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Post by groundhog on Jun 28, 2013 12:11:18 GMT
Edward Bingham
Battle of Jutland
31st May 1916  Edward Bingham was born in Bangor Co. Down on 26th July 1881. He joined the Royal Navy in 1895 and was in command of a Destroyer division at Jutland in 1916. During the battle Bingham’s division engaged the German destroyers and then closed with the German cruisers to engage them with torpedoes. At this stage only two of his division, HMS Nestor and Nicator remained in action. Nestor, Bingham’s own ship was sunk by a German cruiser and he was captured and held as a POW for the remainder of the war. After the war Bingham rose to the rank of Rear-Admiral, retiring in 1932. He died on 24th September 1939 and is buried in Golder’s Green, Cemetery. His VC was purchased by North Down Borough Council in 1983 and is on display in the North Down Heritage Centre in Bangor. |
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Post by groundhog on Jun 28, 2013 13:06:53 GMT
Peter Gill
Benares, India
4th June 1857 Peter Gill was born in Dublin in September 1831. He was one of the multitude of Irish soldiers who enlisted in the India Company’s army in the 19th Century. By 1857 he was a Sergeant Major in the Ludhiana Regiment at Benares at the beginning of the Indian Mutiny. He and another NCO volunteered to go to the home of Captain Brown to escort him and his family to the safety of the barracks. In the course of his evening’s he also saved the lives of the QM Sergeant of the 25th Bengal Native Infantry and a Major Barrett. All in all he deserved his VC which was awarded in 1859. Subsequently commissioned, Lieutenant Peter Gill died on 26th July or 24th October 1868 at Gwalior, where he is buried in the Artillery Lines Cemetery. His VC was sold last year at auction for £70,000 to an unknown buyer. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 2, 2013 11:09:22 GMT
Cornelius Coughlan
Delhi, India
8th June 1857  Cornelius Coughlan was born in Eyrecourt, Co. Galway on 27th June 1828. During the Indian Mutiny he was a Colour Sergeant in the 75th Foot. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for two acts of bravery on 8th June and 18th July 1857 at Delhi. On the first occasion he rescued a wounded man, Private Corbett of the 75th, under fire. On the 18th July he led an attack down a street on a rebel fortification and subsequently withdrew the wounded under fire. Coughlan served for 13 years in India and subsequently served as Sergeant-Major in the Connaught Rangers for twenty years. He died in Westport, Co. Mayo on 14th February 1915 and is buried in Aughavale Cemetery. His VC is on display in Edinburgh Castle. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 7, 2013 8:49:23 GMT
Edward Mannock
Armentieres, France
17th June 1918  Edward Mannock was the son of a Corporal in the Royal Engineers and is thought to have been born in Ballincollig, Co. Cork on 24th May 1887. His nickname “Mick” backs up the theory that he was born in Ireland. He was working for a telephone company in Turkey in 1914 when war broke out and was interned by the Turks. He became ill and apparently neardeath was repatriated in 1915 but recovered and joined the RAMC. He was commissioned into the Royal Engineers and volunteeredfor the Royal Flying Corps in August 1916. Posted to 40 Squadron in France he climed his first kill, an observation balloon, on 7th May 1917. His first tour of duty in France ended in January 1918 by ehich time he was a Captain with 23 kills and had been decorated with the Military Cross. In March 1918 he was posted back to France as CO of 74 Squadron, earning the DSO and Bar and another 36 kills by June. He took over as CO of 85 Squadron in July 1918 by which time he probably belonged more in a psychiatric hospital. He was killed in action on 26th July 1918 near Lillers, France, shot down by ground fire. Mannock’s VC was awarded posthumously on 18th July 1919 for several actions between 17th June and 22nd July 1918. Although the Germans recovered a body from near the crash site, Mannock’s body was never positively identified, so he is commemorated on the RAF’s Arras Memorial. His medals are on display at the RAF Museum in Hendon. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 7, 2013 9:23:21 GMT
Augustus Agar
Baltic Sea
17th June 1919  Augustus Agar was born in Ceylon on 4th January 1890, the son of a tea planter from Kerry and an Austrian mother. He joined the Royal Navy in 1904 and was a Lieutenant at the outbreak of WW1. During the war Agar served in The Dardanelles, North Russia with the Home Fleet. In 1919 he was posted to the Baltic in command of a Motor Torpedo Boat for operations against the Bolsheviks. On 17th June 1919 he led two boats on a raid to sink a Soviet Battleship in Kronstadt harbour. One boat broke down but Agar continued on alone Despite his boat being damaged by Russian fire he attacked and sank the cruiser Oleg. It was for this action that Agar received his Victoria Cross and promotion to Lieutenant-Commander. Agar continued his Naval career until the end of WW2. He was in command of the crusier HMS Dorsetshire when she was sunk by the Japanese in 1942, Agar survived along with most of his crew for 32 hours adrift. The injuries he received troubled him for the rest of his life, however. He was employed in shore appointments until retiring in 1946 to a farm in Hampshire. Augustus Agar died in Alton, Hampshire on 30th December 1968. His VC is on display in the Imperial War Museum. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 7, 2013 9:50:09 GMT
[/img] [/center] We’ve come across the Redan before, one of the fortifications that plagued the British army around Sebastopol during the Crimean War. On 18th June 1855 another attempt was made to storm Sebastopol. The 17th was given over to a full day’s bombardment of the Redan by the British which should have been followed up by a short bombardment just before the infantry assault the following day. However this didn’t happen and the Rusians, knowing what was coming, had placed artillery in the forward trenches which mowed down the attacking troops. The British lost 1,500 men in the attack. Two Irishmen won Victoria Crosses on the day. John Alexander John Alexander was born in Mullingar. He served in the 90th Foot during the Crimean War when he earned the Victoria Cross on 18th June 1855. After an unsuccessful attack on the Redan, Alexander brought in several wounded men under fire. He also rescued an officer in similar circumstances in September. After the Crimean War, the 90th was sent to India. John Alexander was killed in action on 24th September 1857 during the Siege of Lucknow. His VC is held by the National War Museum of Scotland. Thomas Esmonde Thomas Esmonde was born on 25th May 1829 in Pembrokestown, Co. Waterford, the son of the 9th Baronet Esmonde. He served as a Captain with the 18th Foot in the Crimean War. Like John Alexander he was decorated with the VC for rescuing the wounded under fire on 18th June. On the 20th he also performed an act of bravery when a fireball landed near his men, Esmonde ran to put it out before the illumination attracted fire from the Russian artillery. Esmonde later served in India and rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. He died on 14th January 1873 in Belgium, of an eye infection after being injured by a tree branch. He is buried in Bruges Town Cemetery. His grand-nephew Eugene Esmonde also won the VC in WW2. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 7, 2013 21:01:50 GMT
Charles Lucas
HMS Hecla, Baltic Sea
21st June 1854 Lucas was born in Co. Armagh on 19th February 1834. He joined the Royal Navy at the age of 13 and was a Mate by the time he won his VC. Although he won it for actions during the Crimean War, he was actually serving in the Baltic aboard HMS Hecla on 21st June 1854, bombarding the Russian fortress of Bomarsund. When the fort’s defenders returned fire, a shell landed on the Hecla’s deck, its fuse burning. Lucas picked it up and flung it over the side where it exploded. For his bravery Lucas was promoted Lieutenant and awarded the Victoria Cross. By action date, his is the first VC award although not the first to be Gazetted. Lucas received his VC from Queen Victoriaon 26th June 1857. He served in the navy until 1873, retiring as a Captain. He died in Kent on 7th August 1914 and is buried in St. Lawrence’s Churchyard, Mereworth. His medals are on display in the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 14, 2013 19:50:55 GMT
Stephen Garvin
Delhi, India
23rd June 1857 Stephen Garvin was born in Cashel, Co. Tipperary on 2nd February 1826. He enlisted in the 60th Rifles on 6th July 1842. In 1857 he was a Colour-Sergeant serving at Delhi. On 23rd June he led a small party of men to clear a position known as The Sammy House, which rebels were using as a position to fire on British Artillery. For this action he was awarded the Victoria Cross. In addition his service in India resulted in Garvin being awarded a medal for the Second Sikh War in 1848 and 1849 and the India General Service Medal. He served 23 years in the army and died on 23rd November 1874 in Chesterton, Cambridgeshire where he is buried in Chesterton Parish Church. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 14, 2013 20:07:48 GMT
John Dunville
Epehy, France
24th June 1917 John Dunville was born in London on 7th May 1896, the son of a Co. Down family. During WW1 he was a Lieutenant in 1st Dragoon Guards. At Epehy on 24th June 1917 he was in charge of a party of Royal Engineers demolishing German wire. He positioned himself between an NCO placing an explosive charge and the enemy so that the man could complete his task, being badly wounded in the process. Nevertheless he continued in charge of operations until the task was complete. Dunville died of his wounds on 26th June 1917 at Epehy and is buried in Villiers-Faucon Communal Cemetery, France. His VC is displayed in The Household Cavalry Museum, Windsor. |
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Post by groundhog on Jul 14, 2013 20:23:39 GMT
Gerald O'Sullivan
Krithia, Gallipoli
1st July 1915  Gerald O'Sullivan was born in Douglas, Co. Cork on 8th November 1888. In 1915 he was a Captain in the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers in Gallipoli. On 1st July 1915 he led an attack to recapture a trench near Krithia, exposing himself to enemy fire to throw bombs into the enemy position. For this action O’Sullivan was awarded the Victoria Cross. He was killed in action at Suvla Bay on 21st August 1915 and is commemorated on the Helles Memorial.
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Post by groundhog on Jul 17, 2013 21:49:02 GMT
Somme, France
1st July 1916 All of the Irish VCs for the opening day of the Battle of the Somme were won by men of the 36th (Ulster) Division. The task of the 36th Div was to capture the Schwaben Redoubt in the Thiepval sector. Eric Bell  Eric Bell was born on 28th August 1895 in Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh. During WW1 he served as a Captain in the 9th Bn, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers commanding a Trench Mortar Battery. During his battalions advance on 1st July 1916 he captured a German machine gun single-handed, used mortar bombs as grenades to capture a German trench and was killed re-organising troops of the battalion to meet a German counter attack. Bell was born in Enniskillen on 28th August 1895. He is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial and his VC is held by the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers Museum. [/img][/center] In the 12th Bn, Royal Irish Rifles was Pte Robert Quigg from Bushmills, Co. Antrim. Born on 12th March 1885, he won his VC for going out into No Man’s Land no less than seven times, in search of his Platoon Commander who had been wounded. Each time he brought back a wounded man, dragging one on a ground sheet from in front of the German wire. Quigg returned to Ulster after the war and died in Bushmills on 14th May 1955. William McFadzean  William McFadzean was born in Lurgan on 9th October 1895. He was killed before the battle even started on 1st July 1916 when a box of hand grenades was dropped in his trench. Some of the grenade pins fell out so McFadzean threw himself on the bombs to smother the explosions. His VC is displayed in the Royal Irish Rifles museum in Belfast. McFadzean is commemorated on theTiepval Memorial.
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Post by groundhog on Jul 24, 2013 21:02:38 GMT
Adrian Carton de Wiart
2nd July 1916
La Boiselle, France  Adrian Paul Ghislain Carton de Wiart was Belgian on his father’s side and Irish on his mother’s. He was born in Brussels on 5th May 1880 and was sent to school in England by his step-mother. He ran away from Oxford to join the army as a Private when the Boer War broke out and was wounded, early in the war. Invalided home he did a short stint in Oxford before being commissioned in the Yeomanry and, in 1901, in the regular army. He won a VC at La Boiselle, France during the Battle of the Somme on 2nd July 1916. Commanding 8th Bn, Gloucestershire Regiment he took command of three other Battalions whose commanders had become casualties, driving home an attack and defending the ground they had won under heavy fire. Carton de Wiart fought in WW2, was a Prisoner of War in Italy and retired to live in Co. Cork in 1951. He died on 5 June 1963 and is buried in Caum Churchyard near Macroom. His VC is in the National Army Museum in London.
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Post by groundhog on Jul 24, 2013 21:20:30 GMT
Ulundi, Zululand
3rd July 1879
William Beresford  Lord William Leslie de la Poer Beresford was born in Mullaghbrack, Co. Armagh on 20 July 1847, the son of the 4th Marquess of Waterford. On 3rd July 1879 during the Zulu War, he was a Captain in the 9th Lancers at the Battle of Ulundi. He won the VC for going to the rescue of a Sgt Fitzmaurice who had fallen from his horse and was injured. Beresford, assisted by Sgt O’Toole of the Frontier Light Horse, lifted the man on his own horse and rode to safety. Initially he alone was awarded the VC for this act but at the award ceremony he requested of Queen Victoria that Sgt O’Toole receive the award also, which he did on 10th October 1879. Beresford later rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. He died in Surrey on 30th December 1900 and is buried in Clonagem Churchyard, Co. Waterford. [/img][/center] Edmund O’Toole was born in Dublin on 23rd July 1848, son of a seed merchant from Bray, Co. Wicklow. He assisted William Beresford in going to the rescue of Sgt Fitzmaurice and was awarded the VC when Beresford brought attention to this fact at his VC investiture. O’Toole live in South Africa after the war and died about 1900. His burial place and the location of his medal are unknown.
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Post by groundhog on Jul 25, 2013 17:54:38 GMT
[/img][/center] William English was born in Cork on 6th October 1882. He emigrated to South Africa in 1900 where he joined the Scottish Horse, a locally raised regiment fighting in the Boer War. He was commissioned a Lieutenant in early 1901 and on 3rd July that year won the VC at Vlakfontein. In command of 5 men on the flank of his unit’s position, he held his ground under Boer attack even though two men were killed and the other two wounded. He also ran across open ground under fire to get an ammunition resupply. English received a regular commission in the ASC in 1906 and fought in WW1 and WW2. He died of natural causes at sea on 4th July 1941 while serving with the Royal Ulster Rifles and is buried in Maala Cemetery, Aden. His medals were bequeathed to his school- Campbell College, Belfast and are currently on loan to the National Army Museum.
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Post by groundhog on Jul 25, 2013 19:17:11 GMT
William Dowling
Lucknow, India
4th July 1857 William Dowling was born in Thomastown Co. Kilkenny in 1825. During the Indian Mutiny he served as a Private in the 32nd Foot. In 1857 his regiment was part of the garrison of Lucknow, during the siege of which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. On the 4th July under cover of darkness he went out with two other men and spiked some of the enemies artillery. The three men had to kill a Subadar of the mutineers during this mission. Again on the 9th of July Dowling went out with three other men to spike some more guns. This time when they reached the guns, they found that the spikes they brought were two small to damage the guns. On 27th September Dowling went out again into the enemy lines and managed to spike an 18-pounder gun. William Dowling was later promoted to Sergeant. After leaving the army he became a Customs Officer in Liverpool where he died on 17th February 1887. He is buried in Ford Cemetery in an unmarked grave. A memorial stone was erected to his memory in 1990. His Victoria Cross is in the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry Museum in Bodmin, Cornwall.
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