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Click here to subscribeScottish Dumfriesshire Volunteer Regiment VTC WW1 cap badge. Good rare die-stamped bronze figure Archangel Michael with sword and shield on vanquished dragon with attendant oak sprays all resting on four part scroll PRAESIDIUM BURGI DE DUMFRIES ALOREBURN. Blades. VGC INVOICE PAYABLE ON PRESENTATION BY BANK TRANSFER ONLY
German Third Reich WW2 Army / Waffen SS Close Combat Clasp in bronze. Good scarce die-cast example, the reverse bears in relief F.E.C. W.E. PEEKHAUS BERLIN and AUSF. A.G.MU K. GABLONZ. Eagle and swastika over crossed grenade and bayonet set between oakleaf sprays. Hinged tapered pin with countersunk securing hook and complete with central backing plate. VGC Introduced in November 1942 by Adolf Hitler. INVOICE PAYABLE ON PRESENTATION BY BANK TRANSFER ONLY
Canadian 167th Bn. CEF WW1 cap badge. Good scarce die-cast pickled bronze crowned lined shield bearing 167, over beaver on TOUJOURS DROIGT tablet resting in maple sprays resting on 167E BATAILLON CANADIEN FRANCIS F.E.C. Caron Freres Montreal 1916 Loops. VGC 1915 Quebec raised Battalion. INVOICE PAYABLE ON PRESENTATION BY BANK TRANSFER ONLY
AR * Abrahams (Ivor, 1935-2015). Dancer, bronze with green patina, depicting a dancer resting on the top of their back, legs in the air pointing to the right, screwed onto base (one screw missing, one sheared), resting on a base 7mm thick, figure 150mm, total height 157 mm x 120 mm, label to verso 'IA23' numbered 6/9, together with Female Dancer, bronze with green patina, showing a figure sitting on the floor with back arched, one hand to head, legs bent, '1' in pen to underside of base, screwed onto a 19 mm high base, figure 120mm tall, overall height 139 mm, and Back Flip, bronze with green patina, depicting a female figure arching her back, screwed onto 18 mm base, figure height 115 mm, overall 133 mm high, and Back Flip, bronze with green patina, depicting a female figure arching her back, screwed onto 18 mm base, figure height 115 mm, overall 133 mm high, together with: Abrahams (Ivor, 1935-2015). Trees, glazed pottery in purple and blue, monogrammed and dated '76?' to lower right, signed and dated '81' in black pen to inside bottom edge, length 33 cm (13 ins), together with Trees, circa 1976, glazed pottery in cream and black, monogrammed to lower right, artist's name and '3/30' in black pen to bottom, '76' in pen to verso, length 33 cm (13 ins), and Fulham Pottery, 1983, ceramic, painted green and yellow, signed, titled and dated in purple ink to verso, diameter 23 cm (9 ins)QTY: (7)NOTE:This first work is possibly from Abrahams' Trente-Six series of bronzes produced in 1989, in a limited edition of 9.
Royal Humane Society, small bronze medal (successful) (George Soanes. 24. March. 1898.) with integral top riband bar, and housed in Elkington leather damaged case of issue, nearly extremely fine £100-£140 --- R.H.S. Case no. 29,352: ‘On the 24th March 1898, the smack Betsey was driven on shore at Corton, near Lowestoft. Communication was opened with the rocket apparatus, but in taking the crew to land two of them were so exhausted that they fell out of the breeches buoy. Instantly Pye, Soanes and Smith sprang into the boiling surf and succeeded in taking them to shore, together with a third man who had been washed off the wreck.’
War Service Crosses 2nd Class in Large Presentation Packets. Two examples, the first an early War issue of excellent quality in bronze, and in mint as new unissued condition, retaining all original bright factory finish, and is wrapped in its original tissue paper. The ring is not marked. The light brown packet is almost mint, and has printed on the front ‘Kriegs-Verdienstkreuz 2. Klasse ohne Schwerten’ and on the reverse ‘Werner Rado Saarlauten’; the second an early War issue of excellent quality in bronze, and in mint as new unissued condition, retaining all original bright factory finish. The ring is not marked. The light brown packet is in good condition, and has printed on the front ‘Kriegs-Verdienstkreuz 2. Klasse ohne Schwerten’ and on the reverse ‘Jak. Bengel Oberstein’, both nearly extremely fine and both scarce by these manufacturers, and in the large packets (2) £80-£100
London & North Western Railway St. John Ambulance Association First Aid Examination Medal, English Division, silver and enamel, for 12 Years’ Service (2) ‘G. Hughes 1923; William Sumner 1923’; North Eastern Railway Centre St. John Ambulance Association Cross for Meritorious First Aid Service, bronze, unnamed; British Railways 15 Years’ First Aid Efficiency Medal (2), 1st type, silver and enamel ‘William D. Payne 1952 N.288’; 2nd type, skeletal silver badge ‘N.E.263 William Blyth 1964’, in card box of issue, good very fine (5) £80-£100
Italian/German Africa Medals. Two examples, the first the Italian-made 1st type in bronze. Designer’s and maker’s names on reverse, with safety pin through top of the riband for wearing; the second the German-made 2nd type in blue grey zinc. Designer’s and maker’s names not on reverse, in factory new condition, retaining all original finish, extremely fine (2) £80-£100
Renamed Medal: Egypt and Sudan 1882-89, undated reverse, 2 copy clasps, The Nile 1884-85, Kirbekan (Lieut: H. W. Boyce. 19th. Husrs.) renamed; together with a Society of Miniature Rifle Clubs ‘Bell Medal’, bronze, unnamed, light pitting, nearly very fine (2) £60-£80 --- Hugh Wollcombe Boyce was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, on 22 March 1861 and was was commissioned Second Lieutenant from the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, into the 19th Hussars on 14 January 1880. Promoted Lieutenant on 1 July 1881, he served with the Regiment in Egypt and the Sudan during the Nile Expedition in 1885, before transferring to the 6th Dragoon Guards as a Captain. He fell whilst riding ‘Lady Ava’ in the Free Hunters Steeplechase at Sandown Racecourse on 28 February 1890; kicked in the temple by another horse, he suffered a fracture of the skull, and died of his injuries that night. Sold with copied research.
Jubilee 1887, Metropolitan Police (PC, A. Manuel. T. Divn.); Jubilee 1897, Metropolitan Police (PC. A. Sheraton. P. Divn.); Special Constabulary Long Service Medal G.V.R., 2nd issue (Alfred Barnard); together with a Royal Life Saving Society Bronze Swimming Medal ‘A. E. Clarke. Aug. 1929.’, the Jubilee Medals both silvered, nearly very fine and better (4) £80-£100
A Royal Victorian Medal in Bronze awarded to Able Seaman W. G. Bloomfield, Royal Navy, for services as member of the Naval Guard of Honour at the Funeral of Queen Victoria Royal Victorian Medal, V.R., bronze (W. G. Bloomfield, A.B., H.M.S. Excellent) contact marks, nearly very fine £140-£180 --- Provenance: John Tamplin Collection, Dix Noonan Webb, June 2009. Sold with various photographic images of Queen Victoria’s Funeral procession.
Defective and Copy Medals: India General Service 1895-1902, lacking suspension and clasp and fitted with silver loop (4162 Lce. Corpl. Anstey 1st Devon Regt.) attempted obliteration of surname, edge bruising and contact marks, good fine; Distinguished Flying Cross, G.VI.R., undated copy; together with: Yorkshire Regiment, engraved silver sports medal, 45mm, unnamed with ball and ring suspension, in its P. Orr & Son, Madras & Rangoon fitted case; two Boxing medals won by L.A.C. J. A. Howard, both named, H.M.S. Royal Sovereign, silver, hallmarked Birmingham 1930, with ring suspension, and R.A.F. Boxing medal, bronze, named and additionally inscribed ‘Egypt - Palestine - Iraq 1932’, both fitted with rings for suspension; Army Temperance Medal In Memory of Queen Victoria 1837-1901, silver, with ring suspension, unless otherwise described, very fine or better (6) £80-£100
Southern Railway St. John Ambulance Association Service Medal (3), silver-gilt, for 21 Years’ Service ‘Frederick A. Jarvis 1948’, with integral ‘21 Years’ top silver-gilt riband bar; silver, for 14 Years’ Service (2) ‘Clement C. Cook 1925.; Harold W. Churchill 1949’, both with integral ‘14 Years’ top silver riband bars, the first in case of issue; London and South Western Railway St. John Ambulance Association Service Medal for Meritorious First Aid Services ‘J. Martin 1903’; South Eastern and Chatham Railway St. John Ambulance Association Service Medal, bronze, for 7 Years’ Service ‘Augustus Tomsett 1917’, good very fine (5) £100-£140 --- The London & South Western Railway (LSWR), and the South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SE & CR) were both absorbed into the Southern Railway as part of the 1923 Grouping. The Southern Railway was nationalised in 1948, and absorbed into British Railways, meaning that the awards to Jarvis and Churchill will be amongst the last of these medals awarded. Augustus Frederick Tomsett was born in Ashford, Kent, and is recorded on the 1911 Census as a Railway Engine Fitter’s Assistant, South Eastern & Chatham Railway. He had previously served with the 2nd Battalion, East Kent Regiment in South Africa during the Boer War from 22 December 1899 to 1 October 1902 (entitled to a Queen’s South Africa Medal with clasps for Paardeberg, Driefontein, Relief of Kimberley, and Transvaal; and the King’s South Africa Medal with both date clasps); and then again with the East Kent Regiment during the Great War on the Western Front from 1 April 1915. Sold with copied research.
Three: Captain F. G. Doyle, 2nd Dragoon Guards, who served on ‘Special Service’ in the Zulu war of 1879, and who died at home in 1882 of typhoid contracted on active service in Egypt whilst attached to the 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards South Africa 1877-79, 1 clasp, 1879 (Capt; F. Doyle. 2nd Dgn. Gds.); Egypt and Sudan 1882-89, dated reverse, 1 clasp, Tel-El-Kebir (Capt. F. G. Doyle. 2nd Dn. Gds.) ‘2nd’ officially corrected; Khedive’s Star, dated 1882, nearly extremely fine and rare (3) £3,000-£4,000 --- Only 9 Zulu War medals issued to the 2nd Dragoon Guards, all with 1879 clasp, Doyle being the senior of the three officers present. Frederick Grenville Doyle was born on 4 April 1848, son of Sir Francis Hastings Doyle, Bart. He entered the army as an Ensign in the 63rd Foot on 20 February 1866, transferring to the 60th Foot on the following 9 March. Promoted to Lieutenant in the 60th Foot on 22 May 1869, he transferred to the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen’s Bays) on 8 March 1876. He was then made Extra Aide-de-Camp to Governor of Madras, a position he held from January to July 1868, and then to G.O.C. Southern District between 1 April 1874 and 30 June 1877. Doyle accompanied Sir Garnet Wolseley to South Africa in May 1879, and was employed on special service until the conclusion of the campaign in Zululand as Commandant at Headquarters of the army (Medal with Clasp). He passed the Senior Department, Staff College, 1880, and subsequently served in the Egyptian campaign of 1882, attached to the 4th Dragoon Guards, including at the Battle of Tel-el-Kebir (Medal with Clasp, Khedive’s Bronze Star). He was invalided to England and died at home on 12 December 1882 of ‘typhoid fever, contracted in the late Egyptian campaign, while attached to the 4th Dragoon Guards’. He is buried in Meifod Parish churchyard, where the inscription on his headstone reads: ‘In Loving memory of Francis Grenville Doyle 2nd Dragoon Guards eldest son of Francis Hastings Doyle, Baronet and Sidney his wife, daughter of the Honourable Charles Williams Wynne. Born April 1846 - Died 2nd December 1882 at Coed-Y-Maen of fever contracted in the Egyptian Campaign at Magfar, Mahuta, Masemeh and in the Kassassin and Tel-el-Kebir Campaign and entered Cairo with the 1st Detachment. Coming home only to die.’ Sold with copied photograph of the recipient in uniform wearing the first medal together with other copied research.
Royal Humane Society, small bronze medal (successful) (William Thomas Wood, 12th July 1887) with integral top riband buckle, nearly extremely fine £100-£140 --- R.H.S. Case no. 23,634: ‘Thomas Wood, professor of music, at great personal risk, rescued Frederick Ball from drowning in the Thames, at Chelsea, on the 12th July 1887.’ The following additional detail is provided by the West London Press, 16 July 1887: ‘On Tuesday a gallant act was witnessed from the Chelsea Embankment. As the steamer Redfern was proceeding from Cadogan Pier up the river to Kew, the passengers saw a boy in the water opposite the Old Church, who was evidently exhausted, and was shouting for help. Without a moments hesitation, and only leaving his hat and stick behind, Mr Wood of 3 Radnor Street, Chelsea, dived into the river, and swam to the boy. He seized hold of him, and by dint of great exertion succeeded in getting him down to the Albert Bridge. There they managed to seize a life buoy skilfully thrown from the bridge by Mr. Rusholme, who is engaged on the works, and on this they were supported until rescued by a boat promptly launched from the pier by the master, Mr. Pellatt. Mr. Wood was able to go home at once without assistance. The boy whose name is Frederick Ball, and who also lives in Radnor Street was in a very exhausted state, and says had not Mr. Wood acted so promptly he must have gone under. He has not however suffered much from his immersion. He was bathing in the river and had gone too far from the shore, and the tide which was running out strongly at the time carried him away. Mr. Wood’s hat and stick were carried by the Redfern up to Kew and were not returned to him until the next day.’ Sold with copied research, and an original cutting from the above newspaper edition.
Three: A. Ward, South Eastern and Chatham Railway, later Southern Railway Southern Railway St. John Ambulance Association Service Medal, gold (9ct., 14.14g), for 21 Years’ Service ‘Alfred Ward 1928.’, lacking integral top riband bar; South Eastern and Chatham Railway St. John Ambulance Association Service Medal (2), silver, for 14 Years’ Service ‘Alfred Ward 1921’; bronze, for 7 Years’ Service ‘Alfred Ward 1914’, good very fine (3) £100-£140 --- The South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SE & CR) was absorbed into the Southern Railway as part of the 1923 Grouping.
Great Western Railway Medal for 15 Years’ First Aid Efficiency, gold (9ct., 6.57g), ‘3203 Reginald J. Arthur 1939’; together with the recipient’s St. John Ambulance Association Re-examination Cross, silver, ‘257559 Reginald J. Arthur’, with silver Bars for 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1934, and 1935, these all engraved ‘257559’, and bronze bars for 1939 and 1939, these both similarly numbered, the first five attached to the cross, the last seven loose, good very fine (2) £80-£100
Pair: Private R. Elliss, Royal Marines Naval General Service 1793-1840, 1 clasp, Syria (Richd. Elliss.); St. Jean d’Acre 1840, bronze, unnamed as issued, edge bruising and light contact marks, very fine (2) £500-£700 --- Richard Elliss was born at Bratton Clovelly, Tavistock, Devon, and attested for the Royal Marines at Plymouth on 12 February 1834. He served in H.M.S. Princess Charlotte during the operations on and off the coast of Syria in 1840, and was discharged at his own request, on payment of £20, on 23 August 1841.
A Great War C.M.G. group of ten awarded to Brigadier-General L. N. Beatty, 31st Duke of Connaught’s Own Lancers (formerly 1st Bombay Lancers) The Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, C.M.G., Companion’s neck badge, silver-gilt and enamels; Queen’s Sudan 1896-98 (Lt. L. N. Beatty. 1/Bom: Lan:); India General Service 1895-1902, 2 clasps, Punjab Frontier 1897-98, Tirah 1897-98 (Lieut: L. N. Beatty. 1st Bo: Lcrs.); Africa General Service 1902-56, 1 clasp, Somaliland 1902-04 (Capt: L. N. Beatty. 31st Lancers); British War and Victory Medals, with M.I.D. oak leaves (Brig. Gen. L. N. Beatty.); Delhi Durbar 1911, silver; France, Third Republic, Legion of Honour, 4th Class breast badge, silver-gilt and enamels, this with several enamel chips; Croix de Guerre 1914-18, with bronze palme; Khedive’s Sudan 1896-1908, no clasp (Lieut. L. N. Beatty 1st Bo. Lcrs.) the medals cleaned, lacquered and mounted for display, light contact marks, otherwise generally very fine or better (10) £2,400-£2,800 --- C.M.G. London Gazette 22 March 1919. Lionel Nicholson Beatty was born on 4 May 1867, the son of Surgeon-General Thomas Berkeley Beatty of the Indian Medical Service. In common with his younger brother, Guy, he was educated at Charterhouse (later Major-General Sir Guy Beatty, K.B.E., C.B., C.S.I., C.M.G., D.S.O.). Commissioned 2nd Lieutenant in the Worcestershire Regiment in May 1887, Beatty transferred to the Indian Army in November 1889 and gained an appointment in the 1st Bombay Lancers. He first witnessed active service in the Dongola Expedition in the Sudan in 1896 (Queen's medal; Khedive's medal), quickly followed by like services on the Punjab Frontier, at Bunar, and with the Tirah Field Force in the Bazar Valley operations of 1897-98 (Medal with 2 clasps). He was Mentioned in Despatches (London Gazette 7 June 1898, refers). Having gained advancement to Captain, he saw further action in the Somaliland operations of 1903-04, when he commanded the 11th Somali Camel Corps and acted as a Special Service Officer (Medal with clasp); he was once again Mentioned in Despatches (London Gazette 2 September 1904, refers). Advanced to Lieutenant-Colonel in October 1912, Beatty was serving as Commandant of the 31st Duke of Connaught's Own Lancers - formerly 1st Bombay Lancers - on the outbreak of the Great War. He subsequently witnessed active service in Aden, France and Mesopotamia between 1917 and 1919, and was advanced to Brigadier-General in November 1917. In addition to his resultant award of the C.M.G., he was twice Mentioned in Despatches (London Gazette 7 April 1919, refers; two entries), and awarded the French Legion of Honour, 4th class and Croix de Guerre. Brigadier-General Beatty retired in 1920, and died on 14 October 1929. He was a cousin of Admiral of the Fleet Earl Beatty.
Germany, Third Reich, War Service Cross, Second Class, with Swords, zinc, unmarked; War Service Medal, bronze; Mother’s Cross in gold, gilt and enamel; together with a Parade mounted pair comprising the Armed Forces Long Service Medal for 4 years and the Entry into Austria Medal 13 March 1938, mounted dress style with eagle and swastika motif, good very fine (5) £100-£140
Royal Humane Society, large bronze medal (successful) (James Fisher Vit. Ob. Serv. D.D. Soc. Reg. Hvm. 16 & 17 June 1856) fitted with ring suspension, good very fine £100-£140 --- R.H.S. Case no. 15,853: ‘James Tattersall and Jas. Waring. June 16 and 17, the Canal Preston. James Fisher (carpenter), jumped in, on both occasions, and rescued them.’ James Tattersall was 4 years old, and James Waring was 8 years old when they both accidentally fell in to the Preston Canal, Lancashire. The following additional detail is provided by The Preston Guardian of 21 June 1856: ‘We are informed that a worthy and brave fellow named Fisher, a ship’s-carpenter, who lives in Hawkins Street, Preston, succeeded last week in rescuing two children from a watery grave. On the Tuesday, while at work on the Maudlands, he heard a cry of distress from some children on the opposite bank, and observed some bubbles on the surface of the water. With a wonderful presence of mind he darted into the canal, and dragged the unfortunate boy to land. On Wednesday a second case of the same kind occured. We are also informed that last summer Fisher rescued two drowning children from the canal; and some time previous he saved a fellow creature from a watery grave, at the risk of his own life....’ Sold with copied research.
Wehrmacht Driver’s Badges in Presentation Packets. Three examples, the first ‘Gold’ on fieldgrey cloth, the brown paper backing slightly worn, gold-plated iron, in brown paper packet; the second ‘Silver’ on fieldgrey cloth, with brown paper backing, a late War type in polished iron, in brown paper packet with a small tear to the front; the third ‘Bronze’ on fieldgrey cloth, with brown paper backing, bronze, in brown paper packet, extremely good condition (3) £100-£140
Royal Humane Society, small bronze medal (successful) (Rev. C. W. Hutchinson. 23rd Sept. 1916.) with integral top riband buckle, good very fine £100-£140 --- R.H.S. Case no. 42,925: ‘At 12.50pm on the 23rd September, 1916, a boy fell into the Thames at Woolwich and was carried out about 30 yards by the strong ebb tide. The Rev. C. W. Hutchinson jumped in and succeeded in bringing him to land.’ The following additional detail is provided by The Woolwich Herald, 29 September 1916: ‘A very gallant act was performed on Saturday morning by the Rev. C. W. Hutchinson, priest-in-charge of St. Saviour’s Mission Woolwich, who has latterly become well known in the district through his activities in connection with the welfare of the Arsenal boy-workers. At about mid-day Arthur South, aged 12, of Paradise Place, Woolwich, was playing on the steps leading to the river at Bell Water Gate, Woolwich, when he fell into the water whilst attempting to reach a floating box. The tide was running swiftly at the time, and the boy was rapidly being carried away and had already disappeared twice when Mr. Hutchinson, attracted by the screams of other children, ran out from the mission-house and, without pausing even to remove his coat, dived in to the rescue. By this time the boy had been carried into very deep water, about 50 yards away, but, swimming strongly, Mr. Hutchinson succeeded in reaching him in the nick of time and brought him safely ashore amid the cheers of a large crows. After being dried and warmed at the mission-house the boy was able to go home, none the worse for his narrow escape.’ Sold with copied research.
The rare Gold Albert Medal group of five awarded to Mr A. T. Shuttleworth, Deputy Conservator of Forests (Bombay District), late Indian Navy Albert Medal, 1st Class, for Gallantry in Saving Life at Sea, gold and enamel, the reverse officially numbered ‘No. 14’ and inscribed (Presented in the name of Her Majesty to A. T. Shuttleworth. Wrecks of the “Berwickshire” “Die Vernon” and “Terzah” 1866 and 1867) the reverse of the crown with maker’s cartouche ‘Phillips Cockspur S’, fitted with silver-gilt riband buckle; India General Service 1854-94, 1 clasp, Persia (A. T. Shuttleworth, Captns. Clk. Ferooz S.F.) fitted with silver riband buckle; Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners Royal Benevolent Society, gold (Allen Shuttleworth, Esqr. 1867) fitted with silver-gilt riband buckle; Lloyd’s Medal for Saving Life at Sea, 1st large type glazed silver medallion, 73mm (Allen Thornton Shuttleworth Esq. late Indian Navy. 25th September 1867) lacking reverse lunette; Royal Humane Society, large bronze medal (Successful), (Mr A. T. Shuttleworth, 1 August 1866) fitted with bronze riband buckle, generally good very fine (5) £12,000-£16,000 --- Importation Duty This lot is subject to importation duty of 5% on the hammer price unless exported outside the UK --- --- Provenance: Brian Ritchie Collection, Dix Noonan Webb, March 2005. Allen Thornton Shuttleworth, the son of Digby Edward Shuttleworth, Indigo Planter, was born in the Meerpore district of Pubna on 21 October 1839. He was educated under Mr J. Whitely at Woolwich Common and was nominated for the post of Captain’s Clerk in the Indian Navy by Captain John Shepherd on the recommendation of his uncle. Shuttleworth was admitted into the Indian Navy on 12 December 1855, and having taken the oath ‘to be true and faithful to the said Company, and faithfully and truly execute and discharge the trust reposed in me, to the utmost of my skill and power. So Help me God’, he left Gravesend on the Cairngorm on the 24th. In a letter dated ‘31 December off the Isle of Wight’, the captain of the Cairngorm reported that they had commenced their voyage to Bombay. Shuttleworth landed after a four month voyage on 21 April 1856, and was appointed Captain’s Clerk on the 8-gun H.E.I. Company’s Steam Frigate Ferooz. He was then one of twenty-four Captain’s Clerks in the Service and was paid Rs. 50 per month, which if he attained the rank of Captain in 30 to 35 years time could be expected to rise to rise to Rs. 600-800 per month. During the build up to war with Persia in 1856, Commander Rennie of the Ferooz was ordered to sail to Bushire with despatches for the Political Resident. The Ferooz left on 19 September 1856, but on reaching the Persian coast, Commander Rennie was advised to abandon his mission on account of ‘the excited state of the population’. Despite the warning, Rennie resolved to deliver his despatches on shore. C. R. Low, the author of the History of the Indian Navy, who was then a shipmate and contemporary of Shuttleworth’s, later recalled, ‘We remember, being then a Midshipman on board the Ferooz, how this judicious, as well as gallant, officer [Commander Rennie], who had ‘an eye to business’ whenever any fighting was on the tapis, took advantage of this last opportunity of reconnoitring Bushire, to take careful soundings both in going ashore and returning, to be of use in eventualities.’ Having returned to Bombay the Ferooz sailed again for Bushire in late November, this time towing two transports containing men of Major-General Stalker’s division. In the absence of any response to the British ultimatum demanding the Persian withdrawal from Herat, war was declared. The Union flag was hoisted at Kharrack for the first time in sixteen years and a Royal salute fired from the guns of the Ferooz. Offensive operations began in November with the capture of Bushire. Troops were landed at Hallilah Bay under covering fire from eight gun boats, and proceeded to storm fort of Reshire. That night Commander Rennie sent a boat with muffled oars to buoy a fourteen-foot channel off the batteries which next day enabled the Ferooz to take up a position 300 yards closer in shore than the other vessels. In the ensuing action the Ferooz was engaged in a duel with the Persian shore batteries until they were silenced and a breach effected in Bushire’s walls, whereupon the enemy flagstaff was hauled down and the garrison surrendered. The Ferooz then returned to Bombay while Lieutenant-General Sir James Outram led the expeditionary force in land and defeated the Persians at the battle of Khoosh-Ab. Again returning to the Persian Gulf, the Ferooz was next involved in silencing the heavily fortified position at Mohammerah, on the junction of the Karoon and Shatt-ul-Arab, where a Persian Army, thirteen thousand strong, had assembled under the Shahzada. Batteries had been erected of solid earth, twenty feet thick, eighteen feet high, armed with heavy ordnance placed to sweep the entire river at the junction of the Karoon with the Shatt-ul-Arab. An attempt to place a mortar battery on an island failed when the island turned out to be a swamp, but the ingenious Commander Rennie, in defiance of the engineers who said the first shot would smash it, constructed a raft of casks and studding-sail booms, which, armed with two 8-inch and two 5-inch mortars manned by the Bombay Artillery, was towed into position opposite the forts. The ships of war were given the first task of silencing the batteries, which they accomplished at point blank range under heavy fire, then landed parties of seamen to storm the southern and northern forts. To quote General Havelock ‘the gentlemen in blue had it all to themselves, and left us naught to do’. The British loss was only ten killed and thirty wounded, owing largely to Rennie’s ‘happy thought’ of placing trusses in the sides of the Ferooz, from which vast numbers of bullets were shaken out. The bold step of closing at point blank range also took them under the elevation of the Persian guns. Shuttleworth was not actively engaged in the Mutiny, but served in supporting naval operations in the 1800-ton H.E.I.C. Steam Frigate Assaye as Assistant Paymaster. Promoted Paymaster and transferred to the 300-ton Steam-gun boat Clyde in which he served the last three years of his career in the Indian Navy, Shuttleworth next took part in operations against the piratical Waghurs, who, having seized the island fort of Beyt and the fort of Dwarka, were levying large imposts from the pilgrims who came to worship at the great temple dedicated to Krishna. An expedition was mounted including H.M’s 28th Foot, 6th N.I. and a Marine Battalion, accompanied by the Ferooz, Zenobia, Berenice, Victoria, Clyde, Constance and the Lady Falkland. On 5 and 6 October, the fort at Beyt, with earthwork walls 18-40 feet thick and 30-40 feet high, and lofty, massive towers with guns, was under continual bombardment from the naval ships. Troops were landed in an attempt to storm the fort, with boats’ crews and field pieces in support, but failed in the face of heavy fire from the defenders. The Waghurs, however, evacuated the fort soon after dark and it was occupied the next day. To launch the attack on Dwarka, the force then moved to Roopon Bunder, two miles up the coast to the only place where the surf permitted a landing. The beach, however, was covered by the guns of an imposing fort. On the 19th, the Clyde, towing a naval landing party in cutters from the Ferooz, Zenobia and Berenice, opened a bombardment, and successfully put the sailors ashore. Much to the surprise of the Colonel commanding the field force,...
Visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to India 1905-06, small oval silver-gilt medallet; Delhi Durbar 1911, silver, unnamed as issued; Edward Prince of Wales Visit to Bombay 1921, oval bronze medal, the obverse with bust of Edward Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII), surmounted by Prince of Wales’ feathers, the reverse inscribed ‘Visit of His Royal Highness, Bombay, November 1921’, last lacking ring suspension, nearly very fine (3) £140-£180
Royal Humane Society, small bronze medal (successful) (Dacres C. Beadon, May. 14. 1906) lacking integral top riband buckle, nearly extremely fine £100-£140 --- R.H.S. Case no. 34,609: ‘At 10 pm on the 14th May, 1906, owing to a sling becoming detached while a boat was being hoisted on board a ship off the mouth of the Tyne, W. C. Mason was knocked overboard. The night was dark, with a strong wind and heavy sea. At great risk, D. C. Beadon went over the side and succeeded in saving him. Beadon, unfortunately, died 2 1/2 hours later.’ The following additional detail is provided by the The Evening Chronicle of 16 May 1906: ‘Sad Death of a Tyne Works Manager, Through an Attempt to Save a Workman. At Hebburn last night, Mr A. T. Shepherd, deputy coroner, held an inquest into circumstances of the death of Mr Dacres Caris Beadon, outside manager at the St. Peter’s works of Messrs. R. and W. Hawthorn, Leslie and Co. Ltd who died on board the Russian Volunteer Fleet steamer Smolensk, after immersion at sea on Monday night. Sir Benjamin Chapman Browne, chairman of Messrs. Hawthorn, Leslie and Co. Ltd., gave evidence of identification, and said the deceased was outside manager at the engine works. He was 48 years of age, and resided at Monkseaton. He left the Tyne in charge of the engines of the Smolensk on Monday night. Witness was told yesterday morning that Mr. Beadon had died from the effects of being immersed in the sea. William Matheson, manager of the shipyard of Messrs. Hawthorn, Leslie and Co. Ltd., said he was on board the Smolensk, which left the Tyne between 5 and 6 o’clock on Monday evening. Between 8 and 9 preparations were made to transfer the workmen from the ship to a steam tug. There was a ground swell, and after one boat had been despatched from the steamer to the tug it was deemed inadvisable to send any more. The captain gave orders for the boat to be hoisted and while this was being done the stern tackle slipped in consequence of the lurching of the ship, and the boat dropped into the sea. There were three or four men in the boat, one of whom named Mason, was in difficulties. Mr Beadon descended a rope ladder to the bottom to get hold of Mason and while he was hanging on he was frequently immersed in the sea. The deceased and Mason were hauled on board as soon as possible and taken to the hospital on the steamer. They were attended to by the ship’s doctor and his assistants. Mr Beadon was unconscious when he was bought aboard. Hot water bottles were applied, and everything possible was done to revive him. He partly recovered consciousness, but shortly after half-past 12 a change came over Mr Beadon and he died.... The Coroner remarked it was a very melancholy occurrence indeed. Mr Beadon seemed to have lost his life entirely through his endeavours to save another man. One could not but feel the greatest sympathy with the deceased’s family and everyone connected to him.... The fifteen or twenty minutes frequent immersion in the cold sea had evidently been too much for his strength, and caused paralysis of the heart from which he died.....’ Sold with copied research.
Three: Leading Seaman S. Higgs, Royal Navy, who served in H.M.S. Lion at the Battle of Jutland 1914-15 Star (J.31136, S. Higgs, Ord., R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (J.31136 S. Higgs. A.B., R.N.) mounted for display with traces of adhesive to reverse of VM; together with a gold prize medal (9ct, 7.36g), the reverse engraved ‘H.M.S. Resolution Winners Kings Cup 1922-1923 S. Higgs’; and a bronze prize medal, the reverse engraved ‘Runners-Up 1st B.S. 2nd Div. Ships Football Compt. 1922-23. Resolution’, generally very fine or better (3) £200-£240 --- Sydney Higgs was born in Stone, Staffordshire in May 1897. He joined the Royal Navy as a Boy 2nd Class in May 1914, and advanced to Leading Seaman in January 1919. Higgs served with H.M.S. Lion (battle cruiser) from January 1915, and served with her at the Battle of Jutland where she was Vice-Admiral Sir David Beatty’s fleet flagship of the Battle Cruiser Fleet. The Lion was hit a total of 14 times during the battle, including sustaining near-catastrophic damage to Q-turret, and suffered 99 dead and 51 wounded. Although mortally wounded, Major Francis Harvey, Royal Marines, the Q-turret gun commander, ordered the magazine and turret to be flooded, which although costing him his life saved the magazine from exploding, which would undoubtedly have sunk the ship; for his bravery and self sacrifice he was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. Higgs was discharged by purchase in August 1923.
Royal Humane Society, large bronze medal (successful) (Thomas Smith Vit. Ob. Serv. D.D. Soc. Reg. Hvm. 31 May 1852) pierced for ring suspension, and housed in leather case of issue, minor edge bruise, nearly extremely fine £180-£220 --- R.H.S. Case no. 15,216: ‘Saml. Teasdale and Henry Cooper. May 31, Yarmouth River. Thos. Smith and John Collins, fishermen, both swam a distance of thirty yards and saved them.’ Thomas Smith resided at Gorleston, Suffolk (now Norfolk), and was 39 years of age at the time of the incident. Teasdale and Cooper’s boat had capsized in a squall. Sold with copied research.
Eleven: Petty Officer C. F. Wakeham, Royal Navy, who served in H.M.S. Exeter during her epic encounter with the Admiral Graf Spee at the Battle of the River Plate on 13 December 1939 1939-45 Star; Atlantic Star, 1 clasp, France and Germany; Africa Star, 1 clasp, North Africa 1942-43; Italy Star; War Medal 1939-45; Naval General Service 1915-62, 1 clasp, Malaya, E.II.R. (P/JX. 135923 G. F. Wakeham. P.O. R.N.); Korea 1950-53, 1st issue (P/JX. 135923 G. F. Wakeham. P.O. R.N.) officially re-impressed naming; U.N. Korea 1950-54, unnamed as issued; Coronation 1953, unnamed as issued; Royal Navy L.S. & G.C., G.V.R., 3rd issue, coinage head (JX 135923 G. F. Wakeham. P.O. H.M.S. Mull of Kintyre.) mounted as worn; together with the recipient’s H.M.S. Ajax and H.M.S. Exeter Chilean Medal of Gratitude 1939, presented by the Chilean Municipality of Concepción for the Earthquake of 24 January 1939, bronze, an officially named later issue, the obverse featuring the Eagle coat of arms of Concepción, ‘Municipalidad de Concepción Chile’ around, the reverse inscribed ‘Gratitud a Marinos “Exeter” y “Ajax” Terremoto del 24-1-39.’, and named ‘C. F. Wakeham HMS Exeter’, light contact marks, good very fine (11) £800-£1,000 --- Charles Frederick Wakeham, a shop assistant from Brentford, Middlesex, was born on 4 February 1916. He attested into the Royal Navy as a Boy on 23 June 1931 and served in H.M.S. Exeter from 31 October 1936. Whilst serving in the 8th Cruiser Squadron on the South America Squadron, Exeter assisted with the humanitarian mission following the devastating earthquake at Concepción, Chile, on 24 January 1939. The earthquake, the deadliest in Chile’s history, measured 8.3 on the Richter scale and led to a death toll of approximately 28,000, and around 95% of the town’s buildings were completely destroyed. A medal was struck to be awarded to the crews of H.M.S. Exeter and H.M.S. Ajax, but owing to the outbreak of the Second World War, the majority of the unnamed medals were never issued. However, in March 2017, a second named issue was awarded to surviving crew members who had not received the earlier award. ‘Upon the outbreak of the Second World War, H.M.S. Exeter, still on the South America Squadron, under Rear-Admiral Henry Harwood, was heavily engaged against the Graf Spee on 13 December 1939. Just five minutes after the start of the action, an 11-inch shell burst alongside the British ship, killing torpedo tubes crews. A minute later she received a direct hit on “B” turret which put its two 8-inch guns out of action. Splinters swept the bridge, killing or wounding all but three of the officers and ratings standing there. The Captain escaped and, finding the bridge out of action and the wheel-house communications wrecked, he made his way aft to the fight the ship from there. As he did so, Exeter received two more direct hits from 11-inch shells forward ... The Exeter was still receiving punishment, although it was at this stage of the battle that the light cruisers were taken in and out with such skill, striking the enemy with their full weight whenever he turned to tackle the largest of the British cruisers. Two more 11-inch shells hit the Exeter, causing further casualties and extensive damage. One entered the hull and started a fierce fire between the decks. The other put the foremost turret and its two 8-inch guns out of action. It was on the occasion of these hits that the spotting aircraft reported she had completely disappeared in smoke and flame, and it was feared that she had gone. However, she emerged and re-entered the action. In doing so the men of the Exeter proved again the indomitable spirit of the Royal Navy. Their ship was badly stricken. Two of the three turrets were out of action, leaving no guns forward. She had a 7 degrees list and was down by the head. All her compasses had been smashed, and the Captain was handling his ship with the aid of a small boat’s compass. In these circumstances she altered course towards the enemy and fired her torpedoes ... The Exeter, gradually dropping astern, fought on until she had nothing left to fight with. At about 7.30 a.m. her sole remaining turret was flooded. Ten minutes later she turned to the south-east and slowly limped away, making necessary running repairs as she went ... Exeter made her way to the Falkland Islands, where she underwent repairs until January 1940, before she could undertake the return voyage to the U.K. Meanwhile, her casualty return spoke volumes: five officers and 56 ratings killed, three ratings died of wounds, and three officers and 17 ratings otherwise wounded. So, too, the resultant awards to her gallant ship’s company: a C.B., two D.S.Os, seven D.S.Cs, three C.G.Ms, 17 D.S.Ms and 18 “mentions”.’ (The King’s Cruisers, by Norman Holman, refers). Appointed Petty Officer on 6 November 1942, Wakeham saw later Second World War service in H.M.S. Glenarn, H.M.S. Grebe, H.M.S. Cleopatra, H.M.S. St. Angelo, H.M.S. Effingham, H.M.S. Druid and H.M.S. Caroline, as well as other shore establishments. He was awarded his Long Service and Good Conduct Medal on 3 February 1949, after having re-enlisted to complete his pension on 14 May 1946. Post-War, he served in Malaya and Korea and was awarded the 1953 Coronation medal. Pensioned to shore on 8 March 1956, he died in Plymouth, aged 77, on 6 February 1993. Sold with copied service papers; a quantity of original related photographs, including several of the recipient in uniform and in later life wearing his medals; the original menu card for the Corporation of London’s Guildhall luncheon held in honour of the officers and men of H.M.S. Exeter on 23 February 1940; original newspaper cuttings relating to the battle; the 50th anniversary edition of Memories of the Battle of the River Plate containing contributions from the recipient; his named ‘Crossing the Equator’ parchment whilst serving in H.M.S. Exeter, dated 1937; original programme for the Coronation 1953 review of the fleet at Spithead; original medal ribbon bar; rank badges; and newspapers cuttings relating to the late issue of the Chilean award.
Four: Private W. Land, Royal Army Medical Corps, later Royal Engineers 1914 Star (3763 Pte. W. Land. R.A.M.C.); British War and Victory Medals (33987 Spr. W. Land R.E.); France, Third Republic, Croix de Guerre, bronze, reverse dated 1914-1917, very fine and better Pair: Private H. Fairfax, Royal Army Medical Corps British War and Victory Medals (66509 Pte. H. Fairfax. R.A.M.C.) extremely fine (6) £80-£100 --- William Land attested for Royal Army Medical Corps and served with them during the Great War on the Western Front from 19 August 1914. He subsequently transferred to the Royal Engineers. French Croix de Guerre unconfirmed.
The mounted group of ten miniature dress medals attributed to Major-General (Surgeon) Sir Robert Porter, Royal Army Medical Corps The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, K.C.B. (Military) Knight Commander’s badge, gold and enamel; The Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, C.M.G., Companion’s badge, gold and enamel; Ashanti Star 1896; Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 5 clasps, Cape Colony, Elanslaagte, Defence of Ladysmith, Orange Free State, Transvaal; King’s South Africa 1901-02, 2 clasps, South Africa 1901, South Africa 1902; 1914 Star, with clasp; British War and Victory Medals, with M.I.D. oak leaves; Belgium, Kingdom, Order of the Crown, Officer’s badge, silver-gilt, gold and enamel, with rosette on riband; Croix de Guerre, A.I.R., bronze, mounted court-style as worn, good very fine and better (10) £500-£700 --- Provenance: Dix Noonan Webb, September 2002. The recipient’s full-sized awards sold in these rooms as part of the Colonel Riddick Collection of Medals to the Medical Services in December 2006. Robert Porter was born in Co. Donegal on 31 January 1858, and educated at Foyle College, Londonderry, Glasgow University and Paris, qualifying as a M.B. at Glasgow in 1879. Entering the Army Medical Department as a Surgeon, and afterwards Surgeon-Captain in February 1881, he was promoted to Surgeon-Major in February 1893. He served in the Ashanti Expedition of 1895-96 for which he received an honourable mention. Next serving in the Boer War, he was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel on February 1901, and was present in operations in Natal during 1899, including actions at Elandslaagte and Lombard’s Kop and in the defence of Ladysmith. He served for the remainder of the war in the Transvaal, Orange Free State and Cape Colony. Promoted to Colonel in January 1910, he was briefly placed on Half Pay on 14 January 1914. Restored to Full Pay with the onset of war, Porter served in France and Flanders with the original British Expeditionary Force as Deputy Director of Medical Services, being ranked as Temporary Surgeon-General, Army Medical Staff in November 1914 and Surgeon-General (ranking as Major-General) in February 1915. From 1915 to 1917 he was Director of Medical Services to the Second Army. For his wartime services he was awarded the C.B. in 1916, C.M.G. in 1919, the Belgian Order of the Crown 3rd Class and Croix de Guerre, and was six times Mentioned in Despatches (London Gazettes 19 October 1914, 17 February 1915, 22 June 1915, 1 January 1916, 29 May 1917, and 24 December 1917). He was knighted, receiving the K.C.B. in 1921. Major-General Sir Robert Porter died on 27 February 1928, The Times of 28 February giving the following: ‘Sir Robert Porter was one of the distinguished group of “War Doctors” who built up on the Western Front the finest organisation for the relief of the wounded which had ever existed. He came to his great work as Director of Medical Services of the Second Army with a distinguished record and with a reputation for thoroughness in all that he undertook, between the years 1915 and 1917 that reputation was justified’.
Pair: Nursing Sister Bertha Violen, St. John Ambulance Brigade Coronation 1911, St. John Ambulance Brigade (Nurs. Sister. B. Violen.); Service Medal of the Order of St John, silver, straight bar suspension, with Additional Award Bar (4869 L/A/Offr. B. Violen. No. 11 W’stow. Div. No. 1 Dis. S.J.A.B. 1925.) mounted as worn; together with the recipient’s St. John Ambulance Association Re-examination Cross, bronze, ‘140732 Bertha Violin [sic]’; and a miniature of the same ‘140732 Bertha Violen’, minor edge bruise, good very fine (4) £80-£100
Royal Humane Society, small bronze medal (successful) (Private Adjuma Sebi, Dec. 16 1902) lacking top riband buckle, suspension slack, worn, scarce £100-£140 --- Provenance: Dix Noonan Webb, April 2006. Private Adjuma Sebi was awarded the Royal Humane Society’s Medal (Case No. 32443) for saving from drowning a fellow member of the the Gambia Company of the West Africa Frontier Force at Cape St. Mary on 16 December 1902. A full account of the incident was furnished by Lieutenant H. Hoskyns, of the same unit, who also received the Society’s Bronze Medal: ‘I wish to bring to your notice the conduct of No. 18 Ajumami (sic) Sebi, Gambia Company, W.A.F.F. This afternoon, the 16 December, I ordered a bathing parade for the detachment and at the same time I took the opportunity of bathing. My attention was called to a man who was very close to the submerged rock near where we bathe; I immediately tried to call his attention to the danger he was running (I should mention that this man turned out to be Maxim Gun Carrier Bakari). He seemed to be somewhat exhausted so I swam out to him, and found that he had completely lost his head and was in some danger of drowning. I did my best to rescue him and we attempted to swim back together to the ordinary spot where the officers generally bathe, but there was however a strong current setting towards the Cape point and it was impossible to swim against it. I then decided that we must risk a landing on the rocks under Government House. When we were about 100 yards from the rocks and were just getting into the broken water there was a considerable swell at the time and the surf was breaking with great violence on the rocks. Ajumami Sebi entered the water and swam out to Bakari who was now quite exhausted and taking him on his back both managed to reach safety. At this time I was rather exhausted and could have lent little or no aid to Bakhari and had it not been for Ajumami Sebi’s timely aid I consider that Bakhari must have been drowned or at least very seriously injured on the rocks. In order to emphasise what I consider to be Ajumami Sebi’s great pluck and skill I would add that although, if I may be permitted to say so, I am a very fair swimmer, I had great difficulty in landing safely and it was only after being twice carried back by the back-wash I was able to get safely ashore with the assistance of two men of my detachment.’
A rare and poignant Our Dumb Friends League Medal pair to Army deserter and career-criminal Mr. E. Netley, who sustained serious injuries whilst out on the prowl one evening at West Croydon railway station, when he attempted to rescue a dog which had strayed onto the tracks. Found unconscious alongside the body of a cream coloured Alsatian which was described in contemporary accounts as a ‘blackened mass’ lying across the live rail, Netley was fortunate to escape with his life Our Dumb Friends League Medal, heart-shaped, silver (Awarded to Mr. Edward Netley. For the courageous rescue of a Dog from a railway track. August 1929.) hallmarks for Birmingham 1927; together with a privately commissioned bronze medal by Vaughton, Birmingham, unnamed as issued, swing mounted, pawnbroker marks to edge of first, scratches to reverse of both, very fine (2) £600-£800 --- Edward Netley was born in Brighton around 1893. A labourer of no fixed abode, he attested for the Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment around his eighteenth birthday (10047 Pte. E. Netley) and was soon the subject of a Court Martial at Warley Camp on 22 May 1911, in consequence of desertion. Found guilty, he was released from service. Familiar with dwellings along the London to Brighton railway line, Netley soon caught the attention of the Croydon Borough Bench when charged with stealing furniture from Mr. Arthur Winter who had known him just a few weeks. Out of compassion and seeing Netley with no home and no work, Winter had provided him with lodging and partial board, but was soon dismayed to hear that his goods had been sold in Portobello Road, the shop proprietor believing them to have originated from Netley’s ‘late mother’. The following year, Netley was back before the courts after breaking into his mother’s house at 3, Holland Road, South Norwood. Very much alive, she saw to it that he was sentenced to three month’s hard labour for theft. The outbreak of the Great War saw little change in Netley’s behaviour. Attesting for the 6th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment (18676 Pte. E. Netley), he served in Egypt from 16 November 1915 but was soon in trouble for desertion alongside a pal when back home in England. Wearing the stripes of a Corporal, he pretended to be an escort to his friend when challenged by a policeman. The ruse failed and Netley was transferred to the Prince of Wales’s Own (West Yorkshire) Regiment (64025 Pte. E. Netley). A while later, Netley was charged with obtaining money by false pretences. Appearing in the dock at Croydon Borough Police Court, he described himself as a ‘wounded Private’ of the 3rd Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment. Wearing the ribbon of the Military Medal, his largesse went further. The Croydon Times of 16 November 1918, adds: ‘Netley told the Bench that he had won the Military Medal and had been wounded four times. He wanted to retrieve his character and would pay back the money. He had been in the army four years. The father said he was sorry his son had not better sense, and hoped the magistrates would deal leniently with him. In reply to Ald. Fox. defendant said he won the Military Medal for capturing a machine gun and seven prisoners.’ Remarkably, Alderman Fox offered Netley ‘one more chance,’ much to the chagrin of his mother. Analysis of Netley’s Army Service Records show that he was indeed wounded, suffering a slight wound in France whilst with the 7th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment, and another slight wound to the left hand whilst with the West Yorkshire Regiment. No trace of the award of the MM can be found. Discharged from the Army on 12 September 1919 and issued a Silver War Badge in consequence of disability, Netley forfeited his Great War medals on 23 December 1920 following further convictions for theft and fraud. Remaining in South London for the next nine years, Netley finally caught the attention of the local press for all the right reasons on a summer evening in 1929. Crossing the bridge at West Croydon Railway Station, he ‘heard the cries of a dog’ and leapt over an 8-foot wire security fence, falling 30 feet down the embankment. He then attempted to move the animal by hand, but was electrocuted and knocked unconscious, being found soon thereafter atop the clinker and wooden sleepers. Initially described as an ‘unknown hero’ by the contemporary press on account of Netley carrying no identification about his body, he was later identified at Croydon General Hospital and received considerable praise. Discharged, he travelled south to Brighton and was immediately caught stealing a bicycle. According to the Derby Daily Telegraph, 30 August 1929: ‘In recognition of this act of bravery the justices only sentenced Netley to three months’ hard labour. But for this act the sentence would have been much greater as he had a bad record.’ Awarded the Our Dumb Friends League Medal, it appears that the recipient’s life of poverty and cycle of petty theft continued unabated. Possibly pawned by the recipient, Netley was later admitted to the Kensington and Chelsea workhouse. In 1939, he was further charged at Brentford for having absconded from Isleworth Casual Ward, and fined 5 shillings. Having burned all his bridges with friends and family alike, it appears that his life ended in abject poverty. An article published in The Guardian newspaper describes the life of one man in a London workhouse at this time: ‘I found myself in a small room with other casuals. There were old men and young men; men who smiled and men who sneered; men who stared fixatedly before them and men who talked in low, toneless voices... But they were all men with one thing in common - hunger.’ Sold with copied research.
Royal Victorian Medal, E.VII.R., bronze, unnamed as issued in its damaged case of issue, together with original Buckingham Palace Certificate of Award to ‘Petty-Officer John Alfred Wise’, dated 5th August 1907, suspension re-affixed, otherwise very fine £200-£240 --- R.V.M. (Bronze) awarded 5 August 1907 to Petty Officer 1st Class Gunnery Instructor John Alfred Wise as a member of the gun laying team on the occasion of King Edward VII’s Inspection of H.M.S. Dreadnought at Cowes, 5 August 1907. Sold with a fine original photograph of Dreadnought’s gunnery team posing proudly on deck with the target used in the demonstration before the King at Cowes in August 1907; together with copied service papers and medal roll showing entitlement to 1914-15 Star trio but with no indication of actual issue. In February 1916, Wise was court-martialled for theft and receiving government stores, and bookmaking on the results of gunnery trials. He was consequently sentenced to 12 months imprisonment and discharged from the service with forfeit of pension. It is therefore unlikely that he received his Great War medals.
Six: Temporary Major N. W. Imrie, Indian Army, late Calcutta Light Horse and Royal Field Artillery British War and Victory Medals (Lieut. N. W. Imrie) erasure of ‘2’ before ‘Lieut.’ on both; Defence and War Medal 1939-45; Efficiency Medal, G.VI.R., 1st issue, India (Cpl. N. W. Irmie. Cal. L.H., A.F.I.); France, Third Republic, Croix de Guerre, bronze, reverse dated 1914-1916, with bronze palm on riband, mounted court style for wear, some contact marks, very fine (6) £180-220 --- Provenance: John Tamplin Collection, Dix Noonan Webb, June 2009. Norman William Imrie was born in Moss Side, Manchester, on 15 August 1892. He served in the ranks of Royal Army Service Corps (Territorial), November 1908-August 1911 and during the Great War he served in the ranks of the Royal Field Artillery from December 1915 to January 1918. He was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery Special Reserve on 21 January 1918 and was promoted to Lieutenant on 21 July 1919. During the war he served on the Western Front from February to August 1918, being gassed during the ‘August Advance’; and in Turkey from June to October 1919. According to his ‘Record of Services Officers, Indian Services’ he was awarded the French Croix de Guerre in June 1918 (not found in the London Gazette). He was released from military service in March 1920. Between the war, Imrie went to India and there joined the Army in India Reserve of Officers, being appointed Captain in October 1926. He served with the Artillery, firstly with the Pack Artillery Training Centre at Lucknow and was later at Meerut. Serving in the Auxiliary Forces India, he was awarded the Efficiency Medal (India) as a Corporal in the Calcutta Light Horse, this announced in I.A.O. 536 of June 1938. During the Second World War Imrie returned to active service and was granted an emergency commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Indian Army on 30 November 1940. He was subsequently promoted to War Substantive Captain in December 1941 and became a Temporary Major, December 1941 to January 1943. He served as an officer with a prisoner-of-war camp at Ramgarh, November 1940-September 1941, and was then with the Corps of Indian Engineers at Jullundur, September-November 1941, after which he served as D.A.D. Tn. (Stores) in Persia, January 1942-January 1943. Until November 1944 he was then on regimental duty at Jullundur and Baroda. He was S.S.O. Baroda from December 1946. Sold with recipient’s identity disc.
Pair: Police Sergeant N. Simmonds, Metropolitan Police Jubilee 1887, clasp, 1897, Metropolitan Police (P.C. N. Symonds [sic]. L. Divn.); Coronation 1902, Metropolitan Police, bronze (P.S. N. Simmonds. A. Div.) very fine Pair: Police Constable H. Stacey, Metropolitan Police Coronation 1902, Metropolitan Police, bronze (P.C. H. Stacey. D. Div.); Coronation 1911, Metropolitan Police (P.C. H. Stacey.) mounted as worn, very fine and better (4) £100-£140
Three: J. H. Marsh, Southern Railway Southern Railway St. John Ambulance Association Service Medal (3), gold (9ct., 11.70g), for 21 Years’ Service ‘James H. Marsh 1941’, with integral top gilt riband bar; silver, for 14 Years’ Service ‘James Marsh 1934’, with integral top silver riband bar; bronze, for 7 Years’ Service ‘James H. Marsh 1927’, with integral top bronze riband bar, good very fine (3) £160-£200 --- Provenance: Dix Noonan Webb, December 2009.
Miniature Medals: The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. (Military) Member’s 1st type badge, silver; 1914 Star; 1914-15 Star (3); Royal Humane Society, small silver medal (successful), lacking integral silver riband buckle; Russia, Empire, Order of St. Anne, Military Division, bronze-gilt and enamel, with crossed swords, of Continental manufacture; together with another badge of the Order of St. Anne, Civil Division, but lacking both obverse and reverse central medallions, nearly very fine and better World Orders and Medals (full-sized): Chile, Republic, Star for the Lima Campaign 1882, Third Class, silver, suspension ring crudely re-soldered; France, Third Republic, Croix de Guerre, bronze, reverse dated 1914-1918; Germany, Wurttemberg, Campaign Medal 1793-1815, bronze, number of campaigns erased from reverse, and suspension ring re-soldered; good fine and better (11) £80-£100 --- Sold with a top ‘bow riband’ bronze brooch.
Royal Humane Society, small bronze medal (successful) (Pte. W. A. Mackay, R.M.L.I. 6th. Oct. 1907.) planchet only, very fine £80-£100 --- Importation Duty This lot is subject to importation duty of 5% on the hammer price unless exported outside the UK --- --- R.H.S. Case no. 35,706: ‘On 6 October 1907, a man threw himself into the Medway from the esplanade at Stroud, there being a depth of 10 feet. W. A. Mackay, Private, R.M.L.I., plunged in and rescued him.’
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![Pair: Police Sergeant N. Simmonds, Metropolitan Police Jubilee 1887, clasp, 1897, Metropolitan Police (P.C. N. Symonds [sic].](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/65649c1d-2531-495c-a25a-b0d900c3df80/6dcacce1-6297-4c43-9478-b11f01752af0/468x382.jpg)
