Service Record: Arthur Himan Albert West

[kissingkippers]

Hello, i wonder if anybody can help ?I am currently a serving member of the submarine service, and would like to find out any information regarding my great grandfather Arthur Himan Albert West,D.S.M., Service Number 229719. He was born on 10.5.1888. and commenced service in the Royal Navy on 10.5.1906, although he volunteered for service on 19.2.04. The group photo shows him top left as part of the crew of H.M.C8.Does anybody know anything of him, or of records relating to him, particularly his service, which subs he was on, and how he came to be awarded a D.S.M in 1917. Look forward to hearing from you

[Stan.J]

Hi! K>Kippers,
Welcome to a serving man.
If you go to http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk you should be able to follow the instructions and obtain your relatives information..It will probably cost you about £3.50 for the info. but it will be worth it.

[Stan.J]

Here is a pic of the Sub in question

[herakles]

Indeed welcome to a serving man Kissingkippers!

What an extraordinary name to use!

I hope you find info. on your rellie.

Why not come back and tell us what you find out?

[Batstiger]

A smart looking fellow Kippers. I see he was a Petty Officer in Square rig as the Navy didn't put them into fore and aft rig till 1859.
I've put your pics to B/W.

Bob.

[kissingkippers]

Hello, many thanks for your information, i will visit the archive. I did not know about the square rig and wondered why he wore a Petty Officers Badge.
I think kissingkippers may be an australian phrase for the submarine badge...

[herakles]

"I think kissingkippers may be an australian phrase for the submarine badge..."

There seems to be something in this.

I did a Google and found one suggestion of this. But nothing concrete.

I've not heard the term before.

[Batstiger]

Elementary my dear Watson.

[Stan.J]

Petty Officers usually remained in Square rig for about a year before being confirmed in the rate. Then they changed to Fore and aft. Well done Robert with the Submariners badge..

[kissingkippers]

Success, many thanks to you all. by the way i do wear a pair of those dolphins hence the name!I have attached the service history sheet but can only make out certain bits as the writing is quite old fashioned as you would expect!!From what i can decipher i think the DSM was awarded whilst serving on the Lucia, but for what reason i have yet to find out. i will look into what the Lucia got up to in 1916/17.

[kissingkippers]

unable to attch the file is too big!!

[Stan.J]

Hi!, The Lucia was an ex Liner launched in 1907. During the War she was Renamed the Lucia and was a Submarine depot ship

[kissingkippers]

thanks,that would make sense, maybe they held the records for the sub crews which is why the service document says Lucia as the ship on which the DSM was awarded. I will have to pop over to the museum to root around for the submarines he may have been on.Its odd that he hopped back and forth between subs and ships, the list of ships is as follows:-
Impregnable 1904
Lion
Edgar
Ramillies
Encounter(1908)
Dido
Pembroke
Thames(rated LS 1909)
bonaventure (rated PO 1913
Dolphin(1916)
Lucia...awarded DSM 12/5/17
Pembroke
Columbine
caledonia
This will give me a bit of work to do.!!!

[herakles]

Bob, you should be bottled so useful are your skills!

Kissing dolphins? So obvious.

[Batstiger]

A bevy of "C" boats.

[kissingkippers]

thanks again.visited museum today and discovered hewent on to become a submarine Coxswain, or chief of the boat.The bottom of the certificate says he was awarded DSM 12.5.17 and is recorded as such in the London Gazette. you can find reference to this online under london gazette 04274/17 however there is no reference to why in there.however at that time he was serving onboard the submarine g13(pennant number 5c), i have a service record for that sub. He was the Coxn and the sub was commanded my leuitenant GF bradshaw, who subsequently left the navy and went on to become a famous artist, infact many of his paintings adorn the submarine museum.

G13 sank a German U boat (with two torpedoes) UC43(Kapt Lt Erwin SEBELIN) 10 MAR 1917 off muckle flugga,north of the shetlands.No survivors.
awards for this were given to
LtCdr GF Bradshaw DSO
LT JAP Blackburn DSC
Petty Officer Arthur HA West DSM (coxn)
ERA Archibald Dunbar DSM
Petty officer arthur Callard mentioned in dispatches.
Ab Alfred thomas barker Collingridge rated ldg seaman.

Bradshaw was in command of G13 as it was completing at HMS Lucia(10th Submarine Flotilla)Grand Fleet.g13 was completed sept 1916
commanding Officers of C8 listed as follows
Lt Max k Horton 1907(several buildings named after him today in RN!)
Lt Bernard Jones 1909
Lt Charles Kerr 1912(would have been on here during this time)

July 1912 c8 allocated to 6th sub flotilla at Harwich.
28 june 1912 in collision with c10 of harwich.

Interesting stuff!!

[herakles]

Great! So much information. And interesting as you say.

The main problem always seems to be finding data, not that the data doesn't exist.

The crucial thing is to ask the right question or go to the right place.

I know that the records held underground at Whitehall need several miles to be stored.