Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Three: Ordinary Signalman A. J. Kyrke-Smith, Royal Navy, who was killed in action when H.M.S. Barham was torpedoed by the German submarine U-331 and sank in the Mediterranean, 25 November 1941

1939-45 Star; Africa Star; War Medal 1939-45, all privately engraved ‘C/JX 226657 Ord. Sigmn. A. J. Kyrke-Smith R.N.’, with named Admiralty enclosure, in card box of issue, addressed to ‘Mr. H. S. Kyrke-Smith, 202A High Road, Ilford, Essex’, extremely fine (3) £120-160

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Medals to Second World War Casualties.

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Arthur James Kyrke-Smith served during the Second World War as an Ordinary Signalman in the Dreadnought-class Battleship H.M.S. Barham, that had seen action during the Great War at the Battle of Jutland. On 25 November 1941, as part of the Mediterranean Fleet, H.M.S. Barham was one of three battleships and eight destroyers tasked with covering an attack on Italian convoys when she was hit, at 4:25 p.m., by three torpedoes fired by the German submarine U-331, under the command of Lieutenant Hans Diedrich von Tiesenhausen. The torpedoes were fired from a range of only 750 yards, providing no time for evasive action, and struck closely together. As Barham rolled over to port, her magazines exploded and she quickly sank with the loss of more than two-thirds of her crew. Out of a total compliment of 1,184 Officers and ratings, 841 were killed.

U-331 was forced to dive to evade the escorting ships before Barham exploded, and heard only the detonation of the torpedoes. Her captain, Lieutenant von Tiesenhausen, could not be sure whether he had sunk Barham, or merely damaged her, and left the scene before he resurfaced. In an effort to conceal the sinking from the enemy, and to protect British morale, the Admiralty censored all news of Barham’s destruction, and it was not until 27 January 1942 that the Admiralty officially announced her loss. Lieutenant von Tiesenhausen was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross that day.

Kyrke-Smith was amongst those killed, aged 21. He is commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial. His medals were sent to his father Henry Kyrke-Smith.