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MOLLUS Companion Medal


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wartimecollectables.com

To continue in sharing my interest in The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States ... It was a hereditary order that allowed a male descendant to join as a Second Class Companion. This medal is number 17202 in box as issued to Lt. John Ross Mendenhall, US Army. He was the son of Colonel John Mendenhall 4th US Artillery. John R. Mendenhall graduated from West Point Class of 1915. Known as “the class the stars fell on”, Eisenhower and Bradley were classmates.He served in the 7th MG Battalion, 3rd Division in WW1 and was awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart. Rising to the rank of Colonel in WWII, he was Killed in Action 27 Jan 1945 while in New Guinea. His remains were returned to the United States in 1950 with two other servicemen. All three are interred in the same plot in Arlington National Cemetery and share a marker.
 

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Another beautiful medal.It is fitting and proper that these medals can be received by family members , these hero’s deserve to be remembered. It looks like this one is silver , I like the dark patina , it shows it is old but in great condition. Well cared for.  Thanks Andrew for posting it and teaching me about them , I knew very little about these medals. Mike

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wartimecollectables.com

Like the GAR, the MOLLUS became politically powerful and had many important members. Quite an interesting history as it was initially formed after Lincoln's assassination as a cadre of loyal Union officer's in the event of unrest following the President's death.

A couple other notes.... I should have pointed out that the First Class Member badge comes on a ribbon with a red center stripe, the Companion badge has a blue center stripe.  In wear, this is not a hard and fast rule though. Reribboned awards, simple errors and medals handed down to Companions could mix up the colors.  The Commandery Officer's could wear their badges suspended from a neck ribbon as illustrated in the second image below. FYI Not my collection, pics borrowed from the web.

 

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MOLLUS RIBBON.jpg

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