Trevor Fallwell joined the NZ Division of the Royal Navy in August 1941 as a Scheme B recruit. After initial training in the shore establishment HMS Philomel, he departed New Zealand to undergo officer training in the United Kingdom. Upon taking his commission he entered the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNZNVR).
After his training in the UK, Fallwell was attached to the Royal Navy and posted to the destroyer HMS Vansittart where he was stationed on an anti-aircraft gun. Vansittart conducted patrol and escort work in the English Channel. The ship was involved in the rescue of survivors from HMS Wild Swan after it was sunk by a dive bomber. Vansittart was then deployed to Gibraltar to patrol the strait for U-boats and subsequently joined a flotilla of destroyers escorting the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle that was transporting Spitfires to Malta. In August 1942 the Malta Convoy was attacked, and Eagle was sunk by submarine-launched torpedoes. Following a posting in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Vansittart returned to Liverpool and Fallwell went for officer training at Lancing School, Brighton. He was then posted to HMS King Alfred where he was promoted to Temporary Acting Sub-Lieutenant. He opted to join coastal forces and from 1943-1944 served on motor torpedo boats in the North Sea and English Channel, and was promoted to Lieutenant in 1944.
That same year Fallwell was shot in the lung, requiring hospitalisation. After his recovery he returned to service, remaining in Europe for the rest of the war. He was discharged to New Zealand in January 1946 as a Tuberculosis infection had rendered him ‘physically unfit for naval sevice’.
The 1939-45 Star is the first in a series of eight campaign stars instituted in 1945 to recognise service in World War Two. The ribbon has three equal vertical stripes of dark blue, red and light blue. The dark blue stripe symbolises the service of the Navy and the Merchant Navy, the red stripe symbolises the service of the Army, and the light blue stripe symbolises the service of the Air Force. The equal width bands represent the equal contributions of the three service arms towards victory. The ribbon was devised by King George VI. Two clasps could be awarded with this medal: ‘Battle of Britain’ and ‘Bomber Command’. Only aircrew would qualify for these clasps although a small number of Fleet Air Arm naval pilots flew for the air force and would be eligible for the ‘Battle of Britain’ clasp.
The Atlantic Star was awarded for service during the Second World War. It was instituted to commemorate the Battle of the Atlantic the longest continuous military campaign in the Second World War running from 3 September, 1939 – 8 May, 1945. Six months naval service or four months air service in the Atlantic, United Kingdom (‘home’) waters or North Russian waters was normally required. The ribbon is watered silk coloured blue, white and green, symbolising service in the oceans. Two clasps could be awarded with this medal: ‘France and Germany’ and ‘Air Crew Europe’. Personnel issued the Atlantic Star who then qualified for either the France and Germany and the Air Crew Europe Stars were awarded a clasp in respect of the second only (as only one clasp could be worn on the star).
The Africa Star was awarded in the Second World War for service in North Africa between 10 June 1940 and 12 May 1943. The ribbon is pale buff in colour, with a central vertical red stripe, and narrower stripes, one dark blue and the other light blue. The pale buff background symbolises the desert, the central red stripe symbolises the Army, the dark blue stripe symbolises the Navy and Merchant Navy, and the light blue stripe symbolises the Air Force. Three clasps could be awarded with this medal: ‘North Africa 1942-43’, ‘8th Army’, and ‘1st Army’. Naval personnel could only qualify for the ‘North Africa 1942-43’ clasp – for in shore service.
The Defence Medal was awarded to British and Commonwealth forces who served during the Second World War. It was awarded to New Zealand military personnel who served overseas in a non-operational area such as Great Britain, Palestine or Fiji. The ribbon’s flame-coloured orange centre band and green edge bands symbolise enemy attacks on Britain’s green and pleasant land. The narrow black stripes represent the black-outs against enemy air-attacks.
The War Medal 1939-45 was awarded across the British Commonwealth to all full-time members of the Armed Forces in the Second World War for 28 days service between 3 September 1939 and 2 September 1945, irrespective of where they were serving. The ribbon is the red, white, and blue of the (British) Union Flag. There is a narrow central red stripe with a narrow white stripe on either side. There are broad red stripes at either edge, the two intervening stripes being blue.
A bronze oak leaf on the medal ribbon denotes that the recipient was Mentioned in Despatches. To be Mentioned in Despatches a member of the armed forces had their name mentioned in an official report, written by a superior officer, and sent to a higher command. The report would describe the individual’s gallant or meritorious action in the face of the enemy.
The New Zealand War Service Medal was awarded for 28 days’ full time service or six months’ part time service in the Second World War in any of the New Zealand Armed Forces including the Reserves, Naval Auxiliary Patrol Service, or Home Guard, between 3 September 1939 and 2 September 1945.
