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E&W Africa 1887 (1) Witu 1890 (J. T. Old. A.B. HMS Conquest);
Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902 (J. T. Old, P.O. 1 Cl., HMS Forte.);
[ 14/15 Star ? ];
BWM 1914-20 (142663 J. T. Old. C.P.O. R.N.);
[ VM ? ];
Royal Victorian Medal, VR, silver, unnamed as issued;
Royal Navy LS&GC EdVII. (J. T. Old, P.O. 1 Cl., HMS Hermione)

RVM awarded February 1901 for services at Queen Victoria’s funeral.

John Thomas Old was born in Queenstown, Cork, on 25 February 1872 and entered Naval service as a Boy 2nd Class in HMS St Vincent on 30 September 1887. He served with that ship until 15 February 1889, when he was drafted to Conquest, in whom he served until 11 May 1892, seeing advancement to Able Seaman in 1890. After promotion to Petty Officer 1st Class, while serving in Camperdown on 1 April 1898, he was drafted to HMS Forte, with whom he remained until 10 May, but rejoined from 4 April 1902 to 16 February 1905. Between drafts, he served at ‘stone frigate’ HMS Excellent, where he was part of the guard of honour drawn from the Senior Service for Queen Victoria’s Funeral. Following an incident with the horses, the Naval ratings had the honour of pulling the Queen’s body on a gun carriage to Windsor Castle. After being awarded his Long Service and Good Conduct Medal on 6 March 1905, while serving in HMS Hermes, he was pensioned to shore on 26 January 1912, after which he joined the Bristol Division Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, seeing service during the Great War.

From the next Mowbray auction:

QUEEN'S SOUTH AFRICA MEDAL 1899 - 1902, engraved to 179585. A.B. R.W.SIMS. H.M.S. "FORTE", with Natal clasp, 2nd type Rev, MYB 150, silver, with ribbon. Robert Walter Sims (1877 - 1933), born in Lambeth, London, entered the Royal Navy in May 1894, advanced to Able Seaman in Sep 1897, joined HMS Forte in Apr 1899 and subsequently deployed ashore with the Naval Brigade in Natal during the Boer War. Sims serving as a Petty Officer in the fledgling submarine service was ordered to the Dardanelles in the HMS E7 in the summer of 1915. Commanded by Lieut-Commander A D Cochrane, the E7, a small submarine with 3 officers and 28 men, had an illustrious career in which Sims had charge of the after-switchboard. After sinking 13 ships and damaging many more in the Sea of Marmara during June and July 1915, E7 attempting to re-enter the Dardanelles on her next patrol was caught in new Ottoman anti-submarine nets off Nagara Point. On the 4th September 1915, after hours attempting to work free, Cochrane ordered E7 to the surface where she was scuttled. The crew were all taken prisoner. A S Evans, "Beneath the Waves: A History of HM Submarine Losses 1904-1971" says ‘For the first few days following their capture, the submariners were treated quite well. Then came a move to Constantinople and with it a rude introduction to the more unsavoury aspects of Turkish prison life. For three weeks they were confined to the capital’s prison with five hundred criminals for company'.

Following repatriation, Sims was awarded the DSM and OBE. He was given a duplicate QSA Medal on 26 May 1919. It was sent to the HMS Dolphin, the ship that he was on at that date. His duplicate QSA Medal along with Sims other seven medals sold through Dix Noonan Webb in 2012. www.dnw.co.uk/auction-archive/lot-archiv...edals&lot_uid=219092


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Morton and Eden are selling the group to Admiral J D Kelly which appeared only recently.

GCB (m)
GCVO, No 607
QSA (2) Cape Colony, South Africa 1902 (Lieut. J. D. Kelly, R.N., H.M.S. Forte.);
1914-15 Star (Capt. J. D. Kelly, R.N.);
British War and Victory Medals with MID (Capt. J. D. Kelly. R.N.), the first officially re-impressed or corrected
Jubilee Medal, 1935;
France, Legion d’Honneur, Officer’s breast badge in silver gilt and enamels, 40mm width;
France, Croix de Guerre, 1914-1917, with palm upon ribbon;
Italy, Order of the Crown, Commander’s neck badge in gold and enamels, 50mm width;

Estimate £6K - £8K

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QSA (0) (F. M. Domaille. Armrs. Cr. HMS Forte) large impressed naming, with minor official corrections;
1914-15 Star (341118, F. N [sic]. Domaille, Arm., R.N.);
BWM and VM (341118. F. N [sic]. Domaille. Act. Ch. Armr. R.N.);
Royal Navy LS&GC GV, 1st issue (341118. F. M. Domaille, Armr. HMS Commonwealth.)

From the next Spink auction.

QSA (1) Natal (195487 Ord: A. Duxbury. H.M.S. Forte)

Alfred Duxbury, born in Liverpool on 22 May 1880, attested for service with the Royal Navy upon his eighteenth birthday for a period of 12 years' service. A somewhat chequered career ensued, including several incarcerations in the cells for offences including 'refusing to obey orders' and deserting his ship. His character is noted as varying between 'good' and 'indifferent', and it was during his time with H.M.S. Forte that he appears most frequently on the Defaulters' List.

An Astrea-class cruiser, H.M.S. Forte served on both the Cape and West African stations around the turn of the century.

Picture courtesy of DNW

QSA (0) (W. J. Page, Sto., HMS Forte.) impressed naming;
1914-15 Star (286336, W. J. Page, Ch. Sto., R.N.);
BWM and VM (286336 W. J. Page. Ch. Sto. R.N.);
Royal Navy LS&GC GV, 1st issue (286336 W. J. Page, Sto. P.O. HMS Antrim:)

William Jasper Page was born in Plymouth on 19 August 1878 and joined the Royal Navy as a Stoker 2nd Class on 18 November 1897. Advanced Stoker on 15 September 1898, he served in HMS Forte during the Boer War from 1 April 1902, and was advanced Stoker Petty Officer on 20 November 1909. Posted to HMS Antrim on 5 March 1912, he was awarded his Long Service and Good Conduct medal on 13 April 1913, and served in her during the Great War from the outbreak of War to 29 April 1917, being advanced Chief Stoker on 17 March 1915. He was shore demobilised on 30 March 1920.