Orders, Decorations and Medals

The Great War D.S.O. group of six awarded to Captain J. P. Champion, Royal Navy, who was decorated for his gallant leadership of the 2nd Division, 12th Destroyer Flotilla at Jutland, his own command, the Maenad delivering a brace of spirited torpedo attacks: recalled in the 1939-45 War, he attained the rank of Temporary Commodore 2nd Class and added a C.B.E. and “Letter of Appreciation” to his accolades, the latter in respect of “Operation Neptune”
Distinguished Service Order, G.V.R., silver-gilt and enamel; 1914-15 Star (Commr. J. P. Champion, R.N.); British War and Victory Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf (Commr. J. P. Champion, R.N.); Coronation 1911; Special Constabulary Long Service, G.V.R., coinage bust (Dep. Sub.-Sect. Ldr. John P. Champion), mounted as worn, the first with depressed obverse centre, otherwise generally very fine and better (6) £4000-5000

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, Exceptional Naval and Polar Awards from the Collection of RC Witte.

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D.S.O. London Gazette 15 September 1916:
‘He handled his division with great ability whilst in action and led his division to attack an enemy Battle Squadron with great gallantry.’

John Pelham Champion was born at Edale, Derbyshire in March 1883 and entered the Royal Navy as a Naval Cadet in Britannia in June 1897, and was appointed Midshipman in September of the following year. Advanced to Lieutenant in March 1904 and to Lieutenant-Commander in March 1912, he was serving in the cruiser H.M.S. Defence on the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914, in which month he participated in the pursuit of the Goeben and Breslau. Given his own command in April 1915, the destroyer Larne, he removed to the Maenad on her commissioning that October, and was promoted to Commander a week or two later. And it was in the same capacity, while also acting as leader of the 2nd Division, 12th Destroyer Flotilla at Jutland, that he won his D.S.O. - which decoration he received from the King in May 1917. The following eye-witness account of Maenad’s part in the battle commences at the moment she turned to deliver her first torpedo attack: ‘At about 2.15 a.m., we turned, and everyone was at a pretty high tension waiting to sight the Germans as they appeared out of the haze. At 2.20 we sighted them and attacked. As soon as the attack started, one lost all sense of excitement, because things were happening. The Germans opened a fairly heavy fire on all of us, and right at the beginning hit the Onslaught, which was quite close to us. We fired one torpedo at a German battleship of the Konig class about 4,000 yards off, but I do not know whether we hit. One torpedo from the Flotilla certainly found a mark. The whole attack lasted about five minutes, by which time we had passed this division of German ships and lost sight of them.

After the attack our Captain [Champion], having only had time to fire one torpedo, decided to attack again, so he turned and left the Flotilla, increased to full speed and off we went after the Germans. It did not take long to find them and at 2.28 - only eight minutes after the first attack - we sighted them again and fired two torpedoes. During this and the previous attack there had been nothing for the guns’ crews to do, and, as they were very keen, I opened fire with the after gun at a German battleship; rather a ridiculous thing to fire against their armour with 4-inch shells, but it gave us a lot of satisfaction, particularly as the gun-layer swore he saw some shell explode on their superstructure. I’m afraid, however, that this firing rather disconcerted the captain, as he thought it was our ship being hit aft instead of our firing. Just before we turned away and lost sight of the Germans we had the satisfaction of seeing one of our torpedoes take effect on one of the Germans, and a most splendid explosion resulted, sending a flame well up her masthead. At the time we, of course, thought she would sink, but unfortunately we found out later that they got back to harbour’ (The Fighting at Jutland refers).

Having then fought another 10-minute action with a brace of German destroyers, Champion set course for the Forth, but at 5 a.m. he came upon a lot of oil and wreckage: ‘We stopped by the wreck of one ship and searched for any survivors, and the Marksman found one, the Captain of the Ardent - I believe he was practically the only survivor of his ship. He had been in the water five hours, and was nearly done for. After a good search for any other survivors we went on, and shortly afterwards sighted some survivors on a Carley raft. These belonged to the Fortune. Just as we were getting near to pick them up we sighted a submarine’s periscope, and then a torpedo passed just under our stern, so we left the raft and steamed round and round at high speed for a short time, and then stopped to pick up the men. We got eleven on board us, and the other destroyer got a few more. Unfortunately one of our survivors died after being on board a short time ... ’

Coming ashore in March 1918, Champion appears to have been suffering from symptoms of a complete breakdown, and he did not return to sea until given command of the Wistaria in November 1920. Unfortunately, in an incident in August of the following year, he damaged the coaling wharf at Port Royal, Jamaica, but although reprimanded for the resultant stranding of his ship, he did receive Their Lordships appreciation for his efforts in saving the Wistaria. He was placed on the Retired List in December 1922. Having then been appointed a Captain (Retired) in the interim, Champion was recalled in September 1939 and served variously as N.C.S.O. Southend, Mersey and Thames, services that led to the award of a C.B.E. (London Gazette 8 June 1944) and a “Letter of Appreciation” in respect of “Operation Neptune” - he received the former at a Buckingham Palace investiture on 11 November 1944. Having, too, attained the rank of Temporary Commodore 2nd Class, he was released in January 1946 and died in February 1955.