Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A particularly fine Second World War Burma operations M.M. group of five awarded to Private V. Conetta, Royal Sussex Regiment, who accounted for 16 of the enemy in a protracted action at Pinwe, prior to being wounded in a subsequent engagement in November 1944

Military Medal, G.VI.R. (6148677 Pte. V. Conetta, R. Suss. R.); 1939-45 Star; Burma Star; Defence and War Medals 1939-45, mounted court-style as worn, generally good very fine (5) £1600-1800

M.M. London Gazette 22 March 1945. The original recommendation states:

‘On the morning of 14 November 1944, near Pinwe, the enemy launched a counter attack on one of our Battalion positions. The main weight of this attack fell on the sector held by the Company of which Private Conetta was a member. In the early stages of the attack, Private Conetta fired his L.M.G. to great effect with coolness and determination, although he was being mortared and was constantly under the fire of an enemy medium machine-gun and an L.M.G. at almost point-blank range. By his action all further efforts by the enemy to close in on the position failed. Later, when our counter-attack was launched, the enemy had worked their automatics through the very thick jungle to within 25 yards of our perimeter. In the face of this withering fire, our counter attack in this sector at first wavered but Private Conetta, on his own initiative and alone, crawled forward with his Bren, carrying his magazines in his pocket to within 15 yards of the enemy M.M.G. With great coolness and an utter disregard of the fire to which he was being subjected, he got his gun behind a tree stump and proceeded systematically to wipe out all the members of the M.M.G. crew and their escort. In all he killed 10 Japanese, including the officer commanding the M.M.G. detachment, before capturing the M.M.G. itself. Inspired by his example, the rest of his section resumed their attack. Later, by his quickness in engaging fleeing targets, he accounted for 6 more of the enemy who would otherwise have escaped. Throughout the next 10 days, until he was wounded on 24 November 1944, he displayed conspicuous bravery in any action in which he took part.’

Victor Conetta was serving in the 9th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment at the time of the above cited deeds, which unit originally arrived in India with view to joining Combined Operations. In the event, not enough amphibious craft could be supplied for the Battalion to sustain such a role, and it reverted to a regular infantry operations in Burma from January 1944 to May 1945, initially in the Arakan and afterwards in North Burma with 72 Brigade of the 36th Division. And it was at Pinwe in November 1944, that Conetta won his M.M., an action best described in Battalion’s history, The Shiny Ninth:

‘The rest of that day and the 14th was spent in more patrols and counter patrols with losses on both sides. Who would take the initiative, and who would make the first mistake? It was the Japanese who did both. At 0710 hours, in the middle of the C.O.’s “O” Group, the Box was attacked by the largest force of Japs seen so far. It must be presumed that their patrols had reported the existence of a whole battalion concentration and they had been ordered to annihilate it. If so, the Japanese commander must have forgotten the Arakan and the lesson of 7 Div. Box. Being stuck up in the North he had probably never heard of it, but Colonel Oliver had not forgotten and the Box was a very tight one indeed. There were Brens about every five yards and one platoon of ‘A’ were defending a perimeter segment only ten paces long.

A section of the Manchester Regiment were positioned on the railway track with a perfect field of fire North and South. It must be stressed that a Box, whether of Division or battalion strength, is not purely defensive. Inside are mobile fighting patrols ready to deal with any enemy who got through the perimeter and this was a decisive factor. The attack, and the mopping up inside the perimeter, lasted five hours, at the end of which sixty Japanese were counted [10 of them thanks to Conetta]. Material captured included a heavy M.G. [Conetta again], two L.M.Gs, two grenade dischargers, several rifles, documents and one prisoner of war. The Royal Sussex casualties were three killed, fifteen wounded and one missing. Slit trenches cannot be dug for mules, unfortunately, and forty of them were killed. During the battle, the Battalion received news that they had been awarded the Freedom of Brighton! Brigadier Aslett, who had arrived towards the end of the fray had been greeted with a hail of enemy fire.’

And of the action leading to Conetta’s wounds, the same source states:

‘On the morning of the 24th, the Royal Sussex prepared to attack Bridge chaung, with ‘B’ and ‘D’ Companies advancing each side of the road. ‘D’ Company were held up almost at the start line but ‘B’ Company, under Major Bobbie Cash, went right through and gained their objective, Major Cash being severely wounded. ‘B’ Company themselves were now in deep trouble as the enemy had somehow managed to establish bunkers between them and ‘C’ Company, who were following up behind in support. In spite of manful efforts by ‘A’ and ‘C’ to extricate them, it was the 26th before they were finally brought out of danger, having had no food or rest for forty-eight hours.’

Conetta was presented with his M.M. by Major-General Frank Festing at a special ceremony held at Mahlainngon.

Sold with an original telegram from Conetta’s Battalion C.O., informing the recipient’s father of the award of his son’s M.M., together with a portrait photograph, the recipient wearing a Lance-Corporal’s stripe and airborne “wings”.