213568 Capt. Henry Graham Sherbrooke DSO, MID.Royal Navy HM Gunboat Tarantula from:Scotland Henry Graham Sherbrooke was born circa 1878 in Edinburgh He served in the Roral Navy and gained the rank of Captain. He fought in the Battle of Nahr-al-Kalek in February 1917 in Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) on the River Tigris. The Battle of Nahr-al-Kalek followed the re-capture of Kut-al-Amara from the Turks in February 1917. Three British gunboats, Mantis, Moth and Tarantula, outdistanced their own ground troops and were attacked by Turkish artillery and four Turkish vessels, three of which they sank. The fourth Turkish vessel was recaptured having originally been the British gunboat Firefly. This effectively eliminated Turkish naval presence on the Tigris River. Captain Henry Sherbrooke then commander of the Tarantula was awarded the DSO for skillful handling of his gunboat. He was also mentioned in Despatches twice and his service noticed to be of special mention
|