Description
Object description
Documents and photographs mostly pertaining to Viney's First World War service and his death in action as a pilot in the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), comprising: several letters written by Viney to his family during 1912 – 1915, partly regarding his enlistment into Prince Alfred's Guard in South Africa at the outbreak of war and his later flying training in the UK; larger quantity of letters written mainly to his mother in 1916 following Viney's death in May of that year whilst serving with 5 Wing RNAS when his aircraft was shot down during a sortie over the coast of Belgium, containing condolences and tributes to her son, information about the circumstances of his death and the burial of his body with full military honours by the Germans (who dropped a message and photographs of the grave over Allied lines), and the return of his personal effects; various documents and printed material regarding the action for which Viney was awarded the DSO (the first recorded destruction of a German submarine by bombing from the air, off the Belgian coast in November 1915, which made Viney into a national celebrity); numerous photographs of Viney before and during the war [see itemised collection listing. Note: a quantity of artefacts pertaining to Viney's service and death is held in the IWM Exhibits collection].
Content description
Documents and photographs mostly pertaining to Viney's First World War service and his death in action as a pilot in the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), comprising: several letters written by Viney to his family during 1912 – 1915, partly regarding his enlistment into Prince Alfred's Guard in South Africa at the outbreak of war and his later flying training in the UK; larger quantity of letters written mainly to his mother in 1916 following Viney's death in May of that year whilst serving with 5 Wing RNAS when his aircraft was shot down during a sortie over the coast of Belgium, containing condolences and tributes to her son, information about the circumstances of his death and the burial of his body with full military honours by the Germans (who dropped a message and photographs of the grave over Allied lines), and the return of his personal effects; various documents and printed material regarding the action for which Viney was awarded the DSO (the first recorded destruction of a German submarine by bombing from the air, off the Belgian coast in November 1915, which made Viney into a national celebrity); numerous photographs of Viney before and during the war [see itemised collection listing. Note: a quantity of artefacts pertaining to Viney's service and death is held in the IWM Exhibits collection].
History note
Cataloguer SWW