Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

An Albert Medal for Sea awarded to Stoker Petty Officer A. V. Bailey, Royal Navy, for making a number of gallant attempts to rescue three men overcome by noxious gas in the hold of H.M.S. Tiger at Invergordon Dock on 27 August 1919

Albert Medal, 2nd Class, for Gallantry in Saving Life at Sea, bronze and enamel, reverse officially engraved ‘Awarded by His Majesty to Stoker Petty Officer Albert Victor Bailey., O.N., K.6117. (Dev.) for Gallantry in endeavouring to save life in H.M.S. “Tiger” on the 27th. August, 1919.’, central medallion loose, some pitting and minor dinting to reverse, nearly very fine, the obverse better £4400-5000

A.M. London Gazette 27 April 1920 (in a joint citation with Mate Henry Buckle, R.N.):

‘While H.M.S. Tiger was undergoing repairs at Invergordon, on the 27th August, 1919, two dockyard fitters and an able seaman were overcome by noxious gas in the hold of the ship, and Stoker Petty Officer Bailey, accompanied by a sick berth attendant, made an unsuccessful attempt at rescue. Both he and his companion had put on respirators, but found them useless. Mr. Buckle, the officer of the watch, then arrived on the scene, and in spite of the grave risk to life, which it was not evident would be incurred by further attempts at rescue, immediately went down and succeeded in passing a rope round one of the men. This man was got out, but Mr. Buckle was considerably affected by the gas, and could do nothing further.
Stoker Petty Officer Bailey, though suffering from the effects of his previous attempts, repeated the operation, and succeeded in getting the other two men out, but all efforts to restore them were futile.’

Albert Victor Bailey served during the Great War, and was awarded the Royal Navy Long Service and Good Conduct Medal whilst serving as a Stoker Petty Officer in H.M.S. Vivid.