WW1 1914/15 Star Trio to Burchett 2nd Dragoon Guards + ISM.

A very interesting collection of medals including 1914/15 star, British war and victory medal correctly named to 2437 Private Ernest Frederick Burchett of the 2nd Dragoon Guards the Queens Bays. A George VI Imperial Service Medal correctly named to Ernest Burchett.
Ernest Frederick Burchett was born on 17th November 1888 in St Hanover, Middlesex / London. His father, Frederick was a gentleman’s valet working in the city and as a family he lived in Paddington with Mother Elizabeth and three other siblings.
Ernest was well educated, first at Gordon’s and later at St Matthew's School, Westminster, London. He was probably a member of the schools’ territorials, which is stated in his service papers as Militia. After school he took employment as a porter while serving with the 7th battalion Rifle Brigade. When he was 18 he joined full time and was soon transferred to the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers and then to the Dragoons, first the Inniskilling Dragoons and then to the Queens bays. He served in Ireland from April 1907 to August 1908 and in 1909 his regiment was sent to South Africa and then on to India, where it stayed until the war broke out in 1914. Ernest was still in Calcutta in the October 1914. This may be due to a bought of malaria he contracted in 1914 and he was kept in quarantine until then.
On his arrival in France the information available is a little sketchy, as a horseman it looks like he was attached to the Royal Engineers as a dispatch rider.
On the 1st December 1916 he was transferred to the 4th Signal Company Royal Engineers, part of the 4th Division. He was trained in telegraph and telephone operation providing communication support directly to the 4th Division, connecting headquarters with infantry and artillery brigades and other units. They took part in most major battles on the western front for the reminder of the war. By the end of the war, Ernest was promoted to Corporal and was highly skilled in his job. He was discharged into the reserve on 19th May 1919 having served for 12 years just missing out on the Long Service and Good Conduct medal.
After the war he married Olive in 1922 and took a position with the General Post Office in Manchester before taking residence once again in London working his way up with the GPO.
He was awarded the Imperial Service medal for a lifetime of service with the Post Office.
The medals are in excellent condition and look like they have never been mounted and worn. They comes with a large amount of copied paperwork including, medal index card, medal award rolls, service papers, census information etc.

Code: 30902