Volunteer Force Long Service Medal, awarded to Col. Sgt. R. Bransom between 1894 & 1901
Obverse, a bust of Queen Victoria with veils |
Reverse, inscription on a scrolled banner with a wreath behind |
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Obverse, a bust of Queen Victoria with veils |
Reverse, inscription on a scrolled banner with a wreath behind |
With the award of medals for long service in the regular Army well-established, a slow process of the creation of parallel awards in the various dependent forces began. Among these was the Volunteer Force, the precursor of the modern Territorial Army. Its Long Service award was created in 1894, and recognised 20 years' consecutive service by a Volunteer of any rank, as long as he had still been serving at the beginning of 1893.
The portrait of Victoria on the medal's obverse was changed at the succession of King Edward VII, but otherwise the medal was unaltered until the Volunteer Force was disbanded in 1908, at which point the medal was awarded to any Volunteers who did not wish to transfer to the new Territorial Force, but had nonetheless accumulated 16 or more years of service. These were the final issues.
This medal was awarded to Colour Sergeant R. Bransom of the Royal Berkshire Regiment, though the exact date of its issue is not known. Lester Watson purchased the medal at some point before 1928.