Alfred Alexander Burt
Encyclopedia
Alfred Alexander Burt was an English
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.
in The Hertfordshire Regiment, British Army
during the First World War
when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
On 27 September 1915 at Cuinchy
, France
, Corporal Burt's company was ready to attack when a large minenwerfer
bomb fell into the trench. Knowing full well the destructive powers of this bomb the corporal, who might easily have got under cover behind a traverse, went forward, put his foot on the fuse, wrenched it out of the bomb and threw it over the parapet, and so saved the lives of many of his comrades.
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
recipient of the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross 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....
, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
forces.
Details
He was 20 years old, and a corporalCorporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
in The Hertfordshire Regiment, British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
during the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
On 27 September 1915 at Cuinchy
Cuinchy
Cuinchy is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:A farming village some east of Béthune and southwest of Lille, at the junction of the D166 and the D166E3 roads, by the banks of the Canal-d’Aire....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Corporal Burt's company was ready to attack when a large minenwerfer
Minenwerfer
Minenwerfer is the German name for a class of short range mortars used extensively during the First World War by the German Army...
bomb fell into the trench. Knowing full well the destructive powers of this bomb the corporal, who might easily have got under cover behind a traverse, went forward, put his foot on the fuse, wrenched it out of the bomb and threw it over the parapet, and so saved the lives of many of his comrades.
The medal
His Victoria Cross is displayed at Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment Museum at the Wardown Park Museum in LutonLuton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
.
External links
- Location of grave and VC medal (Hertfordshire)
- Bedfordshire Regiment
- Herts Memories