Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria to include a Fine Collection of Napoleonic Medals

Royal Navy L.S. & G.C., G.V.R., 1st issue (8224 Fred. A. Tilbrook, Off. Std. 1), officially engraved Australian issue, good very fine £250-300

Fred Archibald Tilbrook was born at Brockley, Kent in August 1886 and entered the Royal Navy as Domestic 3rd Class in July 1903. Having then been advanced to Officer’s Steward 2nd Class, he was lent to the Royal Australian Navy in June 1913, in which month he joined the cruiser H.M.A.S. Sydney.

Subsequently present at Sydney’s famous encounter with the German raider S.M.S. Emden off the Cocos (Keeling) Islands on 9 November 1914, Tilbrook lent valuable service as a member of the Sydney’s First Aid Party. In his official report of the action, Dr. Darby stated:

‘ ... Cease fire sounded at 11.15 a.m. after we had been working two solid hours in confined atmosphere, and a temperature of 105 degrees F. The strain had been tremendous, and S.B.S. Mullins who had done wonderfully well with me, started off to faint but a drink of brandy caved him, and likewise myself. Our clothes were saturated with blood and perspiration, and altogether it had been a terrific two hours of high tension. We had been ably assisted by the first aid party, and specially by Tilbrook, Off. Std., R.A.N., Holley, M.A.A. R.N., Paymaster Norton, R.A.N. and Chaplain Little, R.A.N.

The ward room now contained eleven cases, and most of them were restless and groaning in agony ... During the action the space below seemed like a mad inferno. The tube was full of men belonging to the ammunition and fire parties, and, at the best of times, there is little room here, so the constant supply of wounded men was considerably hindered. All this time we knew not how the fight was going. We could only hear the shouts for ammunition and the continued rapid fire of our guns. At one time we heeled over, and the operating table, with "O" upon it, took charge. It seemed as though we had been hit, but it was only a sudden alteration of course, as we soon found out.

... As soon as the sick berth staff could be spared, I gave orders for the sick bay to be rigged up as an operating theatre with all despatch. This entailed an enormous amount of work on account of the state of the recent site of activities and of the sick bay which was flooded with water from the fire mains.

The muddle below was unavoidable owing to the lack of space and the speed with which one had to work, so it took some time to sort out things and have everything conveyed back and arranged in the sick bay.

Besides this, there were many interruptions due to requirements of the cases, and all through the afternoon and evening German sailors were being picked up from the water, some of them in a very collapsed condition. One man had been in the shark-infested sea for nine hours, and he was brought round after much trouble. Next day he was no worse off for his immersion.

It was found impossible to do any operative surgery until the following day for numerous reasons, nor was it considered advisable on account of the condition of the wounded. The sick bay staff were too done up to get the theatre ready, with instruments and dressings sterilized for the first day, and neither Surgeon Todd nor myself were in a fit state to undertake operations until we had rested. Until midnight we were attending to the wants of the patients, doing dressings, giving hypodermic injections, passing catheters, &c. The two sick-berth ratings were sent to bed at 10 p.m., thoroughly exhausted, and Surgeon Todd and myself took four-hourly watches from midnight. The first-aid party and volunteer nurses under Tilbrook and Holley, were told off into watches to do the nursing. Early next morning we arrived off Cocos Island, near the cable station, and having ascertained the damage done we took off the Eastern Extension Telegraph Co.'s Surgeon, Dr. H. S. Ollerhead, to help us with the German wounded. We then steamed back to North Keeling Island to the Emden ... ’

In concluding his report, Dr. Darby made special mention of Tilbrook.

Advanced to Officer’s Steward 1st Class in March 1918, he was awarded his L.S. & G.C. Medal in January 1920 and was discharged from the R.A.N. in the following year; sold with copied research.