Groups and Single Decorations for Gallantry 21


The unique ‘British Naval Mission to Greece’ M.B.E. group of ten awarded to Acting Warrant Armourer F. J. Carter, Royal Navy, who first saw action in the Dongola Expedition in 1896; subsequently appointed an honorary Sub- Lieutenant in the Royal Hellenic Navy, he was present at assorted battles and engagements in the Greco-Turkish War of 1912-13 and the Greco-Bulgarian War of 1913, and was appointed to the Royal Orders of the Redeemer and George I and awarded the Greek Medal of Military Merit


The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. (Military) Member’s 1st type breast badge, silver, hallmarks for London 1919; British War Medal 1914-20 (Wt. Arm. F. J. Carter, R.N.); Royal Navy L.S. & G.C., E.VII.R. (147655 F. J. Carter, Ch. Armourer, H.M.S. Vivid); Khedive’s Sudan 1896-1908, no clasp (F. J. Carter, H.M.S. Melita, 1896), engraved naming; Greece, Royal Order of the Redeemer, 5th Class breast badge, silver, gold and enamel; Greece, Royal Order of George I, 5th Class breast badge, silver and enamel; Greece, Medal of Military Merit 1916, 4th Class; Greco-Turkish War Medal 1912-13, no clasp; Greco-Bulgarian War Medal 1913, no clasp; Greece, Victory Medal 1918, official type, together with a set of related miniature dress medals (excluding the Order of George I), and a uniform ribbon bar, some enamel damage to the Greek Redeemer otherwise generally good very fine (Lot)


£2,800-£3,200 M.B.E. London Gazette 17 July 1919: ‘For valuable services with the British Naval Mission to Greece.’


Frederick James Carter was born at Highweek, near Newton Abbey, Devon, in September 1870 and entered the Royal Navy for service as Armourer’s Crew in January 1889. One of his first seagoing appointments was in the sloop H.M.S. Egaria (1889-93), in which period the ship was employed on survey work off the coast of Australia.


Advanced to Armourer’s Mate in August 1895, he joined the composite screw gun vessel Melita at the year’s end and was present in the Dongola operations in the Nile Flotilla in March-September 1896, thereby gaining entitlement to one of 139 Khedive’s Medals awarded to the ship’s company - one of a total of 288 such awards to the Royal Navy. Having then been awarded his L.S. & G.C. Medal in February 1908, Carter was pensioned ashore as a Chief Armourer in January 1911.


However, with the Admiralty’s approval, he quickly transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy as a Sub-Lieutenant, joining the armoured cruiser H.H.M.S. Averof at Devonport that August. With the advent of the First Balkan War, Carter quickly saw action, the Averof acting as the flagship of Admiral Kountouriotis and participating in the take-over of the islands of the northern and eastern Aegean.


In the battles off Elli on 3 December 1912, and off Lemnos on 5 January 1913, the Averof almost single-handedly secured victory and the undisputed control of the Aegean for Greece. On both occasions, Admiral Kountouriotis acted independently, steaming off in pursuit of the Turkish fleet at 20 knots and inflicting significant damage to several adversaries. Averof was herself slightly damaged but her exploits propelled her to legendary status in Greece and her crew affectionately nicknamed her ‘Lucky Uncle George’: today, the cruiser survives as a floating museum at Palaio Faliro.


Further operations in the Greco-Bulgarian War having followed, Carter was appointed to the Salonica Dockyards, in which capacity he was awarded the Royal Order of George I in the period leading up to the Great War.


On the outbreak of hostilities, he was ‘specially exempted from mobilisation’ by the Admiralty on account of his position in the Royal Hellenic Navy, his R.N. service record further noting the Naval Intelligence Department’s agreement to his ongoing employment in Greece in 1917, where indeed it must be surmised he was acting out an intelligence role, under the auspices of his appointment to the British Naval Mission in Athens.


In addition to his subsequent award of the M.B.E., which was despatched by the Foreign Office to Athens ‘for presentation to officer’ in October 1920, Foreign Office records confirm that Carter was forwarded the diploma for his Greek Order of the Redeemer, 5th Class, in February 1918 (T.N.A. FO 372-1135, refers):


‘Mr. Carter is a British Warrant Officer and has been employed for some years as a Greek Officer in the Salonica Dockyards. He is a Sub. Lieutenant in the Greek Naval Service and is at present a Member of the British Naval Mission to Greece.’


And, as per the Official Roll of Naval War Medals 1914-1920, Carter was entitled to a single British War Medal 1914-20 (T.N.A. ADM 171/89, refers).


www.dnw.co.uk all lots are illustrated on our website and are subject to buyers’ premium at 20% (+VAT where applicable)


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148  |  Page 149  |  Page 150  |  Page 151  |  Page 152  |  Page 153  |  Page 154  |  Page 155  |  Page 156  |  Page 157  |  Page 158  |  Page 159  |  Page 160  |  Page 161  |  Page 162  |  Page 163  |  Page 164  |  Page 165  |  Page 166  |  Page 167  |  Page 168  |  Page 169  |  Page 170  |  Page 171  |  Page 172  |  Page 173  |  Page 174  |  Page 175  |  Page 176  |  Page 177  |  Page 178  |  Page 179  |  Page 180  |  Page 181  |  Page 182  |  Page 183  |  Page 184  |  Page 185  |  Page 186  |  Page 187  |  Page 188  |  Page 189  |  Page 190  |  Page 191  |  Page 192  |  Page 193  |  Page 194  |  Page 195  |  Page 196  |  Page 197  |  Page 198  |  Page 199  |  Page 200  |  Page 201  |  Page 202  |  Page 203  |  Page 204  |  Page 205  |  Page 206  |  Page 207  |  Page 208  |  Page 209  |  Page 210  |  Page 211  |  Page 212  |  Page 213  |  Page 214  |  Page 215  |  Page 216  |  Page 217  |  Page 218  |  Page 219  |  Page 220  |  Page 221  |  Page 222  |  Page 223  |  Page 224  |  Page 225  |  Page 226  |  Page 227  |  Page 228  |  Page 229  |  Page 230  |  Page 231  |  Page 232  |  Page 233  |  Page 234  |  Page 235  |  Page 236  |  Page 237  |  Page 238  |  Page 239  |  Page 240  |  Page 241  |  Page 242  |  Page 243  |  Page 244  |  Page 245  |  Page 246  |  Page 247  |  Page 248  |  Page 249  |  Page 250  |  Page 251  |  Page 252  |  Page 253  |  Page 254  |  Page 255  |  Page 256  |  Page 257  |  Page 258  |  Page 259  |  Page 260  |  Page 261  |  Page 262  |  Page 263  |  Page 264  |  Page 265  |  Page 266  |  Page 267  |  Page 268  |  Page 269  |  Page 270  |  Page 271  |  Page 272  |  Page 273  |  Page 274  |  Page 275  |  Page 276  |  Page 277  |  Page 278  |  Page 279  |  Page 280  |  Page 281  |  Page 282  |  Page 283  |  Page 284  |  Page 285  |  Page 286  |  Page 287  |  Page 288  |  Page 289  |  Page 290  |  Page 291  |  Page 292  |  Page 293  |  Page 294  |  Page 295  |  Page 296  |  Page 297  |  Page 298  |  Page 299  |  Page 300  |  Page 301  |  Page 302  |  Page 303  |  Page 304  |  Page 305  |  Page 306  |  Page 307  |  Page 308  |  Page 309  |  Page 310  |  Page 311  |  Page 312  |  Page 313  |  Page 314  |  Page 315  |  Page 316  |  Page 317  |  Page 318  |  Page 319  |  Page 320  |  Page 321  |  Page 322  |  Page 323  |  Page 324  |  Page 325  |  Page 326  |  Page 327  |  Page 328  |  Page 329  |  Page 330  |  Page 331  |  Page 332  |  Page 333  |  Page 334  |  Page 335  |  Page 336  |  Page 337  |  Page 338  |  Page 339  |  Page 340  |  Page 341  |  Page 342  |  Page 343  |  Page 344  |  Page 345  |  Page 346  |  Page 347  |  Page 348  |  Page 349  |  Page 350  |  Page 351  |  Page 352  |  Page 353  |  Page 354  |  Page 355  |  Page 356  |  Page 357  |  Page 358  |  Page 359  |  Page 360  |  Page 361  |  Page 362  |  Page 363  |  Page 364  |  Page 365  |  Page 366  |  Page 367  |  Page 368  |  Page 369  |  Page 370  |  Page 371  |  Page 372  |  Page 373  |  Page 374  |  Page 375  |  Page 376  |  Page 377  |  Page 378  |  Page 379  |  Page 380  |  Page 381  |  Page 382  |  Page 383  |  Page 384  |  Page 385  |  Page 386  |  Page 387  |  Page 388  |  Page 389  |  Page 390  |  Page 391  |  Page 392  |  Page 393  |  Page 394  |  Page 395  |  Page 396  |  Page 397  |  Page 398  |  Page 399  |  Page 400  |  Page 401  |  Page 402  |  Page 403  |  Page 404  |  Page 405  |  Page 406  |  Page 407  |  Page 408  |  Page 409  |  Page 410  |  Page 411  |  Page 412  |  Page 413  |  Page 414  |  Page 415  |  Page 416  |  Page 417  |  Page 418  |  Page 419  |  Page 420  |  Page 421  |  Page 422  |  Page 423  |  Page 424  |  Page 425  |  Page 426  |  Page 427  |  Page 428  |  Page 429  |  Page 430  |  Page 431