Rencher RL, Warrant Officer Two
Born in the UK in 1944, Robin Rencher emigrated to Australia with his parents. He joined the Australian Army and served during the Vietnam War, being awarded the Vietnam Medal displayed on the left and, on the right, the South Vietnam Campaign Medal awarded by the South Vietnamese Government.
He saw action in the battle of Long Tan in 1966, his unit being awarded an American Unit Citation Bar, displayed here and which can also be seen on his left shoulder in the photograph.
After being wounded in 1967, he transferred to the Australian Intelligence Corps. Their cap badge was almost identical to the British Intelligence Corps badge except for the addition of the bottom scrolls which read ‘Australian Intelligence Corps’.
In 1974 he transferred to the British Army and joined the Intelligence Corps, where he was nicknamed ‘Roo’. The photograph shows him being presented with a British Empire Medal by General Gow, for his service in Northern Ireland. He served during the Falklands Campaign and in Germany, being commissioned from WO1 in 1987. Robin ‘Roo’ Rencher died in 2016.