British War medal to Longhurst BRC & St J of J Ambulance Driver.

A very interesting a scarce WW1 British War medal correctly named to Frederick Longhurst of the British Red Cross and St John of Jerusalem. Motor Ambulance Unit No 2.
As soon as war was declared in France the Red Cross together with the St Johns Ambulance were Mobilised very quickly, sending volunteers out to France and Belgium. Frederick Longhurst landed in France on 2nd Oct 1914 and as a motor driver, this was classed as a Chauffeur and these men and later women were to drive anything they could find or was donated to bring wounded from the clearing stations to the base hospitals. The first Red Cross Ambulance garage was in Boulogne from October 1914.

Before the war Frederick worked and lived at St Michaels Garage, Sunninghill, Ascot, so he was probably a confident mechanic and driver. There were in fact, two Frederick Longhurst’s at this address in 1911. A Frederick Cecil Longhurst age 5 and what looks like his uncle Frederick Longhurst aged 51, proprietor of the Cycle and Motor Garage. So, our Frederick must be the older man, who was to old to join the army in 1914, so he turned to his skills of driver machinic for the Red Cross. He would have driven from the main base in Boulogne at first and then probably moved closer to the front or on one of the ambulance convoys.
Fred served with the BRC until October 1919 and he is entitled to the 1914 Star trio and the BRCS medal for the great war and two Good Conduct certificates.
This medal is in excellent condition a nice scarcity to a non combatant.

Code: 29509