A Truly Rare & Outstanding
“TRIPLE”
MILITARY MEDAL
with
TWO CLASPS.
22043. Pte William DOONER.
1st Bn Loyal North Lancashire Regt.
(Battles of Flers-Courcellete,-“wounded” Givency, & Sambre)
A Derbyshire man and pre-war building labourer living in Manchester.
[THE MEDAL & TWO BARS ]
Military Medal. 1st Award. L.G. 23rd Feb 1918
22043 Pte. W. DOONER. 1 / L.N. LANC: R.
(War Diary of 28th November 1917)FLERS-COURCELETTE
“for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty”
(*Wounded list 1st November 1917)
2nd Award Clasp. L.G. 26th August 1918.
(War Diary)
“Immediate Award, - awards for gallantry at GIVENCHY”
3rd Award Clasp. L.G. 13th May 1919.
Probably Battle of Sambre (Sambre-Oise Canal, 4/11/1918)
& Advance to Victory.
[BIOGRAPHY) 1883-1935 (52)
William DOONER was born in Wirksworth, Belper, Derbyshire in 1883 and is a somewhat “lost” character until he shows up on the 1911 census living as a lodger of a Mr & Mrs Wood at 10 Sarah Street, Palmerston, Ancoats, Manchester.
As he does not seem to have any directly recorded relatives we think William may originally have been an orphan who spent his early years in the care of the local church or other community in Derbyshire.
As a young man he then clearly travelled to Manchester for work, and adding to what was a bit of initial confusion, he was incorrectly recorded as being age 32 on the 1911 census when he was in fact only 28. His age was obviously confused with a second border at the Wood’s property, a Harold Abber who indeed was 32.
As is a common issue, William’s army service papers have not survived and thus we have pieced his further history together from careful research. Looking at his serial number of 22043 he clearly signed up for service in the Great War aged 32 at a date late in 1914, probably in mid-late November.
[TO FRANCE]
After a period of what was normally 8 to 10 months training in the U.K. he’s seen going to war. William squarely fits the profile of a man shipped to France on 22nd June 1915 as a second draft replacement for the original & early 1st North Lancs men who arrived on 13th August 1914 many of who were lost during the early battles of Mons, Marne, Aisne and 1st Ypres.
William arrived just in time to take part in The Battle of Loos (September-October 1915) . He was then 33.
Luckily, two of William’s MM awards are clearly mentioned with brief details of reason & place in the war diaries of 1st North Lancs Regt.
His third award is pretty clearly for The Advance to Victory & The Battle of Sambre on 4th November 1918 which took place just 7 days before the end of the war on 11th November 1918.
At the end of the war William is seen being fit enough to be listed in the Class Z reserve, so it seems that he emerged fairly fit from the army in circa 1919-20. But clearly his post-war employment and probably the effects of the cold & winter rain while toiling on the building sites of Manchester, had its inevitable effect on his health.
Nothing more is known of William until he is sadly seen on the death register (North Manchester) in the 4th Quarter of 1935 at the age of only 52, which seems to amplify that he was a man without any family or close relations.
As a man who had certainly endured a hard outdoor working life as a builders labourer and then served so valiantly in the Great War with the guts & valour to win three gallantry awards, William was clearly no shrinking violet, but for a man of his period and generation and taking all his life’s factors into a account he was what in the Victorian army was often described as “an old & worn out soldier”.
William DOONER ...we salute you for your valour & constant bravery.
An excessively rare medal, and one of only 184 “Triple” Military Medals won during the Great War.
Comes complete with an excellent 32 page professionally compiled research file. There is also plenty more information left to be discovered about this valiant man.
This seriously desirable medal will be of the greatest interest to both multiple gallantry collectors or the many keen collectors of medals to recipients in Loyal North Lancashire Regt & Northern British medals.
I’ve had just three example in 46 years....this is only the third.
£3995
[THE MEDAL & TWO BARS ]
Military Medal. 1st Award. L.G. 23rd Feb 1918
22043 Pte. W. DOONER. 1 / L.N. LANC: R.
(War Diary of 28th November 1917)FLERS-COURCELETTE
“for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty”
(*Wounded list 1st November 1917)
2nd Award Clasp. L.G. 26th August 1918.
(War Diary)
“Immediate Award, - awards for gallantry at GIVENCHY”
3rd Award Clasp. L.G. 13th May 1919.
Probably Battle of Sambre (Sambre-Oise Canal, 4/11/1918)
& Advance to Victory.
[BIOGRAPHY) 1883-1935 (52)
William DOONER was born in Wirksworth, Belper, Derbyshire in 1883 and is a somewhat “lost” character until he shows up on the 1911 census living as a lodger of a Mr & Mrs Wood at 10 Sarah Street, Palmerston, Ancoats, Manchester.
As he does not seem to have any directly recorded relatives we think William may originally have been an orphan who spent his early years in the care of the local church or other community in Derbyshire.
As a young man he then clearly travelled to Manchester for work, and adding to what was a bit of initial confusion, he was incorrectly recorded as being age 32 on the 1911 census when he was in fact only 28. His age was obviously confused with a second border at the Wood’s property, a Harold Abber who indeed was 32.
As is a common issue, William’s army service papers have not survived and thus we have pieced his further history together from careful research. Looking at his serial number of 22043 he clearly signed up for service in the Great War aged 32 at a date late in 1914, probably in mid-late November.
[TO FRANCE]
After a period of what was normally 8 to 10 months training in the U.K. he’s seen going to war. William squarely fits the profile of a man shipped to France on 22nd June 1915 as a second draft replacement for the original & early 1st North Lancs men who arrived on 13th August 1914 many of who were lost during the early battles of Mons, Marne, Aisne and 1st Ypres.
William arrived just in time to take part in The Battle of Loos (September-October 1915) . He was then 33.
Luckily, two of William’s MM awards are clearly mentioned with brief details of reason & place in the war diaries of 1st North Lancs Regt.
His third award is pretty clearly for The Advance to Victory & The Battle of Sambre on 4th November 1918 which took place just 7 days before the end of the war on 11th November 1918.
At the end of the war William is seen being fit enough to be listed in the Class Z reserve, so it seems that he emerged fairly fit from the army in circa 1919-20. But clearly his post-war employment and probably the effects of the cold & winter rain while toiling on the building sites of Manchester, had its inevitable effect on his health.
Nothing more is known of William until he is sadly seen on the death register (North Manchester) in the 4th Quarter of 1935 at the age of only 52, which seems to amplify that he was a man without any family or close relations.
As a man who had certainly endured a hard outdoor working life as a builders labourer and then served so valiantly in the Great War with the guts & valour to win three gallantry awards, William was clearly no shrinking violet, but for a man of his period and generation and taking all his life’s factors into a account he was what in the Victorian army was often described as “an old & worn out soldier”.
William DOONER ...we salute you for your valour & constant bravery.
An excessively rare medal, and one of only 184 “Triple” Military Medals won during the Great War.
Comes complete with an excellent 32 page professionally compiled research file. There is also plenty more information left to be discovered about this valiant man.
This seriously desirable medal will be of the greatest interest to both multiple gallantry collectors or the many keen collectors of medals to recipients in Loyal North Lancashire Regt & Northern British medals.
I’ve had just three example in 46 years....this is only the third.
£3995