Awarded to Lieutenant Commander Hewitt St John Clay (1892-1960). Obverse: head of King George VI. Legend: 'GEORGIVS VI D : G : BR : OMN : REX : F : D : INDIAE : IMP'. Reverse: A lion standing (left) on a prostrate dragon, its right paw resting on the latter's head. Inscription above: '1939 1945'. Fitted with a bar and blue ribbon with wide red borders and a narrow central red stripe with white borders. In original cordboard box (numbered ZBA8033) and packing as issued.

Hewitt St John Clay was the son of John Clay, chief writer RN and Lucy Henrietta Clay (Coldrey), a dress maker. He left school in 1907 to join an architect’s office in Reading but ultimately chose a different career, being apprenticed into merchant service on 28 May 1909. He was issued a 2nd Mates Certificate on 13 June 1913. In 1918 he was employed as 2nd Mate of ‘Australia’, Cunard Line. He also served with the British India Steam Navigation Company from 1913 to 1920. After the war he joined the Rangoon Pilot Service. He left Burma leaving following the Japanese invasion and joined the Royal Indian Naval Reserve as acting Lieutenant Commander. He was invalided out in March 1945. Clay became a Freeman of the City of London and died in Torquay.

He married Dorothy Irene Whitehead at Haringey on 2 January 1926.