The recipient of this medal is believed to be VX44669 Private James Robert Clancy of Thougla Upper which was in the Shire of Upper Murray. Private Clancy was born in Sandy Creek on 30 August 1903 enlisted in the Army on 8 July 1940 and was discharged on 8 March 1943. He served in the Signals Section of the 2nd Australian Anti-Aircraft Regiment.Municipalities in Australia recognised their residents who enlisted in World Wars by the issue of some form of recognition. This is a nice example of a medallic form of such recognition.A collection of items presented by the family of WWll Australian Army serviceman James Robert Clancy VX44669. Clancy was a signalman in the 2/2 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment. Refer to items 00456.1, 00456.2, 00456.3 and 00456.4.

Souvenir tea towels made for the 40th anniversary commemoration of the formation of the Australian Women's Army Service which was formed on the 13th August 1941. There are eight of these linen tea towels screen printed in colour on a plain background. There are blue, maroon and green examples. The tea towels feature the badge of the A.W.A.S. ASSOCIATION VIC. and the date of formation.The tea towels have the following screen printed in colour: The badge of the A.W.A.S. ASSOCIATION VIC. with "A.W.A.S." above and "AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S ARMY SERVICE" around the lower part of the badge. Beneath that "13 AUGUST 1941" and the note "Hand printed in Australia"world war 2, ww2, women, women's, awas, a.w.a.s., australian, nurse, nursing, service,

Set of four service medals issued to Australian Army serviceman James Marshall, VX103257, Lance Corporal, 3rd Australian Division Signals, 2nd AIF who served in Bouganville during World War 2. Set consists of the Australian Service Medal 1939-1945, the War Medal 1939-1945, the 1939-1945 Star and the Pacific Star, all medals are complete with ribbons and have been mounted on a common bar for attachment to the wearer's clothing.

Set of three service medals issued to Australian Army serviceman Thomas Patrick Flood, number 3757, Private, 8th Battalion, 1st AIF who served during World War 1. Set consists of the 1914-1915 star, the British War Medal and the Allied Victory Medal, these medals are complete with original ribbons and are unmounted. A small cardboard box addressed to the recipient is enclosed. Presumably this box was originally used to deliver one of the medals by mail.

1914-1918 Memorial Plaque In early 1920 it was announced that the next-of-kin of all Australian servicemen and women whose deaths were attributable to the First World War would receive a memorial plaque and scroll "as a solace for bereavement and as a memento". The memorial plaques were not uniquely Australian. In fact they were designed and produced in Britain and issued to commemorate all those who died as a result of war service from within the British Commonwealth. The idea for the plaques was originally conceived mid-way through the war. In 1917 a competition was announced to obtain a suitable design and 800 entries were eventually received. The winner, Mr. E. Carter Preston of Liverpool, England, was chosen in 1918. He was awarded a prize of 250 pounds. Mr Manning Pike directed the manufacture of the memorial plaques at the Memorial Plaque Factory set up at Acton, London. Some later plaques were also made at the Woolwich Arsenal. The cost of manufacturing so many plaques must have been considerable. Each plaque had the name of the soldier commemorated individually embossed (some were engraved) as part of the design. The full name was given without any indication of rank or honours to show the equality of sacrifice of all those who had lost their lives. The scroll designed to accompany the plaques was of thick paper, headed by the royal coat-of-arms, and bore the following message: "He whom this scroll commemorates was numbered among those who, at the call of King and Country, left all that was dear to them, endured hardness, faced danger, and finally passed out of the sight of men by the path of duty and self-sacrifice, giving up their own lives that others might live in freedom. Let those that come after see that his name is not forgotten". Underneath the message the serviceman or woman’s name, rank, honours and unit were written by hand in red ink. Because of the late arrival in Australia of the plaques many scrolls were sent out separately. A message from the King, "I join with my grateful people in sending you this memorial of a brave life given for others in the Great War", was included with the scroll. The first plaques were distributed in Australia in 1922. Each plaque was sent out from Base Records Office at Victoria Barracks in Melbourne by second-class mail. Approximately 60,000 plaques were issued in Australia. Families of deceased members of the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army Nursing Service also received plaques and scrolls Collection of items relating to the death of Private Arthur Ernest Bolger, service number 01338, 14th Battalion, Australian Imperial Forces, who was killed in action at Gallipoli on 27th April, 1915. Private Bolger was from Victoria and was recorded as being the first Frankston serviceman to be killed in the ANZAC landing at Gallipoli. For more information refer: < > see items 00014.1 and 00014.2

Souvenir tea towels made for the 40th anniversary commemoration of the formation of the Australian Women's Army Service which was formed on the 13th August 1941. These tea towels are linen and are screen printed in olive green on a plain background. The tea towels feature the badge of the Australian Commonwealth Military Forces. These tea towels have the following screen printed in colour: The 'rising sun' badge of the Australian Commonwealth Military Forces with "A.W.A.S." uppermost and "40th ANNIVERSARY" above the badge and "AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S ARMY SERVICE" below the badge. Beneath that "1941 - 1981" and the note "PURE LINEN" world war 2, ww2, awas, a.w.a.s., nurses, service, womens, women's, army, australia,

Set of three service medals issued to Australian Army serviceman, Percy Edward Cherry, service number 3278, Private, who served with an Army A.A.M.C. detail during World War 1 (according to records). This set consists of the 1914-1915 star, the British War Medal 1914-1918 and the Victory Medal, all medals are complete with ribbons and have been mounted on a common bar for attachment to the wearer's clothing. Note: these medals are all stamped with the number M2-105682 which is presumed to indicate a second issue set of medals to this serviceman. The medals are actually stamped with the unit being A.S.C.

Collection of photographs which were the property of Ronald Keith Churches, service number VX34599, who was a Sergeant in the Australian Army 2/9th Field Ambulance Unit during World War 2. Churches enlisted on the 12th July, 1940 and was discharged on the 4th December, 1945. The 2/9th FA was formed on the 1st July, 1940 at Dandenong, Victoria and was initially based at Seymour (Puckapunyal). The 2/9th FA relocated to Bonegilla in September 1940 and embarked for Singapore in February, 1941. The men of the unit were taken prisoner by the Japanese in February, 1942. Churches spent the remainder of World War 2 as a POW in Changi Prison.

Photographs (82 off) from the collection of Sergeant R. K. Churches, service number VX34599. These monochrome 35mm photographs were taken by Churches whilst a POW at Changi, Singapore. His unit, the Australian Army 2/9th Field Ambulance, surrendered to the Japanese when Singapore fell in February 1942 during World War 2. (refer item number 00320)

Collection of items, including documents and photographs, relating to the World War 1 Australian Army service of Private Alfred Charles Hill. A.C. Hill enlisted on 14th April, 1916 at the age of 44 years and 6 months. He lived in Frankston, Victoria and was married to Charlotte Eliza. He served with the 2nd Pioneer Battalion and embarked from Melbourne on the 28th July, 1916 on the HMAT Thermistocles (ship A32). He was in England and France briefly, returning to Australia on 22nd July, 1917 and discharged on the 5th November, 1917 as medically unfit. Hill was involved with the formation of the Frankston RSL Sub Branch in 1918/1919 and was Sub Branch Treasurer from 1919 'til 1923. see following items 00325.1 to 00325.8

In 1899, British soldiers and sailors were in South Africa fighting the second Boer War which lasted from 1899 to 1902. Queen Victoria was concerned about the morale of her army and navy and wanted to do something to lift their spirits. She would send chocolate to all of her army and navy serving in South Africa (including Australian contingents) as a Christmas/New Year gift in 1899/1900. The chocolate manufacturer, Cadbury, which since around 1854 had a Royal Warrant to supply Queen Victoria with cocoa and chocolate, was contacted and requested to produce the royal bars of chocolate, each with its own individual tin. This put Richard and George Cadbury in a dilemma because, as Quakers, they were pacifists and did not agree with the war. However they did not want to refuse a request from the Queen. To prevent their confectionery rivals from accusing them of going against their principles, their solution was to invite fellow Quakers, Joseph Fry and Joseph Rowntree to form a temporary three-way partnership to complete the order. Forty thousand tins, designed and made by Fry, were produced in two different sizes. The larger of the tins (15 x 9 cm) has a gold coloured rim around the edge of the lid and contained two layers of chocolate. The slightly smaller or rather thinner tin (16 x 8 cm) has a blue rim around the edge of the lid and contained one layer of chocolate. The design of the lid of both sizes is the same. It was decided by all three companies, that the tins would carry no brand name. However Queen Victoria was not amused by this decision; she wanted her army and navy to know that she was sending them quality British chocolate. As a compromise, the Cadbury name appeared on interior packaging of the chocolate. The tins remained unbranded. The empty tins had a more sombre use for for men killed in action. The tins, containing their few personal belongings, were sent home to the next of kin. The tins were not large and may have contained items such as medals, talismans, coins, jewellery, photos, letters and dog tags.Sheet metal tin with hinged lid. In the middle of the red lid of the tin is a gold-coloured embossed picture of Queen Victoria's head. To the left is Queen Victoria's insignia, and to the right are the words "South Africa 1900" and is inscribed "I wish you a happy New Year" and signed Victoria running along the bottom.gift to defence personnel from queen victoria. gift sent at christmas / new year in 1899/1900, gift sent at christmas / new year 1899/1900

"ARMY" Magazine for Feb-March 1945 dealing with Australian troops in the Pacific war, with photos and mapsWW2, Pacific

"ARMY" magazine, Vol 5 Number 2, January 1945, covering Australian troops in Pacific war of WW2, with maps and photos

173 AIRBORNE BRIGADE (SEPARATE) US ARMY 1 RAR BATTLE GROUP BIEN HOA 1965-1966 On May 5, 1965, the Brigade deployed to South Viet Nam as the first US Army ground combat unit in that war. Upon arrival, the 1st Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment (1 RAR) and a battery from New Zealand (161Royal NZ Artillery) were attached to the Brigade -- making the 173d Airborne the only multi-national combat unit in the war. Initially headquartered in Bien Hoa, the Brigade operated in the four provinces around Saigon. (Xuan Loc, Long Khanh, Phuoc Long & Phuoc Tuy), but (in its roll as a "Fire Brigade") also went to the Central Highlands (Pleiku / Kontum) to fight Viet Cong. The 173d also conducted constant operations against the southern stronghold of the VC Main Force in the legendary Iron Triangle in War Zone D. The brigade was organized as a balanced airborne combat force consisting of two infantry battalions, an artillery battalion, a support battalion, an engineer company, a cavalry troop, an armour company, and a headquarters company. Upon activation, it became the first and only separate airborne brigade in the United States Army. This was the beginning of a long series of "Firsts" for the Brigade. On 5 May 1965, it became the first US Army ground combat unit committed to the war in South Vietnam, where further organizational changes were to take place. Australians attached to the Brigade were: 1st Battalion, of the Royal Australian Regiment (I RAR) and support troops of the 4/19th Prince of Wales Light Horse Regiment (1Troop), 105 Field Battery Royal Australian Artillery, 161 Field Battery Royal New Zealand Artillery, 3 Field Troop Royal Australian Engineers, 161 Reconnaissance Flight, Royal Australian Army Air Corps, 1st Australian Logistical Support Company. The Brigade's two infantry battalions, the First Battalion of the 503' Infantry (1/503`d) and the Second Battalion, of the 503`d Infantry (2/503`) and the attached Australians of 1 RAR constituted the infantrymen available to the Brigade. Their mission was to protect the Bien Hoa Air Base and to close with and destroy or capture the enemy. This was in fact the first operational ground force formed under the ANZUS Defence Treaty. ANZUS was a mutual defence treaty signed in 1951 between Australia, New Zealand and the United States of America. In 1965 the spirit of this treaty appeared as 173d Airborne Brigade (Sep) a tri-national brigade. The only such tri-national fighting force formed during the Vietnam War. On deployment to South Vietnam in 1965, 1 Troop A Squadron, 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse Regiment was part of the US 173rd Airborne Brigade combat group. Flag, two colours divided vertically, hoist half mid blue, fly half red. Badge of 173rd Airborne Brigade (730 x 490 mm) in centreflag, 173rd airborne, south vietnam

Framed B & W photo of mounted Sgt J H Nott, 4th Light Horse Regiment, at Broadmeadows Camp 1914 4th Australian Light Horse Regiment. Sergeant (later Major) J H Nott MC and Bar. Broadmeadows Camp 1914. A05116 Courtesy Australian War Memorial and the Army History Unit