#91 • Souvenirs from German Airship Schütte-Lanz SL11, Essex, Sept. 3, 1916

Part of TRENCH ART & WWI Memorabilia (live auction by Bannerman Auctions)

High bid $600.00

Status: Sold

Category: Britain

Pieces Souvenirs from German Airship Schütte-Lanz SL11, Essex, Sept. 3, 1916 Often misidentified as pieces from a Zeppelin, the SL11 was the first airship to be shot down over Britain in the early morning of September 3, 1916, by Lt. William Leefe Robinson of the Worcester Regiment and Royal Flying Corps. He was awarded the Victoria Cross. "Lieutenant Robinson’s VC is significant on two major grounds: his was the first (of six to date) awarded for actions in the UK or UK Territorial Waters. And he was the first pilot to destroy a German airship over the UK. (This was the second airship destroyed by an aircraft, the first being by Flight Sub-Lieutenant Reginald Warneford, Royal Naval Air Service, over Belgium on 7 June 1915 for which he had been awarded the Victoria Cross. An airship had also been brought down into the Thames Estuary by anti-aircraft guns on 1 April 1916)." (Thanks to the RAF Museum website) Frame measures 12.3cm x 16.7cm Estimate: $200 - $300