Hello all, I am researching a man who is on a list of Royal Regiment of Artillery officers and men recorded in the London Gazette at page 3971 on 8 July 1941 as being awarded: The King has been graciously pleased to approve of the publication of the names of the undermentioned as having been commended for brave conduct There are 41 Royal Artillery, followed by three Royal Corps of Signals and then one Auxiliary Territorial Service. I assume this would be for Home Service? due to the date and type of award and lack of a war theatre? Is it unusual to have only a list of Royal Artillery with only the other four that follow, does this suggest one event? (I would expect other regiments, corps and services to also be listed) I would imagine this is for an act of bravery early 1941? My interest is in 786887 Gunner J. Alford. Any assistance would be appreciated. Adam
James Alford, RA attestation was 23.10.28, to reserve 15.2.35. Awarded India General Service Medal with the 4th Light Battery
Thanks for this information about James Alford. The IGSM is with bar North West Frontier 1930-31. He must have been called back off the reserve for WW2
Further to the questions in my opening message, does anyone know if the citations/recommendations still exist and are accessible?
At The National Archives: Search results: King's Commendation for brave conduct | The National Archives
Thanks, any idea if this is a list of recipients or a larger collection of citations? If it's the latter, I may be consulting a private researcher
Am afraid I have no knowledge of what the documents may contain. Looking at this page, King's Commendation for Brave Conduct (1916-1952) the certificate is almost identical to a Mention in Despatches for which it is extremely rare to find the precise circumstances for the award, I wonder if that may be the same, recent post here: Help with "Mentioned in Despatches"? LG article here: Page 365 | Supplement 41285, 14 January 1958 | Lond...
Thanks for the link to that thread, very interesting. I knew an MID could be for anything from good service over a period to a down graded Military Medal for a brave act under fire. I had assumed the Commendation was for a brave act but not in the face of the enemy such as rescuing someone in the blitz, pulling a pilot from a crashed plane, helping contain a munitions factory blaze, almost a downgraded George Medal. That London Gazette link from 1956 suggests that the King's Commendation is not awarded to service personal, which is confusing? The 40 officers and men on the list with Alford, are these all for home service or are some for foreign theatres facing the enemy. We may never know. Or maybe it came down to the interpretation of the commanding officer or particular review board when it came to an MID or a King's Commendation
Adam, It has been a while but I hope you get this. These awards were for gallantry during the blitz. The three Royal Signals awards were for bravery during the raid on Coventry on 8/9 April 1941. The award to Negus (ATS) was also for bravery at Coventry, in this case for the raid in November 1940. As regards the Gunners, unfortunately I have no information on the specifics. Nick
Some of the links above don't seem to be opening; however, coincidentally enough, a wartime King's Commendation for Brave Conduct was discussed on UK TV 4 June 2023 (last night's) Antique Roadshow programme: explaining their WW2 origins, how they were made out of a plastic and how recipients received two items.
The Gazette online has been having a bit of a hissy fit today - it may open if you persevere – it did for me eventually! Frederick George Anstey Rescue Party Member
