The Collection of Medals Formed by Bill and Angela Strong

A fine Second World War North-West Europe operations M.M. group of four awarded to Guardsman R. J. T. Greig, Coldstream Guards, who won an immediate award after storming an enemy machine-gun post at the cost of four leg wounds

Military Medal, G.VI.R. (14402668 Gdmn. R. J. T. Greig, C. Gds.); 1939-45 Star; France and Germany Star; War Medal 1939-45, the last three privately inscribed, ‘14402668 Gdsm. R. J. T. Greig, M.M., 5 C. Gds.’, surname officially corrected on the first, generally good very fine (4) £1600-1800

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Bill and Angela Strong Medal Collection.

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Ex Sir Torquil Matheson Collection.

M.M. London Gazette 19 April 1945. The original recommendation - approved by Montgomery - states:

‘On 16 February Guardsman Greig was a member of the right hand section of the right hand company of the battalion attack on the German defences south of Hommersun. After a long advance under heavy enemy artillery fire this section was within a few hundred yards of its final objective when it was temporarily unsighted by a smoke screen put down for the benefit of the formation on the right. For this reason they did not see a German machine-gun post in their vicinity until it had opened up at short range, killing the Section Commander and one other man. Guardsman Greig at once assumed command of the section and seized the Bren gun, but while he was doing this two more men in the section had been killed by the same German machine-gun post. Guardsman Greig now single handed charged the enemy post, killed the two men on the machine-gun and put the remainder to flight. He then fell wounded in four places in the leg. As a result of his fine action he allowed the few remaining men of the section to continue the advance, thus covering the right flank of his platoon and incidentally, the whole company.’

Robin James Turnbull Greig, who was born in the British West Indies in July 1924, enlisted in the Coldstream Guards direct from the General Service Corps in March 1944, aged 19 years. A member of the 5th Battalion at the time of winning his M.M. for the above cited deeds at Hommersun on 16 February 1945, he was released from the Service in March 1948.

Sold with copied service record.