WW2 MILITARY MEDAL & POLICE GROUP TO PRIVATE MOORE 2ND BATTALION NORTH STAFFORDSHIRE REGIMENT

Description

Offered is a Military Medal (Tunisia) & Police group to P.C Moore who served during WW2 with the 2^nd Battalion North Staffordshire Regiment in Tunisia & Italy.

Military Medal King George VI (copy) 1939 Star, Africa Star, Italy Star, Defence & War Medal 1939 – 45) all un named as issued. Police Long Service & Good conduct Medal (Q.E.II) Impressed named CONST. FRANK MOORE. Court mounted for display. Comes with copy MM award citation, London Gazette September 1943 & Newspaper article.

Military medal award citation:

On the 30^th April 1943 whilst his Pl was attacking some enemy M.G posts on hill PT 132 Map ref 6942, Pte Moore moved forward in face of fire from one of these posts in order to cover it while another party moved round to clear it up. Although wounded in the face and arm he covered this position until it was cleared and later assisted in mopping up further enemy positions until he was evacuated. His actions undoubtably helped to eject the enemy who had obtained a foot hold on PT 132. His bravery was enhanced by the fact that he was wounded.

Francis Lawrence Moore was born on the 25/5/196 at Coventry. His father was serving with the R.G.A at the time. He married in 1942 whilst in the Army. He was serving with the 2^nd Battalion North Staffordshire Regiment in Tunisia when he was awarded the M.M. The London Gazette gives his home city as Ratby and his regimental number 5052663. Post war he was employed as a Police Constable serving in Nottingham (as per the newspaper article), he died in February 1998 in Leicestershire, England.

The 2nd Battalion, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Donald Butterworth, was sent to France shortly after the outbreak of war in September 1939 as part of the 2nd Infantry Brigade(alongside the 1st Loyal Regiment and 1st Gordon Highlanders), 1st Infantry Division and was part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), and was involved in the battles of France and Belgium before eventually being evacuated from Dunkirk on 1 June 1940. Following that, the 2nd Battalion spent years on home defence in the United Kingdom preparing for a possible German invasion of England which never arrived. The battalion remained in the United Kingdom until 1943 when, still as part of 1st Infantry Division, it sailed to North Africa and took part in the campaign in Tunisia, British First Army. The battalion did not participate in the invasion of Sicily or the initial invasion of Italy but was one of the lead units in the Anzio landings in January 1944, under command of US Fifth Army, where they suffered extremely heavy casualties. On 7 February the battalion suffered 323 casualties attempting to capture Buonriposo Ridge which they captured but were forced to surrender the ridge after expending their ammunition. By May, following Operation Diadem, the battalion had absorbed eight drafts of replacements. Now fighting as part of the British Eighth Army, the 2nd Battalion continued to serve in Italy, fighting around the Gothic Line, until January 1945 when the battalion and the rest of 1st Infantry Division were transferred to Palestine.