Six: Paymaster Lieutenant-Commander F. Simmonds, Royal Navy

Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, no clasp (Sh. Stwd., H.M.S. Forte); Naval General Service 1915-62, 1 clasp, Persian Gulf 1909-1914 (171239 Sh. Std., H.M.S. Odin); 1914-15 Star (171239 S.S., R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (171239 V.C.P.O., R.N.); Royal Navy L.S. & G.C., E.VII.R. (171239 Ship’s Steward, H.M.S. Crescent), together with related Greenwich Hospital School Attainments and Good Conduct Medal, the reverse engraved, ‘Frederick Simmonds’, the second with minor official correction, the earlier awards with contact marks, generally about very fine, the remainder rather better (7) £300-350

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, Medals for Services at Sea from the Collection of the Late Oliver Stirling Lee.

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Fred Simmonds was born at Portsea, Hampshire in November 1877 and entered the Royal Navy as a Ship’s Steward Boy in February 1893. He subsequently witnessed active service aboard H.M.S. Forte off South Africa in the first half of 1902 - part of the extended period of qualification for the relevant Medal - and again in the Odin during the Persian Gulf operations of 1912-13. He had, meanwhile, been awarded his L.S. & G.C. Medal in November 1910.

Based ashore at the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914, Simmonds went to sea in the cruiser Arrogant in July 1915, seeing service with the Dover Patrol until removing to the Minerva off the Cape in November 1917, which latter appointment witnessed his elevation to Victualling C.P.O. Further advancement to Warrant Victualling Officer followed shortly afterwards, which rank was re-styled Warrant Supply Officer at the end of 1919, and, on being placed on the Retired List in August 1928, he was granted the rank of Paymaster Lieutenant. His advancement to Paymaster Lieutenant-Commander (Retired) took place in August 1936 and he is still recorded as such in the Navy Lists of the early 1950s.