Military Picture Analysis
Which branch did J Hellier serve in?
Q This photograph was left to my friend with some medals that belonged to her ancestor Thomas Wallice from Plymouth, who was in the Royal Navy from 1850 to 1876. On the back is written “J Hellier”. However, there are no Helliers on the Wallice family tree. Can you tell me which service the sitter was in, and suggest the likely date of the photograph?
A Probably photographed in about 1923, this is a major in an Indian Volunteer Rifle regiment. He has seen service in the First World War, attended the Delhi Durbar of 1911 and had served in the regular British Army before that.
The clues to his identity lie in his medals. He’d seen service in India, so I checked the Indian army lists at The National Archives in Kew (TNA). The January 1919 list shows two J Helliers: one a civilian clerk, the other a major in 5th (Lucknow) Group Garrison Artillery. He’d first been commissioned in the Lucknow Volunteer Rifles in 1910, and the “J” stands for James. The badge in the photograph confirms that it’s him. I also checked the Medal Index Cards (on TNA’s site at tinyurl.com/tna-mics and Ancestry; ancestry.co.uk), one of which gives his home address in 1923 as 5 Raleigh Road, Exeter.
The Long Service Medal suggests he’d served in the British Army before joining the Lucknow Volunteers, so I looked for a service record before 1910 on Findmypast (findmypast.co.uk). To my surprise I found three, including his time in the Militia before enlisting in the Devonshire Regiment and serving almost his entire 18 years in India. Phil Tomaselli
1. RANK
One rank indicator on the epaulette of a man this age generally means he’s a major.
2. REGIMENTAL BADGE
The badge shows the remains of the Lucknow Residency, besieged during the Indian Mutiny (India’s First War of Independence) in 1857. It’s the badge of the Lucknow Volunteer Rifles.
3. DELHI DURBAR MEDAL
This was issued in 1911 when George V visited India, mainly to officers and noncommissioned officers (NCOs) who had Good Conduct Medals already. The ribbon is dark blue with red stripes.
4. WW1 MEDALS
These are the British War Medal and (ribbon partly visible) the Victory Medal.
5. CAMPAIGN MEDAL
The India General Service Medal with a clasp indicates a campaign.
6. OTHER MEDALS
These are Long Service and Good Conduct Medals which were awarded to NCOs for 18 years’ exemplary conduct.