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#1
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Authenticity Opinions on Machine Gun Corps badge, please?
Greetings--
I'm hoping that someone more knowledgeable than me may be able to offer opinions as to the authenticity of this item for sale on Ebay. I'm hoping to acquire an example of the Machine Gun Corps badge that my great grandfather might have worn (he was originally with the Grenadier Guards during WWI, but after his discharge from that service enlisted in what is consistently referred to in his British Army records as "Machine Gun Corps" so I think this is the correct badge). Please and thanks! Last edited by GMGC; 21-09-20 at 12:35 AM. |
#2
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Firstly, the badge you refer to - is a fake. The MGC badge was in gilding metal (an alloy - but used for thousands of badges) and NEVER made in white metal.
However, your ggfather might have been in the Guards Machine Gun Battalion - rather than the 'MGC'. - which had a different badge. (I have an interested in the MGC too as my gfather was in the MGC - though not guards) Last edited by KLR; 20-09-20 at 08:03 PM. |
#3
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Quote:
I too have wondered whether I should be seeking the Machine Gun Corps, Machine Gun Regiment or Machine Gun Battalion badge. The answer is still a mystery to me. Grampy was in 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards before the war, went on reserve and emigrated to Canada, then was recalled at the start of WWI and returned to England, and then was shipped on to France (earning the 1914 start with the 1st Bn GGuards); he then was sent home to England in spring of 1916--can't figure out why--then later reinlisted under a different regimental number in the Machine Gun Corps, but I'm not at all clear that this means he was part of the *Guards* MGC. Documents relating to that later service refer to "D Battalion M.G.C." and "D.M.G.C." and "M.G.C. at Chiseldon" and "Machine Gun Corps." So maybe he was a member of the Guards Machine Gun Battalion and they just called it "Machine Gun Corps" in their correspondence at the time? Very confusing. |
#4
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Post on thread (or private message me if you prefer) his name, number etc and let's see if we can find more info.
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#5
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A very quick look at 'The Long, Long Trail" site shows:
D” MG Battalion Formed from the amalgamation of the East Riding Yeomanry and the Lincolnshire Yeomanry, in Egypt on 7 April 1918. Moved to Western Front by early June 1918. Redesignated 102nd Bn MGC in August 1918, attached as First Army troops. |
#6
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Thanks, Leigh! His name was Arthur James Eggleton, and his Grenadier Guards number was 10804. His MGC number was 183428. According to this document, his dates of service for the MGC began on 11 July 1918 and concluded 6 March 1919, but I have never heard that he served overseas during that second term of service--he left the MGC service at Chiseldon (sometimes spelled Chisledon) and I believe he remained in England the full time after he left France in Spring of 1916 and before he was demobilized at Chiseldon in Spring 1919.
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#7
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Sorry, I havn't found any more info.
Ancestry doesn't work well on my phone so I can't read documents as they're too small and won't magnify. I'll have a look as and when I get to a desk top. |
#8
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Quote:
Last edited by GMGC; 22-09-20 at 02:30 AM. |
#9
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GMGC,
I believe that one is also a fake, due to the fact that the crown is cut straight across the bottom. It is my understanding that a good one has a rounded bottom to the crown. Take a look at this one for a good example of a real one. https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30071376 Terry |
#10
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I concur with Terry! Look at the crown.
Have you decided whether you want a MGC or a GMGC badge? good luck |
#11
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Thanks to you both--so much to learn...
No, I'm still not sure which badge is correct. I don't find any reference to "Guards" in records of his second term of Imperial military service, just "MGC" (and usually just abbreviated like that, not even spelled out). I'm assuming that means he left the GGuards and joined a different Army branch, but that's based only on a few mentions in different documents--his second enlistment number hasn't turned up anything definitive yet. |
Tags |
british, machine gun corps, mgc, wwi |
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