Canadian War Museum acquires three Victoria Crosses from the First World War

Victoria Cross Medal Set, Second Lieutenant Edmund De Wind; CWM 20180393-001 Tilston Memorial Collection of Canadian Military Medals; Canadian War Museum; other photos available on request. (Photo: CNW Group/Canadian War Museum)

OTTAWA, ON, Nov. 1, 2022 /CNW/ – The Canadian War Museum is pleased to announce the acquisition of three Victoria Crosses from the First World War. These were awarded to Second Lieutenant Edmund De Wind, Sergeant Thomas William Holmes, and Private James Peter Robertson. With these acquisitions, the War Museum is now home to 36 of 73 Victoria Crosses awarded to Canadians who fought in the First World War.

“We are pleased to be able to acquire these three Victoria Crosses, the highest honour for military valour,” said Dr. Dean F. Oliver, Acting Vice-President and Director General of the Canadian War Museum. “Each medal highlights a personal story of exceptional bravery under extraordinary circumstances.”

Second Lieutenant Edmund De Wind, 15th Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions on March 21, 1918 at the Race Course Redoubt near Grugies, France. Despite being wounded twice, De Wind defended this redoubt for a period of seven hours, repelling attack after attack, until another section could arrive to help. He was fatally wounded during one of the final attacks.

Sergeant Thomas William Holmes and Private James Peter Robertson each received the Victoria Cross for their actions on different dates during the assault on Passchendaele, one of the most epic and tragic battles of the First World War.

On October 26, 1917, while German pillbox defences were keeping two waves of the Canadian Corps bogged down, Sergeant Holmes, 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles, noticed a lull in firing and attacked with hand grenades while the enemy was reloading. After killing and wounding the crews of two machine guns, he returned, under heavy fire, with more grenades and threw one into the pillbox entrance, causing the 19 occupants to surrender.

Private James Peter Robertson, 27th Canadian Infantry Battalion, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions on November 6, 1917. When his platoon was held up that day during an attack to capture Passchendaele, Robertson dashed to an opening on the flank, captured a machine gun, and inflicted several casualties among the enemy. Later, when two of his snipers were badly wounded in front of his trench, Robertson carried them back under severe fire. He was killed as he returned with the second man.

The purchase of these medals was made possible with support from the National Collection Fund and from individual donors. The Robertson Victoria Cross was purchased with support from Honorary Colonel (Ret’d) Brian Hastings.

The War Museum is home to 42 Victoria Crosses. In addition to 36 from the First World War, the Museum holds five from the Second World War and one from the 19th century. A total of 99 Victoria Crosses have been awarded to Canadians, each one reflecting the outstanding heroism of ordinary people under extraordinary circumstances.

The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Its mission is to promote public understanding of Canada’s military history in its personal, national and international dimensions. Work of the Canadian War Museum is made possible in part through financial support of the Government of Canada.

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• A total of 628 Victoria Crosses (VCs) were awarded to soldiers who served as part of the British Empire during the First World War. This number includes VCs awarded to Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans, Indians, and Brits.
  
  
• Nine VCs were awarded to Canadians in the Canadian Expeditionary Force, for actions at Passchendaele. With the acquisition of the Robertson and Holmes VCs, the Canadian War Museum now holds eight of the nine. The other six medal sets held by the Museum include those of:
  • Lieutenant George Mullin, VC
  • Major Christopher O’Kelly, VC
  • Major General George Pearkes, VC
  • Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Shankland, VC
  • Lieutenant Hugh McKenzie, VC
  • Corporal Colin Fraser Barron, VC

The City of Edmonton holds the VC awarded to Private Cecil John Kinross.

• With the acquisition of the Holmes VC, the War Museum now holds all three VCs that are engraved “26th Oct. 1917” on the reverse. The other two were awarded to then-Captain Christopher O’Kelly and then-Lieutenant Robert Shankland.
  
  
• Sergeant Thomas Holmes also has the distinction of being one of the youngest recipients. When he originally enlisted in the 147th Battalion, on December 20, 1915, Holmes altered his birthday by a year and was accepted into the ranks. His actual birthdate was October 14, 1898, which would have made him just 19 when he undertook the action that led to his VC.
  
  
• The original VC awarded to Sergeant Holmes was believed to have been stolen from his home during a burglary in 1935. The current acquisition is the lower cross portion only of his official VC replacement. It was provided in 1935 and produced by Hancocks, the London jewellery house that has produced the Victoria Cross since 1856.
  
  
• The War Museum also holds the VC awarded to Sergeant Tommy Ricketts, who was only 17 years old when he received his VC for actions while serving in the British Army with the Newfoundland Regiment in Belgium in October 1918.
  
  
• The De Wind VC medal set was one of several presented for actions taken during the German Spring Offensive in 1918. In addition to the medal set, the War Museum also received a large collection of photos and letters related to De Wind.
  
  
• De Wind had been living in Canada when war broke out and originally served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force, including at Somme in 1916 and Vimy Ridge in 1917. He earned a commission and transferred to the British Army in 1917. In addition to the De Wind VC, the War Museum currently holds two other VC medal sets awarded to Irish-born recipients: Company Sergeant Major Frederick William Hall, VC, 8th Canadian Infantry Battalion; and Lieutenant Robert Hill Hanna, VC, 29th Canadian Infantry Battalion.