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Auction: 21003 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 518

A Passchendaele 1917 M.M. awarded to Private R. Kay, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, who had two brothers killed in action during the Great War

Military Medal, G.V.R. (242292 Pte R. Kay. 2/5 L. N. Lanc: R.-T.F.), contact marks, very fine

M.M. London Gazette 23 February 1918.

Robert Kay was born in Bolton in 1880 the son of William and Margaret Kay. By 1901 the family had moved to Plover Street, Bolton, and Kay was working as a cotton piecer in a local mill - he had also been serving with 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment for the last four years. He married Mary Jane Atkinson Jones on New Year's Day 1904. Kay took advantage of the regular traffic between Liverpool and Canada to relocate to Hamilton Ontario with his wife, arriving on 3 June 1910. They had moved into 13 Edinburgh Avenue, Wentworth, Hamilton Ontario by 1911 but with the outbreak of war Kay returned to Britain to do his bit, arriving on 15 December 1914 at Liverpool. Enlisting on 19 March 1915 at Bolton Town Hall with the 2/5th Battalion, Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, Kay didn't enter the war in France until 9 February 1917. This absence from the front must have been galling when on 28 November 1915 one of his brothers - Nathan - was killed serving with the 3rd Battalion, Grenadier Guards. Having entered the war another of Kay's brothers - Charles - was killed whilst also serving with 2/5th Battalion on 1 April 1917. It seems he may have either witnessed his brother's death or at the least had it described to him as an article in the Bolton Journal & Guardian on 27 April 1917 states:

'A brother, Robert, who was in the same battalion of the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment, writes that [the] deceased was struck by a piece of shell.'

With the start of the Battle of Passchendaele the Battalion moved to Poelcapelle on 24 October 1917 ready to advance on 26 October. Moving off in terrible weather through heavy fire the Battalion lost all of its company officers to heavy sniper and machine gun fire leaving the NCOs to try and move their platoons forward. It was here that Kay won his M.M. as announced in the Bolton Evening News on 18 January 1918, along with a picture. His service had seriously affected Kay, however, and he was suffering from deafness and trench fever which was treated at the base hospital in Calais. Having transferred to the Labour Corps on 10 April 1918 he was invalided on 1 April 1919 and labelled as no longer fit for service.

After the war Kay applied for passage back to Canada, embarking on 30 January 1920 aboard the S.S. Megatama with his wife. Upon returning to Canada they lived in Hamilton City and it was here that Kay's medals were forwarded, finding him working as a saw filer; sold together with copied research including service records, census information and a London Gazette citation. Further entitled to a Silver War Badge (No. B 302802) and the British War and Victory Medals.

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Sold for
£270

Starting price
£160