Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria to coincide with the OMRS Convention

Three: Officer’s Cook 2nd Class J. H. Radmore, Royal Navy, a Coronel 1914 casualty

1914-15 Star (L. 2613 O.C. 2, R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (L. 2613 O.C. 2, R.N.), together with memorial scroll and plaque (John Henry Radmore), and two Royal Naval Temperance Society Medals, silvered-metal and enamel good very fine and better (6) £180-220

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Medals to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines formed by Commander Ron Champion, RN.

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John Henry Radmore was killed in action aboard H.M.S. Monmouth at the Battle of the Coronel on 1 November 1914. In this famous clash between a British squadron under Rear-Admiral Sir Christopher Cradock and a superior German force under Admiral Graf von Spee, off Coronel, Chile, the former paid dearly:

‘The rival forces made contact at about 6 p.m. on 1 November 1914, and after an hours manoeuvring, the superior speed of the Germans placed them in a position to fire at the British ships on the horizon line, silhouetted against the setting sun.The first shot was fired at 7.04 p.m. and in a short time the two British armoured cruisers were on fire [Monmouth and Good Hope]. At 7.45 p.m. the flagship Good Hope blew up and sank with the Admiral and all on board, leaving the fight to be maintained by Monmouth. The two light ships [Glasgow and Otranto] had been ordered to seek safety in flight, and Glasgow saw Monmouth for the last time at about 8.15 p.m. It was then dark and the big cruiser, with a heavy list, was steaming stern on to the seas, which were very rough. Glasgow signalled as she passed, “The enemy is following us” but received no reply. She again signalled, telling her to shape a course to the N.W. clear of the enemy. She then made her best efforts to escape. The darkness was now dispelled by the moon, and this enabled the German cruisers to establish the whereabouts of the British ship. At 9.25 p.m. those on board Glasgow counted 75 gun flashes, and then no more. Monmouth, with Captain Brandt and all her company had foundered. The official complement of Monmouth was 678 men’ (Hocking’s Dictionary of Disasters at Sea refers).