Medals awarded
- Military Medal
- 1914-1915 Star
- British War Medal 1914-1920
- Victory Medal 1914-1919
- Queen Elisabeth Medal 1915 (Belgium)
- Croix Civique 1914-18 (Belgium)
Medals are shown left to right, as per the bullet point list above.
Mary Devas Marshall originally enlisted in the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (FANY) in 1912. Initially refused permission by the British Authorities to go to Belgium she appealed successfully to the Belgian Government.
Her medals, are displayed in the museum alongside those of her husband, William Wilkinson. Few FANYs, let alone women, were decorated with the Military Medal, an award earned while she was based at the hospital at Marquise in the grounds of the 1st Aeroplane Supply Depot. This location saw the most devastating German aerial attack of the war on an aviation facility.
The citation for her Mary’s Military Medal states “For gallantry and coolness during a bombing raid by hostile aircraft….she displayed the utmost disregard of danger, attending many serious wound cases which required skilful and immediate assistance.”
You can read more about Mary here.
You can read more about Mary’s husband, William here.