|
|
Post by biteybird on May 19, 2015 5:11:51 GMT -5
For any history buffs out there, I thought you might be interested in seeing the differences in the Australian Army 'Rising Sun' badges between 1915 - 2000s.
Here is an original 1915 Rising Sun badge given to me by Stanley Graham (World War 1 veteran, who has now passed away) during 'Operation Western Front', in which I played the Last Post at Remembrance services in France and Belgium in 1993.
Here is the Rising Sun badge from my slouch hat in 2001 (when I was medically discharged from the Army).
And here are the 2 badges next to each other. The 1915 one is slightly smaller and is (obviously) more labour-intensive, having the crown and other parts beaten out by hand in sharper relief.
Well, it's just a bit of trivia I thought my domestic and overseas friends might be interested in... |
|
|
|
Post by easttex on May 19, 2015 12:54:48 GMT -5
Hmmm, the newer one might be considered more conventionally "pretty" but the older one speaks more of craftsmanship, and is, to me, by far the more interesting.
Speaking of army matters, legend has it that sometime in the past, post US Civil War, the Army Officer's Guide included a quote to the effect that "the enlisted man is stupid, but sly and cunning, and bears considerable watching." I used to enjoy trotting that one out to my sailors, purely for laughs. But I sometimes wonder if there is something like that in the Quaker's Guide to Humans. Your human is stupid, but.... |
|
|
|
Post by biteybird on May 21, 2015 6:05:30 GMT -5
Ha, Easttex, I can just imagine the merry hell you put your underlings through! Were you stationed on a Navy vessel? If so, did you get a beer ration every day? Here it was two cans per day per sailor, but they were opened and if you knew the 'right' people you could bribe them not to open the cans, then exchange them for cigarettes etc. to barter for other stuff at sea. (We had several ex-Navy guys that swapped to the Army). Now, your quote puts me in mind of the recordings of comedian/pianist Tom Lehrer in the 1960s (hysterical stuff, even now!) and his comment that during National Service, due to an administrative error, he reached the esteemed rank of "Corporal without Portfolio".  |
|
|
|
Post by easttex on May 21, 2015 8:05:52 GMT -5
I like to think I was a pretty good boss, but I suppose we all like to think that of ourselves. I was never assigned to a ship. Beer ration? In the United States Navy? Are you kidding? We're far too Puritan for that. One tour I had was in Antigua, in the West Indies, and we got quite a few British ship visits, including the Queen's yacht once. (Veddy spit and polish.) Most of them were coming off of Falklands patrol. Loved going to parties on their ships, where we could enjoy gin and tonics. So civilized. |
|
|
|
Post by msdani1981 on May 22, 2015 18:10:10 GMT -5
Wow, those are very cool, biteybird!
I actually like the 1915 one much better. It is more unique, and you can tell that a lot of work went into making it. The 2001 one looks machine made. Thank you so much for sharing! Beautiful pieces!
|
|
|
|
Post by biteybird on May 23, 2015 3:38:06 GMT -5
Thanks, Dani! Actually, I like the 1915 one the best too. I'm going to 'lend' it (semi-permanent loan) to our local RSL, as they're short of WW1 pieces. But meanwhile I'll try to track down the soldier's family to see if they would like it. It seems a waste for it to be sitting in a box in the top of my wardrobe...
Easttex, I remember doing 'spit 'n' polish' on our black boots. We used to put a thick layer of polish on, then melt it with a cigarette lighter, rub it in with a cloth then go over it with a brush. That was until...someone discovered that if you purchased black Killrust spray from Bunnings warehouse and sprayed the boots with it they would come out looking just as shiny as patent leather. A win for lazy soldiers!
Oh, regarding Puritanism - in the late 80's and early-mid 90's that didn't exist in the Australian Army. They used to give us beer during jobs. So the band did one half of a concert and during interval 'down' as many beers as possible in 20 minutes. We always felt we played better during the second half of the concert, but the audience might have had a different opinion.  |
|
|
|
Post by easttex on May 23, 2015 5:34:07 GMT -5
That could really be interesting if you were able to track down the family. How would you do that? I have visions of Aussie Siobhan accompanying you when you give it to the family, to capture the emotional story for readers everywhere. I remember the polish/Bic/spit routine at OCS. After leaving there, the only time I remember polishing a boot was for one inspection in Antarctica, the one duty station where I couldn't wear corfam. |
|
|
|
Post by msdani1981 on May 23, 2015 13:53:29 GMT -5
Going to Antarctica must have been amazing. You can start a new thread if you want, but will you talk about your experiences there? |
|
|
|
Post by biteybird on May 24, 2015 3:49:37 GMT -5
Ooh yes, I'd love to hear about Antarctica, too if you're willing! I've always had a bit of a fascination with it.
|
|
|
|
Post by easttex on May 24, 2015 6:14:53 GMT -5
Love to! I'll start a new thread for it.
|
|
