Dennis Williams
Gone but not forgotten
Why thank you sir, you are a gentleman. And before I tell another tale stolen from others far more worthy, may I rescind a post by my old friend Aidan, that may have been a little neglected of late? For these are the worthiest of all men...The brave Few who graced and honoured our City with their incredible deeds..
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories. It takes precedence over all other orders, decorations and medals. It may be awarded to a person of any rank in any service and to civilians under military command. The VC is usually presented to the recipient or to their next of kin by the British monarch at an investiture held at Buckingham Palace.
It is now rarely awarded and is usually posthumous - the only exception since the Korean War being Private Johnson Beharry who was nursed back to health in Selly Oak Hospital.
The VC was introduced on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to honour acts of valour during the Crimean War. Since then, the medal has been awarded 1,356 times to 1,353 individual recipients. Only 13 medals, nine to members of the British Army, and four to the Australian Army, have been awarded since the Second World War. The traditional explanation of the source of the gunmetal from which the medals are struck is that it derives from Russian cannon captured at the siege of Sevastopol. Recent research has thrown doubt on this story, suggesting a variety of origins for the material actually making up the medals themselves.
Due to its rarity, the VC is highly prized and the medal has fetched over £400,000 at auction. A number of public and private collections are devoted to the Victoria Cross. The private collection of Lord Ashcroft, amassed since 1986, contains over one-tenth of all VCs awarded. Following a 2008 donation to the Imperial War Museum, the Ashcroft collection went on public display alongside the museum's Victoria and George Cross collection in November 2010. Since 1990, three Commonwealth countries that retain the Queen as head of state have instituted their own versions of the VC. As a result, the original Victoria Cross is sometimes referred to as the "Commonwealth Victoria Cross" or the "Imperial Victoria Cross", to distinguish it from the newer awards.
The Birmingham Victoria Cross
James Cooper (1840-1882) Andaman Islands 1867, Private, Warstone
Samuel Wassall (1856-1927) Isandhlwana 1879., Private, Barrow-In-Furness
William Jones (1839-1913) Rorke’s Drift 1879, Private, Philips Park Bradford - cf Jones Joke in film "Zulu"
George Ravenhill (1872-1921) Colenso 1899, Private, Witton [unmarked] {Forfeit of VC in 1908 for theft before rules changed}
Charles Parker (1870-1918) Korn Spruit 1900, Sergeant, ?
Herbert James (1888-1958) Gallipoli 1915, Second Lieutenant, Kensal Green Crematorium London
Arthur Vickers (1882-1944) Loos 1915, Private, Witton
Albert Gill (1879-1916) Somme 1916, Sergeant, ?
Thomas Turrall (1885-1964) Somme 1916, Private, Robin Hood Solihull [with special thanks to our own Lencops!]
Alfred Knight (1888-1960) Ypres 1917, Serjeant, ?
William Amey (1881-1940) Landrecies 1918, Lance-Corporal, Leamington Spa
Harold John Colley (1894-1918) Martinpuich 1918, Sergeant, Mailly Wood, France
Norman Augustus Finch (1890-1966) Zeebrugge 1918, Sergeant, ?
Alan Jerrard (1897-1968) Mansue 1918, Flight Lieutenant, Uxbridge & Hillingdon
James Neville Marshall (1887-1918) Sambre-Oise 1918, Lieutenant-Col, ?
George Onions (1883-1944) Achiet-Le-Petitiet 1918., Lance Corporal, Quinton
Arnold Horace Santo Waters (1886-1981) Sambre-Oise 1918, Major, All Saints Streetly
Alfred Wilcox (1884-1954) Laventie 1918., Lance-Corporal, St Peter & St Paul Aston
William Savage (1912-1942) St Nazaire 1942, Able Seaman, Falmouth
Henry Robert Bowreman Foote (1904-1993) El Alamein 1942, Major, West Sussex
John Patrick Kenneally (1921-2000) Tunis 1943, Lance-Corporal, ?
Note: Amey, Marshall and Waters were all on the same day.
Additional:
Cecil John Kinross (1896-1957) Passchendaele 1917, Private, Lougheed Alberta Canada
Johnson Gideon Beharry (1979- ), Al Amarah 2005, Private, Living
The George Cross (GC) is the second highest award of the United Kingdom honours system, ranking immediately after the Victoria Cross.The GC is the highest gallantry award for civilians, as well as for members of the armed forces in actions for which purely military honours would not normally be granted.
The GC was instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI.[4] At this time, during the height of the Blitz, there was a strong desire to reward the many acts of civilian courage. The existing awards open to civilians were not judged suitable to meet the new situation, therefore it was decided that the George Cross and the George Medal would be instituted to recognise both civilian gallantry in the face of enemy action and brave deeds more generally.
Announcing the new award, the King said: "In order that they should be worthily and promptly recognised, I have decided to create, at once, a new mark of honour for men and women in all walks of civilian life. I propose to give my name to this new distinction, which will consist of the George Cross, which will rank next to the Victoria Cross, and the George Medal for wider distribution."
The GC replaced the Empire Gallantry Medal (EGM); all holders of the EGM were instructed to exchange their medals for a GC, a substitution of awards unprecedented in the history of British decorations. This substitution policy ignored holders of the Albert Medal (AM) and the Edward Medal (EM), awards which both took precedence over the EGM. The anomaly was rectified in 1971, when the surviving recipients of the AM and the EM became George Cross recipients and were invited to exchange their medal for the George Cross. Of the 64 holders of the Albert Medal and 68 holders of the Edward Medal eligible to exchange, 49 and 59 respectively took up the option.
The Birmingham George Cross
Thomas Frank Miller (1887-1974) Nilambar 1921 {EGM}, Private, ?
Reginald Cubitt Graveley (1914-1961) France 1939, Flight Officer, ?
George Walter Inwood (1906-1940) Bishop Street 1940.
William Mosedale (1894-1971) Grantham Street 1940, Fire Station Officer, Arnos Vale - Bristol.
Edward Womersley Reynolds (1917-1955) Weston/Bristol 1940.
John Bryan Peter Miller (1903-1994) London 1941.
Richard Arthur Samuel Bywater (1913-2005) Kirkby 1944.
William Waterson (1904-1971) GEC Witton 1945 {EM}, plant workman, ?
Charles Wilcox (1919-2006) Margaret Street 1949 {EM}, Council Decorator, ?
Please feel free add posts concerning the lives, stories and pictures of these (and is this a complete list?)
I knew Billy Mosedale in my very early days as a cricketer...but never knew of his Honour...such a modest man, he never mentioned it....but then lost contact. I read about his bravery recently...so sad...
Here's a little more info on his daring deed..
William Mosedale was born in 1894, in Highgate, Birmingham. He attended Sherbourne Road Board School in nearby Balsall Heath from the ages of three to thirteen. He then started work as a Tinsmith and Carriage Lamp Maker. In 1910 Mosedale lied about his age so that he could join the 5th Royal Irish Lancers. He was promoted to the rank of corporal within three years but was forced to leave the army on the death of his mother so that he could look after his siblings. In 1914 Mosedale took up a job with the City of Birmingham Fire Brigade.
Citation
On the night of the 11 December 1940, during the Birmingham Blitz, Mosedale received a report that a house and auxiliary fire station had been hit by a high explosive bomb. On arriving at the scene he found that both had been completely demolished. Knowing that there may be people trapped inside, he tunnelled for twelve hours to reach them. The tunnel was in constant danger of collapse and the air raid continued during the night hours of the rescue operation. Mosedale eventually rescued twelve trapped people, personally saving their lives with complete disregard for his own safety.
Mosedale was awarded the George Cross for his bravery. His award was announced in the London Gazette on 28 March 1941.
More here...https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/ne...tale-of-birmingham-firefighter-william-134737
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories. It takes precedence over all other orders, decorations and medals. It may be awarded to a person of any rank in any service and to civilians under military command. The VC is usually presented to the recipient or to their next of kin by the British monarch at an investiture held at Buckingham Palace.
It is now rarely awarded and is usually posthumous - the only exception since the Korean War being Private Johnson Beharry who was nursed back to health in Selly Oak Hospital.
The VC was introduced on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to honour acts of valour during the Crimean War. Since then, the medal has been awarded 1,356 times to 1,353 individual recipients. Only 13 medals, nine to members of the British Army, and four to the Australian Army, have been awarded since the Second World War. The traditional explanation of the source of the gunmetal from which the medals are struck is that it derives from Russian cannon captured at the siege of Sevastopol. Recent research has thrown doubt on this story, suggesting a variety of origins for the material actually making up the medals themselves.
Due to its rarity, the VC is highly prized and the medal has fetched over £400,000 at auction. A number of public and private collections are devoted to the Victoria Cross. The private collection of Lord Ashcroft, amassed since 1986, contains over one-tenth of all VCs awarded. Following a 2008 donation to the Imperial War Museum, the Ashcroft collection went on public display alongside the museum's Victoria and George Cross collection in November 2010. Since 1990, three Commonwealth countries that retain the Queen as head of state have instituted their own versions of the VC. As a result, the original Victoria Cross is sometimes referred to as the "Commonwealth Victoria Cross" or the "Imperial Victoria Cross", to distinguish it from the newer awards.
The Birmingham Victoria Cross
James Cooper (1840-1882) Andaman Islands 1867, Private, Warstone
Samuel Wassall (1856-1927) Isandhlwana 1879., Private, Barrow-In-Furness
William Jones (1839-1913) Rorke’s Drift 1879, Private, Philips Park Bradford - cf Jones Joke in film "Zulu"
George Ravenhill (1872-1921) Colenso 1899, Private, Witton [unmarked] {Forfeit of VC in 1908 for theft before rules changed}
Charles Parker (1870-1918) Korn Spruit 1900, Sergeant, ?
Herbert James (1888-1958) Gallipoli 1915, Second Lieutenant, Kensal Green Crematorium London
Arthur Vickers (1882-1944) Loos 1915, Private, Witton
Albert Gill (1879-1916) Somme 1916, Sergeant, ?
Thomas Turrall (1885-1964) Somme 1916, Private, Robin Hood Solihull [with special thanks to our own Lencops!]
Alfred Knight (1888-1960) Ypres 1917, Serjeant, ?
William Amey (1881-1940) Landrecies 1918, Lance-Corporal, Leamington Spa
Harold John Colley (1894-1918) Martinpuich 1918, Sergeant, Mailly Wood, France
Norman Augustus Finch (1890-1966) Zeebrugge 1918, Sergeant, ?
Alan Jerrard (1897-1968) Mansue 1918, Flight Lieutenant, Uxbridge & Hillingdon
James Neville Marshall (1887-1918) Sambre-Oise 1918, Lieutenant-Col, ?
George Onions (1883-1944) Achiet-Le-Petitiet 1918., Lance Corporal, Quinton
Arnold Horace Santo Waters (1886-1981) Sambre-Oise 1918, Major, All Saints Streetly
Alfred Wilcox (1884-1954) Laventie 1918., Lance-Corporal, St Peter & St Paul Aston
William Savage (1912-1942) St Nazaire 1942, Able Seaman, Falmouth
Henry Robert Bowreman Foote (1904-1993) El Alamein 1942, Major, West Sussex
John Patrick Kenneally (1921-2000) Tunis 1943, Lance-Corporal, ?
Note: Amey, Marshall and Waters were all on the same day.
Additional:
Cecil John Kinross (1896-1957) Passchendaele 1917, Private, Lougheed Alberta Canada
Johnson Gideon Beharry (1979- ), Al Amarah 2005, Private, Living
The George Cross (GC) is the second highest award of the United Kingdom honours system, ranking immediately after the Victoria Cross.The GC is the highest gallantry award for civilians, as well as for members of the armed forces in actions for which purely military honours would not normally be granted.
The GC was instituted on 24 September 1940 by King George VI.[4] At this time, during the height of the Blitz, there was a strong desire to reward the many acts of civilian courage. The existing awards open to civilians were not judged suitable to meet the new situation, therefore it was decided that the George Cross and the George Medal would be instituted to recognise both civilian gallantry in the face of enemy action and brave deeds more generally.
Announcing the new award, the King said: "In order that they should be worthily and promptly recognised, I have decided to create, at once, a new mark of honour for men and women in all walks of civilian life. I propose to give my name to this new distinction, which will consist of the George Cross, which will rank next to the Victoria Cross, and the George Medal for wider distribution."
The GC replaced the Empire Gallantry Medal (EGM); all holders of the EGM were instructed to exchange their medals for a GC, a substitution of awards unprecedented in the history of British decorations. This substitution policy ignored holders of the Albert Medal (AM) and the Edward Medal (EM), awards which both took precedence over the EGM. The anomaly was rectified in 1971, when the surviving recipients of the AM and the EM became George Cross recipients and were invited to exchange their medal for the George Cross. Of the 64 holders of the Albert Medal and 68 holders of the Edward Medal eligible to exchange, 49 and 59 respectively took up the option.
The Birmingham George Cross
Thomas Frank Miller (1887-1974) Nilambar 1921 {EGM}, Private, ?
Reginald Cubitt Graveley (1914-1961) France 1939, Flight Officer, ?
George Walter Inwood (1906-1940) Bishop Street 1940.
William Mosedale (1894-1971) Grantham Street 1940, Fire Station Officer, Arnos Vale - Bristol.
Edward Womersley Reynolds (1917-1955) Weston/Bristol 1940.
John Bryan Peter Miller (1903-1994) London 1941.
Richard Arthur Samuel Bywater (1913-2005) Kirkby 1944.
William Waterson (1904-1971) GEC Witton 1945 {EM}, plant workman, ?
Charles Wilcox (1919-2006) Margaret Street 1949 {EM}, Council Decorator, ?
Please feel free add posts concerning the lives, stories and pictures of these (and is this a complete list?)
I knew Billy Mosedale in my very early days as a cricketer...but never knew of his Honour...such a modest man, he never mentioned it....but then lost contact. I read about his bravery recently...so sad...
Here's a little more info on his daring deed..
William Mosedale was born in 1894, in Highgate, Birmingham. He attended Sherbourne Road Board School in nearby Balsall Heath from the ages of three to thirteen. He then started work as a Tinsmith and Carriage Lamp Maker. In 1910 Mosedale lied about his age so that he could join the 5th Royal Irish Lancers. He was promoted to the rank of corporal within three years but was forced to leave the army on the death of his mother so that he could look after his siblings. In 1914 Mosedale took up a job with the City of Birmingham Fire Brigade.
Citation
On the night of the 11 December 1940, during the Birmingham Blitz, Mosedale received a report that a house and auxiliary fire station had been hit by a high explosive bomb. On arriving at the scene he found that both had been completely demolished. Knowing that there may be people trapped inside, he tunnelled for twelve hours to reach them. The tunnel was in constant danger of collapse and the air raid continued during the night hours of the rescue operation. Mosedale eventually rescued twelve trapped people, personally saving their lives with complete disregard for his own safety.
Mosedale was awarded the George Cross for his bravery. His award was announced in the London Gazette on 28 March 1941.
More here...https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/ne...tale-of-birmingham-firefighter-william-134737
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