Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

An extremely well-documented Great War F2b Observer’s pair awarded to Lieutenant R. J. Gregory, 20 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force, who was shot down, wounded and taken prisoner of war near Armentières, 5 June 1918

British War and Victory Medals (2. Lieut. R. J. Gregory. R.A.F.) BWM with official corrections, very fine £300-£340

Provenance: Dix Noonan Webb, April 2003.

Robert John Gregory was born in February 1899 and was educated at the Brighton, Hove and Sussex Grammar School prior to becoming a medical student at St. George’s Hospital, Hyde Park, London. Enlisting in the 2nd Artists Rifles, circa 1916-17, he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps as a Cadet in September of the latter year and attended assorted training establishments until joining 105 Squadron as a 2nd Lieutenant that December. The advent of 1918 witnessed further training at an Observer and Air Gunnery School and in late May Gregory was posted to 20 Squadron, a fighter-bomber unit operating in F2Bs out of Boisdinghem. And by 5 June he was able to write home about his first operational experiences as an Observer:

‘Well, having got a regular pilot and “bus” now, have properly started my duties. That was quite a “cushy” little start the other night after I wrote to you, the clouds forming a very effective screen to hide us from view from the ground, so that we were not troubled very much by “Archies”. It was a most beautiful effect, too, as you can imagine, to be sailing along a mile or two above the clouds, with little gaps here and there through which you could see the ground miles beneath you ... Was on a show again this morning in which we properly “put the wind up” old Jerry and his gas bags. It was quite a sport although “Archie” was rather busy. Am starting off on another in about an hour’s time, so you see they keep us pretty busy. But, then you see, we are absolutely THE Squadron - that really is fact and we were specially congratulated by General Salmond on our record for last month. Everyone who gets posted to this squadron usually considers it quite an honour - I do. Well, will say good-bye for the present ...’

Just an hour or two after penning these words, Gregory was shot down, wounded and taken P.O.W. He and his pilot, Lieutenant E. A. Magee, had been brought down in the vicinity of Armentieres, the incident being described by Gregory in a letter home to his sweetheart:

‘Well, isn’t this just the absolute limit? Strange to say I had never considered the possibility and if you ask me now how I got here, I don’t really know very definitely as we came down with a most “beautiful” crash, over some nice high trees from a height of about three miles or so in not many more minutes, which smashed the old “bus” up into matchwood and gave me a most “beautiful” knock on the head, which kept me most “beautifully” quiet for about three days. Ged Magee, my pilot, was none the worse for our little splash and is with me now. All I can remember is having a “scrap” with some German planes in the course of which we had our own engine, petrol tanks (how it was they didn’t catch fire I don’t know. They do that about 9 times out of every 10, when they get shot) and about half of our control wires shot away, then a most sickening three mile drop quite out of control until a few hundred feet above the ground when Magee managed to check the speed a bit. All the time we were falling we were having lead pumped into us like the deuce! The way it dodged all round the two of us was most marvellous. I had a group of about 20 shots about three inches in front of me and about 30 or 40 within a few inches of my head; apparently I am wanted to fight in the next war, unless it is that I am too good to die yet (I think it must be that, don’t you?!!!) ...’

Gregory ended the War in an Officer’s P.O.W. camp near Pillau in East Prussia and was repatriated in mid-December 1918. Among previous camps he had frequented was Karlsruhe, scene of the most famous P.O.W. breakout of the Great War. Released from the Royal Air Force in February of the following year, he returned to his studies and qualified in medicine in February 1924. Gregory married his wartime sweetheart, Violet Webb, in October 1925 and set up practice in Luton, where he died in July 1940, aged 41 years.

Sold with an impressive run of original correspondence, the majority being handwritten letters, with related envelopes, from the recipient to his sweetheart for the period January 1918 until his release from captivity at the end of the year, the latter with German stamps and occasional censorship - often of a humorous nature and rarely without useful observations and overall content; also old copy correspondence appertaining to the recipient being posted missing in June 1918, including a letter from his C.O., Major E. Johnston (‘Your son was Observer in a machine which was one of nine engaged in an offensive fighting patrol. As far as I can gather, his machine became slightly detached from the patrol and four enemy machines were seen just behind it. Our machine then spun down and was lost sight of ...’); three wartime photographs; Buckingham Palace letter for returning P.O.Ws; Protection Certificate (Officer), dated 15 February 1919; Medical Registration Certificate for L.R.C.P., London, 5 February 1924; and assorted newspaper cuttings.