Occupied German Territory.1942/3 Issue

SOE Special forces
Role; Espionage Irregular warfare (especially sabotage and raiding operations) Special reconnaissance
Nickname "The Baker Street Irregulars" "Churchill's Secret Army" "Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare"

A phenomenally rare, mid war WW2 SOE spy radio set, transceiver, with earphone headset and various and numerous components, in it's leather case with two catches. {later models changed from three to just two catches}. Its handle complete, with some expected wear overall.
The SOE agents transceiver suitcase radio was the iconic, and indeed most rarest of surviving SOE clandestine spy equipment, It may well indeed be one of the rarest pieces of WW2 spy equipment in the world, and as such an incredible and unique piece of original spy-craft history.
Developer of the transceiver was Captain John Brown (SOE).

The type used by SOE and OSS agent Virginia Hall. Dubbed by the Gestapo as the Limping Lady, as she had a wooden leg! { that she called Cuthbert}.
She had all the makings of a diplomat. Impeccably educated, fluent in multiple languages, and worldly from her years spent abroad from her native Baltimore, Virginia’s dream of a life in the foreign service was shattered when a hunting accident led to the amputation of her left leg. Attitudes toward disabilities were different in the 1930s, and even fitted with a prosthetic leg (which she named “Cuthbert”) Virginia was deemed unfit for the life of a diplomat.

The outbreak of WWII changed that attitude. Virginia, by then living in France, was well-placed to act as a forward agent for the Allies. Volunteering first for the British Special Operations Executive (SOE), Virginia worked agents, ran safehouses, and reported intelligence from Vichy France. Later, she volunteered with the US Office of Strategic Services (OSS), forerunner to the CIA. Her efforts earned her a place on the Gestapo’s “Most Wanted” list as “The Limping Lady”. She and Cuthbert continued to work against the Nazis right up through the Normandy invasion and liberation and earned a Distinguished Service Cross for her efforts – a rare honour for a civilian, and rarer still for a woman.

This is only the second we have had in years since WW2, and as fine as any one in the Imperial War Museum or the very few dedicated spy and espionage museums.

After France signed an armistice with Germany in June 1940, Great Britain feared the shadow of Nazism would continue to fall over Europe. Dedicated to keeping the French people fighting, Prime Minister Winston Churchill pledged the United Kingdom’s support to the resistance movement. Charged with “set(ting) Europe ablaze,” the Special Operations Executive, or SOE, was born.

Used by the most dedicated and bravest of people, men and women, who have ever served their country. Agents, such as Violette Szabo and Noor Inayat Khan, code name Madeleine, who only too well knew their chances of surviving without capture, torture and execution were slim at best. For them, and many, many others, survival was not to be.

Headquartered at 64 Baker Street in London, the SOE’s official purpose was to put British special agents on the ground to “coordinate, inspire, control and assist the nationals of the oppressed countries.” Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton borrowed irregular warfare tactics used by the Irish Republican Army two decades before. The “Baker Street Irregulars,” as they came to be known, were trained in sabotage, small arms, radio and telegraph communication and unarmed combat. SOE agents were also required to be fluent in the language of the nation in which they would be inserted so they could fit into the society seamlessly. If their presence aroused undue suspicion, their missions could well be over before they even began.

Portable communication devices were of utmost importance as radio and telegraph communication ensured the French resistance (and SOE agents) were not cut off from the outside world. Radio operators had to stay mobile, often carrying their radio equipment on their backs as they moved from safe house to safe house. Their survival depended on their ability to transmit messages rapidly and move quickly.
Along with irregular tactics and unusual materiel, the British government knew an irregular war required irregular warriors. Women proved to be invaluable as couriers, spies, saboteurs and radio operators in the field. Though female agents received the same training as the men, some balked at the idea of sending women behind enemy lines. They grudgingly agreed female spies would have distinct advantages over the men on the ground. Women could travel freely because they were not expected to work during the day. Gender stereotypes also helped keep the women above suspicion. After all, who could possibly imagine a woman could be a viable combatant in war? the Germans certainly thought not.

Women were more than viable, however: they were critical to SOE mission success. Though they would later be honoured for their “conspicuous courage,” the female spies of the SOE were successful because they learned to be inconspicuous. They took on secret identities, went on secret missions and were trusted with their nation’s greatest secrets. Thirty-nine of the 470 SOE agents in France were women, with an additional sixteen deployed to other areas.
The Gestapo gave Nancy Grace August Wake the nickname “the white mouse” because of her uncanny ability to evade capture. When she learned one of the resistance groups no longer had a radio for communication, she rode almost 300 kilometers on a bicycle to make radio contact with the SOE headquarters and arrange for an equipment drop. Despite many close calls, Wake survived the war. First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY) member Odette Hallowes also cheated death. Embedded with the resistance in Cannes, Hallowes was captured and sent to the Ravensbrück concentration camp. She survived two years in prison, often in solitary confinement, before the camp was liberated by the Allied forces.
Other women were not so fortunate. Noor Inayat Khan, code name Madeleine, was a radio operator in France. After her entire team was ambushed and arrested, she was betrayed to the Gestapo by a French national hoping for a large reward. Khan did not break during interrogation and attempted escape from her captors several times. Sent to Dachau in September 1944, she was executed upon arrival. Violette Szabo, an agent inserted into Limoges, faced a similar fate at Ravensbrück. She was 23 years old.
By Kate Murphy Schaefer {abridged}. Kate Murphy Schaefer holds a MA in History with a Military History concentration for Southern New Hampshire University. She is also the author of a woman’s history blog, www.fragilelikeabomb.com.

Type 3 Mk. II B2
Clandestine suitcase transceiver · 1942
Type 3 Mark II, commonly referred to as B2, is a British WWII portable clandestine transceiver, also known as a spy radio set, developed in 1942 by (then) Captain John Brown at SOE Station IX, and manufactured by the Radio Communication Department of the SOE at Stonebridge Park. The set was issued to agents, resistance groups and special forces, operating on occupied territory. The official designator is Type 3 Mk. II but the radio is also known as Type B Mk. II, B.II and B2.

The B2 came in two versions. The initial version came in an unobtrusive leather suitcase that allowed an agent to travel inconspicuously. This is the most well-known variant. Later in the war it was dropped by parachute in two water-tight containers, that were more suitable for use by resistance groups operating in the field.

The images show this SOE Type 3 Mk.II transceiver in its brown leather suitcase, which can easily be recognized as the second type as it has two locks at the front.

Operating the Type 3 Mark II (B2)

The radio set consists of three units: a receiver (RX), a transmitter (TX) and a Power Supply Unit (PSU), plus a box with spares and accessories. When mounted in the suitcase, the transmitter is located at the center top, with the receiver mounted below it. The PSU is at the right in such a position that the two other units can be connected to it. The spares box is generally positioned at the left. When operating the B2, the lid of the spares box should be placed on the table, so that the Morse key can be operated.

The Type 3 Mk.II (B2) was relatively small for its day and produced an HF output power of 20 Watts. Nevertheless, it was too big to carry around unobtrusively especially when travelling by public transport. For this reason, later radios, such as the Model A Mk. III (A3) were made much smaller, albeit with a limited frequency range (3.2-9.55 MHz) and reduced power output (5 Watt).
The most well-known appearance of the B2 is the suitcase version, but hardly any surviving B2 is found in its original red leather suitcase. In fact, the B2 was delivered in a variety of different suitcases, ranging from sturdy leather cases to simple cardboard and even wooden based variants.

The first model original leather case is easily recognised, as it has three locks rather than the usual two. In many cases, the original case was swapped for a more common two-lock version, as it was easily recognised by the enemy, and any gain by the use of three locks became a severe hinderance in occupied territory while being hunted by the Gestapo.

Louis Meulstee's excellent book Wireless for the Warrior, volume 4 even shows an example of a wooden carpenter's toolbox in which a B2 is fitted. The dimensions of the suitcase are pretty standard for the era. The first B2 was in it's simulated leather cardboard covered wood frame suitcase. The cases were later changed in the war for twin catched cases, as the the earliest type had three {one lock and two catches} but that became too identifiable by the Gestapo.

A photograph in the gallery was taken during WWII, probably in 1942 or 1943, and shows this B2 radio's production line at the Bontex Knitting Mills, which became SOE Station VIIa (7a) . This facility is also known as Stonebridge Park,

While Virgina Hall {see her photo in the gallery} was adept in all aspects of tradecraft, one of the most powerful tools at her disposal was the suitcase radio, a catch-all term used to describe any transceiver small enough to be transported into the field and operated covertly. A suitcase was often used to house the radio as it would be less likely to arouse suspicion if the spy’s lair was discovered. The B2 suitcase radio was also a great form factor for a portable transceiver – just the right size for the miniaturized radios of the day, good operational ergonomics, and perfect for quick setup and teardown. You can even imagine a spy minimally obfuscating the suitcase’s real purpose with a thin layer of folded clothing packed over the radio.

Great care was given to ensure that the field agent would have every chance of using the radio successfully and that it would operate as long as possible under adverse conditions. With a power budget often limited to five watts or so, these radios were strictly QRP affairs. Almost every suitcase rig operated on the high-frequency bands between 3 MHz and 30 MHz, to take advantage of ionospheric skip and other forms of propagation. An antenna optimized for these bands would likely be a calling card to the enemy, especially in an urban setting, so controls were provided to tune almost any length of wire into a decent antenna.

Footnote; it is estimated around 7,000 of this form of clandestine spy-craft equipment were made by the British. It’s historical WW2 Nazi equivalent, the German made Enigma Machine, over 100,000 of those were manufactured, almost 15 times as many. Yet, surviving examples of the Enigma Machine can now achieve between $250,000 to $800,000. Thus, it is entirely possible that these suitcase transceivers can one day approach these figures, if not even likely. In fact in almost all respects they should be on a value parity already, as the operators of the Enigmas were based in relatively comfortable German bases, ships or field commands. Safe and relatively well protected and far away from fear and terror. The operators of these transceivers, men and women, many barely out of their teenage years, were, every single minute of every single day at appalling risk of capture and the inevitable, unspeakable torture {especially the women}, at the hands of the Gestapo, and summary execution, after being transferred to a concentration camp, sometimes simply within a few weeks of the start of their clandestine service in Nazi occupied Europe.

A dear friend of The Lanes Armoury partners {Mark and David's} remarkable late mother, Camilla Anne Hawkins, was Anita Vulliamy, daughter in law of Major-General C.H.H. Vulliamy. She was a simply a remarkable lady, who, during the war, was captured by the Gestapo, horrifyingly tortured, but managed to survive captivity. During her months in the Gestapo prison she crocheted a holy cross, made of prison cell straw bedding. After the war, her cross was exhibited alongside a similar piece, a straw doll, made by British SOE heroine Odette Churchill at a Charity event in London in 1956 and they raised £875 for the Polio Fund in one week. A huge sum in those days. Camilla mentioned that her friend, Anita, almost always wore fine leather gloves in company, as her finger nails had been torn out by her Gestapo interrogators. They grew back in part, but not well enough for Anita to feel comfortable to show her hands in public. Anita and Odette survived, and both considered themselves to be the extraordinarily lucky ones.

Interestingly the family have known, often purely by coincidence, numerous WW2 clandestine operatives. Mark knew another famous lady spy, when she was in her 60’s, quite well, but she was from the ‘other side’ so to speak. She was the very first of the notorious and despicable ‘Cambridge Five’ Spy Ring.

The lady was Russian spy Edith Tudor-Hart. Born in Vienna, she was a dedicated Communist, a talented Bauhaus-trained photographer, and a key KGB "talent spotter" who played a crucial role in recruiting the infamous Cambridge Five spy ring.Following the war and years of intense MI5 scrutiny, she eventually relocated to Brighton, where she operated a small antique shop until her death in 1973. Her highly secretive espionage career was only uncovered decades after she died. Mark used to sell her lace bobbins as a very young man, and over numerous cups of tea, she would chat about the war and her days at Cambridge {naturally, somewhat judiciously} She recommended Litzi Friedmann and Kim Philby for recruitment by the KGB and acted as an intermediary for Anthony Blunt and Bob Stewart when the rezidentura at the Soviet Embassy in London suspended its operations in February 1940

Born Edith Suschitzky in Vienna in 1908, she was a committed leftist who fled to the UK and became one of the 1930s' most prominent covert talent hunters for Soviet intelligence.After intense police and intelligence interrogations in the 1950s destroyed much of her photographic work and forced her out of the media, she moved to the coast. She spent her later years living an unassuming, quiet life in Brighton running an antique shop, only a few hundred yards from The Lanes Armoury.
Her status as an instrumental operative for the KGB was completely unsuspected by the public during her lifetime. Her role only emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s.

The suitcase will be viewable in the shop from next week.  read more

Code: 26271

A Super Pair of WW2 Badges For A Scottish ATS Girl Based at Rosneath House and Her US Submariners Sweetheart Badge for Crewman of USS Herring, Lost With all Hands Off Matsuwa Island

A regulation WW2 issue ATS cap badge, and a silver US Submariner's sweetheart brooch. The ATS girl served at Rosneath House Dumbartonshire, and her sweetheart was a crewman of USS Herring based in Scotland in Submarine Squadron 50. Tragically the submaring was lost in the Pacific June 1st 1944 off the Japanese Islands. The house was of note as both the home of Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll and as the military base where Operation Torch was planned, and was the location of the important meeting between Churchill, Eisenhower and Montgomery to negotiate Operation Torch: the invasion of North Africa.

The ATS girl, Miss Mary Smith, was not informed of the loss of the submarine for well over six months. She later married after the war.

The Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) in Rosneath served vital support roles for both the Royal Navy and the US Navy (HMS Rosneath/US Navy Base Two). ATS personnel were stationed there to operate switchboards, provide clerical support, maintain vehicles, and run vital communication centers for the Allied amphibious operations.
ATS women managed the administrative and clerical burden at Rosneath House, which became the American staff headquarters for planning operations like the 1942 invasion of North Africa (Operation Torch).

Operating telephones and teleprinters was crucial for coordinating the heavy convoy and amphibious traffic on the Firth of Clyde.
Members of the ATS drove military vehicles and helped maintain transport pools that supplied the bases and surrounding camps

Submarine Squadron 50 (SubRon 50) was a specialized U.S. Navy wolfpack established in September 1942 at New London, Connecticut, and deployed to Scotland to hunt German U-boats and enemy shipping during the Battle of the Atlantic.The squadron consisted of seven brand-new Gato-class fleet submarines—including the USS Herring. Between 1942 and 1943, these vessels operated out of Rosneath, Scotland, making them the only U.S. submarines to operate in European waters during the war.
Assigned to patrol the Bay of Biscay, Norway, and Iceland, as well as support the Operation Torch amphibious landings.
Utilized the Rosneath Naval Base in Dumbartonshire
Operating the USS Beaver (AS-5) as a tender, the unit prowled the approaches to Europe and conducted patrols off North Africa.
Herring's The Atlantic was less fruitful for targets than the Pacific, and the boats in SubRon 50 were hindered by defective torpedoes and mechanical issues.

Because of these limitations and a lack of German shipping targets, Squadron 50 was reassigned to the Pacific theatre in 1943 to combat the Japanese.

On June 1, 1944, during her eighth war patrol, the USS Herring was sunk with all 83 crew members by Japanese shore batteries and depth charges near Matsuwa Island in the Kuriles.
Crew list;
RT2 Fred Harvey Anderson
MoMM2 John Leonard, Jr. Anderson
RM1 James Elbert Armstrong
ENS Salvatore Balestrieri
F1 Jack Lee Blair
S1 J. T. Blevins
S1 Leo Joseph Boucher
TM1 James Joseph Brennan
SC2 John Jack Bronder
S2 Weldon Junior Brown
CK1 Timothy Burkett
MoMM2 Charles E. Burton
StM2 Nathaniel Campbell
MoMMC Malcolm Dillard Carroll
TM3 Robert Allan Carter
TM1 Robert Joseph Chouinard
TM1 Raymond Walter Christopherson
LT John Norvin Compton
MoMM2 Arnold Jerome Cook
ENS Edward Paul Cunningham
EM1 Henry Lester Cushion
MoMM1 James Ray Dawkins
TM3 Robert Earl Devenport
MoMM3 Franklin Kenneth Edginton
MoMM1 William John, Jr. Eitelbach
MoMM3 George William French
F2 Donald Russell Gagnon
TM3 James LeRoy Gregory
EM2 Charles George Groshens
RM3 Clifford Henry Grote
PhMC Armand Alois Guerra
TM3 Paul Blaney Harper
MoMM2 Robert Gerald Haskell
S1 Billy Glen Hill
LT(jg) William Anthony Hofman
SC3 Lawrence Harvey Isbell
MoMM2 John Martin Johnson
S2 Laurel Kenneth Johnson
RM2 Samuel Loy, Jr. Johnson
StM1 Louis Hill Jones, 26-Jan-44 HERRING (SS-233)
EM2 Earl Albert Kelley
LT(jg) Michael Frank, Jr. Kostal
LT Edward Lawrence, Jr. Leahy
TM3 Warren Edwin Lewis
MoMM1 Rex Henry Loftis
RM3 Robert Lawrence Mack
LCDR (XO) Wilbur Jerome Mason
SM3 John Burns Mayes
QMC John William, Jr. McCreary
TM3 Willie Raderick McLendon
SO2 Joel Atwood, Jr. Merriman
EMC Robert Scott Millis
EM2 Gordon Richard Mitchell
F1 Herbert Barnes Much
F2 Lester Odom
MoMMC Harry Joseph O'Howell (AKA Howell, Harry Joseph), 1-Jun-44
GM2 Robert Edgar Payne
FC2 Gabriel Joseph Pepera
S1 James Gordon Perkins
SM3 Carl Eugene Poland
QM3 Omer Paul Potvin
ENS William Bright Pressnall
EM2 Sone Herbert Price
MoMM2 Charles Edward Riley
MoMM3 Donald Leroy Robbins
EM1 Emerson Everett Rockwell
MoMM3 Donald Edwin Ryan
MoMM3 Andrey Harold Saarm
F1 Charles Augustus Schmidt
GM3 William Kenneth Smiley
S1 William Stern
SC3 Robert Ray Stoneking
F1 James Arthur Sutherland
YN2 Frederick Allen Swanson
EM1 Allan Wilson Twigg
EM3 Van Harlan VanMatre
COX Leroy Moroney Vreeland
FC3 George Edward Wagoner
MoMM2 Carman Duncan Walker
EM3 John Robert Walsh
S1 Kenneth Karl Way
TM2 Howard Ray Wilson
S1 Elmer Christian Wuertele
LCDR (CO) David, Jr. Zabriskie.

Her US sailor beau, ‘Eddy’ was from Rhode Island and was 26 when he was declared MIA  read more

Code: 26260

Early War M1910 Feldgrau & Wine Red Wool Cloth Lancer’s Mutze Representing the Colours of a Prussian Uhlans Lancers Regiment. The Very Same Type And Rare Colour Scheme worn by Corporal Adolf Hitler While Serving In The Trenches in WW1.

The very same form of Imperial German army cap worn by Adolf Hitler in WW1 see photos A rare survivor of early WW1 German trench warfare head dress of 1914. In super condition with no mothing. The cockades used during WW1 to represent the National colours and Prussian state was black and white, and the upper cockade, red, white and black.
The type of cap worn by Adolf Hitler is shown in a photo in the gallery wearing his very same type of cap, while serving as a gefreiter in the trenches in WW1. The infantry Mutze was adorned with two roundels (Kokarden) sewn one over the other. The upper Kokarde was known as the Deutsche or Reichs Kokarde, and it was painted in the national colors of red-white-black. The lower Kokarde was painted in the State colours and was known as the Landeskokarde. 1897 Reich's Kokarde
In 1897 a new Reich's Kokarde in Red/White/Black was introduced for all ranks to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kaiser Wilhelm 1st. The Reich's Kokarde was to be worn on the right side of the Pickelhaube, and worn centered between the band and the top row of piping on Kratzchen (Feldmutze)The lower Kokarde was painted in the State colors and was known as the Landeskokarde, and is based in Schlesien - a Prussian State Because the Krätzchen was a vital link in the rather complicated unit colour-coding system, it had a wide-range of colour combinations for the band and piping. A wide coloured band in combination with piping at the cap’s top, and sometimes on the band, indicated the wearer’s branch, or in the cavalry’s case, regiment. It sounds simple, yet the almost endless colour-coding made it so complicated it had little utility. For example, all infantrymen would have a poppy red band and piping. Various shades of red band and piping would also apply to certain regiments of Dragoons, Uhlans, Schwere Reiter and Chevaulegers. Some cavalry regiments, such as Hussars and Cuirassiers, would have their own unique unit colour combination. Certain branches of the army would wear the identical colour combination, such as the technical branches, including engineers, field artillery and transport troops (black band with red piping). This cap has wine red coloured band and piping which usually denotes an Uhlan Regt. The cotton lining is good and complete but the interior wear marks have worn away the interior black regimental ink stamps.

Photos 7,8,& 9 in the gallery are of Corporal Hitler wearing his same cap.  read more

Code: 23679

A Fine & Original Chapka Plate for the 9th Royal Lancers WW1 Issue

With all battle honours up to the Boer War. The last Lancer regiment to engage in Lance on Lance combat in WW1. The chapka was a type of helmet worn by 19th century Polish light cavalry and later adopted by another nations, including Britain.
During the Second Boer War, 1899-1902, the Lancers took part in the following actions: Belmont, Battle of Modder River, Magerfonstien, Relief of Kimberley, and the following Battle of Paardeberg which resulted in Cronje?s surrender. They provided Lord Roberts? escort for his state entry into Bloemfontein. After the war, the 9th returned to Sialkot in the Punjab Although engaged in combat for the whole of the war the Lancers only operated as a cavalry unit during 1914. This was due to the widespread use of machine guns and shelling and also the advent of the tank. For the remainder of the war they operated as infantry in the trenches.

Notable events included a Victoria Cross for Captain Francis Octavius Grenfell for his actions in saving the guns of 119th Battery, Royal Field Artillery on 24 August 1914 (he was later killed in action on 24 May 1915, as was his twin brother, Riversdale, a yeomanry officer who attached to 9th Lancers), and the regiment's participation in the final "lance on lance" action of the First World War on 7 September 1914 at Moncel in which Lieutenant Colonel David Campbell led a charge of two troops of B Squadron and overthrew a squadron of the 1st Guard Dragoons. After Campbell left on promotion he was replaced as commanding officer by Desmond Beale-Browne.

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By the end of the war 274 Lancers had died.

In August 1914 Hume's regiment was in Belgium with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). On 24 August during the Battle of Mons, they charged a large body of German infantry who were advancing to encircle the 5th Division at Audregnies. This famous action saw Captain Francis Grenfell win the Victoria Cross. The 9th Queen's Royal Lancers, or the Delhi Spearmen, were a cavalry regiment of the British Army. They are best known for their roles in the Indian mutiny of 1857, the WW1 Charge at Mons, and for their part in the North African campaign of World War II including the retreat to and the battle of El Alamein in 1942.The 9th Queen's Royal Lancers were originally formed during the Jacobite Risings in 1715. They were formed by Major-General Owen Wynne and were the second cavalry regiment in the British Army. They were initially known as the "9th Dragoons" or "Wynne's Dragoons". In 1717, the regiment embarked for Ballinrobe, in Ireland, and was placed on the Irish establishment.

In 1783 they converted into Light Dragoons, becoming the 9th Light Dragoons, and served in the Irish Rebellion of 1798, Sir Samuel Auchmuty's expedition to the River Plate in 1803, the occupation of Montevideo and Wellington's Peninsula War between 1811 and 1813.

In 1816 they were constituted Lancers and in 1830 were given the distinguished title of "Queen's Royal", in honour of Queen Adelaide, consort of William IV, hence becoming the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers.
The Lancers were first posted to India during the Gwalior Campaign of 1843. They subsequently took part in the First Anglo-Sikh War of 1845-46 and the Second Anglo-Sikh War of 1848-49 where they were often led by Sir Hope Grant and were the first recipients of the Bronze Star Medal.

During the Indian mutiny of 1857, the 9th Lancers earned the name the Delhi Spearmen, a name which is believed to have been given to them by the mutineers themselves. 9th Lancers was present in all three of the most notable events associated with the Indian mutiny, namely, the seizure of Delhi, the seizure of Lucknow and the relief of Lucknow. For their actions the Lancers were awarded twelve Victoria Crosses, more than any other cavalry regiment. They were described by an ally as:-


"The beau ideal of all that British Cavalry ought to be in Oriental countries".  read more

Code: 18936

M43 Luftwaffe Trapezoid Eagle 'Ski Cap' Insignia. Tunic Removed

From a small collection of breast eagles, cap badges, and uniform medals etc acquired from a British Army veteran's family, of WW2 1945 German POW surrendered combatants. Taken from German uniforms worn by the captured soldiers and officers.

Luftwaffe NCOs wore two main styles of ski caps, or Bergmütze. These caps featured fold-down ear and neck flaps secured by either one or two pebbled buttons.The primary variants they wore included, Luftwaffe Mountain Cap (1937 Pattern)
Originally introduced for skiing and mountain sports. It was later authorized for signals and Flak (anti-aircraft) troops stationed in mountainous regions. This cap was made of blue-grey wool or cotton twill and had a slightly shorter visor than standard caps.

Officially introduced in 1943, the M43 replaced earlier side caps and was based directly on the ski cap designs of the Gebirgsjäger (mountain troops). These were widely worn by Luftwaffe ground units and Flak crews.Insignia & Distinguishing Features:Both caps were adorned with the Luftwaffe national eagle emblem and a national tricolour cockade.
NCO (Unteroffizier) caps were unpiped (lacking the silver or gold twisted cords reserved for officers).  read more

Code: 26262

WWII German Kriegsmarine Coastal Artillery Breast Eagle Tunic Removed

From a small collection of breast eagles, cap badges, and uniform medals etc acquired from a veteran's family of WW2 1945 German POW surrendered combatants. Taken from German uniforms worn by the captured soldiers and officers.

The Kriegsmarine Coastal Artillery (Marine-Artillerie) was a dedicated naval branch responsible for protecting Germany's occupied and home coastlines from sea and air attacks. Manned by naval sailors and officers, they operated heavy shore batteries and anti-aircraft guns, eventually integrating into the Atlantic Wall.
Engaging enemy warships, protecting harbors, and defending against amphibious landings.Units: Organized into Naval Coastal Artillery Battalions (Marine-Artillerie-Abteilung or MAA), and Marine Anti-Aircraft Battalions (Marine-Flak).Command: Despite being land-based, these units were strictly under Navy command, led by a regional naval commander known as the Seekommandant.

Naval artillery constituted the most formidable firepower of the Atlantic Wall, ranging from 6.5 cm to 40.6 cm guns.English Channel: Batteries like the Batterie Todt and Batterie Lindemann in the Pas-de-Calais region engaged in long-range duels across the Dover Strait.Notable Survivors: The Longues-sur-Mer Battery in Normandy is a famous example that engaged Allied naval forces on D-Day, and is one of the few in France still retaining its original guns.Scandinavia: Vast networks of heavy batteries were deployed throughout Norway to control shipping lanes.

Unlike Army units placed further inland, naval coastal batteries were stationed directly on the coastline and utilized direct fire control methods similar to those used on warships  read more

Code: 26261