Exceptional Naval and Polar Awards from the Collection of RC Witte

The M.V.O. group of six awarded to Chief Gunner D. R. Gordon, Royal Navy, who, having served in the Boxer Rebellion and the battleship Agincourt at Jutland, was awarded his M.V.O. for services in the royal yacht in the early 1920s

The Royal Victorian Order, M.V.O., Member’s 5th Class breast badge, silver, gilt and enamel centre, the reverse officially numbered ‘578’; China 1900, no clasp (D. R. Gordon, P.O. 1 Cl., H.M.S. Goliath); 1914-15 Star (Gnr. D. R. Gordon, R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (Ch. Gnr. D. R. Gordon, R.N.); Coronation 1911, mounted as worn, contact marks, generally very fine or better (6) £800-1000

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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M.V.O. London Gazette 5 August 1922.

David Russell Gordon was born in Darlington, Durham in November 1873 and entered the Royal Navy as a Boy 2nd Class in November 1891. Gaining advancement to Petty Officer 1st Class during his time in the Goliath on the China Sation, he was appointed a Gunner, R.N. in June 1902, and served in the same rank in the battleship Agincourt for the duration of the Great War.

The longest battleship in the world, with the largest number of guns afloat, including the heaviest secondary armament, namely 20 6-inch and 10 3-inch guns to add to her seven twin-12-inch turrets, it was no surprise that certain critics argued that the Agincourt would never withstand the force of firing a full broadside. But at Jutland, they were proved wrong, although her gunnery undoubtedly caused consternation among certain members of the ship’s company, one gunnery officer, inside a turret, believing the ship had taken a serious hit, when he heard a ‘violent explosion’ - he need not have worried, it was merely her starboard 6-inch gun battery (10 guns) going into action. And the accuracy of her fire was responsible for causing the enemy equal consternation, her mighty salvoes straddling their battleships and cruisers on several occasions, a case in point being the twice hit Kaiser. Indeed by close of play the Agincourt had fired 144 shells from her 12-inch turrets and and another 111 from her 6-inch guns.

Fawcett and Hooper describe several lucky escapes she had from enemy torpedoes on that memorable day in The Fighting at Jutland:

‘As far as Agincourt was concerned, our excitement started at 7.08 p.m., when with a sharp turn of the ship a torpedo passed just under our stern, and later on another broke surface about 150 yards short on our starboard beam. At 7.35 p.m. the tracks of two more torpedoes were reported approaching on the starboard side, but by good co-operation between the fore-top and the conning tower they were both avoided. Aloft the tracks were clearly visible, and acting on the reports from there the ship was gradually turned away, so that by perfect timing one torpedo passed up the port side and one the starboard side; after which we resumed our place in the line. A fifth torpedo was successfully dodged by zigzagging at 7.47 p.m.’

Having been advanced to Chief Gunner in July 1917, and ended the War in Agincourt, Gordon joined the royal Victoria & Albert in January 1919 and was awarded the M.V.O. for like services in 1922.