Did T E Lawrence apply for his medals?

[Dragoon]

Hello, 

Did T E Lawrence ( as we all know AKA Lawrence of Arabia ) apply for his medals?

If Officers didn't apply for them, a MIC was not produced, and I can't find one for him.

There are MID ones that's all, non for BWM and Victory medals etc, not that I can see anyway?

Doing this post for a friend who's interested in TEL.

Thank you good people for your time.

 

Chris 

[Jervis]

I don’t know the answer. 

 

However I vaguely recall reading that certain high profile individuals’ records were removed from Ancestry collection. e.g. Churchill. So possibly TEL’s was just not made available publicly. 

 

Jervis. 

[Skipman]

"Officers had to apply for their campaign medals but Lawrence had no interest in awards for himself and declined, so he does not have an entry," explained National Archives' military expert William Spencer. "  BBC News Channel

 

Mike

[sadbrewer]

If you look at photos from the 1920's in his RAF uniform, he isn't wearing the ribbons.

[David Filsell]

"He declined" his medals - how wonderfully TEL!

[Dragoon]

Thank you all for your informative answers, greatly appreciated, and sorry for my late reply.

 

Chris 

[Ghazala]

Colonel T E Lawrence  CB DSO Croix de Guerre, Chevalier of the Legion of Honour

 

Recommended for the VC

 

Awards and commemorations

 

Lawrence was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath and awarded the Distinguished Service Order and the French Légion d'Honneur, though in October 1918 he refused to be made a Knight Commander of the British Empire. A bronze bust of Lawrence was placed in the crypt of St Paul's Cathedral alongside the tombs of Britain's greatest military leaders.  An English heritage blue plaque marks Lawrence's childhood home at 2 Polstead Road, Oxford, OX2, and another appears on his London home at 14 Barton Street Westminster, SW1. In 2002, Lawrence was named in the BBC's list of the 100 Greatest Britons following a UK-wide vote.

 

TEL to Robert Graves and Basil Liddle-Hart

 

I was gazetted a CB for taking Akaba and promoted to field rank (Major) from Captain so as to be eligible for the CB.  Wingate recommended for the VC instead, but it was quite properly (and and much to my relief) refused.   My report to Clayton admitted no individual effort of the VC character.   It is not given for good staff work, or brainy leadership, but for courage of the fighting sort - and I am not a fighter.

 

My lieutenant colonelcy came in early 1918, to put me on the level,with Joyce, who was GSO 1 for liaison with the Arab Regular Army, as I was GSO 1 for liaison with bedouins - a scheme worked out by Dawnay.  It isn't true to say I accepted it.   I just went on working whatever they called me.

 

My odd pip to full Colonel, came  when I wanted to return to England after Damascus.   I went to GHQ and asked for the promotion.   They were surprised.   I explained it was to get a berth on the staff train through Italy.   So they told me to put it up - special, temporary and acting.   I called it the 'Taranto' rank.

[Moonraker]

On 29/05/2020 at 20:39, sadbrewer said:

If you look at photos from the 1920's in his RAF uniform, he isn't wearing the ribbons.

Displaying the Distinguished Service Order and the French Légion d'Honneur as a humble airman would have raised both eyebrows and questions!

[Coldstreamer]

I think it was quite common to go back into the ranks after the war. It wasn't cheap being an officer.

I've seen one coldstreamer commissioned from ranks in both ww1 AND ww2!

[edwin astill]

Lawrence's account of his time in the RAF ("The Mint") tells of ex-officers enlisting as airmen in the ranks with him.  Temporary gentlemen who had lost their gentility once the war ended!   They tended to congregate together, apart from the rough types from the slums.  Some of them, as recruits, may have had more medals than the drill sergeants bawling at them.

 

Edwin