RSA Review Spring 2020

3 rSA revieW • SPRING 2020 Daryl Styles remembers clearly when his love of collecting military memorabilia started. “Anzac Daywas big in our family. As a young lad I’d go down to the RSAwithmy grandfather and sit in the corner and listen to the stories... the Japanese surrendering and then the soldiers realising they were concealing hand grenades ready to throw, or flying in Zero fighter planes to distract while the bomberswere flying above. My grandfather lost a few mates that way. “The stories were just incredible. When I was about 10, my grandfather gave me his jungle green hat from the war. Then, the next-door neighbour gave me his gas mask and I found an artillery badge in our garden.” When Daryl started working, he gathered more bits and pieces to add to the growing collection. It nowincludes hundreds of items, all displayed in his garage in Papakura, Auckland. “I have a very understandingwife,” he jokes. “Back then, stuff was cheap because nobody really wanted it.” His focus is on hats and helmets – items he says he is attracted to because each one has a story and was closely connected to the person who wore it most during service. His collection includes berets, officers’ caps, French kepies, side caps, pith helmets, lemon squeezers and gas masks. In the early days he often bought direct off returned servicemen, whowould tell himabout their experiences. “I’m interested in who wore it, where the hat went. These hats signify the people who came home. It’s also the camaraderie I like. You’d never normally see a lawyer mixing with a labourer, but in the war everyone was the same, no matter who you were in society or what job you had.” He says the thrill of the chase keeps him motivated ro continue gathering new items. “Even though I’ve been collecting for a long time, I still learn new things. When I come across a new interesting piece, it’s like ‘wow’.” And, if his hats could talk, they’d have quite some stories to tell. A Vickers helmet is a prime example: the British company made this German helmet for the Irish because, under the Treaty of Versailles, the Germans were not allowed to manufacture weapons of war. A New Zealand naval beret from the KoreanWar was specially made in a hurry as the servicemen didn’t have anything to wear. It is these sorts of facts and discoveries that Daryl enjoys. There’s also a camp hat from a soldier who completed hard labour in Poland and survived World War 2, a tree- jumper hat of a New Zealand Special Air Service (SAS) soldier in the Malaysian conflict, and the helmet of a New Zealand soldier stationed in Singapore signed by all his mates the night WW2 ended. Daryl’s oldest items are a French shako from 1830 and a United States kepie from the Indian wars, dated 1872. He also has New Zealand headgear, artillery caps and a military police provost that predate World War I. His grandfather, ManfredMunroeMcFadden, served in the 3rd Division, 37th Battalion, C Company in the Pacific during World War 2. His jungle green hat has only small monetary value, but Daryl rates it the most precious item in his collection. “He was a big influence on me. His hat was issued to him in New Zealand, he wore it through the war, and used it as a gardening hat when he returned home. The hat – in fact, my whole collection – reminds me of him.” There's one thing Daryl would love to add to his collection but has been able to find – a DArYL'S HEAD fOr HATS INSPIrED BY GrANDDAD, 'UNDErSTANDING WIfE' Walk into Daryl Styles' garage and it's like entering the quin- tessential quartermaster's store, especially the headgear section.KARENPHELPSuncov- ers what's under his hat. photo of his grandfather in uniform. He remains on the look-out. Manfred McFadyen did his training at BurnamMilitary Camp just outside Christchurch. Daryl thinks a group photo may have been taken at at the end of the basic training, and he would love to hear from anyone who might be able to help. Sowhat will become of the collection?Daryl’s elder son, Jack, 14, is expressing interest and has to walk through the ‘museum’ to get to his bedroom. His other son, Ben, 12, likes being taken for rides around the neighbourhood in Daryl’s World War 2 Willys army jeep, complete with replica M3 37mm anti-tank gun and 50-calibre machine gun. “But if my kids don’t want, it I’d probably donate it to amuseum. It’s not about themoney value, but the story behind it.” Daryl Styles' garage is chokka with hats galore, military uniforms, old radios and communication equipment, assorted military memorabilia. Just about everything except a car really? Support