Five: Captain A. A. Hooker, Rifle Brigade

1914-15 Star (2. Lieut., Rif. Brig.); British War and Victory Medals (2. Lieut.); Defence and War Medals 1939-1945, generally nearly extremely fine (5) £130-160

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Fine Collection of of Great War Medals to the Rifle Brigade.

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Albert Ayerst Hooker was born in 1896 and educated at Marlborough where he was in the Football XV in 1914 (alongside Sydney Woodroffe, VC, of the same battalion) and was awarded The Curzon Wyllie Medal: the Marlburian noted: “This medal was awarded to 2nd Lt. A.A. Hooker, now serving with the 8th Batt. Rifle Brigade, and reported wounded, who in normal circumstances would still have been in the school.” He left Marlborough in October 1914 to take a commission in the 8th (S) Battalion, Rifle Brigade, and went to France with the battalion in May 1915. He was wounded on 8 June 1915 and was the first member of a service battalion of the regiment to be a casualty in its own trenches in the war. He then served with the 19th (Training Reserve) Battalion in which he commanded a company and was adjutant from 1 December 1917. He was re-employed in 1939 as Captain, King’s Royal Rifle Corps, and on VE Day he was Admin. Officer of the 39th County of London Home Guard. From 1923 he was a director of the Baltic Mercantile and Shipping Exchange.