William Amey
Encyclopedia
William Amey VC
MM
(5 March 1881 – 28 May 1940) 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.
Amey was 37 years old, and a lance-corporal in the 1/8th Battalion, The Royal Warwickshire Regiment, British Army
during the First World War
when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC.
On 4 November 1918 at Landrecies
, France
, when many hostile machine-gun nests were missed by the leading troops owing to fog, Lance-Corporal Amey led his section against a machine-gun nest under heavy fire and drove the garrison into a neighbouring farm, finally capturing 50 prisoners and several machine-guns. Later, single-handed and under heavy fire he attacked a machine-gun post in a farmhouse, killed two of the garrison and drove the remainder into a cellar until assistance arrived. Subsequently he rushed a strongly held post, capturing 20 more prisoners.
He later achieved the rank of corporal
, and was demobilised in 1919. Amey is buried at All Saint's Churchyard, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers Museum (Royal Warwickshire), in St John's House
, Warwick
, England.
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....
MM
Military Medal
The Military Medal was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other services, and formerly also to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land....
(5 March 1881 – 28 May 1940) was an English
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.
Amey was 37 years old, and a lance-corporal in the 1/8th Battalion, The Royal Warwickshire 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 4 November 1918 at Landrecies
Landrecies
Landrecies is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It is the site of a skirmish between the British I Corps under Douglas Haig and the German Fifth Army on 25 August 1914.-Heraldry:-People:...
, 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...
, when many hostile machine-gun nests were missed by the leading troops owing to fog, Lance-Corporal Amey led his section against a machine-gun nest under heavy fire and drove the garrison into a neighbouring farm, finally capturing 50 prisoners and several machine-guns. Later, single-handed and under heavy fire he attacked a machine-gun post in a farmhouse, killed two of the garrison and drove the remainder into a cellar until assistance arrived. Subsequently he rushed a strongly held post, capturing 20 more prisoners.
He later achieved the rank of corporal
Corporal
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....
, and was demobilised in 1919. Amey is buried at All Saint's Churchyard, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers Museum (Royal Warwickshire), in St John's House
St John's House Museum, Warwick
St John's House Museum is a historic house located in Warwick, just east of the town centre, in Warwickshire, England. It is now a museum, run by Warwickshire County Council, and has had a varied history spanning almost 400 years. To the side of the house is a small garden belonging to St John's...
, Warwick
Warwick
Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England. The town lies upon the River Avon, south of Coventry and just west of Leamington Spa and Whitnash with which it is conjoined. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 23,350...
, England.
External links
- Burial location of William Amey "Warwickshire"
- Location of William Amey's Victoria Cross "Royal Warwickshire Regiment Museum"