Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A fine Great War Q-ship operations D.S.C. group of three awarded to Engineer Lieutenant N. S. MacKinnon, Royal Naval Reserve, who was lost in the Cullist in the Irish Sea on 11 February 1918, having already been decorated and ‘mentioned’ for services in her against enemy submarines: at the time of his death he had received at least one more bravery recommendation

Distinguished Service Cross, G.V.R., the reverse privately engraved, ‘Eng. Lieut. Neil S. MacKinnon, 23rd Jan. 1918’; British War and Victory Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf (Eng. Lt., R.N.R.), with related Memorial Plaque (Neil Shaw MacKinnon), nearly extremely fine, the whole contained within an old metal glazed display frame (4) £3000-3500

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Collection of Medals to Great War Casualties formed by Tim Parsons.

View
Collection

D.S.C. London Gazette 22 February 1918:

‘For services in action with enemy submarines.’

Mention in despatches London Gazette 29 August 1917.

Neil Shaw MacKinnon, who was born at Leith in Edinburgh in April 1877, was commissioned as a Temporary Engineer Lieutenant in the Royal Naval Reserve in May 1917, the very same month in which the Q-ship Cullist was commissioned by Lieutenant-Commander S. H. Simpson, R.N., shortly to win a brace of D.S.Os for his command of her in several lively encounters with enemy submarines. As it transpired, MacKinnon was to serve as his Engineer Lieutenant throughout this period, right up until his death in action on 11 February 1918, when the Cullist was torpedoed without warning and went down in two minutes.

His mentioned in despatches was for services on the occasion of the sinking of an enemy submarine on 13 July 1917, the latter having been sighted on the surface at 11,000 yards range, from which distance it began shelling the Cullist. After firing 38 rounds without recording a hit, the enemy began to close the range to 5,000 yards and fired a further 30 rounds which started to straddle their target. At 1407 hours Cullist returned fire, her gunners getting the range after their second salvo was fired and numerous hits were recorded on the enemy’s conning tower, gun and deck. Then an explosion was seen followed by bright red flames, and three minutes after engaging the submarine it was seen to go down by the bows leaving oil and debris on the surface - the latter included ‘a corpse dressed in blue dungarees, floating face upwards.’

But it was for actions fought by the Cullist on 20 August and 28 September 1917 that MacKinnon received his D.S.C.

On the former occasion an enemy submarine was sighted on the surface and opened fire on the Cullist at 9,000 yards range. After 82 rounds had been fired by the submarine, just one of them scored with a hit on the water-line of the stokehold, the shell injuring both the firemen on watch and causing a large rush of water into the stokehold, which was overcome by plugging the hole and shoring it up. Several time-fuzed shrapnel projectiles were also fired at the Cullist but without effect. The submarine then closed the range to 4,500 yards at which time the Cullist returned fire and scored two hits in the area of the conning tower, upon which the submarine was seen to dive and contact was lost.

During the second duel, which was fought on 28 September 1917, Simpson gave the order to open fire at 5,000 yards range - ‘thirteen rounds were fired of which eight were direct hits, causing him to settle down by the bowstill while about 30 feet of his stern was standing out of the water at an angle of about 30 degrees to the horizon. He remained in this position for about ten to fifteen seconds before disappearing at 12.43 hours.’ Soon afterwards Simpson spotted another enemy submarine and set off in pursuit, on this occasion to no avail. Nonetheless, he was able state in his official report that much credit was due to the Engine Room department, ‘who worked up to, and maintained a speed of 13 knots for four and a half hours, being 1.5 knots in excess of this ship’s previous full speed.’ And in official Admiralty correspondence dated 10 November 1917, the first suggestion that MacKinnon should be awarded a D.S.C is muted, the First Lord adding his approval five days later.

Yet another brush with the enemy took place on 17 November 1917, when the Cullist was sighted by an enemy submarine which opened fire at 8,000 yards range. Within five minutes the enemy had the range and a shell glanced off the Cullist’s side, damaging one of three officers’ cabins before bursting on the water line. After disappearing in a bank of fog the submarine re-appeared and continued to shell the Cullist with such accuracy that for 50 minutes the decks and bridge were continually sprayed with shell splinters and drenched with water from near misses. In all, the enemy fired 92 rounds, while the Cullist returned fire from 4,500 yards, 14 rounds being fired at the submarine of which six were seen to be direct hits. The submarine, although badly damaged, was able to turn away, dive and escape.

Once again, Simpson recommended his engineering officers, Mackinnon and a Sub. Lieutenant Wilson, their C.O’s official report stating: ‘These officers are stationed in the Engine Room and Boiler Room during action and have always kept their department in a high state of efficiency and ready for any emergency, stimulating all ratings under their orders with their good example.’

On 11 February 1918, however, the Cullist’s luck ran out and she was torpedoed without warning in the Irish Sea and sank in two minutes. The enemy submarine then surfaced and asked for the Captain, but was told that he had been killed. The Germans then picked up two men and after verbally abusing the remaining survivors, made off. Simpson, who had been wounded, was pulled into one of the rafts, and the survivors were subsequently rescued by a patrol trawler. Sadly, however, their gallant Engineer Lieutenant was not among their number, undoubtedly having gone down at his station in the Cullist.

MacKinnon is commemorated on the Porstmouth Naval Memorial.