Orders, Decorations and Medals

Nine: Squadron Leader (Director of Music) C. L. P. Ward, Royal Air Force, late Bandmaster 2/Welch Regiment, who received both Army and R.A.F. long service medals

1914 Star, with clasp (8568 L.Cpl. C. L. P. Ward, 2/S. Lan. R.); British War and Victory Medals (8568 Sjt., S. Lan. R.); Defence and War Medals; Jubilee 1935; Coronation 1937; Army L.S. & G.C., G.V.R., 1st issue (3545507 W.O. Cl. 1. C. L. P. Ward, Welch R.); Royal Air Force L.S. & G.C., G.VI.R., 1st issue (Fg. Off. C. L. P. Ward, R.A.F.) mounted as worn, a rare combination of awards, the Great War medals fine, otherwise better, the last nearly extremely fine (9) £300-350

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, Long Service Medals from the Collection formed by John Tamplin.

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Charles Lewis Patrick Ward was born on 17 March 1892, and joined the South Lancashire Regiment as a Band Boy on 7 February 1907. He served with the 2nd Battalion during the Great War in France and Belgium from 14 August 1914. By the end of the war he had been promoted a Sergeant and he afterwards transferred to the Welch Regiment as Warrant Officer 1 (Bandmaster) of the 2nd Battalion of the regiment. His L.S. & G.C. medal was notified in Army Order 393 of October 1925. Ward served in the U.K. and overseas with the regiment, including Shanghai, Singapore and India. He left the Army in 1933 and joined the Royal Air Force as a Warrant Officer with seniority 11 February, 1933. He was posted to the R.A.F. Central Band at Uxbridge and remained there until the outbreak of war in 1939, when he went with a section of the band to France to entertain the personnel of the Advanced Air Striking Force; they returned to the U.K. in March 1940.

Ward was granted a commission for the duration of hostilities as a Flying Officer, R.A.F., as Director of Music, on 1 April 1941. He was promoted a War Substantive Flight Lieutenant (Director of Music) in April 1944, and appointed to a permanent commission as a Flying Officer (Director of Music) in the R.A.F. from 1 July 1946, and as Flight Lieutenant (Director of Music) the following day. He was finally promoted Squadron Leader (Director of Music) from 14 December 1946, and retired on 17 March 1957. As a Flying Officer, that is between April 1941 and April 1944, he was awarded the R.A.F. L.S. & G.C. medal. Squadron Leader Ward subsequently lived in Margate, where he died on 15 January 1959, aged 66. Sold with full research including several copied photographs.