Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Five: Major W. L. Good, Royal Signals, late Royal Engineers, onetime attached to the Royal West African Frontier Force and a veteran of the Abyssinia campaign 1941

1939-45 Star; Africa Star; Defence and War Medals, in their original addressed card forwarding box; Army L.S. & G.C., G.VI.R., 1st issue, Regular Army (2308533 Sjt. W. L. Good, R. Signals), in its card box of issue, together with a Kent Education Committee school attendance medal for 1917-18, silver, extremely fine (6) £200-250

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Awards for the 1939-45 War.

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William Leonard Good was born at Portsmouth in July 1905 and originally enlisted in the Royal Engineers as a boy recruit in November 1919. As verified by accompanying documentation, he subsequently transferred to the Royal Signals and served on attachment to the Royal West African Frontier Force in the 1930s, during which period he was awarded his L.S. & G.C. Medal (AOs of October 1938 refers).

Commissioned as a Lieutenant in November 1940, he commanded No. 1 West African Infantry Brigade Signals Section in operations in East Africa from May to November 1941, and thereafter held appointments in the Gambia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, latterly in the rank of Temporary Lieutenant-Colonel. Good was placed on the Retired List in the rank of Major in 1946.

Sold with a quantity of original documentation, including his attestation certificate, dated 14 November 1919; letter of notification of the award of his L.S. & G.C. Medal, dated 30 September 1938; warrant of appointment as a W.O. 2nd Class in the Royal West African Frontier Force, dated 15 September 1936, with red seal of H.E. the Governor and Commander-in-Chief Nigeria; message confirming his commission as a Lieutenant, dated 20 November 1940; a copy of the G.O.C East Africa Force’s “Special Order of the Day”, congratulating his men on successful operations in Abyssinia and elsewhere, dated 20 July 1941, together with a copy of the War Office’s publication, The Abyssinian Campaigns; his Officer’s Record of Service and Officer’s Release Book, together with War Office letter granting him the rank of Major on his retirement, dated 2 January 1947; his Driver’s Licence and his father’s Parchment Certificate of Discharge from the Military Foot Police, dated 17 January 1907.