Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A fine Great War East Africa operations M.C. group of eight awarded to Lieutenant W. Smeeth, Royal Engineers

Military Cross, G.V.R., unnamed as issued; Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 2 clasps, Cape Colony, Orange Free State (29564 Sapr. W. Smeeth, R.E.); King’s South Africa, 2 clasps, South Africa 1901, South Africa 1902 (29564 L. Corpl. W. Smeeth, R.E.); Africa General Service 1902-56, 1 clasp, Somaliland 1902-04 (29564 Corpl. W. C. Smeeth, R.E.); 1914-15 Star (29564 Q.M. Sjt. W. Smeeth, R.E.); British War and Victory Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf (Lieut. W. Smeeth); Army L.S. & G.C., G.V.R. (29564 Q.M. Sjt. Instr. W. Smeeth, R.E.), mounted as worn, occasional edge bruise, otherwise very fine and better (8) £1600-1800

M.C. London Gazette 30 January 1917.

William Charles Smeeth was born in Gibraltar and enlisted in the Royal Engineers as a boy recruit in November 1895, aged 15 years. Embarked for South Africa in early 1900, he was advanced to Lance-Corporal that March and remained on active service as a member of the 1st Telegraph Division, R.E., until the end of hostilities (Queen’s Medal & 2 clasps; King’s Medal & 2 clasps). And he was employed on similar duties as a Corporal out in Somaliland in the period January 1903 to July 1904 (Medal & clasp).

Advanced to Sergeant in April 1907 and to Q.M. Sergeant Instructor in March 1911, Smeeth was awarded his L.S. & G.C. Medal in AO 99 of 1914, in which latter year, in October, he embarked for East Africa from India with the 3rd Sappers & Miners, I.A.

And he remained employed in that theatre of war in operations in ‘British, German and Portuguese East Africa, Nyasaland and Rhodesia’ up until the end of 1916, when he was embarked for Mesopotamia for employment on Inland Water Transport duties. Thus a lengthy period of active service that witnessed him being commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in February 1916, mentioned in despatches (London Gazette 30 June 1916, refers), and awarded the M.C.

Out in Basrah in the summer of 1917, however, Smeeth was reported as being dangerously ill with enteric, malaria and sunstroke, and was invalided home. Placed on the Retired List as a Lieutenant in November 1920, he appears to have settled in Lipson, near Plymouth, and died in March 1933; sold with extensive copied research, including service records and Great War papers.