Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A fine Great War C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O. group of eleven awarded to Major-General C. P. Heywood, late Coldstream Guards, who was wounded as a young subaltern in the Boer War and again as C.O. of the 3rd Guards Brigade in the Great War - he went on to win his sixth “mention” in North Russia

The Most Honourable Order of The Bath, C.B. (Military) Companion’s neck badge, silver-gilt and enamel; The Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, C.M.G., Companion’s neck badge, silver-gilt and enamel; Distinguished Service Order, G.V.R., silver-gilt and enamel; Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 5 clasps, Cape Colony, Orange Free State, Johannesburg, Diamond Hill, Belfast (Lieut., Cldstm. Gds.); King’s South Africa 1901-02, 2 clasps, South Africa 1901, South Africa 1902 (Lieut., Cld. Gds.); 1914 Star (Capt., C. Gds.); British War and Victory Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf (Brig. Gen.); Jubilee 1935; Khedive’s Sudan 1896-1908, 1 (copy) clasp, Nyima, unnamed; French Croix de Guerre 1914-1917, together with a set of related miniature dress medals, the first and third with slightly chipped enamel and somewhat recessed centres, otherwise generally very fine or better (22) £2000-2500

C.B. London Gazette 3 June 1933.

C.M.G. London Gazette 1 January 1918.

D.S.O. London Gazette 3 June 1916.

French Croix de Guerre London Gazette 25 September 1917.

Cecil Percival “Guffin” Heywood was born at Duffield, Derbyshire in May 1880, the second son of Sir Arthur Heywood, Bt., and was educated at Eton and the R.M.C. Sandhurst. Commissioned into the Coldstream Guards as a 2nd Lieutenant in August 1899, he quickly witnessed active service out in South Africa, where he was wounded on 2 October 1900, when the Boers derailed a troop train carrying three companies of the 2nd Battalion at Pan Station - and poured a ‘vigorous fire’ into the unfortunate occupants, killing five and wounding 13 others. He had earlier seen action at Vet River, Zand River and Diamond Hill, and was also present in the Belfast operations (Queen’s Medal and 5 clasps; King’s Medal and 2 clasps)

Having been advanced to Lieutenant in March 1901, Heywood served as Adjutant of the 2nd Battalion 1904-07, prior to gaining attachment to the Egyptian Army, with whom he served in the Blue Nile Province in 1908, not least in the Jebel Nuima District in Kordofan (Medal and clasp).


A Captain by the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914, he was immediately embarked for service in the B.E.F. with the 3rd Battalion, Coldstream Guards, and commanded No. 2 Company in the retreat from Mons, including the action at Landrecies - the regimental history states that No. 2 Company engaged on the Le Quesnoy road, forcing the the enemy back. In September, Heywood was appointed a Brigade Major, 19th Infantry Brigade, in which capacity he was present in the battles of Ypres-Armentieres in October-November 1914, and in the following year became a G.S.O. in the 3rd Division and at G.H.Q. Then in March 1916, he transferred to the Guards Division, with whom he remained actively employed until returning to the U.K. in September 1917. Advanced to Temporary Brigadier-General in July 1918, Heywood returned to France as C.O. of the 150th Infantry Brigade, but transferred to the command of the 3rd Guards Brigade that September - while employed in the latter capacity at Lebrachmar on 5 November, he was wounded by a shell which came through the roof of his H.Q., killing two and wounding five others.

In addition to his C.M.G. and D.S.O., Heywood was mentioned in despatches on at least five occasions in the Great War, including Sir John French’s Ypres despatch, and was awarded the French Croix de Guerre. In 1919, he was embarked for service in North Russia as a G.S.O. 1, where he served August-November and won another “mention” ‘for valuable and distinguished services rendered in connection with the operations in North Russia during the period 25 March to 26 September 1919’ (London Gazette 3 February 1920 refers).

Heywood commanded the Coldstream Guards 1927-30, was appointed an A.D.C. to the King in January 1931, a C.B. in 1934 and died in service as a Major-General in command of 3rd Division in October 1936, having latterly served as Director of Staff Duties at the War Office. In the words of Liddell Hart:

‘The sudden death of General Heywood is a sorrowful shock to his many friends: it is an even heavier blow to the country. Of few can that be said - but he was one of the few outstanding soldiers that the Army have thrown up since the War. These critical times naturally make anyone who is concerned with defence keep a keen watch for potential commanders - remembering Napoleon’s dictum that in war “it is the man that counts, not men.” General Heywood’s was one of the first names which came to mind - and there are hardly more than half-a-dozen now serving who seem of similar calibre ... The combination in one man of an ardent reformer, a first-rate commander, and the opportunity to prove both, is rare - its rarity is the measure of the Army’s, and the country’s loss.’

Also see Lot 931 for the Honours and Awards of his brother, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Graham Heywood, Bt., C.B., D.S.O., T.D.