"Awarded French War Cross" - research sources ?

zagmund · 12-04-2011 9:41pm #1

I'm doing (trying to do, really) some research on my GGGrandfather and I have the following notes scribbled down from years ago -

"Joined Irish Ambulance Corps during the Franco Prussian War. Awarded French War Cross. MCh from Catholic University, Dublin. MD from Queens College, Cork."

He was born in 1846, died 1926. So, he would presumably have been in college ~1866.

Does anyone have any pointers to online records for either of the universities referenced above or the Irish Ambulance Corps ?

z

P. Breathnach · 13-04-2011 8:34am

The "French War Cross" immediately made me think of the Croix de Guerre. It took just minutes with Google to find that it did not exist at the time of the Franco-Prussian war. The award was created in 1915: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croix_de_guerre.

That would cause me to treat the handwritten note with caution.

zagmund · 13-04-2011 9:51am

Yeah, I did a bit of googling after posting that up yesterday and noticed that the Croix de Guerre didn't exist until the first world war.

However, I note that he was still alive until 1926, so it's possible that he was awarded one for services during the first world war. I realise this is pretty unlikely as he would have been ~70 at the time.

It's also possible that he was awarded something else as part of the Franco Prussian war. I'll keep digging.

Does anyone know the relevant organisation within France that might hold details of awards given during that war ?

z

P. Breathnach · 13-04-2011 10:47am

My guess would be that he was decorated, but not with a "French War Cross". So I would also guess that whoever made the handwritten note was not 100% well-informed. That is why I suggested treating it with caution.

Try Google with the search string "franco-irish ambulance". That should keep you busy for a while!

pedroeibar1 · 13-04-2011 12:08pm

It sounds more like the Geneva Cross, awarded by the Société de Secours aux Blessés Militaires. ( The Society for the Relief of the Military Wounded.) That organization was a forerunner of the French Red Cross.
Have a look at
http://www.northeastmedals.co.uk/foreignguide/french/geneva_cross.htm
Rs
P.

zagmund · 13-04-2011 3:42pm

Thanks for the replies to date. Google and their army of scanning-droids are just brilliant - http://ia600306.us.archive.org/30/items/reminiscencesfr00leesgoog/reminiscencesfr00leesgoog.pdf

He's listed as Assistant-Surgeon Ryan, R. on page 17 of the PDF, page viii of the original.

I'll have to print it off and read it to see if there's any specific mention of him in the body of the document.

z

johnny_doyle · 13-04-2011 9:08pm

reference to another Dr in the Irish Ambulance during the Franco Prussian War being awarded the "Croix Militaire"

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2385842/pdf/ulstermedj00107-0025.pdf

A Dubliner who served with another ambulance unit during the Franco Prussian War was awarded the Prussian Iron Cross having previously been awarded the British Victoria Cross.

zagmund · 14-04-2011 10:02am

Thanks for that johnny_doyle.

It looks like my relation and this other doctor served in the same unit of the ambulance - they are both listed on the roll as being in the unit which served with "Col Mocquarts Francs-Tireurs".

z

zagmund · 15-04-2011 10:42am

I got a copy of his obituary from the Anglo Celt newspaper in 1926. It includes this passage - " . . . the French Govemnment later awarded him the French War Cross, an honour only conferred for distinguished service."

So, according to this he got some award alright. It's possible that he was awarded the Croix de Guerre post-1915, but that's pretty doubtful unless the French were doing some tidying up and realised they had forgotten to hand out some awards 40 years previously. It's possible, but I wouldn't bet on it.

The alternative is that he got some other contemporary award for the Franco-Prussian war and the obit writer called it "French War Cross" in error because that is what people were familiar with in those times.

z

P. Breathnach · 15-04-2011 11:37am

zagmund wrote: »

...
The alternative is that he got some other contemporary award for the Franco-Prussian war and the obit writer called it "French War Cross" in error because that is what people were familiar with in those times.

Sounds right to me.

pedroeibar1 · 15-04-2011 1:51pm

zagmund wrote: »

Thanks for that johnny_doyle.

It looks like my relation and this other doctor served in the same unit of the ambulance - they are both listed on the roll as being in the unit which served with "Col Mocquarts Francs-Tireurs".

z

Mocquart was the man, francs-tireurs was the type of unit.
Have a read here: http://www.limerickcity.ie/media/franco-irish%20ambulance.pdf
Rs
P.

"Awarded French War Cross" - research sources ?

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