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Auction: 21002 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 90

A rare 7-clasp Q.S.A. and Naval Good Shooting Medal campaign group of six awarded to Petty Officer R. T. Read, Royal Navy, who served ashore with the Bluejackets of Monarch during the Boer War

Queen's South Africa 1899-1902, 7 clasps, Belmont, Modder River, Paardeberg, Driefontein, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill, Belfast (R. T. Read, Lg. Sean. H.M.S. Monarch.), large officially impressed naming; 1914-15 Star (179330, R. T. Read. P.O., R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (179330 R. T. Read. P.O. R.N.); Royal Fleet Reserve L.S. & G.C., G.V.R., Admiral's bust issue (179330 Ch. A. 2269 R. T. Read. P.O. R.F.R.); Naval Good Shooting Medal, E.VII.R. (179330 R. T. Read, A.B, H.M.S. Antrim. 1909. 7.5in. B.L.), very fine and better (6)

Confirmed on the roll as one of 39 Medals issued to H.M.S. Monarch with 7 clasps, and one of only 88 issued to the Royal Navy in total.

Robert Thomas Read was born on 9 November 1877 at Manningtree, Essex and was 'unoccupied' upon his joining the Royal Navy on 9 November 1895. He served in Monarch from 26 January 1897-14 October 1900, which included his landing as a member of her Naval Brigade ashore during the Boer War. The Medal Roll noted he was allotting 25s a month to his mother at 13 Regent Street, Manningtree.

He earned his Naval Good Shooting Medal manning the 7.5 inch breech-loading guns of Antrim in 1909 and was a Petty Officer aboard the Cressy-class cruiser Euryalus. Remaining in her until 9 Augut 1917, she had become the flagship of Rear-Admiral Rosslyn Wemyss in April 1915, after he was put in charge of the main landings at Gallipoli. During the landings at Cape Helles on the morning of 25 April, Euryalus transported three Companies of the 1st Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers and a Platoon of the Royal Naval Division, and then provided fire support to the landing after the soldiers were transferred to their boats for the actual landing on Beach 'W'. She also bombarded Turkish positions during the Second Battle of Krithia on 6 May.

Read joined the Royal Fleet Reserve on 6 November 1917, his final posting being aboard Marshall Soult from 24 August-24 November 1918. He was shore demobilised on 4 March 1919; sold together with copied service record and Medal Roll confirming a duplicate QSA was issued.

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Sold for
£2,300

Starting price
£1200