Item number: M128-1-1

Year: AD 1918

Weight: 104.6 g

Provenance: Spink 2022

This medal was awarded to Private P. Tudor of the 11th Battalion, Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort’s Own), for his service during the First World War. The 1914-15 Star is among the most commonly awarded British medals from the First World War.

The bronze 1914-15 Star medal, announced on December 24, AD 1918, for all officers and men who served in the period from August AD 1914 to December 31, AD 1915, being eligible for the award. The medal features a four-pointed star with two crossed short gladiuses at the top and an oak wreath with the cipher “V” for King George V at the bottom. In the center is a scroll with “1914-15” inscribed, topped with a decorative crown. The reverse side of the medal bears three lines of text: the recipient’s service number “S-1033,” rank and name “Private P. Tudor,” and the unit “Rifle Brigade,” which also appears at the bottom edge of the other two medals. The medal is suspended by a fixed ring suspension, adopting the red, white, and blue colors of the Union Jack with a gradient design for ribbon. The appearance of the 1914-15 Star medal is like the 1914 Star medal introduced in AD 1917, so the government restricted recipients of the latter from applying for the former.

During the First World War, Britain emerged as one of the major combatants, gaining control over numerous German colonies overseas and marking the final expansion phase of the British Empire. However, this four-year-long conflict exacted a heavy toll on Britain, resulting in the loss of approximately 6% of its adult male population, amounting to 880,000 lives. Additionally, the war left Britain heavily indebted to the United States, leading to a gradual shift in global dominance from the British Isles to the New World across the Atlantic, signaling the beginning of the end of the era of the British Empire where the sun never set.

物件編號: M128-1

年代: 公元 1918年

重量: 104.6 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2022

這枚獎章是第一次世界大戰時，服役於英軍阿爾伯特親王步槍旅第11營的二等兵P. Tudor得到的紀念獎章，1914-15之星獎章，是頒發最為普及的一戰英國獎章種類。

銅質的1914-15之星獎章，於公元1918年12月24日公告，參與公元1914年8月至公元1915年12月31日戰事的全體官兵皆有獲獎資格。獎章的外觀為一個四角星，上方有兩把交叉放置的短劍，還有一個底部寫有英王喬治五世縮寫「V」的橡葉花環。正中央有一個寫有1914-15的卷軸，最上方則有一頂皇冠裝飾。獎章的背面刻有三行字，分別是得獎者的兵籍號碼「S-1033」、軍階和姓名「二兵 P. Tudor」跟兵種「步兵旅」，上述訊息同樣出現在另外兩枚獎章的底部邊緣。獎章以固定環形懸掛跟綬帶銜接，綬帶採納米字旗的紅白藍配色，並且有漸層的設計。此1914-15之星獎章外觀跟公元1917年公布之「1914之星獎章」一樣，故政府限制後者的綬勳者不得再申請該獎章。

英國作為第一次世界大戰的主要參戰國，獲得多數德國在海外的殖民地，完成大英帝國的最後一次擴張時光。然而這場長達四年的戰爭，讓英國本土就失去6%成年男性，即88萬人的犧牲。戰爭也讓英國欠下美國大筆的外債，使得世界霸權的位置逐漸從英倫三島轉移至彼岸的新大陸，標示日不落帝國的結束開端。