Queen's South Africa Medal 1899-1902

Awarded to Thomas Bilby, Chief Stoker RN. Obverse Bust of Queen Victoria, crowned and veiled, with order (left) Legend: 'VICTORIA REGINA ET IMPERATRIX'. Reverse: Britannia standing wearing a helmet (rght), a flag in her left hand, holding out a wreath in her right hand towards troops on the march, ships in distance. Legend: 'SOUTH AFRICA'. Inscription on edge: 'T. BILBY.CH.STO. H.M.S.BARRACOUTA'. Fitted with a bar and orange ribbon edged with red, with two narrow blue stripes.

Thomas Bilby (1864-1929) was born in Bristol. His father William, was a stoker working at a local colliery. His mother died in 1868 and on 18 November 1884, he joined the Royal Navy as a stoker 2nd class in guardship HMS ‘Asia’. Thomas joined coal hulk HMS ‘Mercury in April 1885 and was rated as a stoker in July the same year. From September 1885 to 30 November 1887, he joined the newly refitted ‘Monarch’ in the Channel Squadron. During 1888 he joined ‘Comus’ on the North American Station, transferring to ‘Forward’ on the same station until 1891. He then returned to the United Kingdom, was rated leading stoker and joined the battleship ‘Sans Pareil’, flagship of George Tryon, Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean. He served as Chief Stoker from 16 April 1898 to 23 October 1900 in ‘Barracouta’, based at this time at Sierra Leone under Commander Richard H Peirse. She was present at Simon’s Town during the Second Boer War. Thomas was now rated chief stoker. He later joined the newly commissioned HMS ‘Sutlej’ in time for Edward VII’s Coronation Fleet Review. ‘Sutlej’, with the rest of the Channel Squadron, then joined the Mediterranean fleet for manoeuvres in the Aegean Sea. Bilby’s last service afloat was in HMS ‘Sappho’. He retired on 8 December 1904 and joined the Royal Fleet Reserve. He was called up again during World War 1, based at ‘Pembroke’, the naval barracks at Chatham and ‘Satellite,’ the drill ship of the Royal Naval Reserve.
Thomas Bilby married Sarah Ellen Wicks at Hampstead on 17th December 1894. The couple settled at there and had five children. In 1921 Thomas Bilby was working as an assistant engineer for the Board of Guardians at Hampstead, where he died in 1829.