General Chat

Maybe not.

Nowhere can I see any requirement for anybody to have stepped ashore to be eligible for the Ushakov Medal.

Oh right.

I got it wrong again then.

The Russians never issued their medal to Royal Navy sailors as to qualify the sailor had to have set foot in a Russian port and the Andrew was barred from Russian waters even when we were sending them Spitfires and other war supplies. Neither did they once do anything about rescuing anybody from sinking ships.

The Brits now have their own medal which is available to both the RN and Red Duster and posthumously.

Although some of my rellies (RN) lost their lives on aircraft carriers and PQ escort duties in the Arctic I feel that the whole thing was yet another of Churchill's political stunts ( Gallipoli, Greece ... ) which had little regard for the loss of allied lives. My father survived but he was always bitter that the Arctic campaign was ignored after 1946 due to the onset of the Cold War.

At least they are still in the family and have not been sold Bob.

I can Sympathise with that Sharron.......
My dad, in his wisdom gave his medals to my younger brother, who in turn gave them to HIS son......
I would have loved to have been considered for them, at the time.
I didn't know about this until after he passed on, too late then.......

Bob

The Russian government issued a medal, the Ushokov, to Arctic Convoy veterans. It is not awarded posthumously so I applied for it using a form passed to me by the MOD when I applied for Fred's Arctic Star.

Because I didn't really want Fred to know about it until I received it and because his signature was not much cock, I filled in and signed the form on his behalf and sent it off. The Arctic Star took a long time to come so I let it take it's time and forgot about it.

Last week, I read in the local paper that a local widow had been presented with her husbands so I rang the Russian Embassy.

To my great distress, I find that they have never received the application so Fred is not eligible.