War hero and ambassador medals and memorabilia for sale

A GROUP of medals won by war hero Sir Thomas “Archie” Lamb are included in the Charterhouse’s September auction of medals, militaria, coins and stamps.

Richard Bromell, of Charterhouse, said: “This is a fantastic group of medals retracing the deeds and journeys of Sir Archie from the Second World War to the late 1970s when he was knighted in of the Queen’s birthday in 1979.

“With the market for medals, militaria, coins and stamps remaining strong, we have already generated a lot of pre-sale interest for this group.”

Archie was born in 1921 and joined the Foreign Office in 1938 and on the outbreak of the Second World War he volunteered for the RAF.

Mobilized in 1941, he completed his pilot training in Rhodesia. However, when he returned to Britain on the SS Oronsay, the ship was torpedoed and he spent nine days adrift in a lifeboat before being rescued.

He flew combat missions in typhoons and hurricanes and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

After the war, he returned to the Foreign Office, serving as Ambassador to Kuwait and later to Norway.

The medals, along with his sword, RAF woolen sash, silver ashtray and old diplomatic pouch are estimated at £2,500-4,500 at Charterhouse’s two-day auction on September 1-2 .

Richard Bromell and the Charterhouse team can be contacted for appraisals at The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne 01935 812277 [email protected] where they are taking further entries for their September specialist coin auctions, medals, stamps, clocks and collectors followed by automobilia on September 29 and then classic cars and classic motorcycles in October.