Beschreibung:

An interesting and well-documented Great War group of four awarded to Sergeant B. G. Greenup, Royal Air Force, late Territorials, who was employed on important work as a “Lewis Gun Expert” for the Royal Flying Corps 1914-15 Star (2443 Sjt., R.F.C.); British War and Victory Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf (2443 F. Sgt., R.F.C.); Territorial Efficiency Medal, G.V.R. (501 Cpl., 6-R. War. R.), mounted as worn, one or two edge bruises otherwise good very fine, together with metalled Warwickshires shoulder title, his silver identity disc (with engraved R.F.C. Wings and details of next of kin on reverse), embroidered R.F.C. shoulder title, overseas chevrons, and a pair of embroidered R.F.C. pilot’s Wings, the whole contained in an old wooden box made from an aeroplane propeller blade, and ‘the catch from a German machine-gun cartridge belt box’ (Lot) £400-500 Footnote Britton G. Greenup was born at Sparkhill, Warwickshire in 1888, and served in the 3rd Cheshire Volunteer Rifles 1902-08, and in the 6th Royal Warwickshire Territorials 1908-14, in addition to pursuing a civilian career as a Mechanical Engineer. In November 1914, having been exempted from further military service, he was approached by the Directorate of Birmingham Small Arms to volunteer as a Lewis Gun Expert to the Royal Flying Corps - ‘I was passed A.1 into the R.F.C. on 1 December 1914 and went over to France on 12 December as a Sergeant in charge of 20 men’, and remained there until September 1916, when he returned to the U.K. to take up an appointment at the School of Aerial Gunnery, Hythe: for his work out in France he was mentioned ‘For gallant and distinguished services in the Field’ in Sir Douglas Haig’s despatch dated 30 April 1916, a distinction that undoubtedly stemmed from his work in the field of aerial gunnery. Indeed it is clear from accompanying documentation and photographs that he was closely involved in the design and manufacture of machine-guns and gun cameras, and numerous related components, a case in point being a letter received by him from the Air Inventions Branch at the Air Ministry in September 1920, by which stage he was employed as Foreman of the Barrel Department of B.S.A. at Parkhill, Birmingham: ‘I am directed to inform you that an appreciation for an award made by Flying Officer E. Ling in respect of a model gun camera, stated to resemble the Mark III Hythe Gun Camera, which he made in June 1916 at Grand Redoubt near Hythe, is being considered, and it has been stated that you may be in a position to give information as to the circumstances under which the model was made and to give details of the actual construction ... ’ Sold with a quantity of original documentation, including the recipient’s M.I.D. certificate (Haig’s despatch dated 30 April 1916); his R.A.F. Certificate of Service; his Army Book 137, the outer cloth cover with ink inscription, ‘Flgt. Sgt. B. Greenup, S. of A.G., Hythe, Kent’, but with further ownership inscriptions inside, including ‘2443 Sergt. B. Greenup, G.H. 2nd R.F.C., B.E.F. France’, the contents comprising numerous handwritten notes relating to the fitting, testing and syncronisation of machine-guns (Vickers, Lewis, etc.) in R.F.C. aircraft, the whole to ensure safe operation of such weapons between propeller blades, together with observations on the “Aeroplane Aiming Model”, used for judging an enemy aircraft’s speed and range, a table of deflection shooting observations, copious notes on rifles, binoculars and telescopes, including detailed technical drawings, through to actual reports on frontline activities (e.g. ‘Abeele, Jan. 19th 1916: Lt. Green had his gun stopped at a critical moment by a primer coming out of empty case’), 112 pp., and the back of the book with around another 30pp. of notes, drawings and observations relating to gun sights, in all a most unusual and fascinating record of the technical side of R.F.C. gunnery; a letter addressed to the recipient at the ‘Barrel Department, B.S.A., Parkhill, Birm