Orders, Decorations and Medals

An exceptional Royal Flying Corps M.C. and “Givenchy” D.C.M. group of six awarded to Captain C. G. D. Napier, No. 48 Squadron, Royal Air Force, late Army Cyclist Corps, shot down and killed in June 1918 with 9 confirmed kills to his credit

Military Cross, G.V.R., with case of issue; Distinguished Conduct Medal, G.V.R. (1771 L.Cpl., 47/Div. Cyc. Co. -T.F.); 1914-15 Star (269 Pte., A. Cyc. Corps); British War and Victory Medals (Capt., R.A.F.); French Medaille Militaire, with case of issue; together with one large and two small silver sports medals, all inscribed ‘Hursley Park Camp, No.2 R.F.C. Cadet Wing, Athletic Sports June 1917’, all three in presentation cases, the Victory Medal officially corrected, otherwise extremely fine (9) £3000-3500

See Front Cover Illustration.

M.C. London Gazette 22 June 1918: ‘T./2nd Lt. Charles Georges Douglas Napier, Gen. List and No. 48 Sqn., R.F.C. For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. On one occasion during a low-flying bombing attack he descended to a height of 100 feet and dropped four bombs amongst a body of enemy troops, causing heavy casualties and scattering the enemy in all directions. Later, whilst on offensive patrol, he observed an enemy two-seater and two scouts. He fired twenty rounds at the two-seater, with the result that it crashed, and then attacked one of the scouts, which turned over completely, and finally went down in a vertical nose dive. In all he has to his credit two enemy machines crashed and four driven down out of control. He has displayed the greatest judgement, determination and daring.’

D.C.M. London Gazette 5 August 1915: ‘Lance-Corporal (now Corporal), 47th Divisional Cyclist Company (T.F.). For conspicuous gallantry on the 25th and 26th May, 1915, at Givenchy. After the withdrawal of a bombing party, and having become separated from it, he remained in the trenches with a Serjeant and some men of another Battalion, and greatly assisted this small party by the use of his bombs in retaining possession of a captured trench.’

Medaille Militaire London Gazette 24 February 1916: ‘in recognition of distinguished service during the campaign.’

Charles Georges Douglas Napier, late Sergeant in the Army Cyclist Corps, attended No. 2 R.F.C. Officer Cadet Wing during May to July, 1917. Commissioned as Temporary 2nd Lieutenant on 24 August, Napier attended Nos. 4 and 19 Training Schools until November when he was appointed to No. 20 Squadron, and shortly afterwards to No. 48 Squadron. As pilot of a Bristol two-seater fighter, with 2nd Lieut. J. M. J. Moore as his observer, Napier claimed his first victory on 7 February 1918, with his second on 8 March, quickly followed by two more on the 16th March. Another two followed on 27 March, bringing his score to six and the well earned award of the Military Cross.

On the afternoon of 9 May, Napier had a particularly successful offensive patrol in his Bristol fighter C.4750. With a new but experienced observer in the shape of Sergeant W. Beales, recently awarded one of only five D.C.M’s won by the R.A.F. during the war, they dived on a formation of seven Pfalz DIII’s and sent one spinning to earth. Little more than an hour later, Napier spotted three Fokker DrI’s and immediately dived to attack them, successfully shooting one of them down. The remaining two triplanes, however, turned into the attack and as the Bristol was driven down the observer, Beales, managed to put in a whole drum of Buckingham into one of them at close range and it went spiraling down with smoke issuing from it. Napier at this stage decided to make for home and landed safely to claim another three victories.

With a total of nine confirmed kills to his name, Captain Charles Napier was himself shot down in flames over Quiery-Lamotte on 15 May, 1918, in B.1337, during a dogfight with 13 Fokker Triplanes and D5’s belonging to JG I and Jasta 5. Napier and his observer, Sergeant Pat Murphy, were both killed, the Germans confirming their deaths in a message dropped by an aeroplane in our lines on 12 June. The group is sold with some research including copies of the original M.C. recommendation (much longer and more detailed than the published version) and several combat reports.