
Sub-Lieutenant John Duppa-Miller, of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve
The bravery medals of a Blitz bomb disposal hero who saved a big chunk of London’s rail community are being bought by his household for £50,000.
Sub-Lieutenant John Duppa-Miller, 37, laid in a pool of water together with his face simply six inches from the fuse of a German mine, which had landed in a viaduct exterior London Bridge station on the evening of December 8, 1940.
On two events the gadget began ticking and he ran for his life, realizing it may explode at any second, however on each events it stopped earlier than detonation.
S/Lt Miller, of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, then got here again for a 3rd try after a relaxing cup of tea and managed to deactivate it.
The viaduct carried strains to Cannon Road, Charing Cross and London Bridge, and the blast would have worn out the electrically operated sign field.
Had the gadget gone off, he would absolutely have been killed and that a part of London’s rail infrastructure would have been critically broken.
S/Lt Miller was awarded the George Cross and obtained the King’s Commendation for Courageous Conduct for his ‘strongest nerve and practically superhuman devotion to obligation’.
His medals are going underneath the hammer with London-based auctioneers Dix Noonan Webb on January 26.
S/Lt Miller was born in Birmingham in 1903 and labored in native authorities schooling earlier than World Struggle Two, then volunteering to develop into a bomb diffuser because the battle broke out.
He lived in Ethiopia and Kenya post-war, engaged on schooling and advertising boards in each international locations, earlier than happening to spend his retirement in South Africa and dying aged 91 in 1994.

Pictured: John Duppa-Miller (proper) with a big bomb. S/Lt Miller had disarmed dozens of bombs throughout World Struggle Two single-handedly, together with one lodged in a warehouse

Pictured: The Thames Estuary throughout the first mass air raid on London, Tower Bridge stands out towards a background of smoke and fireplace, seventh September, 1940

Left to proper: George Cross, Defence medal, Struggle medal, Coronation 1953 medal and Jubilee 1977 medal
S/Lt Miller had disarmed dozens of bombs throughout World Struggle Two single-handedly, together with one lodged in a warehouse.
On one other event, he and his comrade Ready Seaman George Tuckwell tackled a extremely delicate magnetic mine lodged in Barking Creek.
At low tide, the gadget popped out of the mud in order that they rowed in the direction of it in a canoe boat, earlier than wading by filth in a sewer to succeed in it.
The pair initially tried to pull the bomb on to the jetty however the rope broke, so they’d one other go, lifting it by crane after which disabling it.
He later stated of the operation: ‘We pulled the rope over to the mine, made it quick spherical one finish of the carcase, signalled the crane, and the massive cylinder was dragged slowly over the mud to the foot of the wharf.
‘Tuckwell and I, the mine and the canoe all got here out of the creek collectively on the top of the cable, and the ultimate levels of the work had been accomplished, in rain, however however in comparative consolation.’
Christopher Mellor-Hill, head of consumer liaison at Dix Noonan Webb, stated: ‘We’re honoured to be requested to discover a new house by the household for this excellent George Cross.

Sub-Lieutenant John Duppa-Miller, 37, laid in a pool of water together with his face simply six inches from the fuse of a German mine, which had landed in a viaduct exterior London Bridge station on the evening of December 8, 1940 (pictured: London Bridge in 1927)

Christopher Mellor-Hill, head of consumer liaison at Dix Noonan Webb, stated: ‘We’re honoured to be requested to discover a new house by the household for this excellent George Cross’ (pictured)

Pictured: John Duppa-Miller’s George Cross ribbon given to him by King George VI
‘While there have been different George Crosses awarded for bomb disposal operations in World Struggle Two, that is the primary one we now have encountered the place the recipient, Lt Miller, was really useful for a bar for an additional courageous act throughout The London Blitz.
‘For this act, he was subsequently awarded the Kings Commendation for Bravery which nonetheless mirrored his being honoured with a double gallantry award for his excellent bravery.’
His quotation describing the London Bridge incident reads: ‘The clock had already began and stopped twice. He (S/Lt Miller) defined this to the station-master, returned to the mine and, completely no matter penalties, eliminated the bomb fuze and rendered the mine secure.

Pictured: Sub-Lieutenant John Duppa-Miller’s George Cross case
‘On investigation it was discovered that the bomb fuse itself was leaking, consequently the stress horn was fairly ineffective as a security association.
‘The mine was, subsequently, in a extremely harmful state all through the entire operation, together with these intervals when Lieutenant Miller thought the stress horn was efficient.’
S/Lt Miller was appointed secretary of the Admiralty’s Interdepartmental Committee on Anti-Submarine Weapons in 1941, growing the ‘Hedgehog’ weapon.
He remained in publish till the top of the battle after which was in command of disposing of German shares of underwater weapons.
S/Lt Miller’s medal group consists of the George Cross with Bar, Defence and Struggle Medals, Coronation 1953; Jubilee 1977.
It’s being bought with a size of George Cross ribbon and a observe by S/Lt Miller revealing it was offered by King George VI.
It states: ‘The ribbon on this field is King George VI’s personal private pattern, submitted to him for approval when he instituted the George Cross.
‘My sailor George Tuckwell and I had been two of the primary recipients of the Cross.
‘Whenever you went to the palace to obtain a ornament, you had been supposed in these days anyhow, to place the ribbon up in your tunic prematurely for some cause.
‘As this ornament had solely simply been instituted, the ribbon was unobtainable, even at Gieves, the naval outfitters.
‘When the King heard this he gave me his personal pattern, instructed me to chop off what was wanted for the others, and hold the remaining as a memento for myself.
‘The George Cross ribbon, just like the Victoria Cross ribbon, usually carries a miniature of the cross (on this case silver, not bronze) within the centre.
‘At this early stage, no miniatures had been made so for some appreciable time we wore the plain blue ribbon alone.
‘And that is why there isn’t any miniature on the King’s pattern.’