Monuments to Courage
Encyclopedia
Monuments to Courage: Victoria Cross Monuments and Headstones is a two-volume book by David Harvey
on the last resting places of 1,322 of the 1,350 recipients of the Victoria Cross
. The 896 page book has over 5,000 illustrations and a large index enabling one to cross reference with ease. There is no ISBN. The book also features an introduction by HRH Princess Alexandra
and a foreword by Australia
n VC recipient Sir Roden Cutler
.
Each of the entries gives the date of birth, date of action and brief details of the VC action, and date of death and place of burial or cremation where applicable. Where possible, photographs of the individual, his grave and any memorial were included. Excluding the recent Iraq war recipient (Johnson Beharry
), 28 VC recipients were still alive at the time the book went to press and several have since died.
The research for this massive work took Harvey 36 years of travelling to 48 countries in his search for unknown graves. His interest in the topic was awakened in the early 1960s when he assisted William Lummis into his researches into VC recipients.
Harvey died in 2004, aged 57, following the long-term effects of an accident that confined him to a wheelchair
. He received notable obituaries in The Daily Telegraph
and The Independent
.
David Charles Harvey
David Charles Harvey was an historian and author born in East Ham, London. He is notable for his seminal work Monuments To Courage which documents the graves of almost all recipients of the Victoria Cross, a task which took him over 36 years to complete.Harvey was the son of a grocer and worked...
on the last resting places of 1,322 of the 1,350 recipients 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 896 page book has over 5,000 illustrations and a large index enabling one to cross reference with ease. There is no ISBN. The book also features an introduction by HRH Princess Alexandra
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy is the youngest granddaughter of King George V of the United Kingdom and Mary of Teck. She is the widow of Sir Angus Ogilvy...
and a foreword by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n VC recipient Sir Roden Cutler
Arthur Roden Cutler
Sir Roden Cutler, was an Australian diplomat, the longest serving Governor of New South Wales and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth armed forces.-Early life:Arthur Roden Cutler was born on...
.
Each of the entries gives the date of birth, date of action and brief details of the VC action, and date of death and place of burial or cremation where applicable. Where possible, photographs of the individual, his grave and any memorial were included. Excluding the recent Iraq war recipient (Johnson Beharry
Johnson Beharry
Lance Corporal Johnson Gideon Beharry VC of the 1st Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, is a British Army soldier who, on 18 March 2005, was awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration for valour in the British and Commonwealth armed forces, for twice saving members of...
), 28 VC recipients were still alive at the time the book went to press and several have since died.
The research for this massive work took Harvey 36 years of travelling to 48 countries in his search for unknown graves. His interest in the topic was awakened in the early 1960s when he assisted William Lummis into his researches into VC recipients.
Harvey died in 2004, aged 57, following the long-term effects of an accident that confined him to a wheelchair
Wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing...
. He received notable obituaries in The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
and The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
.