Description
Crested Ware China Carlton China British Tank Marne 1918 Southsea
This crested china 13cm model of a Mark IV British tank was manufactured by Carlton China, Stoke-on-Trent,
William Goss and his son Adolphus are credited with the idea of making souvenir China items bearing the arms and names of seaside resorts which they manufactured from 1858 to 1939. Other pottery manufacturers followed Goss’s lead, including Wiltshaw & Robinson of Stoke-on-Trent with their Carlton Ware, Heraldic China which they started making around 1903.Towards the end of the 19th century bank holidays were introduced and most workers had a half day off on Saturdays, starting “the weekend”. Some skilled workers began to receive paid holidays and an extensive railway network allowed workers to go to the seaside for day trips and longer holidays for the more affluent. Purchasing a souvenir was part of this experience and was a pleasant reminder of happy times when they returned home.
Crested Ware China Carlton China British Tank Marne 1918 Southsea
The Southsea Tank bears a number of inscriptions. It has the name of the tank “Crème-de-Menthe” on the front and the letters HMLS on top, which stand for His Majesty’s Land Tank. Tanks, like ships, had names as well as numbers. Unfortunately, Carlton got the name of this tank wrong, “Crème-de-Menthe” was a Mark I tank and this Mark IV tank is “HMLS Nelson”, number 130, as displayed on the left hand side.On the left-hand side of the tank is the number 130 assigned to this tank and also what Carlton China considered to be Southsea’s coat of arms.
On the right-hand side of the tank is: ”Victory of Justice – Peace Signed at Versailles, June 28, 1919”, which commemorates the Versailles peace treaty and dates the model tank at 1919 or later.
Underneath this is the inscription “British Tank Gave Them Hell At The Marne 1918”. The Second Battle of the Marne was the last major German Spring Offensive on the Western Front during the First World War. The German attack failed when an Allied counter attack by French and American forces, including 350 tanks, overwhelmed the Germans. The German defeat marked the start of the Allied advance which culminated in the Armistice with Germany about 100 days later. Ironically, a small number of captured British tanks were used in this battle by the Germans.
WW1 German Bunker find (Saint Mihiel)
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£48.001 × £48.00
