The superb
Great War Salonica M.C. group of six awarded to Major E. G. M. Phillips, 10th
Battalion, Royal Highlanders (Black Watch), who become Comptroller to H.R.H.
the Duke of Windsor (King Edward VIII)
During the
Fall of France the responsibility for evacuating the Duke and his during the
fall of France; staying by his side throughout the war Phillips joined him in
the Bahamas, being censured for a communication with Fascist Italy and finding
himself involved with the murder of Sir Harry Oakes
Military Cross,
G.V.R., unnamed as issued; 1914-15 Star (2. Lieut. E. G. M. Phillips. R.
Highrs); British War and Victory Medals (Capt. E. G. M. Phillips); Defence and
War Medals 1939-45, mounted court-style, as worn, the set rates good very fine.
Medals come with copied photos and gazette/copied research details.
M.C. London
Gazette 1 January 1918.
Major Edwin
Gray Moneylaws Phillips
was born at Kirklington, Nottinghamshire on 11 October 1884, the son of John
Phillips of Earl's Hill House. Sent to Eton he excelled as a Classicist,
matriculating to Magdalen College, Oxford, where he studied between 1903-1907
before moving on to train at the Inns of Court.
The Great
War
With the
outbreak of the Great War, Phillips' career was to be put on hold and he was
commissioned 2nd Lieutenant with the Royal Highlanders (Black Watch) on 3
December 1914. Serving in France in 1915 Philips served with the 10th
Battalion, Royal Highlanders and embarked for France in September but did not
stay long, being transferred to the Salonika Front in November. Promoted
Lieutenant on 7 June 1916, Phillips notably commanded a trench raid carried out
by men of 'A' Company, 10th Battalion against the P5 feature on Pip Ridge near
Lake Doiran on 9 October 1916. He is likely to have seen this feature a good
deal more, not least when the Battalion was engaged at the disastrous Battle of
Doiran. Phillips again served with 'A' Company and performed well - however he
was lucky to survive the battle unharmed, with five officers killed and another
six wounded.
Appointed
Adjutant on 15 October 1917, Phillips was promoted Captain just ten days later,
likely as a result of his leadership in the battle as well as due to the high
losses amongst the officers. He was awarded his Military Cross not long later,
being presented with it by Lieutenant-General Sir George Milne on 20 March
1918. Meanwhile, high losses on the Western Front led to the Battalion being
transferred back to France in June 1918. Phillips was not to remain with them
for long however, being transferred to the 8th Battalion on 27 October 1918.
Inter-War & Comptroller to the Duke of Windsor
Taking
occasional work as Comptroller for the Duke of Sutherland, during this time
Phillips was to meet the Duke of Windsor. Commissioned again at the outbreak of
Second World War, he was posted to the Duke's staff as Comptroller; at this
time the Duke was part of the British Military Mission in Paris. Despite this
he was considered to be something of an outsider and extraneous to the war
effort.
As the German
advance gained momentum the Duke withdrew to the rather safer and more
comfortable Cote D'Azur, leaving Phillips and 'Fruity' Metcalfe in Paris; here
they minded his residence in the Boulevard Suchet - not that they had a
choice as he had taken all of the cars with him upon leaving - Metcalfe left
soon after, disgusted by his master's abandonment. With the fall of the Weygand
Line even Phillips left Paris, hitch-hiking south through war-torn France.
Exhausted and starving, he described the collapse of the French army to his
hosts upon arrival. The British could spare no ships to evacuate the Duke and
Duchess and so they remained in the south of France, occasionally visiting the
Italian front. This changed when the Italians declared war on 10 June: with
Petain taking control of France and requesting an Armistice the Germans were
only 200 miles from the Duke and his staff, including Phillips, with nothing to
stop them.
It was time to
leave, frantic arrangements were made between the British Consuls still in
France and it was decided that the Duke's party would join Major Dodds - the
Consul at Nice - in driving to the Spanish Border. Arriving at Perpigan only 10
miles from the border they prepared to bed down for the night, King Edward VIII
- The Official Biography takes up the story:
'There they
planned to spend the night, but they had hardly reserved rooms before the Mayor
in great excitement arrived to report that the entire French Government would
arrive at any moment, that the town would probably be bombed by the Germans,
that the Duke and his entourage must move on. After protracted haggling visas
were obtained for the entire party, and at 7pm they crossed into Spain. Wearily
they journeyed on; it was midnight before they found temporary refuge in a
hotel in Barcelona. The next stage of the Windsor's exile had begun.'
Safe in Spain
here began the wrangling for his new position, one eventually being found - the
Governorship of the Bahamas. This posting was far enough away that he would be
in no danger, either from the war or of being involved in Government decisions.
Meanwhile German intelligence agents were working to try and subvert the
Windsors before they could return to British territory. Phillips was sent to
London to gather the Duke's Colonial Office briefing and settle any questions
of etiquette that would arise.
While he was
there another contentious issue arose - that of Piper Alistair Fletcher, the
Duke's previous Valet, now required for war service. As it was felt that the
Duke would be handicapped by the loss of his Valet just before a new
appointment, he telegrammed Phillips to arrange a meeting with Winston Churchill
himself to discuss it. Despite the pressures of the war and the burgeoning
Battle of Britain, Churchill did in fact meet Phillips but he rejected the
suggestion that Fletcher be allowed to stay on as Valet.
Meanwhile yet
another issue had arisen, that of the route the Royal couple should take to the
Bahamas. The Duke wished to go via New York, largely to allow the Duchess to
see a doctor in the City. When the Government vetoed the idea partly because
they felt a visit 'of an icy character and will have a most unfortunate effect
at the present Juncture' - but also because 'it was feared that the Duke, ever
popular in the United States, might contact isolationists and appeasers'. The
Duke was furious - so much so he even wrote a letter resigning his post,
though it went unsent - and Churchill, seeing this anger, relented a little by
releasing Fletcher back to his role as valet. Phillips, Fletcher and Sir Walter
Monckton flew to Lisbon where the family was now based.
Exile in the
Bahamas
Meanwhile in
Lisbon, German attempts to suborn the Duke were stepped up, but despite this he
remained uncommitted. These culminated in a list of the passengers on the ship
Excalibur being leaked to Phillips with the names of Jews aboard marked as
though they formed a threat. Despite a last-minute request of the Duke that the
vessel be held for a week, the British Government were determined to have him
safely out of the way and she sailed as planned on 1 August 1940.
The Windsors did not enjoy the Bahamas, in the Duchess' own words '...we both hate it and the locals are petty-minded, the visitors common and uninteresting'. However they did make one friend - though they were later to have cause to regret doing so - that being the gold mine owner and investor Sir Harry Oakes. It was not long after he had moved into the Governor's residence that Phillips committed an unusual act which caused great consternation on the part of British Intelligence and the Duke himself. The intelligence services intercepted a letter sent from California by Mona Williams - a friend of the Duchess - to a close friend in Rome. While this was deemed innocent enough, attached to the letter was a postcard of Government House, Nassau signed 'Griglio' - Italian for grey - and addressed to Prince Rodolfo del Drago. This unusual communication aroused a whirlwind of activity, it was vital that they discover who this 'Griglio' was and how he was connected to the Italians - and more importantly the Duke.
Copies of the letter were studied all around the world, by the spymaster 'Intrepid' in New York and the Secretary of State and the Colonial Office in London. It was not until April 1942 that the Duke was approached for information on the matter, though it was made clear that no harm had been found it the letter itself. The Duke replied:
'I am writing
to inform you that I have established the identity of GRIGIO as being Major E.
Gray Phillips, a member of my personal staff in Nassau. Major Phillips has made
a full confession of his blatant infringement of the regulations...the
seriousness of which is aggravated by the fact...my name should become
connected with the incident...For my part, I am entirely satisfied with his
explanation of this incident and that his endeavour to communicate with an
Italian was in no way prompted by any sinister motive...Having known Major
Phillips for twenty years, the last three of which he has held an important
position of trust as my Comptroller, I can vouch for his integrity I hope, therefore, that under the
circumstances British Security Co-ordination will...overlook the serious breach
of security regulations which he has unfortunately committed.'
Phillips was
cleared and the affair was soon overshadowed by a far greater crime which
rocked Bahaman society. Sir Harry Oakes was murdered some time after midnight
on 8 July 1943 and his body mutilated to disguise the wounds. It was Phillips'
grim duty to inform the royal couple of the demise of their friend. Worse yet
as Governor it was the Duke's responsibility to respond to the crisis; his
bungled handling of the incident cast a pall over his time as Governor.
Retirement
The Windsors
returned to their home at La Cröe, France in April 1946 and in December
Phillips left their employment. He was to return to the Bar for some time
before retiring to Melton Court, Old Brompton Road, London where he died on 26
January 1973; sold together with copied research comprising, a Magdalen College
Honour Roll, passenger list and Army Lists as well as M.I.C., London Gazette
entries and medal rolls along with war diary extracts and a Brewery History
blog post.
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