64916 Sjt W I Bonner

[Anthony Bagshaw]

Have got in my collection a Victory Medal awarded to 64916 Sjt William Isaac Bonner 11th Sherwood Foresters.

His MIC and MM card have arrived today and the Bn is clearly shown as 11th Battalion and campaign as Italy.

Now the problem, he is not listed in the awards section in the back of the Battalion History.

He is also listed in the Gallantry Awards of the Sherwood Foresters.

Any ideas why this could be??

[CROONAERT]

Have got in my collection a Victory Medal awarded to 64916 Sjt William Isaac Bonner 11th Sherwood Foresters.

His MIC and MM card have arrived today and the Bn is clearly shown as 11th Battalion and campaign as Italy.

Now the problem, he is not listed in the awards section in the back of the Battalion History.

He is also listed in the Gallantry Awards of the Sherwood Foresters.

Any ideas why this could be??

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

When was the battalion history written? Was the MM a late war gazette date?

There are many reasons for an omission. The most common one is simple human error - in other words he was missed off the list when the history was written.#

Dave.

[Stebie9173]

The date was 21-10-1918

64916 Sjt. W. I. Bonner, Notts. & Derby. R. (Leicester) .

http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk/archiveVi...&selHonourType=

Steve.

[Anthony Bagshaw]

Dave, Steve,

Thanks for your replies.

Dave,

I believe the bn history was written in 1921 and as Steve has kindly pointed out his gazette date was October 1918.

Steve,

Thank you for that link, much obliged!

[John_Hartley]

Anthony

Suggest you PM "Greenwoodman". Richard has a special interest in 11/Sherwoods and has the full War Diary (I think)

John

[Anthony Bagshaw]

Anthony

Suggest you PM "Greenwoodman". Richard has a special interest in 11/Sherwoods and has the full War Diary (I think)

John

John,

Did think about that, but don't want to put on him!

Might drop him an email to see what he suggests.

Thanks

[Andrew Hesketh]

Anthony,

Richard (Greenwoodman) is the man to ask. From my experience any question on the 11th is welcome to him.

[Greenwoodman]

As an explanation to other contributors, it seems, from the date of the Gazette, that the MM was won at the Battle of the Asiago, 15th June 1918, probably at the same time as my Grandad. The War Diary of the battalion for 30/06/18 mentions a group of ten and then a group of four who were awarded the MM. That is unlike other entries in the diary where they were all grouped together. My Grandad was in the four "extras", and it seemed that they were outside the usual awards process. It may be because the CO was badly wounded when winning his VC - he took a mixed group of various runners, signallers etc up a hill to recapture a trench held by the Austrians. From the accounts I've seen, there were no other officers with this group - and the CO was in no fit state to pass recommendations on. His memoir states "In fact I could only rely on my second in command as acting commanding officer to discover, as best he could, who in the battalion merited awards and recommend them".

"A" Coy's commander, Vera Brittain's brother, was killed in this attack, so it may also be that "A" Coy's admin was not all it should have been, and recommendations may have been slow in going forward.

The battalion also used appointment to Lance Corporal as "reward for distinguished service in the field". Battalion members also received Italian and French awards during this period. So there was a fair bit going on! Seems that Bonner has slipped through the cracks.

As regards the battalion history and the "List of Awards" - my grandad's MM is mentioned in the narrative, but does not appear in the List! With his name and that of Bonner's missing, we know that the List in incomplete!

[Anthony Bagshaw]

Richard,

Thank you very much for your reply.

Thank yuo for your help with this, i really apreciate it.