medal set
Report a Mistake- Object Number 19820001-001
- Event 1914-1919 First World War
- Affiliation --
- Artist / Maker / Manufacturer Sebastian Garrard
- Date Made 1914/10/01-1919/09/01
- Place of Use Continent - North America, Country - Canada
- Category Communication artifacts
- Sub-category Personal symbol
- Department Arms and Technology
- Museum CWM
- Earliest 1914/10/01
- Latest 1919/09/01
- Inscription (DSC) (hallmarks/poinçon): (BWM & VM/MGB & MV): CAPT. A. R. BROWN. R.A.F.
- Support swing mount
- Materials Silver, Copper, Silkworm silk
- Service Component Royal Air Force
- Measurements Length 9.2 cm, Width 11.5 cm, Thickness 0.3 cm
- Caption Medal Set, Captain Arthur Brown
- Additional Information In 1917, RNAS pilot Brown was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (left), a naval decoration, in recognition of his bravery in combat over the Western Front. Brown is best remembered for his involvement in the death of Manfred von Richthofen, the "Red Baron." In an aerial battle on 21 April 1918, Richthofen, Germany's highest-scoring ace, was pursuing Canadian pilot Wilfrid "Wop" May. Brown, spotting May in danger, dived steeply, firing at Richthofen to force him to break off his pursuit. During the fighting, a bullet passed through Richthofen's chest and he died shortly afterward. The incident continues to fascinate and to incite debate: while the Royal Air Force credited Brown with the victory and awarded him a bar to his Distinguished Service Cross in part for this action, forensic evidence suggests that the bullet that killed Richthofen was fired from the ground.