Two South African War medals, Two penny buttons, Queen Victoria's Chocolate Boxes.
Canadians watched the success of their troops with growing pride. They sported penny buttons commemorating a famous man or event as proudly as their men at the front carried a military decoration. These buttons were both issued by the Montreal Star, the first to celebrate the Relief of Ladysmith, the besieged British fortress liberated a few days after Paardeberg. The second was distributed to honour Lord Strathcona's contribution to the war. Companies also used buttons to lure customers to their stores or to advertise goods. The medals are two general service medals with bars listing the engagements in which the recipients took part.
The chocolate boxes are from the collection of the Canadian War Museum. Queen Victoria ordered the design and despatch of these boxes in December 1899. Every soldier at the front received one and often refrained from eating the chocolate so that he might send it home to be kept as an heirloom.
Courtesy: Collection of the Author National Museum of Man, National Museums of Canada
