Kent VCs

Roy Ingleton

• Publisher: Pen & Sword Military
• Year: 2011
• ISBN:
  9781844685202
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: World War II
• Index: History

As one might expect from a county with the motto 'Invicta' (Unconquered), Kent has produced her fair share of military heroes. Here Roy Ingleton honors 50 of those who have been awarded the nation's highest decoration for valor in the line of duty.The book is divided into sections according to the conflicts in which the awards were earned, each beginning with a concise historical overview to set the context for these acts of heroism. From the Crimea (thus some of the earliest VCs ever awarded), through to the Second World War, the entries encompass many of the most famous episodes in British military history and are drawn from all three services. Meet heroes such as Sergeant Major Wooden of the 17th Lancers and surgeon Sir James Mouat who were granted VCs for their part in the Charge of the Light Brigade (Battle of Balaclava, 1857); Captain Walter Norris Congreve who helped to save the guns at Colenso (1899); Lieutenant Philip Neame, scion of Kent's famous brewing family and the only man to win both an Olympic gold medal and a VC (Neuve Chapelle, 1914); Major James McCudden, the leading British fighter ace of WWI and probably Kent's most famous VC winner (France1917/18); Lieutenant Commander George Bradford RN (Zeebrugge Raid, 1918); Sergeant Thomas Durrant, No 1 Commando (St Nazaire, 1942) and Lance Corporal John Harman (Battle of Kohima, 1944). The nation holds a special place in its heart for winners of the Victoria Cross and this book is sure to inspire not only those who are lucky enough to call Kent home, but anyone interested in British military history.

Chapter 1

The Crimean War

At first sight there may seem to be little connection between the frozen wastes of Russia and the scorching heat and dust of the Indian sub-continent but it must be remembered that Imperial Russia was an enormous country and had borders with Persia, Afghanistan and north-west India (now Pakistan) as well as Turkey and Europe.

In the middle of the nineteenth century, there were fears that Russia had plans to increase its sphere of influence and move in on the Ottoman Empire that spread from the Balkans, through Turkey and Palestine, to cover a large part of the Middle East. At the same time, there was a bitter dispute over certain religious differences between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. These fears were heightened when, in the early 1850s, Tsar Nicholas I sent troops into Moldavia and Walachia (modern Romania), thus threatening the Balkans and Turkey, and by 1853 Russia and the Ottoman Empire were at war with each other.

The basis for the war, involving as it did various territorial and religious interests, was a complicated one and deeply concerned Great Britain and France. Britain feared a threat to India, to her domination of the Mediterranean and to the loss of Constantinople (now Istanbul) as a friendly port. At the same time, France was keen on making her own territorial gains as well as supporting the claims of the Catholic Church against the Russian Orthodox Church. Both countries therefore sided with the Ottoman Empire and, when a demand for the Tsar’s troops to withdraw from Moldavia and Walachia was ignored, they both declared war on Russia.

It was the intention of the Allies to fight in two distinct theatres. On land, an Anglo-French army was sent to the Balkans, while the Allied fleet sailed for the Baltic. In both these theatres of war, British soldiers and sailors were to excel themselves despite sometimes confused and contentious leadership.

The Baltic theatre turned out to be something of a fiasco. With the Russian fleet refusing to leave port and do battle, the Allied fleet could only set up a blockade, the monotony relieved by a few desultory bombardments and a single, successful, all-out attack on the island of Bomarsund. It was during this blockade that Mate Charles Lucas won the first ever Victoria Cross.

Meanwhile, during the spring of 1854, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) had set up bases in Constantinople and Scutari, only to witness the unaided Turks force the Russians to retreat, abandon Moldavia and Walachia and flee towards Bucharest. Not until September of that year did the British contingent, by now stricken with an epidemic of cholera, sail for the ominously named Calamita Bay some thirty miles north of their target, the Russian sea base at Sebastapol. The landing was unopposed and, with their French allies on their right, between the BEF and the sea, they began the march south towards their destination.

It was not to be an uneventful journey as they had to cross the River Alma, where the full might of the Russian army, under Prince Menshikov, awaited them with ninety-six cannons. The fact that Menshikov had been castrated by Turkish gunfire earlier in the conflict obviously did little to diminish his motivation or improve his humour. The ensuing battle was long and bloody but, after three days, the Allied forces had taken the Russian positions, winning six Victoria Crosses in the process.

The way was now open to Sebastapol, where the Allies contentiously set about establishing a formal siege, allowing the Russians time to block the harbour entrance and strengthen their defences. Not until 17 October did the Allied artillery commence the bombardment of the port.

While the Allies were thus fruitlessly employed, Menshikov saw an opportunity to attack Balaklava, the town near to Sebastapol from whence the British army was being supplied. A strong force of Russian infantry and cavalry began the assault around dawn on 25 October 1854 only to be repelled, largely by the 93rd Highlanders. It was during this battle that a misunderstanding of the Commander’s orders led to the charge of the Light Brigade of cavalry. The story is too well known to merit repeating in detail here, suffice it to recall that during this engagement, which lasted less than half an hour, 110 men were killed, 130 wounded and 58 taken prisoner. What is remarkable is the fact that 375 men returned unscathed, 9 of whom were awarded the Victoria Cross, including Sergeant Major Charles Wooden, whose exploits are described later in this book.

The charge marked the end of the Battle of Balaklava. Even though the Russians had not taken the town, they regarded it as a victory, as they had successfully ruptured the British supply line at a time when winter was approaching.

With this battle out of the way, both sides concentrated their efforts on the siege of Sebastapol and, on 5 November 1854, the Russians launched a full-scale assault, on several fronts, in what was to become known as the Battle of Inkerman. Despite fierce fighting all around the town and port, the battle ended in stalemate: the Russians had failed to relieve the town and the Allies had failed to take it. It was to be nearly a year before the Russians finally decided to evacuate their positions in the town and thus ended the siege. It was also, to all intents and purposes, the end of the Crimean War, as a peace treaty was brokered by neutral Austria in March 1856.

It was in the January of that year, 1856, that Queen Victoria approved the design of the Victoria Cross, which was to be made from the bronze of two Russian cannons captured at Sebastapol. This unique gallantry medal was awarded to 111 veterans of the Crimean War, 6 of whom had connections with the county of Kent.

Mate Charles Davis LUCAS

Ulsterman Charles Lucas has the distinction of being the very first recipient of the newly created Victoria Cross, which he earned when he was just twenty. He was born on 19 February 1834 in County Armagh, Ireland, the youngest son of a wealthy land-owning Irish family with four sons and three daughters. The family home was in Clontibret, county Monaghan (where some accounts claim Charles was born). Lucas was proud of his Ulster origins and in later life demonstrated strong feelings against Home Rule for Ireland and supported the concept of Unionism.

In 1847, at the tender age of thirteen, he joined the Royal Navy as a cadet and distinguished himself in various naval actions during the Burmese campaigns of 1852–1853, during which he landed with storming parties and took part in the storming of the stockades and the capture of Rangoon, Dalla, Pegu, Prome and Meaday.

He had risen to the position of mate (senior midshipman) when, at the age of nineteen, he took part in Captain Lock RN’s unsuccessful attack on the stronghold of the chieftain Mya Toom in which Captain Lock was killed and most of the senior officers killed or severely wounded. The force was obliged to withdraw and Mate Lucas took command of the rearguard, which was warmly engaged in keeping the enemy back during the nine-hour retreat. Mate Lucas was then almost continually employed in command of an armed boat up the River Irrawaddy in a most unhealthy climate.

In May 1854, having returned to England, he was appointed mate on HMS Hecla, a small steam-powered, paddle-wheel sloop or frigate which was to form part of the blockade that prevented the Russian fleet from leaving the Baltic port of Kronstadt during the Crimean War. The Hecla was to make a name for itself through its captain, Captain William Hutcheon Hall, deciding to ignore orders and bombard the island of Bomarsund on 21 June 1854. This was a particularly fruitless exercise since the shells made no impression on the strongly fortified bastion. The British commander, Sir Charles Napier, was furious at this waste of ammunition and complained that ‘if every captain when detached chose to throw away all his shot against stone walls, the fleet would soon be inefficient’.

However, this inconsequential little action was rendered immortal by the actions of Mate Lucas. At the height of the action, while the Hecla and the island fortress were exchanging salvoes, a Russian shell landed on the deck of the Hecla with its fuse still burning. The crew were ordered to lie flat but Lucas showed ‘a remarkable instance of coolness and presence of mind in action, he having taken up, and thrown overboard, a live shell thrown on board the Hecla while the fuse was burning’ (Captain Hall to Admiral Napier, 22 June 1854).

As the shell hit the water it exploded, causing only minor damage and injury. Were it not for Lucas’s prompt action, the consequences could have been disastrous. Lucas was immediately promoted to the rank of lieutenant and, when the Victoria Cross was instituted some two years later, Admiral Hall recommended Lucas. Lucas was gazetted with the award on 24 February 1857 and he attended the first investiture in Hyde Park on 26 June that year, when his medal was presented to him personally by Queen Victoria, together with a further 61 of the total of 111 recipients from the Crimean War.

The period of comparative peace in the immediate years following the Crimean War meant that Lucas saw no further action but he rose steadily through the ranks until he was promoted captain in 1867. He retired in October 1873 and two years later was promoted to rear admiral on the retired list.

Upon retirement, at the age of thirty-nine, the bachelor captain did not return to his native Ireland (the family lands and property presumably having been devolved upon his older brothers) but went to live with his sister and brother-in-law in the Western Highlands. However, this peaceful existence was interrupted in 1878 by a summons to the deathbed of his old captain, now Admiral Sir William Hall, who made a most remarkable request. In 1845, Hall had married the well-bred Honourable Hilare Byng, the third daughter of the Viscount Byng, who had been Hall’s first captain, and whose family home was at Yotes Court, near Mereworth, Kent. With his dying breath, Hall beseeched Lucas to take care of his wife and, extraordinarily, to marry his only daughter, Frances. It seems Lucas was an incurable romantic for he agreed to his friend’s dying wish and married Frances in 1879.

Although the union produced three daughters, it was not a particularly happy one. Frances was arrogant and had a violent temper; she was very conscious of her descent from the aristocratic Byng line, which included a number of admirals and generals, among them Admiral John Byng (1704–1757), executed (unjustly) for ‘failing to do his utmost’ to prevent Minorca from falling into French hands. The family would later boast Field Marshal the Viscount Byng of Vimy, who distinguished himself in the First World War.

The Lucas family settled in Tunbridge Wells in 1906, residing at Great Culverden in the Mount Ephraim area of the town. This great house, built by Jacob Fisher in 1830, no longer exists, having been demolished in 1927, and the site now forms part of the grounds of the Kent and Sussex Hospital. However, it remained the home of Rear Admiral Charles Lucas and his family at least until his death in August 1914 at the age of eighty. On his death, possibly at the instigation of his wife, his remains were interred at St Lawrence’s churchyard, Mereworth, close to Frances’s family home. The influence of the Byng family may be judged by the fact that Lucas’s in-laws, Admiral Hall and his wife, are also buried there.

During his lifetime, Lucas was a staunch Unionist and also played an active role in the activities of the Tunbridge Wells Conservative and Unionist Association. He was a Justice of the Peace for both Kent and Argyllshire and it was during one of his many journeys to Scotland that he somehow managed to leave his medals in the railway carriage he had occupied. Despite an extensive search and appeals, they were never found, and probably lie in some private collection. Duplicates (including the Victoria Cross) were issued to him.

Surgeon James MOUAT

If Charles Lucas was the first VC of all, James Mouat has the distinction of being the first of thirty-six doctors to win this coveted award, going on to complete an illustrious medical career.

Of Scottish descent, Mouat was in fact born in 1815 – the year of the Battle of Waterloo – in Chatham, where his father, also an army doctor, was serving with the 25th Dragoons. He was educated at University College Hospital, London, becoming a Member of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1837 (Fellow in 1852). He followed his father’s footsteps and joined the army, being appointed Assistant Surgeon to the 44th Foot (East Essex) Regiment in December 1838, with whom he saw service in India. In August 1839 he transferred to the 4th Foot (King’s Own) Regiment and stayed in India – a move that probably saved his life as the 44th were posted to Afghanistan and were decimated during the notorious retreat from Kabul in 1842.

After nearly ten years in India, Mouat returned to England with his regiment, transferring once more, this time to the 9th (East Norfolk) Regiment of Foot, being appointed the regiment’s surgeon in 1848. After the 9th Foot moved to Malta in 1854, Surgeon Mouat joined the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoon Guards, with whom he went to the Crimea.

Surgeon Mouat served throughout the Siege of Sebastopol and was present in several engagements, including the battles of Inkerman and Balaklava. He was in fact was the Principal Medical Officer at Balaklava and it was there, on 26 October 1854, the day following the disastrous Charge of the Light Brigade, that Surgeon Mouat, in company with Sergeant Major Charles Wooden (see later), went to the assistance of Captain Morris of the 17th Lancers who was lying dangerously wounded in an exposed position after the retreat of the Light Brigade. Disregarding the severe enemy fire, the doctor reached Captain Morris and stopped a serious haemorrhage, thus saving his life. After dressing his wounds, still exposed to heavy rifle fire, James Mouat and Sergeant Major Wooden succeeded in bringing the casualty back to the British lines. For this action, Mouat was awarded the Victoria Cross.

The following year James Mouat was promoted to Surgeon Major and returned to England on half pay. In July 1857 he appeared before a commission, headed by Sydney Herbert who had been the Secretary at War at the time of the conflict, which had been formed to enquire into the appalling medical and sanitary conditions endured by the troops in the Crimea and which had prompted a public outcry. He appears to have been given an easy ride by the commissioners, something he duly recognized by not rocking the boat. He said the only problem he had encountered was a lack of bricks to make an oven so that the troops could have hot food. However, three letters by him were attached to the subsequent report, in which he had complained about the sanitary problems. He was not questioned about these by the commissioners. There is no doubt that had Mouat complained that the regimental doctors had made recommendations and representations to their military superiors, which had been ignored, he would have seriously embarrassed the hierarchy – an unwise course of action for any career officer.

Map of the Battle of Balaclava.

Surgeon Mouat nevertheless upset the famous Florence Nightingale by opining that medical officers serving at the front were more deserving of medals than those who served at the Scutari field hospital in Turkey. Nurse Nightingale responded that more doctors died at Scutari than had been lost in the Crimea (fifty-five members of the Army Medical Department died during the period of the 1854–1856 campaign). Never one to mince her words, she later described Mouat as:

the typical clever fellow, the unscrupulous blackguard, the unmitigated rogue. I believe I need hardly say that, in all this, I am referring to his conduct to his men, as Inspecting Medical Officer. I do not refer at all to his medical practice; on which it is not my business to give an opinion.

In March 1858 Mouat went back on full pay and, two years later, to New Zealand, where he spent most of the next four years, being appointed Principal Medical Officer to the British troops in the New Zealand Wars. In 1864, on his return to England, he became the Inspector General of Hospitals and retired from the army in April 1876 at the age of sixty-one with the rank of Surgeon General.

In 1888 he was appointed an honorary surgeon to Queen Victoria and was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath i...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• List of Plates
• Introduction
• 1. The Crimean War (1854–1856)
• 2. The Indian Mutiny (1857–1859)
• 3. The Colonial Wars
• 4. The Boer Wars (1880–1902)
• 5. The First World War (1914–1918)
• 6. The Second World War (1939–1945)
• Bibliography