Everard Aloysius Lisle Phillipps
Encyclopedia
Everard Aloysius Lisle Phillipps VC
(28 May 1835 – 17 September 1857) 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.
. When the Indian Mutiny broke out in 1857, Phillipps' regiment was amongst the first to revolt. When the Queen's proclamation against the insurgents came, he had to read it out as he could speak the native tongue. Riding boldly forward while the bullets whistled round him, he began to read the proclamation, but before he got to the end of the first sentence his horse was shot from under him, and he fell to the ground, himself wounded by a stray bullet. Undeterred, he sprang to his feet and read through the whole proclamation from beginning to end before taking cover.
On the desertion of the Bengal Infantry, he then joined the 60th Rifles. He performed many gallant deeds, and in the months before his death he was wounded three times. At the Siege of Delhi
, he captured the Water Bastion with a small party and was killed in the streets on 17 September 1857. His death was recorded in the London Gazette on 18 September.
Ensign Phillipps was awarded the Victoria Cross fifty years after his death. His citation reads:
His VC is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at the Imperial War Museum
, London.
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....
(28 May 1835 – 17 September 1857) was an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
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
After attending St Edmund's College, Ware, in 1854 Everard Phillipps sailed for India to join the 11th Bengal Native InfantryBengal Native Infantry
The Bengal Native Infantry was part of the organisation of the East India Company's Bengal Army before the Indian rebellion of 1857.The infantry regiments underwent frequent changes of numbering during their period of existence...
. When the Indian Mutiny broke out in 1857, Phillipps' regiment was amongst the first to revolt. When the Queen's proclamation against the insurgents came, he had to read it out as he could speak the native tongue. Riding boldly forward while the bullets whistled round him, he began to read the proclamation, but before he got to the end of the first sentence his horse was shot from under him, and he fell to the ground, himself wounded by a stray bullet. Undeterred, he sprang to his feet and read through the whole proclamation from beginning to end before taking cover.
On the desertion of the Bengal Infantry, he then joined the 60th Rifles. He performed many gallant deeds, and in the months before his death he was wounded three times. At the Siege of Delhi
Siege of Delhi
The Siege of Delhi was one of the decisive conflicts of the Indian rebellion of 1857.The rebellion against the authority of the British East India Company was widespread through much of Northern India, but essentially it was sparked by the mass uprising by the sepoys of the units of the Army which...
, he captured the Water Bastion with a small party and was killed in the streets on 17 September 1857. His death was recorded in the London Gazette on 18 September.
Ensign Phillipps was awarded the Victoria Cross fifty years after his death. His citation reads:
His VC is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
, London.