Most of those medals were smelted back into its base metals by family members
A merchant steamship sailing through a war zone with a submarine sinking off the port side. (Right) an effigy of King George V
Chennai: War is hell. The idea of throwing oneself into an inferno of bullets, trudging through mine-infested fields and trying to survive a mustard gas attack with nothing but a handkerchief, for a realm you don’t hold any true allegiance, may not be your cup of tea. And to top it all, receiving a crummy medal struck out of a semi-precious metal as payment for losing limb or worse your life may make you want to cringe but that’s essentially what happened during World War 1.
And sadly most of those medals were smelted back into its base metals by family members with little or no emotional attachment, long after the recipient passed away. But in some rare instances, some of them find their way into the hands of avid collectors or on to the lofty shelves of antique dealers. One such medal, the Mercantile Marine War Medal, was saved from becoming slag by the proprietor of Collectors Paradise, Ajay Jain. The medal has been in his possession for more than 10 years.
According to him, “Over successive generations, the appreciation for medals is lost. In many instances great grandchildren, not realising their worth, would just get rid of them.”
The bronze medal was commissioned by the board of trade for mariners of the merchant navy for voyages through a war zone during the course of World War I. The medal, with an effigy of King George V on one side, gives testimony to its name on the other side and depicts a merchant steamship sailing through a war zone with a submarine sinking off the port side.
Medal Wars
During World War I, the Germans sank the RMS Lusitania and set in motion events that defined the outcome of the war. On May 7, 1915 the Lusitania was torpedoed off the coast of Ireland by a U-boat. The toll was catastrophic 1,198 dead agianst 761 survivors. Soon after the sinking, German medalist and social commentator, Karl Goetz struck unofficial medals to commemorate the event. When the Brits got wind of the Goetz medal, they decided to replicate it and use it to garner support. The British replica was made of iron and had one minor difference. The English spelling of May is used against the German spelling Mai.
The medal is accompanied by the motto ‘KEINE BANN WARE!’ which translates into ‘no contraband’ in German, a sly attack on the ship’s cargo. The other side depicts unsuspecting passengers standing in line to buy tickets for the ill-fated cruise. Death waits patiently at the counter, selling tickets. In retrospect the sinking of the Lusitania was what Pearl Harbor was during WW2. It helped rustle up a sleeping giant and ensued public opinion in the United States, stoked by British propaganda, tilted in favour of entering the war.
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