Iraq medal
Peter Duckers discover an uncommon partner to British medals for service on the Iraq frontiers from 1924-1936
In this new series on collectable, but lesser-known, medals Peter Duckers discovers an uncommon partner to British
medals for service on the frontier of the newly created state of Iraq, from 1924-1936.
As an independent country, Iraq is a fairly recent creation. It was carved out of the area of the Ottoman Empire known as Mesopotamia during the peace settlements after World War I. These saw much of the Ottoman Empire's Arab territories divided between British and French spheres of influence. In the event, Iraq, with its important oil wells, came under British control under Mandate of the League of Nations and a new
Saudi prince, Faisal, was chosen to be its first king. In 1932, Iraq became a fully independent kingdom and joined the League of Nations as a sovereign state, with Britain retaining important bases in the country.
However, creating the new country simply by drawing lines on a map led to the inclusion of religious, tribal and ethnic groups (like the Kurds) who did not want to necessarily belong within the same state and the result was a series of rebellions and uprisings in the interwar years, by tribes and groups opposed to central Iraqi rule.
To reward service against such groups, on 15 May 1926 King Faisal instituted the Iraq Active Service Medal (Nut al-Khidmat al-Amma – Medal for Services to the Nation). It is sometimes known as King Faisal’s War Medal. It rewarded active service in significant campaigns in Iraq between 1924 and 1936 and, after Faisal’s death in 1933, continued to be conferred under his successor, King Ghazi (ruled 1933-39).
The medal was largely awarded to members of the Iraq Levies, a militia under British officers and NCOs which was effectively the Iraq national army at that time. Raised in World War I to serve against the Turks, it was greatly expanded after 1919, its stated function being: ‘To relieve British and Indian Troops in Iraq [and posts in] Mosul … and in Kurdistan, previously held by the Imperial Garrison.’ Thousands of Iraqis served in its ranks and it remained in existence until 1955. But, as the official records stress, Faisal’s medal was not awarded to the whole of British personnel attached to the Iraqi Army or Iraq Levies, but only to those engaged in certain operations in Iraq in 1924 and subsequently.
Relatively few British officers and NCOs serving with the Iraq Levies received the award - which was not given in large numbers to British personnel who happened to be there. Many were, however, given to personnel of the Royal Air Force, in whose medal groups they are most commonly seen. It had been decided after World War I that punitive expeditions could achieve some of their aims by air bombing alone, as much as by sending ground forces over large expanses of unforgiving terrain into remote regions. Medals were also given to officers of the Indian Medical Dept, to some British civilian administrators and to Political Officers who accompanied the forces in designated operations.
The medal is circular, 38mm in diameter, and was struck in bronze but some are seen with a gilt wash. The obverse features as its lower element a crescent, with the Arabic inscription ‘General Service’ within two laurel branches. The medal is superimposed on crossed rifles, whose butts and muzzles protrude beyond the central roundel, with sunburst rays in the arc between the muzzles. The reverse simply bears the name of King Faisal I in Arabic and the Islamic AH date ‘1344’, equating to 1926 CE. The ribbon has equal stripes of green, white and green, suspended from a flattened loop at the top of the medal.
The medal was originally issued without a clasp (eg for operations in the Eastern (Sulaimania) District, 1924-25), but a dated clasp ‘Eastern District 1927’
was produced for service in that year and from 1931 the medal was only issued with an appropriately dated clasp. It should be noted that a recipient could receive the medal without clasp and then receive just a clasp for later service. No recipient could receive two medals (eg without clasp for early service and then with clasp for subsequent service). Technically, multi-clasp awards should be possible, but none has been seen to a British recipient.
The clasps were dated and named in Arabic only and were given for the following operations:
Eastern District 1927
Southern Kurdistan 1930-31
Barzan 1932
Euphrates 1935
Euphrates 1936
Most of the awards, supplied by the Ministry of Defence in Baghdad, bear no maker’s marks, but some were produced by Huguenin of Switzerland, a well-known medallist, and some bear that maker's name. Needless to say, copies and replicas exist, often in bright gilt, sometimes rather crude and not easily confused with the originals. The medal and clasps were also commercially produced in miniature for those who wanted to buy them for wear in dress uniform. Because of the limited number of these which would have been produced, they are rather scarce on the market compared to the full size versions.
A nominal roll of recipients exists in the National Archives at Kew as WO 100/403; its 113 pages are divided between correspondence relating to claims or administrative details, with about 45 pages of nominal lists – which does not represent a large number of actual awards. The King granted permission to accept the medal but an interesting note occurs regarding the award for service in Barzan, Kurdistan, in 1932. Here, it was decreed that those who were to receive the British General Service Medal with clasp ‘Northern Kurdistan’ could not also receive the Faisal medal, in other words have two medals for the same operations. Approximately 65 officers and 280 airmen of the RAF were entitled, along with British officers with the Iraq Levies. It was pointed out, however, that because of zealousness in the Iraqi administration, some medals had already been issued and the British authorities conceded that those who had already been given the award could to keep it, but they could not wear it in uniform with the British GSM.
Another interesting reflection on the terms of award is offered in a letter from Sergeant A Jones, ex 2/Buffs, who wrote to the War Office in 1931 (WO.100/403, p.55): ‘With reference to the Iraq Active Service Medal awarded me by HM King Faisal for operations in Iraq during
1926 and 1927, during my tour of duty with the Iraq Levies’. He returned the medal: ‘To have my regimental particulars inscribed’ and further asked that its award should be noted on his Discharge Certificate. Presumably to his disappointment, he was told that the medal would have to be named at his expense since it had already been laid down that the medals and clasps will not be inscribed with the names of the recipients and the fact of its award would not be entered on his Discharge Certificate. It generally does not feature in such documents nor in the War Services of officers as recorded in the Army List, which makes a simple confirmation of the issue rather more complicated.
The medal is reasonably easy to obtain as a single without clasp, with prices for varying from £50-£85. With clasp, most commonly that for ‘Southern Kurdistan, 1930-31’, examples fetch around £100-£120 but the other clasps are less frequently encountered. As usual with British awards, examples in named medal groups would be priced for the whole, reflecting the career of the recipient.
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