Orders, Decorations and Medals

The K.C.B. group of twelve awarded to Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir Percival Thomas Nicholls, Royal Navy, Medical Director-General of the Navy, 1937-41

The Most Honourable Order of The Bath, K.C.B. (Military) Knight Commander’s set of insignia, neck badge, silver-gilt and enamel; breast star, silver, silver-gilt and enamel; The Most Honourable Order of The Bath, C.B. (Civil) Companion’s neck badge, silver-gilt, hallmark for London, date unclear; Order of St. John, Commander’s neck badge, silver and enamel; 1914-15 Star (St. Surg., R.N.); British War and Victory Medals (Surg. Comr., R.N.); Defence and War Medals; Jubilee 1935; Coronation 1937; Italy, Order of the Crown, 4th Class breast badge, gold and enamel, rosette on ribbon; Italy, Messina Earthquake Medal 1908, silver unnamed, very fine and better (13) £1800-2200

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, The Collection of Medals to the Medical Services formed by Colonel D.G.B. Riddick.

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Percival Thomas Nicholls was born in Tavistock, Devon on 8 May 1877. He received his medical training at the Middlesex Hospital, 1894-1900, gaining the M.R.C.S. England and L.R.C.P. London, after which he was employed at the hospital as House Physician. He then served as a House Physician at the Brighton & Hove Dispensary, August 1900-February 1901; was in private practice, February-May 1901 and was Medical Officer at the Hanwell Lunatic Asylum, May-August 1901.

He entered the Royal Navy as a Surgeon Lieutenant on 10 August 1901. He served aboard the armoured cruiser Aboukir, December 1907-March 1909. When news of the tragic earthquake at Messina became known, he was temporarily transferred to the Exmouth and served as part of the medical contingent ashore which staffed the Catona Field Hospital. For his humanitarian services in combating the ravages of disease in the aftermath of the earthquake, Nicholls was awarded Order of the Crown, 4th Class in addition to the Silver Commemorative Medal. He was promoted to Surgeon Lieutenant-Commander on 10 August 1909. The onset of war saw him aboard the armoured cruiser Hogue, on which he was present at the battle of Heligoland, 28 August 1914. Unfortunately he was still aboard the ship when she and her two sister ships were sunk in swift succession in the North Sea by the German submarine U-9 on 22 September 1914. Surviving the attack, Nicholls was interned in the Netherlands for 2 weeks before being released and returned to England.

He was promoted to Surgeon Commander on 10 August 1915 and was successively Senior Medical Officer on Leander, October 1915-January 1916; Greenwich, June 1916-October 1917; Agamemnon, October 1917-March 1919 and Valiant, June 1919-April 1920.

During May 1925-June 1926 he served as a Medical Specialist at the R.N. Hospital at Haslar, and on 30 June 1926 was promoted to Surgeon Captain. During 1927-29 he was the Principal Medical Officer for the R.N. Barracks, Portsmouth, after which he was employed as Senior Medical Officer, Medical Section, R.N. Hospital Haslar, 1929-32.

Promotion to Surgeon Rear-Admiral on 6 May 1932 was followed by appointment as Medical Officer-in-Charge of the Royal Naval Hospital, Malta, 1923-35. For his services there, he was awarded the C.B. (London Gazette 4 June 1934). Further honours followed; being appointed Honorary Physician to King George VI, 1935-52, appointed a Commander of the Order of St. John, 1937 and attaining the rank of Surgeon Vice Admiral on 2 July 1937. On achieving that rank he was appointed Medical Director-General of the Navy, a post he held until his retirement in 1941. Just prior to the war he was Knighted, receiving the K.C.B. (London Gazette 8 June 1939) and in 1940 he was appointed a F.R.C.S. England. Not content with retirement, for the remainder of the war he then served as Medical Officer-in-Charge of the R.N. Auxiliary Hospital, Kilmacolm, 1942-46. Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir Percival Nicholl died on 1 March 1959.

Sold with a folder of copied service and other details.