Irish VC Recipients

[jembo]

General Sir Garrett O'Moore Creagh VC GCB GCSI (2 April 1848 – 9 August 1923), known as Sir O'Moore Creagh, was born in Cahirbane, County Clare and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Creagh was the eighth son of Captain James Creagh (Royal Navy) and his wife, Grace O'Moore. He was married twice, firstly to Mary Longfield (or possibly Brereton) in 1874, who died in 1876, and then to Elizabeth Reade in 1891. He had three children, one of whom was General Michael O'Moore Creagh.

He was commissioned into the 95th (Derbyshire) Regiment of Foot in 1866 and went to India in 1869, being transferred to the British Indian Army in 1870.

Second Anglo-Afghan War

Creagh was 31 years old, and a captain in the Bombay Staff Corps during the Second Anglo-Afghan War when the following deed on 22 April 1879 at Kam Dakka, on the Kabul River, Afghanistan, took place for which he was awarded the VC:

On the 21st April Captain Creagh was detached from Dakka with two Companies of his Battalion to protect the village of Kam Dakka on the Cabul River, against a threatened incursion of the Mohmunds, and reached that place the same night. On the following morning the detachment, 150 men, was attacked by the Mohmunds in overwhelming numbers, about 1,500 ; and the inhabitants of Kam Dakka having themselves taken part with the enemy, Captain Creagh found himself under the necessity of retiring from the village. He took up a position in a cemetery not far off, which he made as defensible as circumstances would admit of, and this position he held against all the efforts of the enemy, repeatedly repulsing them with the bayonet until three o'clock in the afternoon, when he was relieved by a detachment sent for the purpose from Dakka. The enemy were then finally repulsed, and being charged by a troop of the 10th Bengal Lancers, under the command of Captain D. M. Strong, were routed and broken, and great numbers of them driven into the river. The Commander-in-Chief in India has expressed his opinion that but for the coolness, determination, and gallantry of the highest order, and the admirable conduct which Captain Creagh displayed on this occasion the detachment under his command would, in all probability, have been cut off and destroyed.

Later career

In 1878 he became Captain of the Merwara battalion, commanding them from 1882 until 1886. He assumed command of the 29th (Duke of Connaught's Own) Bombay Infantry (2nd Baluch Battalion) in 1890, and was promoted to Assistant Quarter-master General in 1896. He commanded the Indian contingent during the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900. He was appointed K.C.B in 1904 and promoted to full General in 1907, becoming the Military Secretary to the India Office the same year.

Creagh succeeded Lord Kitchener as Commander-in-Chief, India in 1909, retiring in 1914. During World War I, he served as the military advisor to the Central Association of Volunteer Training Corps. He died at 65 Albert Hall Mansions, London SW9 on 9 August 1923.

His Victoria Cross is displayed at the National Army Museum in Chelsea, London, England.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O%27Moore_Creagh
http://www.richmond.gov.uk/home/leis...ore_creagh.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/129th_D...s_Own_Baluchis
http://archive.org/details/bookofvictoriacr00stewuoft

[jembo]

William George Nicholas Manley VC, CB (17 December 1831 – 16 November 1901) was born in Dublin and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

(The image of the Iron Cross is by way of example only)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William...icholas_Manley
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_land_wars
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...r&GRid=9726383
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franco-Prussian_War

[jembo]

Colonel Richard Kirby Ridgeway VC CB (18 August 1848 – 11 October 1924) was born in Oldcastle, County Meath and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

He was 31 years old, and a captain in the Bengal Staff Corps, Indian Army, and 44th Gurkha Rifles (later 1/8th Gurkha Rifles), Indian Army during the Naga Hills Expedition when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 22 November 1879 during the final assault on Konoma, Eastern Frontier of India, under heavy fire from the enemy, Captain Ridgeway rushed up to a barricade and attempted to tear down the planking surrounding it to enable him to effect an entrance. While doing this he was wounded severely in the right shoulder.
He later achieved the rank of colonel. He died Harrogate, Yorkshire, 11 October 1924
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Kirby_Ridgeway
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11792219
http://mamguis.blogspot.co.uk/2009/0...s-in-naga.html
http://archive.org/details/bookofvictoriacr00stewuoft
Attached Images

[jembo]

Colonel John Crimmin VC CB CIE VD (19 March 1859, at Kilballyowen, Bruff, Co. Limerick – 20 February 1945) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He also served as the Hon. Physician to H.M. The King.

He was 29 years old, and a Surgeon in the Bombay Medical Service, Indian Army during the Karen-Ni Expedition, Burma when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

On 1 January 1889, in the action near Lwekaw, Eastern Karenni, Burma (now Myanmar), a lieutenant and four men charged into a large body of the enemy and two men were wounded. Surgeon John Crimmin attended one of them under enemy fire and he then joined the firing line and helped in driving the enemy from small clumps of trees where they had taken shelter. Later while Surgeon Crimmin was attending a wounded man several of the enemy rushed out at him. He thrust his sword through one of them, attacked a second and a third dropped from the fire of a sepoy. The remainder fled.

He later achieved the rank of Colonel and served in the Indian Medical Service, for which was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE) in 1901

He died at Woodward House, Wells, Somerset, 20 February 1945.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Crimmin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Indian_Empire
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11297816

[jembo]

General James Travers VC CB (6 October 1820 – 1 April 1884) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

James Travers came from a distinguished Anglo-Irish military family, and all seven of his brothers (three of whom were killed in India) served in the armed forces. They were the sons of Major-General Sir Robert Travers (1770–1834) C.B., K.C.M.G., of the 95th Rifle Brigade, who was one of six brothers who again all served in the military, and one of three to be knighted for their services, including Rear-Admiral Sir Eaton Stannard Travers (1777–1858), who was engaged in battle with the enemy upwards of over one hundred times, and was mentioned in dispatches eight times for gallantry. James Travers grew up in County Cork, where the first of his ancestors to be born there, Sir Robert Travers M.P., was killed at the Battle of Knocknarness in 1647.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Travers
http://www.victoriacross.org.uk/nnworldw.htm
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11867208
http://archive.org/details/bookofvictoriacr00stewuoft

[jembo]

George Rowland Patrick Roupell VC CB (7 April 1892 – 4 March 1974) was born in Tipperary and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

George Roupell was born into a military family; his father, Francis F. F. Roupell, having served with the British Army in the 70th Regiment and commanded the 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment between 1895 and 1899. George's father had married Edith Maria Bryden at Kingston in 1887.
George was educated at Rossall School and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was commissioned in the East Surrey Regiment, 2 March 1912 and was appointed lieutenant on 29 April 1914, shortly before the outbreak of the First World War.
World War I
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_...atrick_Roupell
http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/vc/vc03.html
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~dccfarr/Hill60.htm
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=10350278
Attached Images 220px-George_Roupell_VC.jpg (14.9 KB, 0 views)

[jembo]

Major Michael John O'Leary VC (29 September 1890 – 2 August 1961) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. O'Leary achieved his award for single-handedly charging and destroying two German barricades defended by machine gun positions near the French village of Cuinchy, in a localised operation on the Western Front during the First World War.

At the time of his action, O'Leary was a nine-year veteran of the British armed forces and by the time he retired from the British Army in 1921, he had reached the rank of lieutenant. He served in the army again during the Second World War, although his later service was blighted by periods of ill-health. At his final retirement from the military in 1945, O'Leary was an Army major in command of a prisoner of war camp. Between the wars, O'Leary spent many years employed as a police officer in Canada and is sometimes considered to be a Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross. Following the Second World War he worked as a building contractor in London, where he died in 1961.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_O%27Leary_(VC)
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...r&GRid=8480928

[jembo]

Claude Joseph Patrick Nunney VC DCM MM (24 December 1892 – 18 September 1918) was a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Born in Dublin, Ireland, by birth he was Irish but became a Canadian citizen by naturalization.

Nunney was one of seven Canadians to be awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions on 2 September 1918. The other six Victoria Cross recipients were William Metcalf, Cyrus Wesley Peck, John Francis Young, Walter Leigh Rayfield, Bellenden Hutcheson and Arthur George Knight.

There has been some debate as to Nunney's origins. Whilst Nunney himself stated he was born in Dublin Ireland, it is claimed he was actually born in Hastings, England as Stephen Sargent Claude Nunney. Also it is claimed that Nunney did not become a Canadian citizen by naturalization process, but by becoming part of a child emigration scheme known as British Home Children.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_...Patrick_Nunney
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...r&GRid=9713266

[jembo]

General Sir Edward Pemberton Leach VC KCB KCVO (2 April 1847 – 27 April 1913) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Sir Edward born in Derry, Ireland, and was educated at Highgate School, England.

Leach was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in 1866.
He was 31 years old, and a captain in the Corps of Royal Engineers, British Army and with Bengal Sappers and Miners (British Indian Army) during the Second Anglo-Afghan War when the following deed took place on 17 March 1879 near Maidanah, Afghanistan for which he was awarded the VC'
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Pemberton_Leach
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11399018

[jembo]

Martin Joseph Moffat VC (15 April 1882 – 5 January 1946) was born in Sligo and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Moffat first served in the Connaught Rangers and was 34 years old private in the 2nd Battalion, Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment, British Army during the First World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Moffat
http://ypres.get-started-with.com/20...-october-1918/
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11190783
http://www.victoriacross.org.uk/vvashcr3.htm

[jembo]

Lieutenant Colonel John Augustus Conolly VC (30 May 1829 – 23 December 1888), born in Celbridge, County Kildare, Ireland, was an Irish VC recipient.
He was 25 years old, and a lieutenant in the 49th Regiment of Foot, British Army during the Crimean War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Augustus_Conolly
http://www.shinycapstar.com/conolly.htm
http://archive.org/details/bookofvictoriacr00stewuoft
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...r&GRid=7706604

[jembo]

John Connors VC (October 1830 – 29 January 1857) was born in Davaugh, Listowel, County Kerry, Ireland and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Connors was approximately 24 years old, and a private in the 3rd Regiment of Foot (later The East Kent Regiment (The Buffs)), British Army during the Crimean War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Connors
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_o...4%E2%80%931855)
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11296055

[jembo]

William Frederick "Billy" McFadzean VC (9 October 1895 – 1 July 1916) was born in Lurgan, County Armagh. From Ulster, he was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

McFadzean was a 20 year old rifleman in the 14th Battalion, The Royal Irish Rifles, British Army during the First World War. On 1 July 1916, during the Battle of the Somme near Thiepval Wood, France, a box of hand grenades slipped into a crowded trench. Two of the safety pins in the grenades were dislodged. McFadzean threw himself on top of the grenades, which exploded, killing him but only injuring one other.

His citation read:


No. 14/18278 Pte. William Frederick McFadzean, late R. Ir. Rif. For most conspicuous bravery. While in a concentration trench and opening a box of bombs for distribution prior to an attack, the box slipped down into the trench, which was crowded with men, and two of the safety pins fell out. Private McFadzean, instantly realising the danger to his comrades, with heroic courage threw himself on the top of the Bombs. The bombs exploded blowing him to pieces, but only one other man was injured. He well knew his danger, being himself a bomber, but without a moment's hesitation he gave his life for his comrades.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William...rick_McFadzean
http://www.culturenorthernireland.or...m-mcfadzean-vc
http://en.wikipedia.org/http://www.b...lwiki/Thiepval
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...r&GRid=9520163

[jembo]

Peter McManus VC (March 1829 – 27 April 1859) was born in Tynan, County Armagh, was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

McManus was approximately 28 years old, and a private in the 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment of Foot (later The Northumberland Fusiliers), British Army during the Indian Mutiny when the following deed took place on 26 September 1857 at Lucknow, India for which he and Private John Ryan was awarded the VC:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_McManus
http://www.scotchirish.net/forum/ind...showtopic=3270
http://www.victoriacross.org.uk/ggingtom.htm
http://archive.org/dhttp://www.finda...iacr00stewuoft
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=11718435

[jembo]

John McGovern VC (16 May 1825 – 22 November 1888) (Also known as McGOWAN) was born in the parish of Templeport in Tullyhaw, County Cavan, Ireland, was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.


He was 32 years old, and a private in the 1st Bengal European Fusiliers (later The Royal Munster Fusiliers), Bengal Army during the Indian Mutiny when the following deed took place on 23 June 1857 at Delhi, India for which he was awarded the VC:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McGovern_(VC)
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...r&GRid=7033122
http://archive.org/details/bookofvictoriacr00stewuoft