Gurkha Africa Star

[grndevil44]

Picked up this Star the other week, thought it was interesting that it had the chaps name on the back, I hope that I am able to retrive some info on him via the Gurkha museum based in Winchester

Anyone know a good book relating to Gurkhas in North Africa ? I have one on order from the Museum

Cheers

[Robert Shoaf]

Looks like it's marked to the 4th Gurkha Rifles. There are many, many books out there on the Gurkhas, including many on WWII of course. I will try to remember to check my library at home.
It seems that most Indian Army units had their medals privately named in WWII, as opposed to the British Army, which maddeningly ceased medal naming for that conflict.
I had a nice group to the 5th Gurkha Rifles that had every medal named.

Bob Shoaf

[peter monahan]

The Indian Army issued all WWII medals named. This one looks like a typical Calcutta Mint naming job: small capitals in uneven rows. A very nice piece.

There doesn't appear to be a regimental history easily accessible but Col. John masters, later a novelist, wrote "Bugles and A Tiger" about his service with 4GR in the Middle East during WWII. Good read and full of interesting tidbits about Gurkha life and lore.

Peter

[grndevil44]

thanks Bob and Peter, Interesting to hear a Calcutta mint, thanks for the book name aswell,

Strange that just the commonwealth countries named their medals

[paddywhack]

i think one of the reasons why the british didnt name the main war service/campaign medals was it took such an effort to main the ww1 medals(think i read that it took 3 years to name the majority of them!) that they just didnt want to undertake that effort again! still means that any named to ww2 british medals are great to get!!

[grndevil44]

i think one of the reasons why the british didnt name the main war service/campaign medals was it took such an effort to main the ww1 medals(think i read that it took 3 years to name the majority of them!) that they just didnt want to undertake that effort again! still means that any named to ww2 british medals are great to get!!

interesting, thanks

[Robert Shoaf]

Some book suggestions:

" The Gurkhas" by Byron Farwell

" Gurkhas at War 1939 to Present" edit, by J.P. Cross

" The Indian Army and the King's Enemies 1900-1947"
by Charles Chenevix Trench

" Unfading Honour, The Story of the Indian Army 1939-1945"
by Maj. Gen. J.G. Elliot

" The Gurkhas" ( Osprey Elite Series) by Mike Chappell


The 2nd Battn., 4th Gurkha Rifles served in the 10th Indian
Infantry Brigade, 10th Indian Division, in Iraq, Iran, North Africa,
and Italy.
In North Africa , the division was deployed in piecemail fashion on
the Gazala Line in June, 1942, against the wishes of the division
G.O.C., who was relieved of commamd.
He was right, as the division was overrun by the Afrika Korps, with
heavy losses. It was then sent to Cyprus to recover and retrain,
then to Italy in early 1944, where it finished the war.

Bob Shoaf

[grndevil44]

thanks Bob for the book list, I was also able to get a response from the very kind people at the Museum in Winchester, here is what they could tell me..you are spot on though! thanks

I can tell you that 46662 Rifleman Balbir Thapa was a Prisoner of War, No 140010, in Moosberg in southern Bavaria.

Rfn Balbir would have been serving with the 2nd Battalion 4th Prince of Wales’ Own Gurkha Rifles. 2/4GR’s overseas service in World War Two started in May 1941 with service in Iraq followed by Syria and Persia. In April 1942 the Battalion arrived in Egypt and on 5/6th June, was involved in the Battle of the Cauldron. Sadly the Battle did not go well for the Allies and a large part of 10th Indian Infantry Brigade (of which 2/4th GR formed part) were casualties or captured. The Eighth Army had launched a counter-attack against the Afrika Korps forces that were inside the “Cauldron” (a fortified “box” in the Gazala defensive line in North Africa). This was codenamed 'Aberdeen', but went disastrously wrong from the start, with an infantry tank brigade being destroyed in minefields and 10th Indian infantry Brigade attacking wrong positions. This left the remainder of the force, the 22nd Armoured Brigade to be repulsed easily by the untouched German defences. British losses for this operation were 150 tanks, 133 guns and 6,000 troops. Most of the 2nd Battalion were made prisoners and it is likely that Rfn Balbair became a prisoner of war on this day.

In September 1939, a prisoner of war camp Stalag VII-A had been built at Moosberg to accommodate 10,000 prisoners. By early 1945, the number of prisoners had grown to more than 80,000, many working in local industries and farms. It is likely that the presence of this camp close to the town centre spared it from large-scale bombing. Rfn Balbir on first being made prisoner would have gone to a Prisoner of war camp in Italy but then, with the Italian surrender in 1943, he would have been moved to Germany

...

[Robert Shoaf]

thanks Bob for the book list, I was also able to get a response from the very kind people at the Museum in Winchester, here is what they could tell me..you are spot on though! thanks

I can tell you that 46662 Rifleman Balbir Thapa was a Prisoner of War, No 140010, in Moosberg in southern Bavaria.

Rfn Balbir would have been serving with the 2nd Battalion 4th Prince of Wales’ Own Gurkha Rifles. 2/4GR’s overseas service in World War Two started in May 1941 with service in Iraq followed by Syria and Persia. In April 1942 the Battalion arrived in Egypt and on 5/6th June, was involved in the Battle of the Cauldron. Sadly the Battle did not go well for the Allies and a large part of 10th Indian Infantry Brigade (of which 2/4th GR formed part) were casualties or captured. The Eighth Army had launched a counter-attack against the Afrika Korps forces that were inside the “Cauldron” (a fortified “box” in the Gazala defensive line in North Africa). This was codenamed 'Aberdeen', but went disastrously wrong from the start, with an infantry tank brigade being destroyed in minefields and 10th Indian infantry Brigade attacking wrong positions. This left the remainder of the force, the 22nd Armoured Brigade to be repulsed easily by the untouched German defences. British losses for this operation were 150 tanks, 133 guns and 6,000 troops. Most of the 2nd Battalion were made prisoners and it is likely that Rfn Balbair became a prisoner of war on this day.

In September 1939, a prisoner of war camp Stalag VII-A had been built at Moosberg to accommodate 10,000 prisoners. By early 1945, the number of prisoners had grown to more than 80,000, many working in local industries and farms. It is likely that the presence of this camp close to the town centre spared it from large-scale bombing. Rfn Balbir on first being made prisoner would have gone to a Prisoner of war camp in Italy but then, with the Italian surrender in 1943, he would have been moved to Germany

...

Very interesting information, thanks.

Bob Shoaf