Medal, Distinguished Conduct
Description
A Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM). The medal features a portrait of King George V on the obverse surrounded by " GEORGE VS V G.BR.OMN:REX ET INDIAE IMP:" "10-1731 PTE C.R. BARKER. WELL BN.NZF" is engraved along the edge of the medal. The medal is attached to a crimson ribbon with a central blue stripe by a scrolled, decorative suspension bar. It is mounted as part of a group of four.
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Object detail
Subject person
Classification
Credit line
This
Distinguished
Conduct
Medal
belonged
to
Charles
Barker
of
Stratford.
On
9
January
1915
the
20-year-old
cheesemaker
left
his
job
at
Cardiff
dairy
factory
to
enlist.
Seven
months
later
he
landed
at
Anzac
Cove
in
Gallipoli
and
fought
on
Chunuk
Bair
where
he
earned
this
Distinguished
Conduct
Medal.
A
letter
from
Charlie
Barker's
platoon
commander
Murray
Urquart
reads:
"Your son fought very gallantly on Chunuk Bair on the 8th of August and during the following two nights. In spite of his weariness he did very good work by ministering to the wants of wounded men, who could not be attended to in daylight, owing to the exposed nature of the ground where they lay. In doing this he ran much risk. He also rendered service by guiding some reinforcements up Chunuk Bair".
Charlie Barker was discharged in 1916 after being declared unfit for service and returned home. He married Mary Pennington of Mangatoki and worked as a butcher in Eltham. He later moved to New Plymouth where he died in 1962.
"Your son fought very gallantly on Chunuk Bair on the 8th of August and during the following two nights. In spite of his weariness he did very good work by ministering to the wants of wounded men, who could not be attended to in daylight, owing to the exposed nature of the ground where they lay. In doing this he ran much risk. He also rendered service by guiding some reinforcements up Chunuk Bair".
Charlie Barker was discharged in 1916 after being declared unfit for service and returned home. He married Mary Pennington of Mangatoki and worked as a butcher in Eltham. He later moved to New Plymouth where he died in 1962.
Accession number
PA2006.301
Collection type
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