Exceptional Naval and Polar Awards from the Collection of RC Witte

The Great War D.S.C. group of five awarded to Lieutenant J. C. K. “Shiner” Wright, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, who was decorated for his magnificent courage as “Jimmy the One” in Percy Dean’s M.L. 282 in the Zeebrugge raid in April 1918: her decks crowded with the dead and dying, she took appalling punishment from point-blank fire, Wright’s own stomach wound being rated as fatal - as a result, at Sir Roger Keyes’ behest, the King was contacted for his approval of an immediate D.S.C., a request gladly approved within 48 hours of the raid

Distinguished Service Cross, G.V.R., hallmarks for London 1917, in its Garrard & Co. case of issue; 1914-15 Star (L. 9 882 J. C. K. Wright, C.P.O., R.N.V.R.); British War and Victory Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf (Lieut. J. C. K. Wright, R.N.V.R.); Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve L.S. & G.C., G.V.R., 1st issue (882 J. C. Wright, Ch. P.O., London Divn., R.N.V.R.), good very fine and better (5) £6000-8000

D.S.C. London Gazette 23 July 1918:

‘Lieutenant James Courtenay Keith Wright, R.N.V.R., second in command of H.M. Motor Launch 282, showed great courage in embarking the crews of the Intrepid and Iphigenia. It was largely due to the magnificent manner in which he and others carried out their duties that so many officers and men were rescued from the blockships in the canal at Zeebrugge. He was dangerously wounded during the operations.’

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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James Courtenay Keith “Shiner” Wright was born in December 1881 and entered the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve’s London Division in June 1904. Thereafter, until the outbreak of hostilities, he served on active duty for a month each year, gaining advancement to Chief Petty Officer in January 1911. According to a fellow member of the “Wavy Navy”, ‘his great love was training a field gun crew for competing with the teams of the Royal Navy - this he did most successfully in so much as our team ran in the final at Olympia against H.M.S. Excellent.’

Commissioned as a Temporary Sub. Lieutenant in July 1916, Wright served in M.Ls 268 and 416 prior to becoming Percy Dean’s “Jimmy the One” in 282 for the famous Zeebrugge raid on St. George’s Day, 1918. Of her part in that memorable action, Sir Roger Keyes wrote:

‘The rescue work of M.L. 256 [Littleton] and M.L. 282 [Dean and Wright] was simply magnificent, and but for them, very few of the blockships’ crews would have escaped ... Owing to the breakdown of M.L. 128, and the sinking of M.L. 110, Dean was left with the task of bringing out all the rest of the blockships’ crews, about double the number he anticipated. His skill and heroic determination was simply incredible. Under a deadly machine-gun and heavy fire, he embarked over 100 officers and men in his frail craft. Hearing that an officer had been left behind in the water, he returned into the canal and picked him up. Having no room to turn, he went out full speed astern, towing a cutter from his stem, handling his with his engines, his steering gear having been damaged. When about to pass the Mole end battery, he ran in under the Mole and rounded the extension so close, that the guns could not be depressed to fire on him, and he kept them in line while he went to seaward.

Throughout the escape, the M.L. was under constant machine-gun fire; Dean’s Second-in-Command [Wright] and three of his four deckhands were shot down beside him, and a great many of his passengers were killed or wounded.

Among the dangerously wounded on board were Sub. Lieutenants Lloyd (of the Iphigenia) and Keith Wright, R.N.V.R. (Deans’ Second-in-Command). They were both shot through the middle and the doctor declared that they could not survive. Lloyd had the Iphegenia’s White Ensign wrapped around his waist, and it was saturated in blood. I think he knew that his number was up, but was perfectly happy and fearfully proud of having been able to bring away the ensign, which I told him he should keep.

Keith Wright was suffering severely; I told him how splendidly his M.L. had done, and how distressed I was that he should have been so badly wounded. He said that he would not have missed it for anything, and that was the spirit of all the gallant throng.’

Conscious of the fact that Wright and Lloyd were on the brink of death, and having received a brief post-raid report from Captain A. Carpenter, Keyes moved swiftly to ensure the two officers received proper recognition:

‘I went to my office to telephone Admiral Wemyss, who I knew would be anxiously waiting for my report, and I told him all I knew at the time. He said he would go at once to Buckingham Palace to tell the King. So I told him about Lloyd and Keith Wright, who were not expected to live many hours, and said that as the only posthumous honour was the V.C., I was most anxious that they should be given decorations before they died, and begged him to ask the King to grant Keith Wright a D.S.C. and Lloyd a Bar to the one he had already won.

Soon after breakfast Admiral Wemyss telephoned that His Majesty had said that he was delighted to give the honours I had suggested to the two gallant young officers, and he only hoped that they would live to receive them.

My wife and I went straight on board the Liberty and told them. They were both conscious and fearfully pleased, but Lloyd died that day. Keith Wright, however, started to improve from that moment, and I am glad to say completely recovered.’

Wright’s skipper, Percy Dean, was awarded the V.C.:

‘For most conspicuous gallantry. Lieutenant Dean handled his boat in a most magnificent and heroic manner when embarking the officers and men from the blockships at Zeebrugge. He followed the blockships in and closed Intrepid and Iphigenia under a constant and deadly fire from machine-guns at point blank range, embarking over one hundred officers and men. This completed, he was proceeding out of the canal, when he heard that an officer was in the water. He returned, rescued him, and then proceeded, handling his boat throughout as calmly as if engaged in a practice manoeuvre. Three men were shot down at his side whilst he conned his ship. On clearing the entrance to the canal the steering gear broke down. He manoeuvred his boat by the engines, and avoided complete destruction by steering so close in under the Mole that the guns in the batteries could not depress sufficiently to fire on to the boat. The whole of this operation was carried out under a constant machine-gun fire at a few yards range. It was solely due to this officer’s courage and daring that M.L. 282 succeeded in saving so many valuable lives.’

At the time of his D.S.C. being gazetted, Wright was still lying dangerously ill in the hospital ship Liberty, but he made a full recovery, and returned to sea with command of the yacht Marie in December 1918. His final command was M.L. 53, prior to him being demobilised in December 1919 and, according to his service record, he won a “mention” in the same year (London Gazette 19 February 1919 refers).