Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Pair: Captain R. V. Barker, 1st Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers, who was killed in action at Ypres on 31 October 1914

1914 Star (Capt: R. V. Barker. R.W. Fus:); British War Medal (Capt. R. V. Barker.) in their named card boxes of issue; together with Old Wykehamist Lodge No. 3548 Founder’s badge, silver-gilt and enamels, hallmarked London 1910, in its H. T. Lamb & Co. case of issue, extremely fine (3) £160-£200

Richard Vincent Barker was born at Middleham, Yorkshire, the son of the late Rev. Frederick Barker, Rector of Wimborne St. Giles. He was a Scholar of Winchester, and subsequently went to New College, Oxford. He was an undergraduate in 1899 when he joined Freemasonry, aged just 19.

Entering the Army through the Militia in January, 1901, he served from that date in the South African War as Second Lieutenant in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, being present at operations in the Transvaal and Orange River, for which he received the Queen's medal with four clasps. He was Adjutant of his battalion from July 1901 to January 1909, and of the West African Frontier Force from April, 1909. He was a fine rider to hounds, and was well known in the South of Ireland with the United and other Hunts.

When the Great War broke out Captain Barker was with his battalion in Malta, and, upon returning to England, was appointed Staff Captain to the 22nd Brigade, 7th Division, under Brigadier General Lawford. On the 31 October 1914, at the Battle of Ypres, after very severe fighting for two days, when nearly all the regimental officers were killed and some men were falling back, Captain Barker, who was then attending to wounded men under a heavy fire, asked permission to rally them, and while leading them forward, fell shot through the chest. His Brigadier reported of him ‘Quite exceptional, a good friend and splendid officer, no matter how hard the work and discomforts great, he was always cheerful.’ Captain Barker was mentioned twice after his death, in the London Gazette of 16 February 1915, and in Sir John French's Despatch of 14 January 1915, published in the London Gazette of 22 June 1915.

Barker was a member of Apollo University Lodge No. 357, and petitioned for and was a founder member of Old Wykehamist Lodge No 3548 at London, joining the same on 19 July 1911. It is evident that the principal officers of this new Lodge were also from Apollo Lodge and it is more than likely that Barker had become an experienced Freemason between initiation and becoming founder. Apollo Lodge lost more members than any other Lodge in the English Constitution through the course of the Great War.

Captain Barker’s medals were claimed by his sister, Mrs S. M. Craik, of Lansdowne Road, Aldershot. See Lot 13 for the related family medals of Lieutenant-Colonel J. Craik, Indian Army.