November 10, 2025

Able Seacat Simon: The Hero Who Kept the Ship Afloat

From the docks of Hong Kong to the decks of a Royal Navy frigate, Simon became the only cat ever awarded Britain’s highest honor, the Dickin Medal, for animals in conflict.

While the famous Chief Mousers guarded 10 Downing Street, another working cat served far from London, aboard a Royal Navy ship sailing through Asia.

His name was Simon, a small tuxedo cat who would go on to become the only cat ever awarded the Dickin Medal, Britain’s highest honor for animal bravery.

Simon’s story began in March 1948, when a 17-year-old sailor named George Hickinbottom found him wandering the docks of Hong Kong. The kitten was thin, sickly, and clearly in need of help. Hickinbottom smuggled him aboard HMS Amethyst, a British frigate stationed in the city, and hid him in his cabin until the crew discovered him.

Simon quickly recovered and proved himself indispensable. He patrolled the lower decks, kept the food stores free of rats, and earned a reputation for mischief, leaving “gifts” in sailors’ beds and sometimes napping in the captain’s cap. Before long, he was part mascot, part morale officer, and fully family.

When the ship’s new commander, Lieutenant Commander Bernard Skinner, took over later that year, he immediately liked Simon. So Simon stayed, kept patrolling for rats, and his next voyage would change both their fates.

In April 1949, HMS Amethyst was ordered to sail up China’s Yangtze River to relieve another vessel, HMS Consort. Halfway through the mission, the ship came under fire from Chinese PLA artillery. 19 men, including the captain, were killed.

Simon was badly injured by shrapnel and burns. He disappeared for days before staggering back onto the deck, where Petty Officer George Griffiths found him and carried him to sick bay. The medical staff removed four pieces of metal, cleaned his wounds, and stitched him up. No one thought he would survive. But he did.

As soon as he could walk again, he went back to work, limping through the damaged decks, hunting rats, and keeping morale afloat. The crew stranded for months in hostile territory, often said his presence was what kept them sane.

At one point, a large rat nicknamed “Mao Tse-Tung” began terrorizing the food stores. The crew tried to trap it but failed, and they thought Simon was still too weak to take it on. He proved them wrong again by defeating the rat and earning himself a promotion to “Able Seacat Simon.”

When the Amethyst finally broke free and reached Hong Kong, Simon was hailed as a hero. He received the Amethyst campaign medal, the Blue Cross medal, and later the Dickin Medal for “gallantry and devotion to duty.”

By the time the ship returned to England in November 1949, Simon was a celebrity. Thousands of letters and gifts arrived from admirers, and one officer was even appointed “cat officer” to manage his fan mail. At every port, people gathered just to catch a glimpse of him.

Like all animals entering the UK, Simon was placed in quarantine. His war wounds had left him weak, and during his stay he caught a virus that he couldn’t overcome. He passed away on November 28, 1949, just two weeks before he was due to receive his medal in person.

Hundreds attended his funeral, including the entire Amethyst crew. Simon was laid to rest at the PDSA Animal Cemetery in Ilford, east London, alongside other decorated animal heroes.

An unknown cat later portrayed him in the 1957 film "Battle Hell: Yangtze Incident – The Story of HMS Amethyst."

Simon likely would have said he was just doing his job. But to the men who served with him, and to those who still remember him today, Able Seacat Simon was much more than that.

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