Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

An extremely rare Second War 1940 Battle of France ‘Posthumous’ D.S.O. group of four awarded to Hurricane ‘Ace’ Flight Lieutenant I. S. Soden, 56 Squadron, Royal Air Force, who over the course of 48 hours in France achieved at least 5 enemy aircraft destroyed and 1 shared destroyed, before being killed in action during an attack on his aerodrome, 18 May 1940 - ‘Flight Lieutenant Soden jumped out of a shelter trench and called to a crew to start up an aircraft. He got into the first fighter he came to without knowing whether it was fully fuelled or armed. He took off from the aerodrome which was covered with smoke and many delayed action bombs. He was last seen in pursuit of the enemy....’

Distinguished Service Order, G.VI.R., silver-gilt and enamel, the reverse of the suspension bar officially dated ‘1940’, with integral top riband bar, and in Garrard & Co. Ltd case of issue; 1939-45 Star; Air Crew Europe Star; War Medal 1939-45, M.I.D. Oak Leaf, with named Air Council enclosure, in card box of issue, addressed to ‘Mrs. D. M. Sodden, Green Down House, Bradford Road, Combe Down, Bath, Somerset’, and recipient’s Memorial Scroll named to ‘Flight Lieutenant I. S. Soden, D.S.O. Royal Air Force’, nearly extremely fine (4) £3,000-£4,000

D.S.O. London Gazette 28 June 1940, the recommendation (for a Posthumous award) states:

‘This Officer’s Flight was ordered to France at short notice and arrived [the] same evening.

His personal influence, on being chosen for active service affected all ranks and made his Flight a determined fighting unit. During the following two days he led his Flight in frequent combats. During this time he himself accounted for five enemy aircraft and possibly two more, whilst his Flight accounted for a further seven confirmed.

On one occasion he attacked, single handed, between 50 and 60 enemy fighters. He shot down one of them. On the evening of the 18th May the aerodrome was under heavy bombing attack. Flight Lieutenant Soden jumped out of a shelter trench and called to a crew to start up an aircraft. He got into the first fighter he came to without knowing whether it was fully fuelled or armed. He took off from the aerodrome which was covered with smoke and many delayed action bombs. He was last seen in pursuit of the enemy.

This officer, throughout the period of active service, displayed leadership in the highest degree; which inspired all under him to the greatest effort.

His last attack on the enemy showed the sternest valour and extreme devotion to duty. He left comparative safety to make a lone attack on a greatly superior number of enemy.

Remarks by Air Officer Commanding [Air Vice-Marshal K. R. Park]:

This very gallant Officer through his personal influence made his Flight into a very determined fighting unit.

He had great personal dash and cool courage. He accounted for six enemy aircraft and others unconfirmed. He attacked single-handed between 50 and 60 enemy aircraft and accounted for one.

On 18th May 1940, while the aerodrome was under heavy bombing attack, he jumped out of his shelter trench and took off to attack. He left safety for a gallant lone attack. He is reported missing.

I very strongly recommend the award of the Distinguished Service Order.’

Park, then commanding No. 11 Group, made a very strong recommendation for the above ‘immediate’ award notwithstanding the fact that Soden had already been killed. This was then supported by Dowding, before the Air Ministry stepped in to relay that his recommendation for the D.S.O. was inadmissible unless Soden had been proven to be alive at the time of the recommendation. After lengthy correspondence (copies of which are included in the lot) the award was approved by the Secretary of State for Air, and subsequently signed off by the King, but only on the proviso that no further awards be made on this basis.

M.I.D. London Gazette 1 January 1941.

Ian Scovil Soden was born in Winchcombe, Gloucestershire, in 1917. He was the second son of Dr Wilfred Scovil Soden and Dorothy Maud Soden of Irwell, Abbey Terrace, Winchcombe. Soden was a Flight Cadet at R.A.F. Cranwell, before being commissioned Pilot Officer in the Royal Air Force in December 1936. He advanced to Flying Officer in June 1938, and to Acting Flight Lieutenant March 1939. At the outbreak of the Second War, Soden was a Flight Commander with 56 Squadron (Hurricanes). The Squadron was based in southern England, but Soden’s B Flight was detached to Vitry to take part in the Battle of France, 16 May 1940. Soden’s flight initially shared Vitry with 6 Hurricane’s of 229 Squadron, and they were to operate together. Over the course of the next 48 hours, Soden was relentless, as illustrated by B Flight’s official Summary of Operations:

‘F/Lt. Soden, accompanied by F/O Rose, P/O Down, F/Sgt. Higginson and Sgt. Whitehead [Pilot Officer F. ‘Barry’ Sutton followed slightly later due to engine problems], left North Weald on 16th May, 1940, and, after landing at Manston, arrived at Vitry aerodrome, near Douai, that same evening.

Friday Morning 17th:

Took off on an offensive patrol over Brussels. There was intense A.A. fire. We chased a Henschel over enemy territory at 200 feet and returned because of intense pom-pom fire.

Later that morning F/Lt. Soden shot down a Ju.88 which had just bombed Vitry and Douai and set an oil refinery on fire while at the same time F/Sgt. Higginson shot down a Dornier 215 or 17.

Friday Afternoon 17th:

While on an offensive patrol the flight met about 7 Henikel IIIs. F/Lt. Soden, F/O Rose, Sgt. Whitehead and Flt/Sgt Higginson each accounted for one while F/O Rose and Sgt. Whitehead got another between them. P/O Down made a successful attack on a sixth and there is no doubt that it crashed.

Saturday Morning 18th:

F/Lt. Soden and F/Sgt. Higginson went for a Dornier 215 and F/Lt. Soden shot it down.

F/Lt. Soden, F/Sgt. Higginson and Sgt. Whitehead encountered 50 to 60 Me.109’s near Brussels and F/Lt. Soden shot one down.

It is also understood that F/Lt. Soden, F/O Rose and P/O Sutton, between them shot down a Dornier 17 but no details are available.

Saturday Afternoon 18th:

While rising to escort bombers from England F/O Rose, P/O Down, P/O Sutton and Sgt. Whitehead with others were attacked by about 12 Me. 109’s. F/O Rose was shot down and killed and P/O Sutton slightly wounded. Enemy casualties not known.

F/Lt. Soden and Sgt. Whitehead took off to attack 3 Heinkels III and F/Lt. Soden shot one down.

F/O Ereminsky (who had joined the flight), F/Sgt. Higginson and Sgt. Whitehead were rising on a patrol when they sighted and attacked about 10 Me.110’s sent to draw our fighters off. F/O Ereminsky and F/Sgt. Higginson each shot one down, while Sgt. Whitehead shot two down.

Saturday Evening 18th:

The aerodrome was bombed by 9 Dornier Flying Pencils and about 8 to 10 planes were destroyed. F/Lt. Soden borrowed a machine and took off and has not been seen or heard of since. That evening Vitry aerodrome was evacuated, everybody going to Norrent Fontes aerodrome.

Sunday Morning 19th:

Our remaining pilots accompanied a party by road to blow up everything valuable remaining at Vitry. F/O Ereminsky, P/O Down and F/Sgt. Higginson flew home to England.’

Pilot Officer ‘Barry’ Sutton described Soden’s first Victory thus:

“A Dornier appeared over the airfield, flying high and out of the sun. This was the first enemy aircraft I had seen either from the ground or from the air, and I was so engrossed in looking at it that I had to be thrown into a small trench. A second later there came the scream of a falling bomb. Ian [Soden], Higginson and someone from 229 Squadron roared off. The Dornier had now overshot the airfield and turned as if to make a second run. He also lost height and was at about 800 feet. Spellbound we watched him turn away suddenly as he apparently saw Ian [flying N2437] climbing hard after him. Then followed the most thrilling spectacle I have ever seen. Ian, by now well on his tail, started firing. We heard the noise of his Brownings above that of the engines of both machines. The Dornier dived and began hedge-hopping in an effort to get away, but Ian followed him, firing all the time. We watched them disappear behind some trees.”

‘The Dornier crashed into a field near the airfield and Soden landed beside the wreckage to collect a souvenir (an ammunition pan); he reported that there were no survivors. This was almost certainly Lt. Otto Grüter’s aircraft of 6/KG76.’

The above is from one of several mentions of Soden in Twelve Days in May by B. Cullard, B. Lander and H. Weiss. The latter publication records the following for his death, 18 May 1940:

‘Flt. Lt. Ian Soden (N2437) of 56/B Flight had also taken off to intercept the Bf.110C’s of II/ZG76, but was shot down almost immediately and crashed just outside the aerodrome perimeter; in the few days he had led his Flight into action, he had proved himself to be a gallant, inspiring and successful leader; his body was recovered later and buried at nearby Biache-St Vasst.’

Flight Lieutenant Soden was buried at Biache-St-Vaast, near Arras, France.

Sold with recipient’s Bestowal Document for the D.S.O., dated 28 June 1940; and copied research, including a photographic image of recipient in uniform.

For other medals to the Soden family, see Lots 470 and 503.