Special Collections

Sold on 16 September 2010

1 part

.

The Keith Holshausen Collection

Keith Holshausen

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Lot

№ 538 x

.

17 September 2010

Hammer Price:
£850

Four: 1st Class Sergeant C. S. Godfrey, British South Africa Police, late Natal Light Horse and South African Infantry, who was twice wounded in France in the Great War

1914-15 Star (Pte. C. S. Godfrey, Ntl. Light Hse.); British War and bi-lingual Victory Medals (Sjt. C. S. Godfrey, 4th S.A.I.); Army L.S. & G.C., G.V.R., robed bust, Southern Rhodesia (2088 1st Cl. Sgt. C. S. Godfrey), the first three mounted as worn and the last with investiture pin, contact marks and polished, thus nearly very fine or better and rare (4)
£400-450

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Keith Holshausen Collection.

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Just 55 Army L.S. & G.Cs for ‘Southern Rhodesia’ were awarded to the British South Africa Police.

Charles Sinclair Godfrey, who was born at Escourt, Natal, in December 1891, enlisted in the Natal Light Horse in September 1914, seeing action in German South-West Africa before transferring to the 4th South African Infantry on being discharged in the summer of 1916. Subsequently embarked for France, he was wounded in the battle of Arras on 24 April 1917 (’G.S.W. face, arm and legs, severe’), and again in the battle of Marrieres Wood on 25 March 1918 (’G.S.W. jaw and chest’), but yet again returned to active service in August 1918, this time returning home unscathed as a recently promoted Sergeant. Discharged at Cape Town in May 1919, he shortly thereafter enlisted in the British South Africa Police, in which capacity he served for the next 20 years, becoming a prominent and well-known figure in the Force and latterly acting as a Public Prosecutor at Umtali and Gwelo, where he received the respect of the local Magistrates. Awarded his rare L.S. & G.C. Medal in January 1934, he was finally discharged in the rank of 1st Class Sergeant in August 1939; sold with a file of research, including copied service record and group photograph.