topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 I would appreciate anyones help on finding out what Gunner Stanley Thomas Wiseman 39568 Royal Field Artillery was awarded his Military medal for. He is in the London gazette date 30th Jan 1920 but that is all I have it what he got it for I'm after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonbem Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) The header on the previous page of the Gazette says...Page 1230 | Supplement 31759, 27 January 1920 | London Gazette | The Gazette It also seems he was Battery Sjt Major Edited 18 December , 2021 by jonbem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Author Share Posted 18 December , 2021 Thank you Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) Interesting. His Service Record survives. That must have been in Aug 1914? He went to France 27 Bde RFA 19/8/14 and was wounded and missing 23/8/14? ICRC has this: Edited 18 December , 2021 by charlie962 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 He was 119 Bty 7/8/14 then next noted as posted 28th Res Bty 31/3/15 ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Author Share Posted 18 December , 2021 Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) He is on an Ancestry Tree here with a nice photo c 1918, of him as BSM with 1914 ribbon but not yet MM! Note his full name Stanley Thomas Guy Wiseman (hence initials SOG on ICRC) Courtesy Ancestry and Andrew Maynard What did he risk by going back to France again in 1916? Charlie Edited 18 December , 2021 by charlie962 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivor Anderson Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 His (very detailed) service record is on Ancestry: https://search.ancestry.co.uk/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=1219&h=1470033&tid=&pid=&queryId=91a8afc1420fa8710ac7d6142a552926&usePUB=true&_phsrc=AHE18095&_phstart=successSource Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Author Share Posted 18 December , 2021 I have his Service records from ancestry what I am forced on is just all about his MM and any other records there may be on him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivor Anderson Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) OK. His service record does not indicate when he was a PoW. He was with 119th Bty. RFA when he earned his MM: MM Index Card at The National Archives' reference WO 372/23/186303: Edited 18 December , 2021 by Ivor Anderson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Author Share Posted 18 December , 2021 It all helps thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivor Anderson Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) He was with 119th Battery during 1914-1915. His MM may be a retrospective award connected to that (pre MM) period of service? There is also a service jump between Feb & July 1916?? The 27th Bde. RFA war diary may help? https://wartimememoriesproject.com/greatwar/allied/fartillery.php?pid=9840 Edited 18 December , 2021 by Ivor Anderson Additional information Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) That's an interesting gazette list. Dvr Percy Walter Long earned his well. He was in the British Garrison under siege at Kut el Amara when it surrendered in April 1916. His subsequent exploits in and out of Turkish prison camps is recounted in his book 'Other Ranks of Kut'- a real survivor. Gnr Herbert Pruden was captured at Bullecourt 21/3/1918. He was on a Dulmen List Apr 1918 then a Limburg list 29/5/18. I think these lists were for men who were retained close to the front for working parties and perhaps the advance of Allied forces gave him a chance to escape? His service file survives but the front is inscribed 'released PoW' and he arrived back in England 14/11/18. Perhaps he was a persistant but unsuccessful escaper or perhaps he assisted other? He went off to Canada after the war. Dvr Gomes Wynne Evans was captured early 1915 and arrived back in UK 18/11/18. Perhaps a similar case to Pruden ? Dvr Harry Ramsay also has a surviving service record. France 11/3/15-22/7/16 per his surviving service record. Captured 22/4/15 he made a lengthy 'PoW Statement' that recounts in detail his life in camp and subsequent escape July 1916 with some Canadians to Holland then UK. Wiseman should have made a similar PoW statement but it hasn't come to light in a simple search I made? charlie Edited 22 December , 2021 by charlie962 Correction year of kut surrender Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 9 minutes ago, Ivor Anderson said: He was with 119th Battery during 1915. His MM may be a retrospective award connected to that (pre MM) period of service? There is also a service jump between Feb & July 1916?? Ivor, I've sort of covered that already. If you look at his period of service abroad it is limited to : 2 hours ago, charlie962 said: He was 119 Bty 7/8/14 then next noted as posted 28th Res Bty 31/3/15 ! 2 hours ago, charlie962 said: He went to France 27 Bde RFA 19/8/14 and was wounded and missing 23/8/14? 28th Reserve Bty is a UK based unit and thus by that time he was back in UK. So His MM was quite clearly related to that 14/15 period of imprisonment. charlie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Author Share Posted 18 December , 2021 Thank you Charlie Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivor Anderson Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 6 minutes ago, charlie962 said: 2 hours ago, charlie962 said: He went to France 27 Bde RFA 19/8/14 and was wounded and missing 23/8/14? 28th Reserve Bty is a UK based unit and thus by that time he was back in UK. So His MM was quite clearly related to that 14/15 period of imprisonment. Oops, sorry. Working on another thread too. The 27th Bde. RFA WD for 1914 may help: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14017081 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 It was 23rd or 24th Aug 1914 for which the CO of 119 Bty won the VC withdrawing the guns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 (edited) 19 minutes ago, Ivor Anderson said: The 27th Bde. RFA WD for 1914 may help: There is a detailed report therein by OC 119th Bty for the action of the afternoon of 24/8/14. Four men were missing at the end of the day as well as some 40 men killed and wounded. The previous day the Bty assisted in a reconnaisance but I suspect it is the 24th that is correct date for Wiseman's capture. In the confusion I think exact timekeeping was not the priority. charlie Edited 18 December , 2021 by charlie962 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivor Anderson Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 It is a great example of how retrospective some later MM awards are! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topdeer Posted 18 December , 2021 Author Share Posted 18 December , 2021 Thank you both it has been a great help. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 18 December , 2021 Share Posted 18 December , 2021 Please let us know if you discover his story. (local papers etc) Charlie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlersChampagne Posted 22 December , 2021 Share Posted 22 December , 2021 Very interesting - does anyone know if Percy Long successfully escaped or was a persistent escaper who got recaptured Thanks in advance Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 22 December , 2021 Share Posted 22 December , 2021 (edited) 20 minutes ago, FlersChampagne said: Very interesting - does anyone know if Percy Long successfully escaped or was a persistent escaper who got recaptured Thanks in advance Chris A persistent escaper but always recaptured. He was finally at Nisibin when Armistice was declared. Held a commission in the RAF in WW2 after organising a group to escape from Crete in the face of the advancing Germans. A self-starter, a survivor, do read his book, published 1938, available in reprint via NMP. Charlie Edited 22 December , 2021 by charlie962 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlersChampagne Posted 22 December , 2021 Share Posted 22 December , 2021 Many thanks that's a great help. A very rare award to a Turkish POW attempted escaper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie962 Posted 22 December , 2021 Share Posted 22 December , 2021 There were some well known accounts by officers in Turkey but what makes it rare is that it was an OR, hence MM. I am aware that there were maybe one or two ORs who escaped successfully but I've not managed to follow them up yet. Charlie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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