A fine Great War M.B.E. group of seven awarded to Signal Commander W. R. Paris, Royal Navy

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. (Military) Member’s 1st type breast badge, silver, hallmarks for London 1919; Queen’s South Africa 1899-1902, 1 clasp, Cape Colony (Qd. Sig., H.M.S. Beagle); 1914-15 Star (Sig. Bosn., R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (Sig. Bosn., R.N.); Defence and War Medals, the second with officially corrected ship’s name and copy clasp, generally very fine (7) £250-300

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, Medals for Services at Sea from the Collection of the Late Oliver Stirling Lee.

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M.B.E. London Gazette 10 July 1919. The original recommendation states:

‘Signal Boatswain William R. Paris, Staff of the C.-in-C., East Indies, gave most able and thorough assistance in the organisation of the signal staff in Colossus - present at Jutland; surprisingly successful training of Indian Lascar Signal Corps; exceptional zeal and ability in all ways throughout the whole war period.’

William Richard “Bill” Paris was born at Camberwell, London in May 1881 and entered the Royal Navy in December 1896. He later described his early career in a letter to the C.O. of the R.N. Signal School in 1963:

‘At 82 I suppose I am now the senior member of the Branch to have worn the “crossed flags”. I remember with pride the day I was entitled to sew them on. I joined Impregnable as a Boy 2nd Class and after a short period of training became a Signal Boy - and believe me I thought I was the cat’s whiskers! Before joining the Navy I was employed in the counting house of Eyre & Spottiswoode, at that time the King’s printers, and they printed all the Naval Signal Books and I learnt the rudiments of signalling colours of flags, morse and semaphore, and became a Poop Signal Boy.’

Thus qualified, he witnessed active service aboard H.M.S. Beagle off South Africa during the Boar War, although he does not appear on the published roll as being entitled to the clasp for “Cape Colony”. Then in October 1910, Paris attained warrant rank status when appointed a Signal Boatswain, in which capacity he served throughout the Great War.

From August 1914 until August 1915, he served aboard the battleship Prince of Wales, including the Dardanelles operations, and from the latter date until July 1918 in the battleship Colossus, the flagship of Rear-Admiral E. F. A. Gaunt, including the Battle of Jutland. He then followed Gaunt’s staff to the Admiral’s next posting, the cruiser Venus, on the East Indies Station, where, as explained by his Flag Lieutenant, D. W. Joel, towards the end of the War, he came ashore to help establish a Signals Branch for the Indian Marine:

‘We decided that the Indian Marine should have a proper Signal Branch of its own; we acquired a suitable building in Bombay Dockyard, and set up a Naval Signal School under my excellent Signal Boatswain Mr. R. W. Paris. Our pupils were Lascars from the Ratnagin area on the southern part of the West Coast. They were incredibly keen and learned in record time. There was no guessing as they knew no English!”

It was, as confirmed above, partly for these services - and partly for his earlier deeds aboard Colossus - that Admiral Gaunt recommended Paris for his M.B.E., an honour that was shortly followed by his appointment to Commissioned Signal Boatswain in October 1920. As such, he was in demand on the staff of two or three flagships over the coming decade, finally retiring in July 1931 as a Signal Lieutenant.

Recalled to the Admiralty’s Signal Division on the renewal of hostilities, “Bill” Paris went on to become one of a handul of signallers to attain the rank of Signal Commander, when he was placed on the Retired List at the end of 1946.