1914 Star named PLY11275 PTE H WILLIAMS R M BRIGADE,British War & Victory Medals namedPLY11275 PTE H WILLIAMS RMLI & Russian Silver Medal for Zeal named PLY11275 PTE H WILLIAMS RMR HMS JUPITER.
Henry Williams was born in July 1884 in Redland, Bristol and joined the Royal Marines in Oct 1901 and left in 1910 by purchase and immediately joined the Royal Fleet Reserve. He was on HMS Mars when war broke out and joined the Plymouth Division with an embarkment date of 6th Aug 1914 when they were sent to Ostend and then returned in early Sept 1914. He joined HMS Jupiter on 12th Sept 1914 till 19th May 1915. In January 1915 the Admiralty received a request for assistance from the Russian Government, their icebreaker used to keep open the passage to Archangel in the White Sea had broken down. In response the Royal Navy sent out the Tyne Guard Ship H.M.S.Jupiter, and old Majestic-class battleship. She departed for Archangel in February 1915, freeing en-route a number of vessels stuck in the ice, occasionally by using explosive charges. She, too, sometimes became icebound, but still managed to make a major impression on the problem, improving the safe passage of numerous vessels, many of them laden with highly important war materials, among them the S.S.Thracia.The latter was taken in tow after the use of explosive charges to free her. Throughout these operations it was not unusual for the temperature to fall as low as minus 20 degrees, a hard test indeed on the morale and well being of theJupiter’s crew. Her mission completed by May 1915, the Tsar expressed his gratitude by the presentation of a variety of Russian Honours and Awards to her crew. For his part, Williams was awarded the Russian Medal of Zeal.
He left Jupiter in May 1915 and joined Monitor 29 from 10th june 1915 when she was completed and was sent to the Mediterranean, and took part in the Battle of Jaffa. She returned home inDec 1918. He stayed in the Navy till 1924 and did not earn his LS&GC as he lost several GCB over the time in the Navy.
Provenance DNW Sale 24th June 2009 Lot 931 Sold £1,500 plus fees.
