Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

A Lloyd’s Meritorious Service Medal group of three awarded to Engineer Lieutenant-Commander George W. Bain, Royal Naval Reserve and Mercantile Marine

Transport 1899-1902, 1 clasp, S. Africa 1899-1902 (G. Bain); 1914-15 Star (Ch. Eng. G. W. Bain, R.N.R.); Lloyd’s Medal for Meritorious Service, 1st issue, bronze star, unnamed as issued, with incorrect ribbon, in fitted case of issue, extremely fine (3) £650-750

George Weir Bain was born in Lanark, Scotland in 1863. He served as 3rd Engineer aboard the Cunard steamship Pavonia, 5,588 tons. Employed on the Liverpool-Boston service, she suffered damage due to a severe gale on 3 February 1899 which caused her boilers to be dislodged from their mountings. With a complete loss of power the ship drifted helplessly for 11 days until she was taken in tow by the Wolfiston who brought her to the sheltered waters of the Azores. There she was patched up and eventually made it back to Liverpool where she was repaired. Having been laid down in 1881, the Pavonia was deemed suitable for disposal by Cunard but this was delayed by the Boer War and her final two voyages before going to the scrap yard in 1900 were made carrying troops to and from South Africa.

For their actions in saving both life and ship during the incident of February 1899, the Captain and some of the officers of the ship were awarded medals by the Mercantile Marine Service Association and the Corporation of Lloyd’s. Captain Aitken of the Pavonia received the M.M.S.A. Illuminated Address and the Lloyd’s Medal for Saving Life in silver with certificate; Chief Officer Taylor received the M.M.S.A. Silver Medal and the Lloyd’s Medal for Meritorious Service in Bronze with certificate; Chief Engineer Duncan received the M.M.S.A. Silver Medal and the Lloyd’s Medal for Saving Life in silver with certificate, and 1st Officer Firth, 2nd Officer Bryce, 2nd Engineer Officer Charters and 3rd Engineer Officer Bain were each awarded the Lloyd’s Medal for Meritorious Service in Bronze.

At the outbreak of the Great War, Bain was serving as Chief Engineer in the Cunard liner Laconia. On 1 November 1914 she was taken up for service with the Royal Navy as an armed merchant cruiser. Staying with the ship, Bain was commissioned a Temporary Engineer Lieutenant in the R.N.R. on 12 November 1914. Once her conversion was completed the Laconia was sent out off the coast of German East Africa where she was used as the H.Q. ship for the operations against the German light cruiser Königsberg that had become bottled up in the Rufiji River. Bain survived the war and attained the rank of Engineer Lieutenant-Commander; the Laconia, decommissioned as a cruiser and returned to service as a troopship, was torpedoed by the U-150 on 25 February 1917 when 160 miles off Fasnet.

1914-15 Star in damaged card box of issue, with registered envelope addressed to ‘Eng. Lt. Co. G. W. Bain, R.N.R., 16 Willowdale Rd., Walton, Liverpool’. With copied research which includes details of the saving of the Pavonia and the presentation of medals to its officers

For the group of medals to ‘2nd Engineer Officer Charters’ for the same action, see lot 413.