Thetford Family track down heroic ancestor’s war medals 98 years after his death

Joe Muteham (Image: Archant)

Of the four Thetford brothers who went off to fight, three – Bertie, George and Joe – never returned.

Over the years, this sombre sacrifice has been a source of great pride to their surviving descendants – but also a point of frustration.

For while the service medals and memorial plaques for two of them, George and Joe, have remained with the family, those of Bertie's have been lost for decades.

Now, however, after two great strokes of luck, they have been returned to his relatives, almost a century on from his death.

Medals belonging to Bertie Muteham have been returned to his family in Thetford after they won them on Ebay. (Image: Archant Norfolk Photographic © 2015)

His descendents, the Snowdon family, had, for years tried to track down his medals. All efforts had been fruitless until, last week, when they were spotted by a local historian, Darren Norton, in an auction on eBay.

Word got back to the Snowdons and they set about trying to get them back, to be reunited with those of his brothers.

They were able to buy the medals for £127, from a seller based in Cambridge, bringing much joy to the family.

But in a further twist, another bidder on the medals – who was from Norwich – got in touch to say that he had Bertie's memorial plaque, which he was happy to sell on to them.

Rosemary Snowdon said the saga had been 'amazing', not least for her mother, Dorothy Knights, 93, Bertie Muteham's niece.

'It's all come together. I couldn't believe it at first, and all I could think was 'how on Earth had they got them and where have they been?'

'My mother has found this remarkable, if a little upsetting to see a price put on the medals. It brought back a lot of memories for her as well,' she said.

She said that the initial auction had been a nerve-wracking experience, but the family were now delighted.

'We put in a maximum price and that was as much as we could go.

'We only found out a night before the auction ended.

'It was an anxious few hours but we were elated when we won them back,' she said.

Bertie Muteham died, aged 22, in fighting during the Third Battle of Ypres – Passchendaele. He was cut down by machine gun fire, struck in the side and neck, as he provided covering fire for his comrades.

Although his service medals and memorial plaque – also known as a 'dead man's penny' – were sent to his grieving family, they were, at some point, lost.

In a strange twist, both his brothers died after peace had arrived. Both were still in service, however, and are considered 'war dead'. George died in December 1918, Joe four months later.

The fourth Muteham son, Arthur, survived the war. He was bought back from the front after the sons' parents died, to care for two younger siblings.

Comment – Page 40

Have you made an incredible discovery? Let us know by emailing andrew.fitchett@archant.co.uk