A service to remember the brave actions of a First World War hero has been held exactly 100 years after they were carried out .

Vice Admiral Richard Bell Davies VC CB DSO AFC was given the Victoria Cross for his actions at Ferrijik Junction, Bulgaria, on November 19, 1915.

And a century later, a ceremony was held at Sloane Square, Chelsea , which saw a paving slab unveiled to commemorate the heroic deeds.

Among those attending was fellow VC recipient Sergeant Johnson Beharry , as well as Kensington and Chelsea Mayor Robert Freeman and leader Nick Paget-Brown.

First World War hero and VC recipient Richard Bell Davies

Bell Davies was born in Topstone Road, now Nevern Place, in Kensington on May 19 1886, and after being orphaned at the age of six, was raised by his uncle.

He enlisted in the Royal Navy in 1901, in 1910 he took private flying lessons, and in 1913 he was accepted into the Royal Naval Air Service.

In the early days of First World War, he carried out a number of raids on German submarine bases and on January 23, 1915, received the Distinguished Service Order for services rendered in the aerial attack on Dunkirk.

On November 19, 1915, Bell Davies was flying a Nieuport Type 10 Scout during an air attack on Ferrijik, in Bulgaria, with his colleague Flight Sub Lieutenant Gilbert Smylie flying a Henry Farman. Smylie’s aircraft was shot down behind enemy lines. Without hesitation, Bell Davies put his aircraft down and managed to squeeze Smylie into his tiny single-seat aeroplane before returning safely to their own lines.

His actions saw him awarded the Victoria Cross by King George V - only the second ever awarded to a naval airman.

Also attending the Chelsea ceremony was local resident and Honorary Vice Admiral Lord Sterling, Lord Cadogan , and representatives of the Fleet Air Arm Officers’ Association and the Royal British Legion.

The Mayor said later: “It was a great honour to take part in this ceremony – Richard Bell Davies was a remarkable man.

“Not only did he display the greatest skill and gallantry in the action, which led to the award of his Victoria Cross, but he then continued his distinguished naval career, rising to the rank of Vice Admiral.

“The Royal Borough is enormously proud of its links with Richard Bell Davies and I am pleased that the paving stone unveiled this morning will provide a lasting reminder of his service and of his valour.”

Baroness Williams of Trafford, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, said: “The stone laid in honour of Vice Admiral Richard Bell Davies provides a lasting legacy to his bravery and will enable residents to gain a greater understanding of how a local hero played a key role in the history of the First World War.

The family of Richard Bell Davies gather for the ceremony

“He carried out astonishing acts of valour in service of his country and is only the second ever naval airman to be awarded the Victoria Cross. We all owe a huge debt to those brave heroes like Richard Bell Davies. They are just as inspirational now as they were a century ago.”

The ceremony forms part of a nationwide campaign to honour Victoria Cross recipients from the First World War by laying commemorative paving stones in their birthplace on the centenary of their awards.

A total of 628 Victoria Crosses were awarded during the First World War. To date K&C has honoured two of those local heroes - George Dorrell and Richard Bell Davies.

Over the next few years we will do the same for the remaining six. They are Humphrey Firman, Frank Wearne, Julian Gribble, Victor Crutchley, Roland Bourke and George Cartwright.