*A Rare Great War ‘Senussi Campaign’ Armoured Cars M.C. Group of 7 awarded to Lieutenant John Davies Lawrence, Manchester Regiment, who commanded a Rolls Royce armoured car in action at the Dakhla Oasis in Egypt’s Western Desert while on secondment to the Motor Machine Gun Corps, capturing 4 officers and 109 other ranks in the process. He later served as a ‘Bimbashi’ in the Equatorial Battalion of the Egyptian Army as part of the Turkhana Patrol in 1918, and also took part in the fighting against the Aliab Dinka during the uprising of late 1919, comprising: Military Cross, G.V.R., reverse engraved in contemporary upright capitals (2nd Lieut. J. D. Lawrence. Manchester Regt Nov. 1915); 1914-15 Star (2 Lieut. J. D. Lawrence. Manch. R.); British War and Victory Medals, the latter with M.i.D. bronze spray of oak leaves (Lieut. J.D.Lawrence.); Africa General Service, 1902-1956, single clasp, East Africa 1918 (Lieut. J. D. Lawrence. Equatorial Bn. E.A.); Egypt, Order of the Nile, Officer’s 4th class breast badge in silver and enamels; Khedive’s Sudan, 1910-22, 2nd issue, single clasp, Aliab Dinka (Lieut. Manch. R.), with impressed naming; together with a matching set of seven individual dress miniatures, all mounted together in glass-fronted wooden case, about extremely fine, and rare (14) M.C.: London Gazette: 4 June 1917 - ‘Whilst repairing one of his two Armoured Cars in the desert (he) received a helio message from W.D.A. to proceed at once to operate against DAKHLA OASIS in conjunction with No. 1 L.C. patrol*. After working all day on the car he was able to start at midnight and owing to his skill in guiding the car over unknown ground was able to overtake the L.C. patrol 10 miles short of DAKHLA, having travelled all night. The Senussi main camp at AIN BARABI being found evacuated he pushed on to TENEDA taking 1 officer and 2 other ranks prisoners. Next morning pushing on quickly to BUDHKULU a party of 50 Senussi were encountered and after a short fight surrendered. Here the cars had to wait for supplies and on their arrival, he proceeded to MUT where another 50 prisoners were taken, 3 officers and 7 other ranks of whom were ex-Coastguard. Work in the Oasis itself was difficult for the Armoured Car owing to the narrow bridges.’ M.I.D.: London Gazette: 6 July 1917 (For Senussi campaign), and 18 January 1921 (For Aliab Dinka) Egypt, Order of the Nile: London Gazette: 4 August 1922 - ‘for good services rendered during operations against the Aliab Dinkas in the Mongalla Province, Sudan, 1919-20’. Lieutenant John ‘Jack’ Lawrence was born on 19 February 1896, in the suburb of Jeppestown, Johannesburg, South Africa, the son of Henry Lakin Lawrence, a Mining Engineer, and Emma Lawrence. Educated at Horton Preparatory School, Ickwellbury, Bedfordshire, and then at Tonbridge School (1911-1913), he proved himself as a prominent sportsman, winning school colours at cricket, football and rugby. Here he also took up an interest in the military, serving as a Sergeant Cadet with the Tonbridge School Contingent, Junior Division, Officers Training Corps. He was initially apprenticed to the Midland Railway from 1913 to August 1914, but on 9 April 1914 he received his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the 8th (Ardwick) Battalion, Manchester Regiment. Upon the outbreak of war, Lawrence was posted to Palestine on 10 September 1914, returning to the U.K. in March 1915 having been ordered to attend the Royal Military College. While at Sandhurst, on 20 October 1915, he was commissioned as Second Lieutenant in the Regular Army (Manchester Regiment) and posted for employment with M.G.C. In March 1916 he was posted to Egypt, and he was officially seconded to the Motor Machine Gun Service on 20 October 1915. In Egypt he joined the Armoured Cars of Nos. 11 & 12 Light Armoured Motor Brigade, M.G.C., Desert Column, taking part in the Senussi Campaign in the Western Desert. His unit consisted of one Rolls Royce Armoured Car (commanded by Lawrence himself) and tender; six Ford cars and 12 motor bicycles. The remaining personnel consisted of two officers and 58 other ranks, with two Vickers and two Lewis guns in support. For his service in the Senussi campaign Lawrence was mentioned in despatches and awarded the M.C. Lawrence left the M.G.C. on 10 September 1917, being afterwards transferred to the Equatorial Battalion, part of the Egyptian Army which was serving in the Sudan. Placed in command of No. 2 Company of the Equatorial Battalion, he took part in operations against the Northern Turkhana, Marille, Donyiro in Southern Sudan , west of Lake Rudolf, between 20 April and 19 June 1918 (British Battles and Medals, refers). Known as the ‘Turkhana Patrol’ this patrol was sent out to oppose and disrupt tribal slaving and cattle raiding, and saw some heavy fighting. The campaign itself was commanded by Major Richard Finch White, Essex Regiment, and having been present, for the duration with the , Lawrence became one of just seven British Officers, serving with the Egyptian Army, to earn the Africa General Service Medal with clasp “East Africa 1918”. At the end of October 1919 a war-party of the Aliab Dinka attacked a police-post south of Bor (now capital of the Jonglei State in South Sudan), at Menkamon on the White Nile, killing eight policemen. This outbreak of violence quickly spread and Major Chancey Stigand, Egyptian Army (and Governor of Mondalla Province) sought to stamp it out with a few companies of the Equatorial Battalion, including those under the command of Lawrence (the article ‘Chauncey Stigand, Soldier, Governor and Writer’ by Henry Keown-Boyd, refers). As explained in the same article, owing to a shortage of officers Stigand accompanied one of the patrols himself, whereupon it was twice ambushed in quick succession overnight and in the morning on 8 December, in the long grass by several hundred Aliab Dinka tribesmen. Stigand himself, the Officer Commanding Troops Kaimakam (Lieutenant-Colonel) White, Yuzbashi (Captain) Saad Osman and twenty-four other ranks and carriers were killed. The remaining four officers, Bimbashi F. C. Roberts, V.C., D.S.O., M.C., (Worcs Regt), Bimbashi W. H. Wynne-Finch, M.C. (Scots Guards), A. H. Kent–Lemon (York & Lancs) and John Davies Lawrence, M.C. (Manch. Regt) were able to rally and restore the situation despite these losses, making a fighting and reaching Tombe on 13 December 1919. Keown-Boyd writes that: ‘The four surviving British officers - all veterans of the Great War and accustomed to reacting swiftly in desperate circumstances, rallied their companies and drove off the enemy, thus averting even greater disaster.’ Lieutenant Lawrence subsequently took part in the retaliatory operations against the Aliab Dinka, Bor Dinka and Mandari tribes in early 1920, for which he was awarded the Khedives Sudan medal with clasp ‘Aliab Dinka’. He was also awarded the Order of the Nile ‘for good services rendered’ during these difficult operations. Unfortunately, it appears that Lawrence contracted Malaria during this period, as he was examined by a Medical Board on 14 October 1920, which confirmed his disability from malaria (rated at 50%). After a lengthy period of treatment (and after his third Medical Board examination, on 6 January 1921) he was discharged to return to his regiment, relinquishing his commission on the same day. ... For further information please see the catalogue pdf on www.mortonandeden.com
