Burma Star 1941-45

Campaign medal awarded to Major J W Parkinson, Indian Army Reserve and Indian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

Copper zinc alloy medal in the form of a six-pointed star. On the obverse, the royal cypher, 'GRI VI', for King George VI, surmounted by a crown, with a circlet inscribed with, 'The Burma Star'. The medal is suspended from a dark blue ribbon with central red stripe and two orange stripes.

The Burma Star 1941-45 was awarded for service in the Burma campaign from 11 December 1941 and included service in Bengal or Assam from 1 May 1942 to 31 December 1943. It could also be awarded for certain specified service in China, Hong Kong, Malaya and Sumatra.

It is believed that King George VI personally designed the ribbons for the nine World War Two (1939-1945) campaign stars, which each have symbolic significance. The ribbon shows three equal bands of dark blue (British Forces), red (Commonwealth Forces) and dark blue. The dark blue bands have a central stripe of bright orange representing the sun.

From a medal group awarded to Major J W Parkinson, Indian Army Reserve and Indian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.