Need Help

[nshighlander]

I just pick up a pair with a Bel C d G to 1262000 James LeRoy Armstrong.He was from New Brunswick Canada.He was with the 6th or 7th Seige Battery.His medals say CGA?Could someone tell me what CGA stands for?Also is there any history on the Seige batteries from Canada?Plus what were the Bel Croix de Guerre given for and can you trace them?

Cheers

Dave

Doing nothing wrong in Canada

PS please forgive the spelling

[johnreed]

I would suggest Canadian Garrison Artillery.

John

[johnreed]

Search the Canadian Archives for 1st Canadian Heavy Artillery Group War Diary.

John

[Terry]

Hi Dave,

Congratulations on picking up this group. I had heard it was at the last Great Village show (I wasn't able to attend).

I have the history of the 6th Siege Battery, and while I haven't gone through it in any detail, I did note Armstrong's name in the nominal roll at the end of the book. If I can be of any help let me know,

Cheers,

Terry

[nshighlander]

Hi

Terry.I had a reply but it`s gone.Time to play 100? Is this book hard to find?What would the CdG be awarded for?Also can you trace them?There will be another show in GV end of Jan23 I think.I`ll keep you posted.One more what is the difference in the artillery(siege or Garrision all the rest).Sorry it must be the navy starting in me.

Meery Xmas

Cheers Dave

[Terry]

Hi Dave,

The book isn't particularly common - Byron found this one for me. Soft cover, 70 pages, published by the battery association to mark the 50th anniversary of the unit, and privately distributed to the members. I can't recall what it cost.

It deals with the creation of the battery in Saint John in 1914 (first numbered the 7th); its training in England; and then the service in France. There is a list of those killed; positions where the battery was in action, with numbers of rounds fired; and the nominal roll, but no mention of honours and awards.

Foreign decorations were normally allocated by HQ to the units, and given to deserving soldiers. There can't have been many handed out to junior soldiers in an artillery battery. Armstrong may well have been the only recipient of the Belgian Croix de Guerre in the unit. F.SD.Dowe's book The Canadian Military Register of Foreign Awards has the entry Armstrong,J.L. - 1262000 - Bdr - 2 CFA - CG 51.24.5.19. The last part means Canada Gazette Number 51 of the 24th of May,1919. A total of 391 Belgian Croix de Guerres were awarded to Canadians.

The garrison and seige units operated the heavier guns, the 6" and 8" howitzers and 60-pounders instead of the 13-pounders of the RCHA, and the 18-pounders and 4.5" howitzers of the field artillery.

[nshighlander]

Thanks Terry.Would the CdG be more of a Thank You honour?

Cheers

Dave

[Terry]

Dave,

If you recall that there were both immediate and periodic awards of decorations; the immediate award was more likely to be for a specific act of bravery while the periodic gong was for perhaps some sustained length of noteworthy service. My guess is that HQ would notify the unit that, say, two Croix de Guerres were being allocated to them, and for the CO to select two deserving recipients. He would then nominate the two lucky fellows. Possibly they were people who had been previously recommended for a decoration but had not been given one. Hard to say without some in depth research.