Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Three: Private H. Naylor, Liverpool Regiment
1914-15 Star (27161 Pte H. Naylor. L’pool R.); British War and Victory Medals (27161 Pte. H. Naylor. L’pool R.) nearly very fine

Pair: Private G. Schofield, 10th (Scottish) Battalion, Liverpool Regiment
British War and Victory Medals (9111 G. Schofield. L’pool R.) good very fine

Pair: Captain C. R. Davies, East Lancashire Regiment, late Manchester Regiment
British War and Victory Medals (Capt. C. R. Davies.) nearly extremely fine

Pair: Lieutenant G. S. Martin, Manchester Regiment, killed in action at Cherisey, 23 April 1917
British War and Victory Medals (Lieut. G. S. Martin.) good very fine (9) £160-200

Hudson Naylor was born in Leeds, Yorkshire, in 1896, and attested for the King’s Liverpool Regiment on 22 March 1915. He served during the Great War with the 11th (Service) Battalion on the Western Front from 9 June 1915, and also with the 1st and 13th Battalions, King’s Liverpool Regiment. He was discharged ‘no longer physically fit for service’ on 18 April 1919 and awarded a Silver War Badge. He died in Leeds in 1957.


George Schofield attested for the Liverpool Regiment on 10 December 1915 and served during the Great War with the 10th (Scottish) Battalion on the Western Front. He was discharged owing to sickness on 2 September 1916, and was awarded a Silver War Badge


Claud Reginald Davies was born in Salford, Lancashire, on 23 November 1894, and was educated at Salford Secondary School, Manchester University and, post-war, Hertford College, Oxford. He was a member of the Manchester University Officer Training Corps, applied for a commission on 16 February 1915 and was appointed Second Lieutenant with the 10th Battalion Manchester Regiment on 15 March 1915. He was promoted Temporary Lieutenant on 7 October 1915 and Lieutenant on 1 June 1916. He served during the Great War on the Western Front with the 2nd/10th Battalion Manchester Regiment from 6 March 1917 ,and was wounded in the left thigh and left elbow at Passchendaele on 9 October 1917, whilst attached to the 8th Battalion Manchester Regiment. He was promoted Acting-Captain whilst commanding a Company and transferred to the 2nd Battalion East Lancashire Regiment on 9 May 1918. At 4:15 am on 13 August 1918, he and five other ranks went missing for several days in ‘no-mans’ land’ and he was then subjected to a Court of Inquiry.
‘Captain Davies had of his own volition taken out a party to capture a Hun in front of our line and had entered the German trenches (Winnipeg, Hudson and Brandon trenches). After considerable time collecting information and equipment, but without locating the enemy, the party became lost and Sergeant. E. Baldwin went out to find a way back to British lines through no-man’s land. Captain Davies followed about 50 yards behind leaving Corporal P. Watson in command of the party. German snipers started rapid fire from Hudson trench and Sergeant Baldwin and Captain Davies dived for cover in shell-holes, whilst Corporal Watson noticed a party of Germans open fire on the Section from 80-100 yards distance and throwing stick grenades. The men scattered and Corporal Watson saw later that three of the men had been taken prisoner. Captain Davies returned to the German trenches to locate his men but to no avail. He stayed out for another two days, patrolling but without success, and on the third night, having had nothing to eat or drink since starting out, he made his way back to the British lines. Brigadier General J. N. Pollok McCall, Commanding 25th Brigade, 8th Division, and the Court of Inquiry found Captain Davies at fault for for his foolhardiness in the attempt without having reported in advance what he was going to do and getting lost.’
Suffering from the effects of exposure and starvation, Captain Davies was invalided to England in September 1918 and admitted to Lady Cooper’s Hospital, Hursley Park. He was disembodied on 15 September 1919 in Germany (51st Battalion Manchester Regiment) and relinquished his commission on 2 February 1921.
Davies subsequently took Holy Orders and was Vicar of St. Martin’s, Seamer, Scarborough, Yorkshire, from 1936 until his death in 1946. He is buried in St. Martin’s Churchyard, and a memorial stained-glass window in St. Martin’s Church commemorates his life.


George Styles Martin was born in Dover, Kent, in 1891, the son of Mr. George Munson, an orchestral musician at the Royal Hippodrome, Dover. He was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment on 6 November 1915, having previously served in the East Kent Yeomanry, and served during the Great War on the Western Front with the 18th Battalion Manchester Regiment. He was killed in action at Arras on 23 April 1917 and, having no known grave, is commemorated on the Arras Memorial, France, along with 97 other men of the 18th Battalion who died that St. George’s Day. He is also commemorated on the Dover War Memorial.
The War Diary notes that the casualties for the action were 15 Officers and 346 other ranks killed, wounded, and missing.
‘At 9.30am C Company was ordered to reinforce the 16th Manchester’s and the remaining 3 companies moved to the old British front line. At 11.00am A and D Companies were called on to reinforce and came under command of the 16th Manchester’s and remained until 3.00pm. The other 3 battalion’s of the Brigade withdrew and the 18th took over the section of the line. At 4.40pm the 18th in conjunction with the 19th Battalion were ordered to attack the blue line and at 6.00pm the advance towards the distant objective began. The leading wave of men kept close to the artillery barrage as they advanced and had hardly left the line when the enemy machine guns opened up from the front and both flanks.
The advance faltered due to a number of Officer Casualties but, after reorganisation, continued. Led by Lt Watson and 2Lt Lawrence, the only officers remaining the Battalion reached the objective at 8.00pm. Almost immediately the two officers were wounded and the men, less than 100 strong were left to the direction of the NCO’s. Fierce fighting continued until around 9.00pm when the men, exhausted, out of bombs and ammunition were forced to withdraw. Between 9.30pm and midnight about 53 men, from all companies reached the old front line and the line was secured. Every Company Commander who took part in the attack became a casualty, although a few made it back to the lines’.
Second Lieutenant C. Lawrence reported, ‘I saw him as went over the top in the attack on Cherisey on 23rd April 1917. I never saw him again… So far as I know no prisoners were taken on that day, and in my opinion there cannot be any doubt that Mr. Martin was killed.’
Private J. Upton reported, ‘I saw Second Lieutenant Martin lying near the German wire at Neiuville Street, Vaast. He was badly wounded in the left side and did not reply when I spoke to him’.

Sold together with a photograph of the recipient.