Orders, Decorations and Medals

Africa General Service 1902-56, 1 clasp, Somaliland 1908-10 (210418 W. T. Clarke, A.B., H.M.S. Fox), contact marks, nearly very fine £100-120

William Thomas Clarke was born in Burnley, Lancashire in November 1884 and entered the Royal Navy as a Boy 2nd Class in June 1900. Advanced to Able Seaman in November 1904, he served aboard H.M.S. Fox from June 1908 until July 1910, in which period he was present in the Somaliland operations and, by the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914, was serving aboard the battleship Marlborough.

A brief spell in the flotilla leader Tipperary having followed in late 1915, Clarke removed to another destroyer, the Petard, in May 1916, in which capacity he was present at the battle of Jutland: having sunk the German destroyer V-27, and seriously damaged the S.M.S. Seydlitz in another torpedo attack, Petard picked up survivors from the Queen Mary, offered assistance to Bingham, V.C. in the crippled Nestor and was lucky to evade destruction at the hands of the Westfalen after being caught in her searchlights at point-blank range - in the event she made it back to Scapa with casualties of nine killed and six wounded.

Clarke’s final seagoing appointment was aboard the cruiser Cumberland from June 1917 until February 1919, in which latter month he was demobilised. He did, however, briefly hold an appointment in the Royal Fleet Reserve until 1921, when he was invalided as a result of an eye complaint.