Soldier's medals up for auction
THE medals of a Louth-area soldier who served in both World Wars will be sold at auction.
Major Leslie Walkinton, who was born in Alvingham, near Louth, saw action in both wars and was one of the soldiers to play football during the famous Christmas Day Truce of 1914.
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Major Leslie Walkinton and his medals, shoulder pips, cap badges and uniform patches which are to be auctioned by Thomas Mawer and Son of Portland Street, Lincoln.
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Major Leslie Walkinton and his medals, shoulder pips, cap badges and uniform patches which are to be auctioned by Thomas Mawer and Son of Portland Street, Lincoln.
He also wrote Twice In A Lifetime – a book charting his experiences in the wars.
Now, his medals will feature in the next sale at Thomas Mawer and Son auctioneers in Portland Street, Lincoln, on Saturday.
The collection is made up of the 1914 Mons Star, the British War Medal 1914-1920, the Victory Medal 1919, the 1939-45 Star, the Defence Medal 1939-45 and the War Medal 1939-45.
Bidders will also be able to battle it out for uniform patches from the Royal Sussex Regiment and the Home Guard, as well as shoulder pips and cap badges.
The collection is expected to raise between £250 and £500.
Auctioneer Clinton Slingsby said: "We are delighted to be able to feature his medals and expect a lot of interest from collectors and historians."
During the First World War, Major Walkinton enlisted as a rifleman in the Queen's Westminster Rifles.
He was wounded in the trenches of the Western Front during the First World War and was sent to a military hospital that had been set up in the playing field of the grammar school in Wragby Road, Lincoln.
During the Second World War, he fought in France as the Second-in-Command of the 6th Battalion of the Royal Sussex Regiment, as part of the British Expeditionary Force.
Years later, Major Walkinton spent his retirement writing Twice In A Lifetime.
His eldest son Guy, 83, said: "He was always an amateur writer and when he was in the trenches, he would write letters home to his sisters and tell them about his experiences.
"His sisters bundled all the letters up with ribbon and, at the end of the war, they gave them back to him.
"My father kept them in a suitcase for about 50 years and when he read them again, he used them as reference material for his book."
The letters are now on microfilm at the Imperial War Museum.
Those interested in the medals can see the full catalogue at www.thosmawer.com
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